What Pico has been Doing for the Past Several Days:
Sorry, dudes, I was thinking this would be more detailed and longer, but I have been editing Translation Company works for hte last three hours, and there's only so much screen-staring a body can take. So, a bit abbreviated.
Feb 10
Arrived in Beijing. Got baggage, made my way all the way down the airport shuttle nad to the hostel, got my room, went back out, grabbed moolah, paid for room, settled in, had crying jag, went out to lobby to internet, talked to parents and HU relatives until very late, bed.
Feb 11
Up, brekkers at a local nice little corner hutong eatery, talk to parents, fight more crying jags, get in email-and-text contact with evbody I know in and around Beijing (three people) and one person I am newly known to in Harbin (one; here called Knight). Find out that Knight is in Beijing! Finis on Skype, then go out and meet Knight. We walk around Tiananmen square and Qianmen and have lunch at Quan Ju De, a duck restaurant (slightly awkward - her two Chinese friends are D: about the price (it was high) but Knight doesn't mind paying; it takes some finangling on my part, explaining cultural stuff, but we finally all share only one portion of overpriced duck). Knight must take train at 5, so we first bus back to her hotel get stuff, Knight off in taxi while i stay with one of hte CH friends, whose aunt run the hotel, and hte aunt, and talkies. Then around 6 I exhaust. I off to my own hostel - 1.5hr to get there. There, nap, then eat mi xian, then off to Nanluoguxiang (NGLX), where I walk and walk and walk and walk and stay awake and walk and finally go back and sleep.
Feb 12
Up after 8.30 of sleep! Brekkers, then talkies, then translation company work, lots of. Go to Ikea! Eat lunch, buy floor lamp. Lamp is nice, will go in check-in for Harbin. Taxi back, put lamp down, out again to meet my old Language Partner and walk around Houhai. We do just that. Lots of walk. the lake is frozed and pretty and people are skating and wandering. You ahve to pay to walk on hte lake. We do not because i can walk on the river for free in H-town. We go restaurant by Houhai, where there is roast delicious lamb with scallion and cilantro, and endive soup. Then off for more walk, I eat a tanghulu (fruit on a stick covered in caramelized sugar), giver her gifts (The Giver (which I realize belatedly lol China), candy canes, and a Hungarian clay necklace) and then back to hostel. There watch 20 minutes of Cocteau's La Belle et La Bete before passing out. Up at 11.30, hello my parents and appraise of day, back to bed. Cannot sleep. Finish Cocteau film. Back to sleep.
Feb 13
Up, eat, talkies. Off to Wudaokou! There I go. Hope Cafe first, where I chill, cafe, and watch Ever After. Then walk on back to Lotus Center, to buy stuffs (towels, underloos (eight pair, cute Chinese patterns), gum, and two cups that were on sale). Then wander the area. Into some small shops - a T-shirt place I like, a Korean one my mom likes, and a one that I really like called Kama, where I find a nice black-short-sleeve-grey-long-sleeve shirt. Eat dins at Isshin, a wonderful sushi place. Back to NLGX, walk it, stop in a bar/tapas place, and have ginger ale and a tapa of tapanade/"croutons" and a conversatio nwith a German just-out-of-high-school-er who is studying in Shanghai. We compare Germany and China and America, and talk some books. Good conversation. Off at 12.15, bed by 12.30.
Feb 14
Up late, talkies parents, try to eat food brought from US to find that bread is moldy D:. Buy a new bread across from hostel; eat it with avocado (starting sadly to mould inside D:). Talkies people, translat work, off to Wudaokou, into Isshin for lunch (half-priced sushi! Had four rolls for 30kuai! that is 5$. IT IS DELICIOUS), then wander. Loodedoo wander, into Korean store for gift for mom, upstairs to Lush, a cafe-cum-bar. Have banana-yougurt shake thing, do hours and horus of work for the Translation company, hopefully clear backlog.
AND NOW: Din somewhere I am off to NLGX to wander again.
What I will do Feb 15: ??? in morning. Evening 6 - meet my mom's work friend and go for dinner. Then, 8/8.30ish, off to NLGX to meet my Philipina friend and chill at Passby. It will be nice.
What I will do Feb 16: Get on a plane and go to Harbin.
What I will do Feb 17: Clean my entire apt oh my god the dishes probably have feeties aaaaa
~:~:~:~:~
Sir Not Included in this Description: how damn LONG it takes to get from Anywhere1 to Anywhere2. BEIJING IS ENORMOUS. It takes a good hour to subway anywhere, and a Beijing city block is 20-30min of walking. NLGX is only one and a half blocks on the map away from where my hostel is. It takes 30min of brisk walk to arrive there.
Sir Also Not Included In This Description: How dang much I have learnt to appreciate a proper coat and indoor heating. Holy balls, guys. It is in the 10's-20'sF/-10'sC and the hostel has no heating. I am cold anytime I'm outside, and I'm outside a lot. Even through three-four layers (Tshirt, thermal shirt, sweater/hoodie, coat, hat scarf) I am cold outside and in. Hutongs hever have heating. I appreciate being inside. I only showered for the first time today, because I dang well needed to, and it is the only thing in my hostel that has even been warm. I'm damn glad I found my knit sweater today - it works better than the hoodie - but still. still. I feel warmer in Harbin. (I've at least got a coat in Harbin.)
And now: I am off! I am restless from so much sitting, and there's dancey music turned on, people around me are starting to drink, and I'm hungry. I feel like I'm in costume, only because of people's assumptions: working on my computer here, or wandering Wudaokou, I am automatically put into the Student category. This is why I prefer Harbin - fewer foreigners. Remind me to make a post about that one day.
