BEIJING YOUTH VOICES

Linda – Children are More Selfish These Days: Parents Spoiling Children

beijingyouthvoices — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 02:45:47 +0000

Now a days children are becoming more and more selfish I think.

They think they are the center of the whole world. And they don’t care for their friends and parents. They even think they can do anything if they want to. And the reason for why they think they can do things without restriction? Well I think their parents have responsibility for that. They shouldn’t have obeyed some requests that are unreasonable from their child. And they give their kids too much love that their child cannot become independent.

Once I was on a bus, I was sitting there and felt very tired. At that time an old granny(about 65~70) and a young boy(10~15). When I saw the old granny I stood up immediately and told her that I could let her sit on my seat. To my surprise, she brought her grandson and then the boy sat down and starting looking at the landscape outside. I felt disappointment and could say nothing.

I sincerely hope that all the parents can think about these problems carefully. Think about their behaviour, thoughts and so on. Please.

Linda – The Empty Streets Before the Crowds Came

beijingyouthvoices — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 02:32:04 +0000

Look at the cleanly prepared streets! Just waiting for the Olmpics. You can guess the traffic conditions . You can see beautiful scene everywhere. Here are some photos of below before all the crowds came to Beijing. The last picture is of my eating cheerios when I noticed the Olympics rings. There are signs of it everywhere!

Linda – A Crazy Day of Interviewing and Running Around: Stopped by Mall Officials

beijingyouthvoices — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 02:32:05 +0000

“Ring ring ring”
I received a message, “Tomorrow 4:00 pm. We will meet at Tous Les Jours cafe…”

I thought oh, I have a geography class at 6 pm. It’s far away from Tous Les Jours cafe. So I replied immediately, “I got it. But I have a class at 6:00 pm. I can get there earlier so that I can leave earlier because my school is far away from Tous Les Jours cafe.”

Then our teacher, Mrs Xu replied, “Well, you can come here at 3:20, so that then you can leave when you finish your task.”

When I hurried there, i arrived at 3:30pm. I started doing my work, took photos and then delivered the photos I had taken. Then I noticed that Steven still hadn’t turned up. At that moment, my teacher’s mobile phone was ringing. I thought it might be Steven. It was Steven! He said, “Hi, is that teacher? This is Steven. I’m lost. I forget the name of that bus station in front of Tous Les Jours cafe?” Then our teacher explained quite clearly how to take the bus and where to change it.
…
10 minutes later, he appeared. We all started to tease him. We often met at this cafe but he could never remember the bus stop name…

Well. It’s time to do more interviewing. Steven and I decided to go to the shopping mall, because we thought it was really convenient and cool. Unluckily, we still could not find a person who would agree to an interview. So we wanted to go outside where there were more people. But right as we got on the elevator we found two girls who looked like college students. We made our mind to try again so we asked, “Excuse me. We are from What Kids Can Do and Adobe. Can we ask you some questions about the Olympics? It won’t be very long.” After looking our credentials they agreed.

The interview was relaxedness and funny. Right at that moment, a staff of the shopping mall came close to us…

“Excuse me, can you let me know what are you doing? Are you interviewing?”
He asked. “Yes, we are asking some questions about the Olympics. If you want, we can interview you too.” “No. I mean… can you come to our manager’s office? We are told to pay more attention to the interviewers, you know. ” “Well, I know.” Steven followed him, I finished my interview then went to the office in a hurry.

“You know, here is close to the Olympic stadium. So we must pay attention to the interviewings.”
The manager said. “So, can I know the questions?”
“Of course. We showed them our question list of interviewing” They made a copy which took them a long time. Let me say, it should be about 20 minutes, I think. During that time, we called our teacher and told her details. She asked if she needed to talk to the maneger, we said: “it is fine here. Do not need her to be here. We will be back soon.”

20 minutes later we were back to the cafe.

“Oh my!” I looked my watch. It was 5:00pm. There’s no time to rest. I must go. Fortunately, teacher and other students could go with me.

