Hello Comrades,

I am trying to learn more about Chinese history and culture. I have some specific questions.

I often read about young children joining the PLA to learn specific skill that they cannot learn in civil life. Is this something that happened in the past or is this still the case?

I have one Chinese friend (now living in Thailand) who says he would have some sort of army training during holidays. He was born in 1984. Though military training appears not to be mandatory in China these days, is it still normal for people to volunteer to do some training?

If you can provide any references to websites as well, I would appreciate that.

Thanks... Tautau

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/04/2008 09:35PM by Olive.

I bet he must mean boot camp rather than military training. If you directly translate root camp from Chinese into English, then it will mean military training. Therefore, you and him must get confused about these two.

Boot camp is very common when for the freshmen in colleage in China and normally it takes about 1 month during the first summer break. And it is not a big deal not something as you mentioned in which people can learn the specific skill that they can not learn in civil life..

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 12/04/2008 05:45PM by Zjhzlk.

Boot camp does indeed make more sense. I guess he experiened this when he went to University in Beijing. He indeed mentioned a one month training, mostly playing basketball.

Few more questions: What do these freshmen do at boot camp? It this to culture their minds and train their bodies or so. Do they remain in military dormitories and is there a relation between such boot camps and the military at all?

I also read a book of Jin Xing, who writes about going into the army as a child to get dancing lessons and she would later become a colonel, before she pursued a professional dance career as a female.

My particular interest is regarding these kind of boot camp trainings in the early 1980s. Would it also make sense that these boot camps inspire those youngsters to pursue a career in the army?

Thanks in advance for any additional information

Kind regards.... Tau

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/04/2008 08:28PM by Tautau.

Hi...Zjhzlk, can you then enlighten us about boot camp? Can you tell us specific things you did and specific skills you learned, and at what age and grade level?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/04/2008 08:41PM by Guestpass0001.

Inspire the youngster to pursue career in the army?- Hey, i would say absolutely not. It is really not something like you thought. As far as i'm and most chinese students concerned, it is a wasting of time. Honestly, we will forget all what we did in the boot camp 1 month later.

what we did during the boot camp training were something like standing under the sun for an hour without any movement, walking 10 milee with a heavy back pack and standing in a line to sing a song before the dinner (that's so silly), ect.

someone live in the military dormitories and some not, which depends on your school. I do not think there is a relation between boot camps and the military, and it is just a format.

Sorry i've no idea who jin xing is.

Oh boy, i had enough of that. I was really pissed at that time think about my precious 1 month vacation time was deprived for doing that! The good thing is there won't be anymore in the rest of my life.

Guestpass0001 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hi...Zjhzlk, can you then enlighten us about boot
> camp? Can you tell us specific things you did and
> specific skills you learned, and at what age and
> grade level?

I did it when i was in the elementary school (1 week), middle school(1 week), high school(1 week) and as a freshmen in university (1 month).

I've learned nothing but behaved like a robot by standing at the same spot for 30 mins without moving half inch if you wanna call that A KIND OF SKILLS

Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 12/04/2008 09:00PM by Zjhzlk.

That sounds like boot camp. Any benefit of travel?

Did you get yelled at and degraded

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/04/2008 09:37PM by Olive.

There isn't any benifit at all.

I got yelled several times but no punishment.

Wow, that does sound very boring. My friend told me he loved it and he would go to boot camps during holidays, as he thought it was a lot of fun. Perhaps he had most fun in the shower with the other boys, I guess.

Jin Xing is a famous choreographer and dancer in China. She resides in Shanghai, has 3 adopted children and is married to a young German guy. She is known for the fact that she changed her sex from male to female.

Tau

I love the boot camp. But I'm a teacher so I don't have to do it, I just get a month off extra because all my students are busy standing in the sun and marching in circles. haha

Thanks for your input. I like to see more replies. Also, somehow the subject title of my original post must have been changed. I can't remember having used the word ancient.

So if there are Mainland Chinese who have recent expeciences with bootcamp trainings, I would like to hear more about that. Also, if their are some more mature Chinese on this forum, what were this bootcamps like in the early 1980's? If the 80's are considered ancient times, o dear Buddha, than I must be considered born in ancient times.

Cheers... Tau