Old Trip to Xi'an

During my last month in China we went on a trip to a couple different cities. The first one was Xi'an, and I've finally put together the video from that trip! It features a few of my favourite moments from our time there: biking the city wall, checking out pagodas, and impressing ladies through the universal language of sweet roller skating moves.

Also, travelling tip here- Xi'an is home to the world famous Terracotta Warriors, a huge tourist attraction. The story goes that an emperor had the stone army made to protect him in the afterlife. My opinion however, is that if you're in Xi'an one day, don't bother with them. As you can see from how short their portion of the video is, I didn't think there was much to see. It's definitely impressive that people carved so many statues to such detail, but I wasn't blown away like I was in other places (like the Great Wall for example). So imagine hundreds of life-size statues, then hundreds more. That's the Terracotta Warriors, and there are thousands of 'em.

Well it's About Time

Lately I became a paid videographer.

Ok, so I took June off- stop living in the past. But now my video is up and playing on my school's website! I'm pretty excited to have this freelance opportunity while out here in China, and I had a good time making it too. Based on all that, I'd like to make some more videos! Hire me.

Or, here's the video in its natural habitat on the school's website. 

Beijing Video

Here's a short video I made from the Beijing trip, highlighting a few of the famous attractions we visited. I chose the song "Breathing Space" because I was pleasantly surprised by how green and spacious the city of Beijing is. I was picturing an overpowering concrete maze with yellow clouds of smog, but I actually found Beijing to be beautiful and convenient! Don't get me wrong though, it's still massive. Every building in that city is huge; it's a city on steroids. The only small thing in that whole city was our room in the hostel.
Enjoy!

"All These People are Dead Now"

Last week we escaped the room.

And here's the squad that did it.

There's an activity here in Jilin that we've done a couple times that's unlike anything I've ever experienced before. "Locked Room," as it's been translated to me, is essentially a place you get trapped inside and have to solve a series of puzzles to escape. In some ways, it's like a giant point-and-click game come to life. There are physical challenges (like throwing balls or grabbing keys), codes based on words, numbers, or characters, and all throughout you constantly need to use your environment to your advantage (like aiming and reflecting laser beams to hit sensors that will unlock a door, or finding a lock combination on a scrap of paper with a UV light).

So far, it's been extremely difficult. The answers often require uncanny creativity, and many times I've been thinking "I never would have thought of that" as we move from room to room. But last week, we did it. The goal is to finish all the puzzles to earn your freedom in under an hour, and we were successful. Full disclosure: a couple of us had already done this room before, but we stayed pretty quiet and quite honestly had forgotten most of the solutions anyways.

To those who escape, the reward is a picture of them on the wall. So now we have the honour of mounted fame, plus we'll be the only foreigners on the wall!

Here's a video from our first attempt at the same room, when we were not as successful...

From the Archive- Thailand

Today I'm opening the Archive.

In an effort to catch up on all the footage I have lying around, I hope to (in time) create videos of these little experiences I've had during my time away. It'll really clear up some space in my apartment, and hopefully someone somewhere will find some part of it interesting.

So today, I begin with a video from my trip to Thailand this past February. For some reason, although I was in one of the most beautiful locations I've ever witnessed, I was far too relaxed and usually couldn't be bothered to bring or use my camera. As a result, the video is a very short and admittedly erratic collection of clips. Enjoy.

Weddings in Northeast China: A Northeastern Chinese Tradition

This year I went to a Chinese wedding.

Confetti everywhere!

Ok, you caught me- this one happened a couple months ago. But I'm finally posting the video that I made for the bride and groom so you can enjoy it too! Remember that this was for the couple, so I was going for a romantic theme, but I think you can also appreciate all the interesting and unexpected traditions that go along with getting hitched in China. Some of the steps involved in a perfect wedding day are:
- meet at the groom's house at 7:30 AM
- drive to the bride's house in a procession of decorated cars
- the groom had to bang on the his bride's bedroom door and plead to be let inside, and he even had to sing a song to be allowed entry
- the couple fed each other noodles (not an easy task with chopsticks and the fact that noodles all seem 6 feet long in China)
- pour coins on to the bride's dress
- the groom also had to find the bride's shoes which were hidden somewhere in her apartment
- drive back to the groom's house using a different route
- the wedding starts precisely at 10:58 AM

Most of these traditions and protocols are for luck and good fortune, and at the very least the make for a really interesting wedding experience. The biggest thing that I took from this experience is the realization that if I ever get married, there's going to be a bubble machine. Having bubbles pouring everywhere is just beautiful and romantic, and I think every man deserves that on his special day.

Here's the video! 

The Bank

Tonight I'll tell you about The Bank.

Although I haven't travelled to enough places, I try to play basketball wherever I go. And in China, I think I've found my favorite court. It's a secret spot, but since you know me, I can probably get you in. The Bank is located under the rainbow bridge in the Wanda neighbourhood of Jilin, and it's one of the most perfect spots I've ever played at. The people are friendly, and very willing to let me join games, which is fantastic because I don't own a basketball. There are six full courts, so there's plenty of room if you just want to relax and shoot around, or you can join up and get into some pretty great action!

Check out this tiny video I made to express my love for The Bank.

Vacation to Dalian

A couple weeks ago I went to Dalian.

On my summer vacation, a couple teachers and I travelled south to the province of Liaoning to visit Dalian. Check out the video I made about the trip; I basically tried to give you a feel for the whole thing. Now you don't have to go through all the work of going to Dalian yourself! This video has it all: penguins, parks, and even some puppies. So if you like any of those things and more, enjoy!

Unfortunately, I was unable to get footage during two of my trip's biggest highlights. So in lieu of moving pictures, let me attempt to paint a video with my words. The first highlight was racing unlicensed motorcycle taxis through the streets of Dalian at night.

Flickering Lights

Last week I went to the River Lantern Festival.

My friend Anastasia and I went to check it out, and the festival makes for a simple and beautiful night. I made a video of it that hopefully captures that vibe. You get to see the poor YouTube quality version! Enjoy.

Songhua Lake Trip

Last week I went to Songhua Lake.

We took a relaxing overnight trip and it was really nice to get out and breathe some fresh air! Here's a video I made about the trip. Enjoy!