First, we took a taxi. And we hurried to the line 5. It was 5:15pm. Then at the transfer station we took line10—a new subway line. It was 5:35. Finally, I took a taxi. when I got there , it was 5:55pm.

It was a hurried day that so many things happened. But it was more exciting, isn’t it?

(the photo above is a picture of Me, Steven and Kelen)

Kelen: Interview with a Music Teacher about the Olympics

beijingyouthvoices — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 02:08:55 +0000

Du Xiajiao is a music teacher I met in Beichen Shopping Mall. She is a nice lady. Before I met her, there were several people did not want to receive our interviewing. When we met her and talked to her about our interviewing. She said she would like to do it. I was super-happy. You will see my happy face in my picture.

Kelen: What’s your name?

Teacher: Du Xiajiao.

Kelen: What do you do for work?

Teacher: Music teacher.

Kelen: What is the great changes in Beijing Olympics?

Teacher: The environment of Beijing.

Kelen: You must be proud of our country hold the 29th Olympic Games?

Teacher: Of course. Beijing is my great hometown.

Kelen: Which sports will you follow most in the Beijing Olympics?

Teacher: Water sports are my favourite and I always go swimming with my friends.

Kelen: Which friendlies do you like best?

Teacher: Jing Jing(Panda) but all of them are lovely.

Kelen: Me too! I like panda best! Thank you. Goodbye~

E-mail: Interivew with Taxi Driver about the Olympics

beijingyouthvoices — Sat, 16 Aug 2008 06:46:41 +0000

I conducted an interview with a taxi driver about his thoughts on the Olympics. Enjoy!

我：你好。你叫什么名字？

hello,what’s your name?

司机：你好。我叫王杰。

driver: Hello,My name is WangJie

我：你是做什么工作的？

What do you work for?

司机：我是一名出租车司机

I am a taxi driver.

我：奥运接近了北京你感到了什么变化？

What kind of changes have you noticed in Beijing in the mounth leading up to the Olympics?

司机：啊。变化太大了。城市建设和人们的精神面貌都发生了很大的变化。

oh,yes,it is great changes in Beijing.the urban construction and the mental outlook all had changed a lot.

我：你认为大家对北京的改变是否是同一种方式？

Do you think that everyone experiences the changes the same way?

司机：恩是的

en,yes.

我：你认为会有人会被奥运负面的影响么？如果是的话会是谁？为什么？

Do you think someone poeple will be negatively affected by the Olympics,if so who and why?

司机：可能会有，因为人很多。什么样的情况都有可能发生。奥运一开，给大家交通，生活带来很多不便。但还是少数人不会理解

Maybe, because there are too many people so anything could happen. Olympics also may bring some traffic trouble or life troubles. Maybe a few people can’t understand.

我：奥林匹克运动会让你感到为中国自豪么？

Has the Olympics made you feel more proud of China and if so why?

司机：是的，因为是全世界的活动，大家都很自豪。

Yes, Because it is the global activity, all the Chinese people feel proud.

我：你买过奥运纪念物么？

Had you bought any Olympic souveneirs?

恩，买过，现在我车里挂的福娃就是奥运纪念物。

yes,now you can see the cosmat hanging in my car.

我：那我能给你照一张相么？

so, can I take a picture of you?

司机：哦，可以。

oh,yes.

我：你对奥运的哪项运动最感兴趣？为什么？

Which sports will you follow most in the Beijing Olympics and why?

司机：我对100米栏，刘翔的这个。还有中国男篮。姚明他们是不是会来。还有中国足球是否会走向世界。

I’m really interesting about 100 meters jump a hurdle like LiuXiang ,and Chinese men’s basketball, If YaoMing will come and whether Chinese footballer can step to the world.

我：你对谁最感兴趣呢？

Who do you most interesting?

司机：刘翔，姚明

LiuXiang, YaoMing.

我：为什么呢

Why?

司机：因为他们不但为我们中国人争光，也为亚洲人争光。

Because they not only brings honor for our Chinese, also brings honor for the Asian.

