Public Transportation

Public transportation always proved to be entertaining.  Although it could be quite hectic and draining just to get the group from one place to another in one peice, it was always interesting.  From the people on the trains to the people in the terminals, there was always something that captured everyones attention.

The train rides were always hit or miss in terms of how smoothy we could transport the group.  Sometimes, it was quite simple to get everyone loaded on the subway and back off at the proper destination.  Other times it was a game of rounding up the Bejing students who had stopped to shop or take pictures.  In the mornings and evenings there was the rush-hour factor that made it difficult to get the entire group on a train at once.  While on the train, many people would stare or whisper when the large group of students from China boarded.  This was due to both the fact that they were foreign, but also to the fact that the Chinese students and teachers have a very different understanding of 'Personal Space'.  It was not uncommon that the Chinese people stood very close to others, or even touched.  To Americans, it seems like an invasion of space, but to them its quite normal to be at such close range.