Beijing, Hast Thou Forsaken Me?

大家好，

Well folks I’m sorry to say that my Beijing arrival was disappointing. Already as I was approaching the station the rain was making me wonder if the following day visit to The Great Wall as intended would be a failure. I checked the weather and realized it would likely be rainy and miserable the entire time I was there so I figured I might not go after all. The hostel people said the tours would still happen in the rain so I considered going still, but it just felt like a lot of trouble when I can easily come back.

The messed up thing is, they said: It would be a unique experience because it doesn’t often rain in Beijing. So it rains when I get there. FANTASTIC. I won the weather lottery I didn’t want to win.

In addition, the hostel was not as clean as it was the first time. It’s the same place I went back in winter when me, Jagoda, and Gosia were in Beijing. There were a lot of people again and my dorm mates were better this time (because they were Chinese not rowdy, loud foreign kids) but the bathroom was only barely passable and I knew they didn’t clean them daily which should be a given when you have over 40 reservations at once (they said it). Also they were really rude and not helpful when it came to laundry and gouged 20 yuan for 1 load which is a load of shit. I know the price is about 8 yuan normally at hostels. 10 would be the highest “fair price” and if it’s even 15 yuan I’d say it’s stupid high but anything more is just obscene. They’re taking advantage of foreigners who won’t know the difference. For reference, before they took the coin slot off, the one in my dorm at home is only 2 yuan. I get hostels like to make money and nickel and dime the guests but there is a point it’s just greedy. Sanlitun Hostel hit that mark and I don’t think I will return if I can find another option. It’s Beijing, so that should be easy.

It would’ve been a wash if not for the fact Monica had moved back to Beijing only a week prior, so at least I had that still.. I can visit her and see her old stomping grounds from before she came to Anshan.

It was awesome seeing her again even if it wasn’t that long since I saw her last. She took me to her favorite pizza place which was really nice as it’s been a bit since I’ve had good pizza. We caught up as I tried to dry my feet a bit. I was stupid and wore my sneakers rather than sandals.

What a dull photo..

LE PIZZA

The snail who captured my heart

Beijing Language and Culture University I think…BLCU a school I almost considered attending

Chimichanga from heaven

Fancy Polish vodka

We walked around in the rain and I was immediately grateful I bought my rain jacket in Anshan for the crazy Filipino weather. Never thought I would get so much use out of it so early in my trip. Along they way I bought 2 pairs of shoes, sandals and a black lace pair of Tom’s for only 50 Yuan each. That’s a steal.. and they’re real Tom’s. Perhaps the donation isn’t happening at that price but I like them because they’re comfy and they don’t give me blisters which seems to be really easy for my feet.

I got the fickle feet to join Hana’s cheatin’ feet.

The day was full of chatting and exploring and getting rained on which sucked but well.. that’s life. She took me to a foreign foods store and I was like a kid in a candy shop. While some things I don’t care about when they’re readily available, sometimes Doritos, Salt N’ Vinegar, salami, good cheese, and CRAFT FREAKIN’ BEER is just too much a part of what I’m used to, to entirely give up. I love Chinese food, but it lacks crunch compared to the American diet and there are times I crave something crunchy (and not sweet) and I find myself wanting. Chinese people like to say Americans like sweet stuff but they can’t really talk. Everything is sweet and it drives me crazy. I know as a whole, China consumes less sugar per capita than the USA but that includes the poor and the country people who probably use next to nothing. In cities I wager it’s a bit more skewed.

At night we went to a Mexican restaurant she likes and we split a chimichanga because they were large and we weren’t starving and it was enough.

Overall, despite my Great Wall plans being a wash, I had a good time just hanging out with my friend and it was  nice it that way. She also told me where to get awesome french fries and sure enough, they were just like Our Place (my and the fam’s favorite local sports bar).

Now only for some blue cheese and some buffalo sauce.

I thought that my trip has ample opportunity for exciting things so I wasn’t as broken-hearted as I thought I’d be.

Yeah.. I didn’t anticipate just how right I’d be in all the wrong ways.