我：北京奥运对你有什么个人的影响么？

What impact has the Beijing Olympics had on you, personally?

司机：我是一名司机，奥运对交通加强了管制，影响了我的一些收入。但是毕竟是世界的活动。而且我们可以看到比赛

You see I’m a driver, Olympic Games strengthened the control to the transportation, It has affected my income. But it is the world activity after all so moreover we may see the competition.

我：你对北京奥运有什么担心的地方么？

What worries, if any,do you have about the Olympics?

司机：有。虽然有安全措施，但是避免不了有一些恐怖分子得蓄意破坏。

Yes, Even though there has security measure, But may not avoid some terrorist sabotage.

我：你认为在电视前看奥运和远离现场看有什么不一样的地方么？

What impressions about China do you hope foreigners who attend the Olympics or watch them on televisions take away with them?

司机：电视看的是画面，在现场时身临其境。感受下当场气氛

Well, In the TV, we just watch the some moving pictures, but, Is experiences personally in the scene. Feeling on the scene atmosphere.

我：你自己也会经常做运动么？

Do you often do some sports? What kind?

司机：是的经常.散步，游泳，打乒乓球。

Yes, I often do some walking, swimming, play ping-pong.

我：你大概每周做几小时的运动？

How many hours a week do you spend on there activities?

司机：基本上每天都要活动。

Mostly every day.

我：你认为健身是爱国的责任得表现么？

Do you see fitness as a patriotic duty?If so why?

司机：是的

Yes.

我：现在的社会竞争是残酷的。奥林匹克运动会是竞争为主的比赛。你是怎么看待奥林匹克运动会里的竞争的？

To be sure, competition lies at the heart of the Olympics and just about all sporting events. What do you think of the competitions in the Olmpic?

司机：竞争就有胜有负，中国提倡友谊第一比赛第二。但是还是赢了比较好

If has the compitition, there will have the winner and loser. The Chinese advocate friendship first competes second. But I still hope we can win.

我：你认为太多的竞争是不是会不好？

How can too much competition be bad?

司机：竞争本身没有不好的地方。身为运动员也有失败的时候。

Competition itself is not a mistake. Because the athlete also has defeat’s time.

我：很多人说中国人没有团队合作精神。你认为奥运来了能改变么？

Some people say Chinese people don’t know how to work well as a team. Do you think the Olympics has changed the concept of “teams” and “teamwork” in China?

司机：肯定因为奥林匹克能到北京来是很不容易的。奥运来了是运动员更有向心力

Of course it can change. It is not easy for the Olympics will be hold in Beijing.Becasue of the Olympic,The athlete will has centripetal force.

我：你注意到外国人开始多了么？

Are you more aware of other country’s now that many of them are coming to Beijing?

司机：是的每天都能看见

yes, Mostly everyday I can see

我：你对那些国家的人最感兴趣？

Which country’s person are you most interested to ?

司机：每个国家都感兴趣，对于那些先进的发达国家更感兴趣，是要学习他们的文化文明。

I’m interested in every countries’ person, more interesting about the people from developed countries. We can konw about their countries ‘culture.

我：你曾经注意过非中国运动员么？

Are you rooting for any non-Chinese athletes?

司机：注意了很多，像美国NBA的球星。

Yes, Many, such like the super star of NBA.

我：你认为奥运歌曲会被选定为哪个呢？哪首歌对你来说最有意义？

What do you think about the proposed olympic songs? Which ones should be chosen?What it means to you?

司机：我听得很少，我对音乐不是太敏感，我对这方面发表不了什么看法。

I have no idea about this question.

我：谢谢你

thank you!

Special Post from WKCD (What Kids Can Do)

beijingyouthvoices — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 17:55:09 +0000

After 6 months of the Beijing Youth Voices (BJV) blogging project , Dr. Barbara Cervone, Executive Director of WKCD, joined Tricia Wang, BJV Program Manager and Gloria Xu, BJV teacher, in China to work with the 6 BJV students for 1 week at the Adobe Beijing headquarters. Within 48 hours, Linda, Steve, E-mail, Kelen, Siqi and Iris produced amazing narrated, photos slideshows. You can find their six slideshows here, as they talk about the confluence of the Olympics and their daily lives. Before checking out their individual slideshows, we suggest that you listen and watch this special 5 minute audio slideshow on their thoughts around the Olympics. After following their lives for 6 months on this blog, we think you will be able to gain a new perspective when you hear their thoughts around this important event in their lives.

