For June 26, 2007
Thank you (or should I say xie xie) Tyler. I have now selected my new favorite coffee shop, CAVA Coffee, which is much less crowded and much less pretentious than Tous Les Jour (which according to Nancy is a Korean bakery). The familiar and much loved smell of coffee and cigarettes (10 points for the first person who names the band that did this song) wafted throughout the dimly-lit haven. Reggae played in the background and best of all, I had my choice of tables and all the wi-fi I could handle. The wait-staff and I will be on first name basis by the end of this program. The mango smoothie is to die for as well.
Tim and I explored a bit more of Wudaokuo and grabbed a snack of sweet dough. The treat was made before your eyes by a machine that constantly rotated as dough was squirted into little circular cast-iron molds. It came out with the dough in the middle still gooey and piping hot as is evident by the burn marks on the roof of my mouth. Like most Asian sweets, the taste was subtle. I've gotten used to thinking red bean paste is pretty sweet. Later Tim and I broke down and enjoyed some much-coveted pizza. Hey, we held out on being American (I almost said white, hah) longer than most, okay?
That's all for now. I needed a chill day to catch up on blog posts anyway. Send me your addresses so I can start doing the postcard thing.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Monday, June 25, 2007
Models and Muslim food
Sorry this is a tad out of order. And make sure to e-mail me with requests on what illegal movies you want for Chinese souvenirs.
For June 25, 2007
"China is very layered." ~words of wisdom courtesy Tyler
Who would have thought I'd end up learning more about China than I will probably ever be able to gather (because of the language barrier and time) from a model and world drifter/traveler named Tyler.
I really expected today to be low-key. Classes were classes and afterwards I headed to Tous Les Jour, the yummy bakery with even yummier free wi-fi. I'm plugging away on homework when in walks this beautiful man in a suit that would have made headlines on Craig's List of "Missed Connections." Two girls from my program were also there and he ended up grabbing a free table next to them as I wished madly I was Grace and/or Marlene. They all ended up chatting a while about our program and about his modeling (I'm almost positive it's a habit of his to slip in that little fact when talking to females). At one point I sheepishly/awkwardly went up to him (i.e., crossed several yards of floor space) to ask him if he'd been here long and if so, how hard was it to get the Yangtze River and go white-water kayaking. Oh yes, I wanted to talk to him badly. When Grace and Marlene left, I decided to move base to his table, mumbling that people wanted my prime wall outlet table (they did, I swear).
Well, Tyler turned out to be a talker. And we covered many, many topics. He's lived in China for three years, Beijing for two, and works at a domestic advertising firm. He's originally from Seattle. He had his portfolio with him of ads he's been in (I don't know whether he helped produce them as well) and was in a suit because he had had an audition earlier in the day for a car commercial. I gathered he was Lutheran and has a younger brother. He also likes dirt-biking, skiing, scuba diving, has eaten poisonous snake and has his nipples pierced (hm, too much info that time guys?). Actually, it was interesting how I found out he was Lutheran. We found ourselves on the subject that I was adopted and he asked if I was religious based on that. Not to restrict his talents (or good looks) to simply modeling, he's also acted in the movie "Diamond Dogs" which he said would probably be a B-rate action film. Now, the cool part of this story was that it was filmed in inner Mongolia which many of my fellow classmates want to visit on their long four-day weekend. I asked him whether I should consider doing that as well and he said no (I figured--it didn't sound that cool). The one interesting thing he did discover while filming, though, was a stretch of land covered with dogs' feet--some with fur still covering them, some bare bone. His guess was that the locals ate the dogs then discarded the remnants in this elephant graveyard. If you're wondering about the legitimacy of the story (like I was), he has a movie on his silver RAZR to prove it. Actually, he discovered another interesting thing while filming--wild marijuana growing amongst vegetable gardens owned by the locals who didn't know what it was and cared even less. Like a kid in a candy shop, he said he took as much as he could stuff in is jacket/down his pants and gleefully smoked for two months. Tyler echoed Dave (guy from punk show) in saying pot was hard to find but hash was quite abundant. Being here longer than a month though, Tyler has found places notorious for the grass goodness. I'm sure I sounded quite sketchy asking which places they were exactly and can I take the subway there, but it's all with good intentions, I assure you. I believe the places that have that are ultimately places that have the kind of alternative culture I find fascinating and want to explore. A bit backward from how most people would typically react upon learning of such places I imagine, but what can I say. He also said (and he apologized for this generalization) it was a good bet that any black person you see around probably deals.
I also met his friend Amit (he was Jewish) who had taken a year off school in CA to come study here on his own. Like Tyler, he had started off at Tsinghua but hated it and had switched to Beijing Univ. of Science and Technology (I think). Unlike Tyler, he was still in school. And studied. I found out that in the year he has been here, he's been completely content eating from street vendors. Except for the vendors down the little alley I found. That has been the only time he's gotten sick and I certainly related.
By this point, it was getting rather late and I was almost done with homework so Tyler invited me to go with to a Muslim restaurant just down the road he had recommeded earlier. On the way he showed me some cool little coffee shops I never would have discovered on my own, a breakfast place with specials on the weekend until 11:30 a.m., a shady and completely illegal but reliable place to get money exchanged, and Wudaokou's Korea Town (apparantly it's a joke that Wudaokou is the Korea Town). We walked to what I believe was the Univ. of Science and Technology for the restaurant which was on campus. On the way, he entertained me with more stories of death-defying feats--he used to drive in China, see. That is, until he had his motocycle taken by the police. According to him, the majority of the vehicles on the road are illegal. They either have fake license plates or none at all. It's just bad luck when you get caught. Usually patrolling is stepped up after a news-making incident, but without fail, life gradually slips back to comfortable chaos after a while. Not to depart from the theme of the night, the restaurant we went to was completely illegal. It even told you up front that they did not give receipts. By far the most interesting thing I learned from the Ty was the random cash prizes one can receive from scratching off places on legitimate receipts. It's the government's way of promoting people asking for receipts and therefore forcing businesses to report for tax purposes. Of course, that incentive doesn't come anywhere near to stopping the widespread illegal business that goes down everywhere. Most places print fake receipts. Tyler only asks for legit receipts as a way to get back at a place for bad service. He gave his opinion that waiters never get any better due to the Communist system. People do not believe in tips here.
The restaurant contained the most diverse group of people I've seen in one setting so far. Our meal was very good--we ate noodles made from vegetables, an eggplant dish and lamb. At one point, Tyler saw one of his "friends" who he wanted to buy from and invited him to sit with us so as to not appear too crass just using him for drugs. Who says druggies aren't caring people, too? The guy turned out to be from Nigeria and has been here for four years studying Chinese. He even had a Chinese wife who sat across from him playing a game on a cellphone and looking/sounding very Asian while doing so. No, I can't explain why, but trust me, she was ASIAN. They'll officially get married sometime in the future before they die. The deal and exchange was talked about very blatantly in front of me but I suppose the majority of the people in the restaurant would not have understood what was happening anyway.
