Having spent some two and a half years in China over several visits ,I don’t remember ever going through a phase we in the United States refer to as "culture shock”. This period of difficulty in adjusting to a new culture would probably have set in during my semester at Peking University, my first extended period away from the University,my first extended period away from the United States .It did not .
Of course,this is not to say that I didn`t notice any differences between the American and Chinese cultures upon my arrival at Peking University .I certainly did notice the differences.Looking back,I remember one of the first differences I noticed: Chinese universities walled.
To an American, this is one of the most striking aspects of a Chinese university and one which immediately sets it apart from an American campus. Having grown up in the United States,I had never seen a university surrounded by high ,cement walls. My idea of a university, based on having seen scores of them in different states of the U.S, was that it was a place of life and learning, an integral part of the community in which it was located ,open not only to the students of the school itself, but fully accessible also to students from other schools and to the broader public.
semester n. 学期
cement n. 水泥，接合剂
inergral adj. 完整的，整体的，[数学]积分的，构成整体所需要的
accessible adj 易接近的，可到达的，易爱影响的，可理解的
译文
被围着的大学(一)
过去几次访问，使我在中国度过了约两年半时光，我不刻曾经有过美国人所说的“文化休克”。适应一种新文化的困难时期按理说该是我在北京大学上学的那个学期，那是我离开美国的第一个比较的一段时间，但是并没有什么“休克”。
当然，这并不是说，在我到了北大后，我没有注意到任何中美文化的差别。我的确注意到了一些差别。
回首往事，我记得我所注意到的一个判别就是：中国的大学被墙围着。
在一个美国人看来，这是中国大学最显著的一面，也是能立刻将其与美国大学校园区分开来的一个牲。我在美国长大，从没见过被高高的水泥墙围着的校园。在我的心目中，大学是学习和生活的地方，也是当地社区的一个组成部分，不仅对在校学生是开放的，也对其他学校的学生及全社会开放，这一概念，来源于我在美国不同的州所见到的情况。
