Let's try this again...

[crossposted on LJ: see?]

Ok, it's been a.. while since I've written. Granted blogs were banned in China during the last month, but still, my writing/reflections since have all but ceased. At least in the public realm. See censorship works?

So in the last what, 6 months I have:

- gone to South Africa which was incredible but for all too short a time.

- spent a semester in Shanghai

- learned how to somewhat communicate in Mandarin (I can buy things and say "you don't want my friend to puke in your car do you?") and can write (minimally) to my Grandma in Chinese now

- gone to Beijing and seen Chinese communism in its most dominant form

- got food poisoning at least 4 times the first of which was from either Starbucks or Yoshinoya and NOT the supposedly unhygienic street food.

- turned 21 in a country where 21 really just means the year before 22.

- gone to Lijiang and Dali in Yunnan Province and experienced the ancient hippie Chinese culture complete with Naxi ethnic minority bonfire dances and being invited to dinner by a sweet man whose courtyard we'd stumbled upon during a spontaneous photo adventure

- learned how to (sort of) play the gu zheng

- unknowingly tried cat (unrelated to the food poisioning)

- interned at a Shanghai production company, She&Jul, and learned some of the differences between the media industry here and there (qualitywise) and realized just how much easier it would probably be to get a job abroad vs here. After all, it's a newer, rising industry, still not quite caught up which would make it more possible for someone like me to jump in, but it is, like everything else in China moving up quickly. Granted I probably would not choose to work at that particular company again but Shanghai as a future option? I think so.

- volunteered writing a college newsletter for expat kids/study abroad students at Lifeline Shanghai, a "non-profit" (yeah not going to get into the complexity/bureaucracy/utter ridiculousness of trying to be a non-profit in China) with those two internships, got a taste of Chinese Shanghai business and Expat Shanghai business.

- experienced one of the truest representations of Chinese population density while climbing Huangshan Mountain... and took a sketchy ride in a mian bao che ("bread" van) w/ 5 friends in order to get back to the NYU group

- helped a friend get a refund from fake purse vendors who completely ripped her off (impossible in China)

- learned just how much everyone missed Western food when my friend threw a pasta party.

- helped organize a festival fundraiser with local and foreign students alike, complete with talent portion, food, games, prizes and a date auction. also met some great local Chinese kids (talent portion!) in the process.

- two words: roller revival

- tagged a wall after photographing a friend's art project: a stealth graffiti session in the wee hours

- Shanghai nightlife. KTV, clubs, bars, food, ex-pat, local, hip-hop, pop, Chinese music, anything and everything.

- gone back to primitive times spending the last 3 weeks + sans phone and watch.

- night biked around Shanghai, biked around Erhai Lake in Yunnan, biked to Trustmart. biked.

- Shot a doc on the (pretty much nonexistent) hip-hop scene in Shanghai. On the HVX 200, word HD. With a "crane" shot (ok, it was an escalator but who can tell?)

- Shanghai old, Shanghai new.

- went down to Beichuan county in Sichuan Province with the Sichuan Relief Mission and spent a week living in a village in one of the most devastated areas of last May's earthquake. This was by far the most intense experience of my life mentally, physically, emotionally. I still haven't had the concentration to write and fully reflect on this. I don't know why exactly I've been avoiding it but it's hard. But in terms of "stuff," other parts of the experience included:
- a 37 hour train ride down to Jiangyou and 37 hours back to Shanghai. I highly recommend this form of traveling to everyone - nothing compares to the ambiguous sense of time you get spending 2 nights on a moving train and seeing the landscape transform along the way.
- working with some of the most adorable and positive children I have ever seen.
- hearing too many unbelievable stories about loss of life and loved ones from the local villagers. Even with the language barrier, some things are truly universal.
- evading PLA (PLA!) guards and getting into one of China's most guarded areas - the actual city of Beichuan at the earthquake's epicenter, which is now in all senses of the word, a ghost town.
- and shooting a motherfucking DOCUMENTARY film in the process. How's that for a DP credit?
- As is with all volunteer missions the work is never done. There's still so much yet and hopefully this doc will help spread the word about what has/hasn't happened down there. A follow-up trip in December is in the works.

- and more.

So that was China. In the briefest way possible. This of course does no justice to the experience and no form of writing, photography or any other record will ever. But it's a start. And one thing's for sure, I need to go back.

and what's up next?

- moving into a new place in Greenpoint, said adios to the Ave A place a little while ago, I will miss that neighborhood but this new one if full of Thai restaurants, Polish delis and less pseudo artsy people.
- need to actually finish editing this movie I shot in Fall semester. More on that later.
- continuing to work at A/P/A
- looking for a job more in line with my industry
- the Sichuan doc enters post-production
- LIFE

All in all, I think I've got a brighter perspective on things. I learned a lot while away, tolerance, appreciation for family, endless lessons still. Again I say this now and moods change but for now it's good. Seriously what more could I ask for?