We finally parted ways with plans to meet again Thursday so he can take me to THE place to get illegal copies of any and all movies and tv shows (it's swanky--supposedly they're even in alphabetical order). From there, the 798 Artist Area is a hop away. He's going down to that area for business, so I plan to tag along and then check out some art galleries. Any requests for movies/tv shows send them to me via e-mail before Thursday at 3 p.m. my time and I'll do my best.
For June 25, 2007
"China is very layered." ~words of wisdom courtesy Tyler
Who would have thought I'd end up learning more about China than I will probably ever be able to gather (because of the language barrier and time) from a model and world drifter/traveler named Tyler.
I really expected today to be low-key. Classes were classes and afterwards I headed to Tous Les Jour, the yummy bakery with even yummier free wi-fi. I'm plugging away on homework when in walks this beautiful man in a suit that would have made headlines on Craig's List of "Missed Connections." Two girls from my program were also there and he ended up grabbing a free table next to them as I wished madly I was Grace and/or Marlene. They all ended up chatting a while about our program and about his modeling (I'm almost positive it's a habit of his to slip in that little fact when talking to females). At one point I sheepishly/awkwardly went up to him (i.e., crossed several yards of floor space) to ask him if he'd been here long and if so, how hard was it to get the Yangtze River and go white-water kayaking. Oh yes, I wanted to talk to him badly. When Grace and Marlene left, I decided to move base to his table, mumbling that people wanted my prime wall outlet table (they did, I swear).
Well, Tyler turned out to be a talker. And we covered many, many topics. He's lived in China for three years, Beijing for two, and works at a domestic advertising firm. He's originally from Seattle. He had his portfolio with him of ads he's been in (I don't know whether he helped produce them as well) and was in a suit because he had had an audition earlier in the day for a car commercial. I gathered he was Lutheran and has a younger brother. He also likes dirt-biking, skiing, scuba diving, has eaten poisonous snake and has his nipples pierced (hm, too much info that time guys?). Actually, it was interesting how I found out he was Lutheran. We found ourselves on the subject that I was adopted and he asked if I was religious based on that. Not to restrict his talents (or good looks) to simply modeling, he's also acted in the movie "Diamond Dogs" which he said would probably be a B-rate action film. Now, the cool part of this story was that it was filmed in inner Mongolia which many of my fellow classmates want to visit on their long four-day weekend. I asked him whether I should consider doing that as well and he said no (I figured--it didn't sound that cool). The one interesting thing he did discover while filming, though, was a stretch of land covered with dogs' feet--some with fur still covering them, some bare bone. His guess was that the locals ate the dogs then discarded the remnants in this elephant graveyard. If you're wondering about the legitimacy of the story (like I was), he has a movie on his silver RAZR to prove it. Actually, he discovered another interesting thing while filming--wild marijuana growing amongst vegetable gardens owned by the locals who didn't know what it was and cared even less. Like a kid in a candy shop, he said he took as much as he could stuff in is jacket/down his pants and gleefully smoked for two months. Tyler echoed Dave (guy from punk show) in saying pot was hard to find but hash was quite abundant. Being here longer than a month though, Tyler has found places notorious for the grass goodness. I'm sure I sounded quite sketchy asking which places they were exactly and can I take the subway there, but it's all with good intentions, I assure you. I believe the places that have that are ultimately places that have the kind of alternative culture I find fascinating and want to explore. A bit backward from how most people would typically react upon learning of such places I imagine, but what can I say. He also said (and he apologized for this generalization) it was a good bet that any black person you see around probably deals.
I also met his friend Amit (he was Jewish) who had taken a year off school in CA to come study here on his own. Like Tyler, he had started off at Tsinghua but hated it and had switched to Beijing Univ. of Science and Technology (I think). Unlike Tyler, he was still in school. And studied. I found out that in the year he has been here, he's been completely content eating from street vendors. Except for the vendors down the little alley I found. That has been the only time he's gotten sick and I certainly related.
By this point, it was getting rather late and I was almost done with homework so Tyler invited me to go with to a Muslim restaurant just down the road he had recommeded earlier. On the way he showed me some cool little coffee shops I never would have discovered on my own, a breakfast place with specials on the weekend until 11:30 a.m., a shady and completely illegal but reliable place to get money exchanged, and Wudaokou's Korea Town (apparantly it's a joke that Wudaokou is the Korea Town). We walked to what I believe was the Univ. of Science and Technology for the restaurant which was on campus. On the way, he entertained me with more stories of death-defying feats--he used to drive in China, see. That is, until he had his motocycle taken by the police. According to him, the majority of the vehicles on the road are illegal. They either have fake license plates or none at all. It's just bad luck when you get caught. Usually patrolling is stepped up after a news-making incident, but without fail, life gradually slips back to comfortable chaos after a while. Not to depart from the theme of the night, the restaurant we went to was completely illegal. It even told you up front that they did not give receipts. By far the most interesting thing I learned from the Ty was the random cash prizes one can receive from scratching off places on legitimate receipts. It's the government's way of promoting people asking for receipts and therefore forcing businesses to report for tax purposes. Of course, that incentive doesn't come anywhere near to stopping the widespread illegal business that goes down everywhere. Most places print fake receipts. Tyler only asks for legit receipts as a way to get back at a place for bad service. He gave his opinion that waiters never get any better due to the Communist system. People do not believe in tips here.
The restaurant contained the most diverse group of people I've seen in one setting so far. Our meal was very good--we ate noodles made from vegetables, an eggplant dish and lamb. At one point, Tyler saw one of his "friends" who he wanted to buy from and invited him to sit with us so as to not appear too crass just using him for drugs. Who says druggies aren't caring people, too? The guy turned out to be from Nigeria and has been here for four years studying Chinese. He even had a Chinese wife who sat across from him playing a game on a cellphone and looking/sounding very Asian while doing so. No, I can't explain why, but trust me, she was ASIAN. They'll officially get married sometime in the future before they die. The deal and exchange was talked about very blatantly in front of me but I suppose the majority of the people in the restaurant would not have understood what was happening anyway.
We finally parted ways with plans to meet again Thursday so he can take me to THE place to get illegal copies of any and all movies and tv shows (it's swanky--supposedly they're even in alphabetical order). From there, the 798 Artist Area is a hop away. He's going down to that area for business, so I plan to tag along and then check out some art galleries. Any requests for movies/tv shows send them to me via e-mail before Thursday at 3 p.m. my time and I'll do my best.
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Shopping + music = sweet sweetness
For June 22, 2007
I feel like I've been here forever. Not because I've mastered the culture or language or anything, but today was a long day and it was spent constantly meeting people and doing things. I think I have at least four new contacts, some of which I plan to hit up. But that to come. I apologize that this will be a long post.
The game for today in Chinese class was Mafia (keep this in mind)! I was so glad I had played it before because the instructions were solely in Chinese. Didn't keep me from dying the first game, though. We don't have history class on Fridays, so determined to use the subway and see some music, I set out with Mo (my brown friend) and Tim. I purposely didn't know where I was going or what I was doing, but as luck would have it, the train we caught had a small group of English-speaking adults on it. Some were natives and some were visiting for some exhibition. They were off to Xidan, THE place to go shopping for cheap stuff and to hone your bargaining skills with shop owners over what in the end amounts to probably a dollar difference. I was actually told to go there by someone on the plane ride over. We decided to tag along--I mainly wanted to stay close to the Chinese female because I figured she'd be ruthless in bargaining.