POSTED WITHOUT EDITING WHEE PICO LIVE DANGEROUSLY
Feb 10
Arrived in Beijing. Got baggage, made my way all the way down the airport shuttle nad to the hostel, got my room, went back out, grabbed moolah, paid for room, settled in, had crying jag, went out to lobby to internet, talked to parents and HU relatives until very late, bed.
Feb 11
Up, brekkers at a local nice little corner hutong eatery, talk to parents, fight more crying jags, get in email-and-text contact with evbody I know in and around Beijing (three people) and one person I am newly known to in Harbin (one; here called Knight). Find out that Knight is in Beijing! Finis on Skype, then go out and meet Knight. We walk around Tiananmen square and Qianmen and have lunch at Quan Ju De, a duck restaurant (slightly awkward - her two Chinese friends are D: about the price (it was high) but Knight doesn't mind paying; it takes some finangling on my part, explaining cultural stuff, but we finally all share only one portion of overpriced duck). Knight must take train at 5, so we first bus back to her hotel get stuff, Knight off in taxi while i stay with one of hte CH friends, whose aunt run the hotel, and hte aunt, and talkies. Then around 6 I exhaust. I off to my own hostel - 1.5hr to get there. There, nap, then eat mi xian, then off to Nanluoguxiang (NGLX), where I walk and walk and walk and walk and stay awake and walk and finally go back and sleep.
Feb 12
Up after 8.30 of sleep! Brekkers, then talkies, then translation company work, lots of. Go to Ikea! Eat lunch, buy floor lamp. Lamp is nice, will go in check-in for Harbin. Taxi back, put lamp down, out again to meet my old Language Partner and walk around Houhai. We do just that. Lots of walk. the lake is frozed and pretty and people are skating and wandering. You ahve to pay to walk on hte lake. We do not because i can walk on the river for free in H-town. We go restaurant by Houhai, where there is roast delicious lamb with scallion and cilantro, and endive soup. Then off for more walk, I eat a tanghulu (fruit on a stick covered in caramelized sugar), giver her gifts (The Giver (which I realize belatedly lol China), candy canes, and a Hungarian clay necklace) and then back to hostel. There watch 20 minutes of Cocteau's La Belle et La Bete before passing out. Up at 11.30, hello my parents and appraise of day, back to bed. Cannot sleep. Finish Cocteau film. Back to sleep.
Feb 13
Up, eat, talkies. Off to Wudaokou! There I go. Hope Cafe first, where I chill, cafe, and watch Ever After. Then walk on back to Lotus Center, to buy stuffs (towels, underloos (eight pair, cute Chinese patterns), gum, and two cups that were on sale). Then wander the area. Into some small shops - a T-shirt place I like, a Korean one my mom likes, and a one that I really like called Kama, where I find a nice black-short-sleeve-grey-long-sleeve shirt. Eat dins at Isshin, a wonderful sushi place. Back to NLGX, walk it, stop in a bar/tapas place, and have ginger ale and a tapa of tapanade/"croutons" and a conversatio nwith a German just-out-of-high-school-er who is studying in Shanghai. We compare Germany and China and America, and talk some books. Good conversation. Off at 12.15, bed by 12.30.
Feb 14
Up late, talkies parents, try to eat food brought from US to find that bread is moldy D:. Buy a new bread across from hostel; eat it with avocado (starting sadly to mould inside D:). Talkies people, translat work, off to Wudaokou, into Isshin for lunch (half-priced sushi! Had four rolls for 30kuai! that is 5$. IT IS DELICIOUS), then wander. Loodedoo wander, into Korean store for gift for mom, upstairs to Lush, a cafe-cum-bar. Have banana-yougurt shake thing, do hours and horus of work for the Translation company, hopefully clear backlog.
AND NOW: Din somewhere I am off to NLGX to wander again.
What I will do Feb 15: ??? in morning. Evening 6 - meet my mom's work friend and go for dinner. Then, 8/8.30ish, off to NLGX to meet my Philipina friend and chill at Passby. It will be nice.
What I will do Feb 16: Get on a plane and go to Harbin.
What I will do Feb 17: Clean my entire apt oh my god the dishes probably have feeties aaaaa
~:~:~:~:~
Sir Not Included in this Description: how damn LONG it takes to get from Anywhere1 to Anywhere2. BEIJING IS ENORMOUS. It takes a good hour to subway anywhere, and a Beijing city block is 20-30min of walking. NLGX is only one and a half blocks on the map away from where my hostel is. It takes 30min of brisk walk to arrive there.
Sir Also Not Included In This Description: How dang much I have learnt to appreciate a proper coat and indoor heating. Holy balls, guys. It is in the 10's-20'sF/-10'sC and the hostel has no heating. I am cold anytime I'm outside, and I'm outside a lot. Even through three-four layers (Tshirt, thermal shirt, sweater/hoodie, coat, hat scarf) I am cold outside and in. Hutongs hever have heating. I appreciate being inside. I only showered for the first time today, because I dang well needed to, and it is the only thing in my hostel that has even been warm. I'm damn glad I found my knit sweater today - it works better than the hoodie - but still. still. I feel warmer in Harbin. (I've at least got a coat in Harbin.)
And now: I am off! I am restless from so much sitting, and there's dancey music turned on, people around me are starting to drink, and I'm hungry. I feel like I'm in costume, only because of people's assumptions: working on my computer here, or wandering Wudaokou, I am automatically put into the Student category. This is why I prefer Harbin - fewer foreigners. Remind me to make a post about that one day.
POSTED WITHOUT EDITING WHEE PICO LIVE DANGEROUSLY