再见，

Laowai Shye

Anshan: First Impressions

*Graphic bits. Will warn before they start for squeamish readers*

大家好！

Power was out or else this would’ve been up sooner lol. That’s my high-tech university there.

But anyway, upon arrive in Anshan on Friday, a girl named Tina was there to pick us up. She was super sweet and upbeat and was very willing to help and answer my thousand and one questions.

My first impressions of Anshan were that of disappointment to be honest. While I knew it was a smaller and much more Chinese (as opposed to more Western cities like Shanghai), I think seeing it was a another matter. But that alone didn’t make me feel anything too strong.

Walking on campus I felt the same surprise and the same feeling that everything was much more run down than I originally thought. But again, I was still looking forward to seeing my place

Dorm building for International students

The walk

Signature building on campus

Giant-ass, scary-as-shit spider

When I got there I was at first quite pleased as the room was nice.. a bit dirty in places but nice and the closet was huge. The point where my stomach sank and lurched at the same time was when I saw the bathroom. I think I should take a photo to show you, but I think it would be cruel if you’re eating.

Some bits like the toilet weren’t so bad because simple cleaning solved it and it’s fine now. But the worst bits are in the grout. It looks like someone put clear seal over grout and it wasn’t done well or it was done a long time ago and it got moldy underneath. It looks horrendous and disgusting.

All these grossities and disappointments came to a head when my toilet reeked of sewage when flushed.. so bad that I was nauseous and it took over my whole room. I went to the main office to be like.. Uhh heyyyy can this be fixed or can I switch rooms and they said there were rooms on the first floor (I was on the second) but the second floor rooms tend to be of better quality. I took a look at 3 rooms on the first floor and they were each pretty awful. My room, other than the smell was really nice.. the bathrooms were all pretty terrible in all of the rooms. I asked if I could decide later since they said the smell might go away.

WARNING *Graphic bits*

But all these things together were a bit overwhelming. Additionally, when we went out to get cleaning supplies and other necessities, I’m pretty sure there is a dog skin hanging on a tree. It MIGHT be some other animal but it definitely looked like a shaggy white dog skin. This broke my heart. I KNOW I have no right to judge it but I can’t help but feel sad when I saw it.

*END Graphic bits*

The whole day I was anxious. How can I stay in this shitty place for 2 years? Even me with all my gusto wanted to go home. I think I made it through because I have George. He was amazing the whole time and he was supportive and sweet which is what I needed.

I talked to Evelyn, my contact at the school and Miss Zhang, one of the other secretaries and told them my concerns and such. Evelyn stated I wasn’t the only, or first to feel this way and that I should give it some time and rest. I took what she said to heart and thought maybe I can make this work.

I spent the day scrubbing my dorm and while my bathroom still looks crappy, it’s at least a lot cleaner.

Saturday I felt so much better and felt much more positive. I saw more of Anshan when our taxi took us a different way to the department store (to get supplies) and I saw a nicer, sleeker, side of the city.

We stopped at a restaurant that looked nice and they had 担担面 (dan dan noodles) Anyone who knew my love of dan dan noodles would know that this would excite me. I got them and was like.. BRAH DEEZ NOODLES DOE.

担担面！！！！！

So yeah. I guess that area of Anshan better fit the image I had in my head so it was nice!

Yesterday I even knocked on the door next to mine to introduce myself and met a girl from Costa Rica who has already been in China for 1 year but she was at Beijing Language and Culture University. Talking to her made me feel better about my nasty bathroom because said said that actually even with the ugliness, what we have is quite nice because at least it’s our own. Apparently many people at BLCU don’t know how to use squatter toilets right and it gets messy. She says I wouldn’t want to know the things she’s seen. The rest of the room she agreed was very nice and she said in comparison, it’s amazing!

So yeah, I feel much better about my situation overall and I’m excited to start classes. Right now I’m kind of bored and it’s hot so I’m not too keen to go explore until it cools down a bit.

I know this was a long post but a lot happened.

Today’s stuff will come shortly! I know, a lot at once, lol.

再见，

Laowai Shye