Now, imagine an office of cubicles. Take away the walls of the cubicles and fill them top to bottom with your choice of: shoes, bags, clothes, gaudy accessories that makes Claire's look classy, etc. and you have Xidan. It was a consumer's wet dream. I was on the prowl for a bag. The Chinese woman successfully helped me bargain down a giant bag that will serve me well in carrying books and/or small children. It happened so fast that it was only after that I began to process the bag itself and worry whether it made me look Asian. Mo and Tim assured me it didn't. On my own I bought a lovely pair of white flats but according to Chinese woman, I paid a little too much. The golden rule seems to be if it's 200 RMB, don't pay over 40 RMB. Live and learn. Tim had wandered off on his own by this point assuring Mo and I he'd be fine. The adults needed to leave to meet friends for dinner and extended us an invitation, but Mo and I opted to find the music venue 2 Kolegas instead. The adults in the group were really very nice, especially Samsuri, a Malaysian man. In fact, he kept offering for us to come to his hotel on Sunday (our free day) and chill with him and swim in the pool. No Mom, I didn't consider doing this. Richard, a native who taught Chinese, also invited us to give him a call if we were ever near where he lived, which turned out to be very close to Yuyuantan Park, an amusement park. Richard gave us a recommendation on where to get famous Beijing duck and the Chinese woman drew us a map on how to get to 2 Kolegas in my handy little notebook which has become a collection of my musings, random phone numbers + e-mail addresses, and Chinese phrases that may or may not say, "Please tell me to get off the bus here. Thank you." The directions were pretty simple (so we thought) and the train system isn't hard to figure out at all. It's actually much cleaner than the L. The only problem we encountered was finding this damn bus 731 which no one on the street had heard of. But to be fair, it took me a year and a half to become comfortable with the bus system in Chicago--here I think it's even more confusing. And I have only been here for four days.
After wandering aimlessly 'North,' we broke down and got a taxi. I'm deathly scared of them ever since reading about how some corrupt taxi drivers will drive foreigners out to the middle of nowhere refusing to take them back to civilization until money changes hands. They're also known to drive circuitous routes to get more money. This guy drove for a long time leaving the city behind and I felt my attempts to look like I knew what I was talking about by mumbling random Chinese words here and there were falling short. We finally pulled up to a drive-in movie theatre and I was about to cry when I realized the venue was indeed there, BEHIND the theatre (just like it said in my magazine, in plain English). This was a neat area, best likened to a hamlet, complete with several nice restaurants, a coffee shop, and a mysterious business that read X Club across the front. All of this was centered around a small pond. Mo and I arrived way before the show (it started at 10) so we decided to check out the venue. The band, Lonely China Day, fresh from their appearance at the SXSW music festival in Texas, was inside warming up. Just like 13club and D-22, the venue was open and we were free to walk in and chill. I love that. I met the owner and tried to ask him for a recommendation on where to eat. Instead, he asked us whether we wanted food with meat or no meat (first time any person in this country has asked that question) and before we knew it, ordered take-out for us. At this point Mo and I just sat and watched the band (think Mogwai). I tried to talk to the owner but he unfortunately could speak much Engilsh (rather, I can't speak any Chinese) and he referred me to the band's rep. She ended up speaking quite a lot of English. Highlights of our conversation as follows:
Me: How big is the indie rock scene?
Band rep: Very small. People here prefer pop music.
M: Why is Lonely China Day 'indie rock'?
BR: It's the attitude. Maybe you listen to the songs and read their lyrics to understand.
M: What kind of things do they sing about?
BR: Everything. They sing about politics a little. (as in, the critiques are hidden within the lyrics)
M: Is it difficult being censored?
BR: Not important [to the band]. Maybe you live here 1-2 years and you'll understand.
The language barrier prevented me from finding out more about how artists regard the Ministry of Culture, but this is now my new goal. She also mentioned an indie music festival that will take place at 2 Kolegas July 7-8. Yes.
Our food finally materialized and Mo and I ate in blissful vegetarian hapiness as I took in the scene. The venue was small (about the size of Empty Bottle) with a modest bar. Photographs and painted geckos bedecked some of the walls. And finally, what bar is complete without a fooseball table and a unicycle? After we ate, we had a lot of time to kill before the show started, so we decided to explore. Mo wanted to check out X Club and upon entering, we were immediately offered free juice and water. I momentarily felt bad about taking their tasty beverages with no intent of buying anything, but only momentarily as I was quite thirsty. There was a counter with video cameras that were taking and loading people's picture onto computers. We tried to walk around, but were shooed away--I gathered there was a line (lesson 13 baby) and we left confused and positive some sort of illegal midget pornography lay behind the closed doors. We continued exploring and stopped in to the coffee place to grab an expensive cafe mocha (what kind of world do we live in where the beer is cheaper than the coffee?!) and play with the owner's dog. The cafe looked like the inside of their house (I never could tell whether it was or not) but we all had quite an enjoyable time speaking Chinglish to each other.
After coffee, we headed over to the venue. We saw a white couple sitting outside and we approached them rejoicing in the fact they could speak English. A bit stand-offish at first, they warmed up and we learned they were the owners of the premier indie record label Tagteam, in China. Lonely China Day was one of their seven bands and they were there that night to listen and support. Matt and Heike Kagler were pretty proud of themselves with the nice write-up in City Weekend (one of the many magazines I've stolen and stock-piled while here) and the fact that two of their bands (Lonely China Day and Rebuilding the Rights of Statues) had just finished a U.S. tour. LCD even had a NYTimes mention, according to Matt. I was excited to learn they had played a show in the Art Garage in Columbia and that Matt and I both knew Ben (of Band of Horses). And by know (for me at least), I mean saw him perform and wished we were friends. Unfortunately they did not know/remember Otis. That would have made the world way too small. I spoke with them about the Ministry of Culture--Matt said it was an overrated concern but Heike said they had had one encounter with the Ministry complaining about the frequent use of "fuck" in one of their band's songs. Apparantly they have to send in the lyrics. They were able to finagle their way out of it, though, and still released it from what I gathered. As for the Kagler's take on the indie rock scene: "It's growing. It's not a sub-genre anymore," Matt said.
When the show began, the audience was a little over 30 people. Shockingly (to me), about 15% were white! I have no clue whether that is the norm, whether it's due to the fact it was indie rock, or whether most of the white people were with the label. The show itself was a bit disappointing, especially after seeing them warm-up. There was a lot of synth and the drum set remained unused for about 90% of the show. Most of the time, there were only two guys on stage playing their guitars. Mo called it when he said it didn't feel like a live show. Later I learned from Matt that after the US tour, half the band quit and this was their first show with the new drummer. The band was in the market for a new bassist (Zack Beach? Want to move to Beijing?).
It ended late and we learned the trains stop running at 11 pm so we cabbed it home only for me to realize poor Maude, my 8,000 year old bike which I had left at the Wudaokuo train station, had a flat tire. It made for a musical ride home and a mildly amusing end to a great day!