Hosting the 2008 Summer Olympics is a point of huge pride for Chinese of all ages. It is China’s debut on the world stage and they pray it is impeccable. For many Westerners and other non-Chinese, the Beijing Olympics offers a different—and no less urgent— storyline: about the suppression of dissent, the importance of human rights, the impact of environmental pollution, and more.

The Beijing youth whose voices and photos we share here speak from the first perspective. They love their country. They are smart and compassionate. They worked terrifically hard to produce these audio slideshows, and they offer them with open hearts. As outsiders, we may wish these six Beijing teenagers had taken up some of the issues that have stirred discussion and protest elsewhere in the world. But these are their stories—from youth who have big dreams for their country as well as for themselves.

We would like to give a special thank you to Adobe Beijing and Adobe Youth Voices for making this project possible. In particular, the Adobe Beijing staff was absolutely invaluable in empowering the students to tell their stories!

Enjoy!

Barbara Cervone, Tricia Wang and Gloria Xu

Siqi – Admirable Migrant Construction Workers: Building Beijing One Step at a Time for the Olympics

beijingyouthvoices — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 09:31:59 +0000

On July 19th, Mrs Xu, Steven and I went to the Yuan Da Du Park to discuss some blogs and we did some interviewing there. On the way there we were taking photos. Then I saw some workers building the construction for the subway. I saw a group of rural migrants with all kinds of tools. I lookeded at my watch. It was 2 o’clock in the afternoon! It is the hottest time in the day. I looked at them far away, they were trying hard to dig a hole. Their bodies were all wet and they looked like they had taken a shower just but really they were sweating. You could never imagine my feeling at that moment. I respected them. They were working hard to help us to build a more and more beautiful Beijing. Thanks my friends! Here’s the picture I took when they were building the the road. Did you see the new road?

Steven – My Community: A Small City

beijingyouthvoices — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 07:25:34 +0000

I live in an apartment near the fourth ring road. There are many shops under our building. My mother always buy some cookies at one of their shops.

If you go across the street, you can see a huge shopping mall. It is humongous! There are hundreds of shops in this mall including three big shops, a big sports club, a theatre and a supermaket. On the fifth floor of this building, there are many different restaurants, you can eat Chinese food, Japanese food, Korean food and some western food. And the Chinese food restaurants are the most popular, so you can eat many different Chinese meals. In another word, you can eat the food from everywhere in China! I think it’s really fantastic! I love the mall very much.

In addition, there are also some schools, and the elementary school attached to Renmin University of China is one of the best schools all over Beijing.

What’s more, there are many lawns near our community. In summer, old pepole and children are often playing on the lawns. My parents and I always go there to take a walk after supper.

In a word, it is really a good community.

The place I live.This is a garden in front of my house. It says, “No pets. No sliding. No riding.” Just for people has a safe place to take a walk.

Linda – Our Trip to the Karokee Place

beijingyouthvoices — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 07:15:00 +0000

My friends and I took a trip to sing some karokee. First, let’s see the map to make sure we know the way to our destination. Yes. It’s here! We will sing songs here. How exciting!

Now we are here!

Great! There has a computer. I can check my blog.

Well. The keyboard is special. Pay attention! If I can have one I will be very satisfied.

Linda – Olympic Site: We are So Proud

beijingyouthvoices — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 06:52:09 +0000

Although this is a stadium, it is beautiful. It looks ductile. I will pay much attention to the Olympic Games. What about you ? We all want to be a volunteer. But the process to become a volunteer is very competitive. Our citizens work hard. They will try their best to guarantee the Olympic Games. Look at the beautiful scenery.

Welcome you , anytime