I feel like I've been here forever. Not because I've mastered the culture or language or anything, but today was a long day and it was spent constantly meeting people and doing things. I think I have at least four new contacts, some of which I plan to hit up. But that to come. I apologize that this will be a long post.
The game for today in Chinese class was Mafia (keep this in mind)! I was so glad I had played it before because the instructions were solely in Chinese. Didn't keep me from dying the first game, though. We don't have history class on Fridays, so determined to use the subway and see some music, I set out with Mo (my brown friend) and Tim. I purposely didn't know where I was going or what I was doing, but as luck would have it, the train we caught had a small group of English-speaking adults on it. Some were natives and some were visiting for some exhibition. They were off to Xidan, THE place to go shopping for cheap stuff and to hone your bargaining skills with shop owners over what in the end amounts to probably a dollar difference. I was actually told to go there by someone on the plane ride over. We decided to tag along--I mainly wanted to stay close to the Chinese female because I figured she'd be ruthless in bargaining.
Now, imagine an office of cubicles. Take away the walls of the cubicles and fill them top to bottom with your choice of: shoes, bags, clothes, gaudy accessories that makes Claire's look classy, etc. and you have Xidan. It was a consumer's wet dream. I was on the prowl for a bag. The Chinese woman successfully helped me bargain down a giant bag that will serve me well in carrying books and/or small children. It happened so fast that it was only after that I began to process the bag itself and worry whether it made me look Asian. Mo and Tim assured me it didn't. On my own I bought a lovely pair of white flats but according to Chinese woman, I paid a little too much. The golden rule seems to be if it's 200 RMB, don't pay over 40 RMB. Live and learn. Tim had wandered off on his own by this point assuring Mo and I he'd be fine. The adults needed to leave to meet friends for dinner and extended us an invitation, but Mo and I opted to find the music venue 2 Kolegas instead. The adults in the group were really very nice, especially Samsuri, a Malaysian man. In fact, he kept offering for us to come to his hotel on Sunday (our free day) and chill with him and swim in the pool. No Mom, I didn't consider doing this. Richard, a native who taught Chinese, also invited us to give him a call if we were ever near where he lived, which turned out to be very close to Yuyuantan Park, an amusement park. Richard gave us a recommendation on where to get famous Beijing duck and the Chinese woman drew us a map on how to get to 2 Kolegas in my handy little notebook which has become a collection of my musings, random phone numbers + e-mail addresses, and Chinese phrases that may or may not say, "Please tell me to get off the bus here. Thank you." The directions were pretty simple (so we thought) and the train system isn't hard to figure out at all. It's actually much cleaner than the L. The only problem we encountered was finding this damn bus 731 which no one on the street had heard of. But to be fair, it took me a year and a half to become comfortable with the bus system in Chicago--here I think it's even more confusing. And I have only been here for four days.
After wandering aimlessly 'North,' we broke down and got a taxi. I'm deathly scared of them ever since reading about how some corrupt taxi drivers will drive foreigners out to the middle of nowhere refusing to take them back to civilization until money changes hands. They're also known to drive circuitous routes to get more money. This guy drove for a long time leaving the city behind and I felt my attempts to look like I knew what I was talking about by mumbling random Chinese words here and there were falling short. We finally pulled up to a drive-in movie theatre and I was about to cry when I realized the venue was indeed there, BEHIND the theatre (just like it said in my magazine, in plain English). This was a neat area, best likened to a hamlet, complete with several nice restaurants, a coffee shop, and a mysterious business that read X Club across the front. All of this was centered around a small pond. Mo and I arrived way before the show (it started at 10) so we decided to check out the venue. The band, Lonely China Day, fresh from their appearance at the SXSW music festival in Texas, was inside warming up. Just like 13club and D-22, the venue was open and we were free to walk in and chill. I love that. I met the owner and tried to ask him for a recommendation on where to eat. Instead, he asked us whether we wanted food with meat or no meat (first time any person in this country has asked that question) and before we knew it, ordered take-out for us. At this point Mo and I just sat and watched the band (think Mogwai). I tried to talk to the owner but he unfortunately could speak much Engilsh (rather, I can't speak any Chinese) and he referred me to the band's rep. She ended up speaking quite a lot of English. Highlights of our conversation as follows:
Me: How big is the indie rock scene?
Band rep: Very small. People here prefer pop music.
M: Why is Lonely China Day 'indie rock'?
BR: It's the attitude. Maybe you listen to the songs and read their lyrics to understand.
M: What kind of things do they sing about?
BR: Everything. They sing about politics a little. (as in, the critiques are hidden within the lyrics)
M: Is it difficult being censored?
BR: Not important [to the band]. Maybe you live here 1-2 years and you'll understand.
The language barrier prevented me from finding out more about how artists regard the Ministry of Culture, but this is now my new goal. She also mentioned an indie music festival that will take place at 2 Kolegas July 7-8. Yes.
Our food finally materialized and Mo and I ate in blissful vegetarian hapiness as I took in the scene. The venue was small (about the size of Empty Bottle) with a modest bar. Photographs and painted geckos bedecked some of the walls. And finally, what bar is complete without a fooseball table and a unicycle? After we ate, we had a lot of time to kill before the show started, so we decided to explore. Mo wanted to check out X Club and upon entering, we were immediately offered free juice and water. I momentarily felt bad about taking their tasty beverages with no intent of buying anything, but only momentarily as I was quite thirsty. There was a counter with video cameras that were taking and loading people's picture onto computers. We tried to walk around, but were shooed away--I gathered there was a line (lesson 13 baby) and we left confused and positive some sort of illegal midget pornography lay behind the closed doors. We continued exploring and stopped in to the coffee place to grab an expensive cafe mocha (what kind of world do we live in where the beer is cheaper than the coffee?!) and play with the owner's dog. The cafe looked like the inside of their house (I never could tell whether it was or not) but we all had quite an enjoyable time speaking Chinglish to each other.
After coffee, we headed over to the venue. We saw a white couple sitting outside and we approached them rejoicing in the fact they could speak English. A bit stand-offish at first, they warmed up and we learned they were the owners of the premier indie record label Tagteam, in China. Lonely China Day was one of their seven bands and they were there that night to listen and support. Matt and Heike Kagler were pretty proud of themselves with the nice write-up in City Weekend (one of the many magazines I've stolen and stock-piled while here) and the fact that two of their bands (Lonely China Day and Rebuilding the Rights of Statues) had just finished a U.S. tour. LCD even had a NYTimes mention, according to Matt. I was excited to learn they had played a show in the Art Garage in Columbia and that Matt and I both knew Ben (of Band of Horses). And by know (for me at least), I mean saw him perform and wished we were friends. Unfortunately they did not know/remember Otis. That would have made the world way too small. I spoke with them about the Ministry of Culture--Matt said it was an overrated concern but Heike said they had had one encounter with the Ministry complaining about the frequent use of "fuck" in one of their band's songs. Apparantly they have to send in the lyrics. They were able to finagle their way out of it, though, and still released it from what I gathered. As for the Kagler's take on the indie rock scene: "It's growing. It's not a sub-genre anymore," Matt said.
When the show began, the audience was a little over 30 people. Shockingly (to me), about 15% were white! I have no clue whether that is the norm, whether it's due to the fact it was indie rock, or whether most of the white people were with the label. The show itself was a bit disappointing, especially after seeing them warm-up. There was a lot of synth and the drum set remained unused for about 90% of the show. Most of the time, there were only two guys on stage playing their guitars. Mo called it when he said it didn't feel like a live show. Later I learned from Matt that after the US tour, half the band quit and this was their first show with the new drummer. The band was in the market for a new bassist (Zack Beach? Want to move to Beijing?).
It ended late and we learned the trains stop running at 11 pm so we cabbed it home only for me to realize poor Maude, my 8,000 year old bike which I had left at the Wudaokuo train station, had a flat tire. It made for a musical ride home and a mildly amusing end to a great day!
Friday, June 22, 2007
Digits and wheelz
For June 21, 2007
Thanks to heroic efforts on my parents' part, calls were made and e-mails sent to get little Caroline some cash money. My ATM card is going to piggy back with Prof. Grynspan when she comes to visit in two weeks. And in the meantime, Gu laoshi will be my provider.
The day started off with angry tidings from the bike gods. I caught a ride with Wayne to class becasue I forgot where it was. Things were going well until the classic "pedal-came-undone-and-fell-off" calamity occurred. At that point, I climbed onto the back of some other guy's bike and Wayne got on with a guy friend. Hilarity ensued when Wayne + guy friend were obviously too heavy for genuine Chinese bikes and after a rather violent whip-around by guy friend designed to scare Wayne, the back wheel completely bent to a right angle leaving both immobile. Even the natives were laughing at this.
I switched up to third year Chinese today. The class is long, but I like my teacher. I spoke a little with her during breaks and she lent me a CD of classical and folk Chinese music (mostly instrumental). The last hour or so of class we played a game where someone said a word in Chinese (eg peng you) and the next person had to say something that started with the last character (eg you ming). If you couldn't think of a word in time, you were at the mercy of classmates who chose your punishment. Wayne came up with a particularly nasty one, making Ed write his name in the air with his butt. I had to dance with a stuffed fish.
After history class, I went with a large group into town to get a cell phone. I really just needed it for a watch/alarm clock. For any interested, my number is 13141262159 and after July 1, I'll be able to receive calls for free. I like the phones over here because you don't have to worry about weird plans. You basically buy a SIM card (which is also your phone number) and put money on it. If you get features like text messaging or small boys who cobble shoes for you, the cost is taken from the SIM card (I believe). All of this was done in Wudaokou, a city very close to Tsinghua. A 10 kuai taxi ride or a couple of minutes on your bike if you're cheap like me. After I got my phone, I proceeded to walk down random streets and explore. Walking around aimlessly is a hobby of mine. I did a little bit of shopping and got the prettiest white lace jacket as well as some weird baked goods from a French bakery; the mango heart was good, but I wouldn't recommend the green tea glutinous donut. When it finally came time for me to head back (feet were killing me and it was getting dark) I ran into a small hiccup of a problem--I didn't know where I was. (Travis, stop reading here) I had taken a cab into the city with other NU kids and hadn't really paid attention to where I had been taken. This, mixed with my lack of Chinese speaking skills, spelled trouble. I eventually got a cab to take me back to Tsinghua, but remember, this campus is bigger than Evanston, so when I finally determined how far away the student dorms were (two kilometers), I broke down and stopped at the first bike place I saw. Crew team peeps, you'd appreciate this. I asked about the price of a bike, not comprehending anything they told me of course, and ended up trying out this dingy-looking waif of a bike. We''l cal it "vintage." Anyway, I had a bit of trouble guiding it at first (it's shaped more like a scooter, really) and when I came back to the bike owner, he was shaking his head. By this time he had flagged down a guy who spoke a little English and the guy translated to me that the bike owner didn't want to rent me the bike because he was scared I was going to crash into something!!! If he only knew my track record... I told the guy I didn't want to rent, but wanted to buy and he said no. But then we worked out I could rent it for 8 weeks for 60 RMB (cheaper than anyone else has paid for wheels so far!). But, when it came time to pay he was asking for 100 RMB. We went round and round on this until he flagged another English speaking dude who told me it was 100 RMB now and upon return of the bike, I'd get 40 RMB back. I think the chances of me returning this are slim to none--I think he knows this as well. I just have this feeling it's going to get stolen. But hey, 100 RMB is still cheaper than most other students paid. Anyway, as I was leaving, English-speaking guy number two started telling me my Chinese sucked and how hard that must be and do I have a phone number he could have so he could help me with my Chinese? Nope. No phone. Mei you phone. Sorry.
Another good day where I wasn't mugged or killed by a bus. Life is good. Although it turned out my unfounded faith in my digestive system was indeed, unfounded. Oh well.
Thanks to heroic efforts on my parents' part, calls were made and e-mails sent to get little Caroline some cash money. My ATM card is going to piggy back with Prof. Grynspan when she comes to visit in two weeks. And in the meantime, Gu laoshi will be my provider.
The day started off with angry tidings from the bike gods. I caught a ride with Wayne to class becasue I forgot where it was. Things were going well until the classic "pedal-came-undone-and-fell-off" calamity occurred. At that point, I climbed onto the back of some other guy's bike and Wayne got on with a guy friend. Hilarity ensued when Wayne + guy friend were obviously too heavy for genuine Chinese bikes and after a rather violent whip-around by guy friend designed to scare Wayne, the back wheel completely bent to a right angle leaving both immobile. Even the natives were laughing at this.
I switched up to third year Chinese today. The class is long, but I like my teacher. I spoke a little with her during breaks and she lent me a CD of classical and folk Chinese music (mostly instrumental). The last hour or so of class we played a game where someone said a word in Chinese (eg peng you) and the next person had to say something that started with the last character (eg you ming). If you couldn't think of a word in time, you were at the mercy of classmates who chose your punishment. Wayne came up with a particularly nasty one, making Ed write his name in the air with his butt. I had to dance with a stuffed fish.
After history class, I went with a large group into town to get a cell phone. I really just needed it for a watch/alarm clock. For any interested, my number is 13141262159 and after July 1, I'll be able to receive calls for free. I like the phones over here because you don't have to worry about weird plans. You basically buy a SIM card (which is also your phone number) and put money on it. If you get features like text messaging or small boys who cobble shoes for you, the cost is taken from the SIM card (I believe). All of this was done in Wudaokou, a city very close to Tsinghua. A 10 kuai taxi ride or a couple of minutes on your bike if you're cheap like me. After I got my phone, I proceeded to walk down random streets and explore. Walking around aimlessly is a hobby of mine. I did a little bit of shopping and got the prettiest white lace jacket as well as some weird baked goods from a French bakery; the mango heart was good, but I wouldn't recommend the green tea glutinous donut. When it finally came time for me to head back (feet were killing me and it was getting dark) I ran into a small hiccup of a problem--I didn't know where I was. (Travis, stop reading here) I had taken a cab into the city with other NU kids and hadn't really paid attention to where I had been taken. This, mixed with my lack of Chinese speaking skills, spelled trouble. I eventually got a cab to take me back to Tsinghua, but remember, this campus is bigger than Evanston, so when I finally determined how far away the student dorms were (two kilometers), I broke down and stopped at the first bike place I saw. Crew team peeps, you'd appreciate this. I asked about the price of a bike, not comprehending anything they told me of course, and ended up trying out this dingy-looking waif of a bike. We''l cal it "vintage." Anyway, I had a bit of trouble guiding it at first (it's shaped more like a scooter, really) and when I came back to the bike owner, he was shaking his head. By this time he had flagged down a guy who spoke a little English and the guy translated to me that the bike owner didn't want to rent me the bike because he was scared I was going to crash into something!!! If he only knew my track record... I told the guy I didn't want to rent, but wanted to buy and he said no. But then we worked out I could rent it for 8 weeks for 60 RMB (cheaper than anyone else has paid for wheels so far!). But, when it came time to pay he was asking for 100 RMB. We went round and round on this until he flagged another English speaking dude who told me it was 100 RMB now and upon return of the bike, I'd get 40 RMB back. I think the chances of me returning this are slim to none--I think he knows this as well. I just have this feeling it's going to get stolen. But hey, 100 RMB is still cheaper than most other students paid. Anyway, as I was leaving, English-speaking guy number two started telling me my Chinese sucked and how hard that must be and do I have a phone number he could have so he could help me with my Chinese? Nope. No phone. Mei you phone. Sorry.
Another good day where I wasn't mugged or killed by a bus. Life is good. Although it turned out my unfounded faith in my digestive system was indeed, unfounded. Oh well.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Chinese people are nice
For June 20, 2007
Never again let it be said I don't spend money wisely. I have officially managed to live on $14 for three days. While that is in deference to how cheap things are here, I've managed to make two meals and a snack out of it. Plus shampoo, conditioner, soap, face wash, coat hangers, a wash cloth and kleenex. But bragging aside, I'm now broke. It has also been impossible for me to get internet in my dorm room since last night (no facebook, I don't know what to do with myself). All of this, however, has made for a rather interesting debacle.
Today was the first day of classes. We had an opening ceremony where we were warned not to eat food from street vendors (I'm still alive) and not to bike outside of the university (that story to follow). Then we broke into different level Chinese language classes. We will have Chinese every day from 9-12. It's good that our teachers don't really speak English. It's also good that I'm being forced to listen and learn--I'm pleasantly surprised at how much I can pick up here and there and also how much from previous lessons I remember. Lunch is at noon and every day we will eat with teachers, in theory to practice Chinese; in reality to gossip about people who look like fetuses at NU (yes, that was an actual discussion. And the person who supposedly looks like a fetus is Alex Panco.) I've learned to eat as much as I possibly can, being on the "no money" diet. After that was our history class for which the big book of Mao I'm supposed to have read comes into play.
Now, this is the part of my day that gets interesting. I already determined that my ATM card still did not work in the morning despite assurance from U.S. Bank people that it would. So I started off in search of internet so I could write the p-units again. I saw that there was internet in the Main Building and began to walk in the general, not really, direction of the place. It was far--the campus is the size of Texas. On the way, I asked a woman where it was and she gave me, not really, an answer. I kept on wandering and after a bit the same woman pulled up to me on her bike and asked if I wanted a ride. I was never so excited to hop on the back of a bike. It was one experience I had yet to try here and it was quite exhilarating. Chinese people are the best multi-taskers on bikes EVER. For example, I saw someone riding a bike with a passenger on the back while also guiding another bike next to him with one arm. But I digress. She dropped me off in front of the building and I went to the computer lab only to be turned away because I didn't have a student ID. Never mind that I was obviously a harmless ignorant foreign student with a slightly Southern accent. The problem is that I can't pull the "cute little Asian girl" act here. The computer lab nazis told me to go to the library instead. I had no clue where that was. I asked this guy to point me in the right direction at least 10 times, perpetuating the dumb American stereotype, and started off again. On the way, I saw another woman walking her bike. Having no tact, I went up to her and asked where the library was and if I could ride with her. I really don't know if she ever understood that last part of my question, but she was randomly going to the library as well. She was the cutest electrical engineer grad student you'll ever meet. I explained my sob story to her and she told me that one needed an ID to get into the library and even if I did get in, the computers might not be able to get on international websites. Fuck you, computer lab nazis. I went anyway and she was able to sign me in but we couldn't get on the international web. Then, this sweet angel of a woman, instead of staying at the library which was where she was going in the first place, brought me to another building where her boyfriend was with his computer. They tried to get me on, but we ran into the same problem of restricted access. Jon Kent, this would be an interesting issue to look into. So the woman and I left to go to her work building. Her boyfriend caught up and she let me use her bike while she took a running jump onto the back of her boy's bike. Turns out this office building was way off campus, thus leading me to disregard the second warning Gu laoshi gave us earlier that morning of biking off campus. It's cool. Just follow other bikers and hope the cars and buses are going slower than your depth perception is yelling at you. She led me into this very nice office building and finally got me online where I sent a rather frazzled SOS to my parents. A quick thank you to all who wrote on my wall--I really needed that after the past couple of days. We finally returned to campus where they dropped me off right in front of my dorm. I'll never be able to thank those two enough.
Never again let it be said I don't spend money wisely. I have officially managed to live on $14 for three days. While that is in deference to how cheap things are here, I've managed to make two meals and a snack out of it. Plus shampoo, conditioner, soap, face wash, coat hangers, a wash cloth and kleenex. But bragging aside, I'm now broke. It has also been impossible for me to get internet in my dorm room since last night (no facebook, I don't know what to do with myself). All of this, however, has made for a rather interesting debacle.
Today was the first day of classes. We had an opening ceremony where we were warned not to eat food from street vendors (I'm still alive) and not to bike outside of the university (that story to follow). Then we broke into different level Chinese language classes. We will have Chinese every day from 9-12. It's good that our teachers don't really speak English. It's also good that I'm being forced to listen and learn--I'm pleasantly surprised at how much I can pick up here and there and also how much from previous lessons I remember. Lunch is at noon and every day we will eat with teachers, in theory to practice Chinese; in reality to gossip about people who look like fetuses at NU (yes, that was an actual discussion. And the person who supposedly looks like a fetus is Alex Panco.) I've learned to eat as much as I possibly can, being on the "no money" diet. After that was our history class for which the big book of Mao I'm supposed to have read comes into play.
Now, this is the part of my day that gets interesting. I already determined that my ATM card still did not work in the morning despite assurance from U.S. Bank people that it would. So I started off in search of internet so I could write the p-units again. I saw that there was internet in the Main Building and began to walk in the general, not really, direction of the place. It was far--the campus is the size of Texas. On the way, I asked a woman where it was and she gave me, not really, an answer. I kept on wandering and after a bit the same woman pulled up to me on her bike and asked if I wanted a ride. I was never so excited to hop on the back of a bike. It was one experience I had yet to try here and it was quite exhilarating. Chinese people are the best multi-taskers on bikes EVER. For example, I saw someone riding a bike with a passenger on the back while also guiding another bike next to him with one arm. But I digress. She dropped me off in front of the building and I went to the computer lab only to be turned away because I didn't have a student ID. Never mind that I was obviously a harmless ignorant foreign student with a slightly Southern accent. The problem is that I can't pull the "cute little Asian girl" act here. The computer lab nazis told me to go to the library instead. I had no clue where that was. I asked this guy to point me in the right direction at least 10 times, perpetuating the dumb American stereotype, and started off again. On the way, I saw another woman walking her bike. Having no tact, I went up to her and asked where the library was and if I could ride with her. I really don't know if she ever understood that last part of my question, but she was randomly going to the library as well. She was the cutest electrical engineer grad student you'll ever meet. I explained my sob story to her and she told me that one needed an ID to get into the library and even if I did get in, the computers might not be able to get on international websites. Fuck you, computer lab nazis. I went anyway and she was able to sign me in but we couldn't get on the international web. Then, this sweet angel of a woman, instead of staying at the library which was where she was going in the first place, brought me to another building where her boyfriend was with his computer. They tried to get me on, but we ran into the same problem of restricted access. Jon Kent, this would be an interesting issue to look into. So the woman and I left to go to her work building. Her boyfriend caught up and she let me use her bike while she took a running jump onto the back of her boy's bike. Turns out this office building was way off campus, thus leading me to disregard the second warning Gu laoshi gave us earlier that morning of biking off campus. It's cool. Just follow other bikers and hope the cars and buses are going slower than your depth perception is yelling at you. She led me into this very nice office building and finally got me online where I sent a rather frazzled SOS to my parents. A quick thank you to all who wrote on my wall--I really needed that after the past couple of days. We finally returned to campus where they dropped me off right in front of my dorm. I'll never be able to thank those two enough.
Explorations + temptin' the fates
For June 19, 2007
"I love my hairs." ~On a shampoo bottle. Oh, the subtle humor of Chinglish.
I can now say I'm officially here. Today was a free day and I used it to go exploring. I saw a lot and love it all! I woke up a bit early so I went on a run around the giant university--I think it's about two miles across. I met some students outside of my dorm and we decided to do some grocery shopping and grab a bite to eat at this PX type place on campus. I've never been so happy to buy soap and shampoo in my life.
Gu laoshi (teacher Gu) took us to brunch which consisted of a giant smorgasbord of dishes. Yesterday was a special occasion (I forget why--sorry that was anti-climatic) and everywhere I went, I saw people eating these triangular sticky rice dishes with some kind of brown fruit inside. They were wrapped in banana leaves with string tied around it all. You peeled off the leaves to eat it.
To add a flair of excitement I am without money. But not willingly of course. My debit card does not work and I can't withdraw anything. I've managed to stretch 100 RMB (about 14 US dollars) pretty far though. But I need to eat. And more importantly, I need a bike. It's amazing how many people use bikes. I could only look on in jealousy as my classmates acquired authentic Chinese wheels (i.e., the bike must be squeaky and have exactly one gear--your legs).
After Gu laoshi finished taking us on a tour of I don't know where, I made friends with this fellow named Tim. Turns out he spins for streetbeat at WNUR and actually brought a demo tape with him so he could pitch his wares to local Chinese venues. I decided I wanted to go exploring and try to find the music venue D-22. We found this punk haircut place (literally--that's what is was called) where I am determined to get my hair cut at some point and asked them for directions. No one spoke any English and I kept looking to a very white looking Tim to help me translate. I bet we confused people. We were sent to a building which held what we expected to be a music store on the second floor according to lone English speaking woman, but turned out to be another haircut place. Undaunted, we continued up some more floors for the hell of it and stopped on a floor that had something about Peking University and English. Knowing that the owner of D-22 was a visiting econ Prof. at Peking, I decided to give them a try. Besides, the English part made me a bit more confident I could find someone to tell me where to go. I basically comandeered her computer and finally found directions PLUS a map! It was pretty close and if we stayed on the street we were on we could find both 13club and D-22 and eventually end up at Peking Univ. This had now become a crusade and Tim and I set off. On the way we passed this little side street alley with some street vendors. We went down and it exploded into a bustling hidden city of street vendors selling everything from kebobs to veggies to giant crepe looking things. Tim was nervous about getting anything raw. With unfounded faith in my powers of digestion, I selected from this woman a bunch of different vegetables: bean sprouts, clear noodles with carrots, and something I have no clue what it was but I thought it was cooked chicken. I was just going to eat each separately, but she mixed it all together putting different dark colored sauces and a LOT of cilantro in it. It was pretty salty but served as my dinner for that day. Onward we marched and came upon 13club first. It was surprisingly open, but deserted of course. I made friends with the bar tender Liu Li Xin and asked him to recommend some acts I should see. That night some Turkey flamenco singers were to perform for free (covers only on weekends) at 9:30. I unfortunately never made it because I passed out around 8:30. As we exited the club, I saw a sketchy looking staircase so I decided to go up. The climb revealed an internet cafe (hooray!) and I was finally able to send the p-units an "I'm alive" message and to also ask them for help on the ATM card sitch. A little down the road was D-22 which was also open. There was a band on stage practicing and I wanted to stay and listen, but Tim wanted to keep moving. We walked to the end of the road, saw Peking Univ. and turned back. We entered through Tsinghua's east gate and Tim was found a used bike for 90 RMB, less than half of what everyone else had been paying for "new" ones earlier that day! The guys repairing/selling the bike were really nice and rather cute (for Asians) and I wished very hard that I could understand them when they spoke to me, but alas. No Chinese boyfriend for me.
Classes start tomorrow.
"I love my hairs." ~On a shampoo bottle. Oh, the subtle humor of Chinglish.
I can now say I'm officially here. Today was a free day and I used it to go exploring. I saw a lot and love it all! I woke up a bit early so I went on a run around the giant university--I think it's about two miles across. I met some students outside of my dorm and we decided to do some grocery shopping and grab a bite to eat at this PX type place on campus. I've never been so happy to buy soap and shampoo in my life.
Gu laoshi (teacher Gu) took us to brunch which consisted of a giant smorgasbord of dishes. Yesterday was a special occasion (I forget why--sorry that was anti-climatic) and everywhere I went, I saw people eating these triangular sticky rice dishes with some kind of brown fruit inside. They were wrapped in banana leaves with string tied around it all. You peeled off the leaves to eat it.
To add a flair of excitement I am without money. But not willingly of course. My debit card does not work and I can't withdraw anything. I've managed to stretch 100 RMB (about 14 US dollars) pretty far though. But I need to eat. And more importantly, I need a bike. It's amazing how many people use bikes. I could only look on in jealousy as my classmates acquired authentic Chinese wheels (i.e., the bike must be squeaky and have exactly one gear--your legs).
After Gu laoshi finished taking us on a tour of I don't know where, I made friends with this fellow named Tim. Turns out he spins for streetbeat at WNUR and actually brought a demo tape with him so he could pitch his wares to local Chinese venues. I decided I wanted to go exploring and try to find the music venue D-22. We found this punk haircut place (literally--that's what is was called) where I am determined to get my hair cut at some point and asked them for directions. No one spoke any English and I kept looking to a very white looking Tim to help me translate. I bet we confused people. We were sent to a building which held what we expected to be a music store on the second floor according to lone English speaking woman, but turned out to be another haircut place. Undaunted, we continued up some more floors for the hell of it and stopped on a floor that had something about Peking University and English. Knowing that the owner of D-22 was a visiting econ Prof. at Peking, I decided to give them a try. Besides, the English part made me a bit more confident I could find someone to tell me where to go. I basically comandeered her computer and finally found directions PLUS a map! It was pretty close and if we stayed on the street we were on we could find both 13club and D-22 and eventually end up at Peking Univ. This had now become a crusade and Tim and I set off. On the way we passed this little side street alley with some street vendors. We went down and it exploded into a bustling hidden city of street vendors selling everything from kebobs to veggies to giant crepe looking things. Tim was nervous about getting anything raw. With unfounded faith in my powers of digestion, I selected from this woman a bunch of different vegetables: bean sprouts, clear noodles with carrots, and something I have no clue what it was but I thought it was cooked chicken. I was just going to eat each separately, but she mixed it all together putting different dark colored sauces and a LOT of cilantro in it. It was pretty salty but served as my dinner for that day. Onward we marched and came upon 13club first. It was surprisingly open, but deserted of course. I made friends with the bar tender Liu Li Xin and asked him to recommend some acts I should see. That night some Turkey flamenco singers were to perform for free (covers only on weekends) at 9:30. I unfortunately never made it because I passed out around 8:30. As we exited the club, I saw a sketchy looking staircase so I decided to go up. The climb revealed an internet cafe (hooray!) and I was finally able to send the p-units an "I'm alive" message and to also ask them for help on the ATM card sitch. A little down the road was D-22 which was also open. There was a band on stage practicing and I wanted to stay and listen, but Tim wanted to keep moving. We walked to the end of the road, saw Peking Univ. and turned back. We entered through Tsinghua's east gate and Tim was found a used bike for 90 RMB, less than half of what everyone else had been paying for "new" ones earlier that day! The guys repairing/selling the bike were really nice and rather cute (for Asians) and I wished very hard that I could understand them when they spoke to me, but alas. No Chinese boyfriend for me.
Classes start tomorrow.
And I was off!
For Monday, June 18
"The left engine is leaking beyond tolerance."
Little did I know that phrase would mark a two hour internment inside the lobby of O'Hare. Oh well, better than the alternative (a fiery spiral of death into some ocean). The confinement was actually cause for quite an adventure--really, can I go anywhere where there isn't some craziness? They wouldn't let us leave to go get food, so being the rule-abiding girl I am, I made a run for it under the partition and got the best turkey club wrap I've ever had (risk makes everything much, much sweeter). When I came back, they had posted a flight attendant on guard at the petition I had run under. I thought fast, ran faster, and passed by her at exactly the moment she turned her back to me. The answer is yes, I do feel like the shit. After that, I made friends with some kid who probably massed more electronics than his body weight and introduced him to the wonders of the 6th season of 24.
On the plane I ended up sitting near a Chinese couple with two adorable little boys, 4 and 8 years old. The woman is a consultant. She and her husband came over to study at Cornell years ago. They were heading to China to stay and visit family for the summer and planned to go to Tibet to hike a little of Mt. Everest. What are the odds of me sitting next to people like this? I shared my love of hiking to waterfalls. I also asked them how easy it would be to get to the Yangtze River and the husband, who happened to be a travel agent for China during his college years, said it would be a day train ride. I'll keep you posted.
The Chinese soccer team was also on transit with us and I made small talk with one girl who sat next to me. She had this handy language translator device and we were able to cough out a couple of phrases to each other. I asked her about music and she gave me some poppy girl music to listen to. She wasn't so much a fan of rock. She liked hao ting, or beautiful music.
Upon arrival, everything went smoothly and we ended up in our rooms at around 10:30 p.m. It's a single! and I get my own private bathroom + shower and a tv. I'm all moved in. I've met some kids on my program and they all seem nice enough. Some are a bit party crazy and wanted me to come drinking with them, but wanted to adjust to jet lag as quickly as possible so I stayed in and contemplated whether I should suck it up and asphixiate by opening a window or let my room stay hot as balls/Amy's apartment. Tomorrow is a free day (classes start Wednesday) and I desperately need to go grocery shopping.
"The left engine is leaking beyond tolerance."
Little did I know that phrase would mark a two hour internment inside the lobby of O'Hare. Oh well, better than the alternative (a fiery spiral of death into some ocean). The confinement was actually cause for quite an adventure--really, can I go anywhere where there isn't some craziness? They wouldn't let us leave to go get food, so being the rule-abiding girl I am, I made a run for it under the partition and got the best turkey club wrap I've ever had (risk makes everything much, much sweeter). When I came back, they had posted a flight attendant on guard at the petition I had run under. I thought fast, ran faster, and passed by her at exactly the moment she turned her back to me. The answer is yes, I do feel like the shit. After that, I made friends with some kid who probably massed more electronics than his body weight and introduced him to the wonders of the 6th season of 24.
On the plane I ended up sitting near a Chinese couple with two adorable little boys, 4 and 8 years old. The woman is a consultant. She and her husband came over to study at Cornell years ago. They were heading to China to stay and visit family for the summer and planned to go to Tibet to hike a little of Mt. Everest. What are the odds of me sitting next to people like this? I shared my love of hiking to waterfalls. I also asked them how easy it would be to get to the Yangtze River and the husband, who happened to be a travel agent for China during his college years, said it would be a day train ride. I'll keep you posted.
The Chinese soccer team was also on transit with us and I made small talk with one girl who sat next to me. She had this handy language translator device and we were able to cough out a couple of phrases to each other. I asked her about music and she gave me some poppy girl music to listen to. She wasn't so much a fan of rock. She liked hao ting, or beautiful music.
Upon arrival, everything went smoothly and we ended up in our rooms at around 10:30 p.m. It's a single! and I get my own private bathroom + shower and a tv. I'm all moved in. I've met some kids on my program and they all seem nice enough. Some are a bit party crazy and wanted me to come drinking with them, but wanted to adjust to jet lag as quickly as possible so I stayed in and contemplated whether I should suck it up and asphixiate by opening a window or let my room stay hot as balls/Amy's apartment. Tomorrow is a free day (classes start Wednesday) and I desperately need to go grocery shopping.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Say what?
Hello hello! Or should I say, ni hao! It is approximately a week before I head off to China, and I'm bored. And homeless. So I've decided to be completely original and start a travel blog. Early.
For the back story: I'll be attending Tsinghua University for eight weeks studying history, econ and Chinese with various excursions planned to museums, the Forbidden City and, of course, le Great Wall. Did you know it was a myth that you could see it from outer space? What a let-down. I will also be working hard to fulfill my study abroad grant by going to as many clubs and music venues (or yin yue hui) as possible. Naturally, this is the most logical way to study the culture and get a feel for my generation. I'm starting to get excited about what the music scene holds. I know very little about it, but what I have learned I found here: www.rockinchina.com. My goal for you lucky readers (Mom, Dad) and for this blog is to analyze the music scene and how it has changed post-Mao to present. I truly believe a nation's popular culture is indicative of the type of society it has now and a mindset (usually liberal) it will eventually come to adopt in a couple of years. In this way, I hope to give you a deeper perspective of my adventures (and mishaps) in China.
I have a feeling I'm going to love my fling with Beijing.
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