Our Boxing Day Bash

Merry Christmas everyone. I'm saying that rather half-heartedly, because it doesn't feel anything like Christmas. For starters, it's about 30 degrees too cold, and I'm at uni all week. But we did manage to squeeze in a little get-together on Boxing Day night at Fabien and Christelle's apartment.

For dinner, we had handmade dumplings (most of which fell apart when cooked), pasta, Beijing duck, cheese and bread, and chocolate fondue. Unfortunately, I was feeling really ill (my eyes were hurting - I didn't quite understand why until the following day when I couldn't open them for the blinding pain - my first migraine!) so I left before the chocolate fondue. Anyway, a couple of pictures:


Fabien's chocolate collection - his excuse? He's Swiss.






Christelle in the kitchen.



And IT SNOWED AGAIN! But not at all exciting this time, because a) it only snowed a tad, and b) it snowed during the night... Most of it had melted by mid afternoon again. At least now the eerie mist has lifted again.



I'm home in 25 days!

Hooters (yes, exactly what you're thinking)

On Saturday, a number of my classmates and myself sat the HSK exams - HSK stands for 汉语水平考试, and is a proficiency test for Mandarin. The only reason we sat it was because it was free - normally you have to pay around 5-600元, but they'd recently made some changes so we were able to sit it for free. It was split into two sections, and in total went for nearly 5 hours.

There is nothing quite like getting up at 7am on a Saturday to sit an exam that isn't even compulsory. It really takes something out of you. So... we went to Hooters. Now, for those that aren't aware of Hooters, it is an American institution comprising of meat, beer and buxom girls is little clothing. And a Hooters had recently opened in Beijing, so we thought it was the perfect place to celebrate a job well done on the HSK.

The food was great, service was very enthusiastic, and the entertainment... entertaining. Our waitress was a girl called Cice (pronounced C-C). I had the chicken caesar salad, which I was very excited about. We also ordered for the table 50 chicken wings, which we hardly made a dent in. Every half an hour the girls do a little dance in the aisles. Very entertaining. We even told them it was Hokky's birthday, and they made him get up on a stool while they sang Happy Birthday and embarrassed the hell out of him.


From left - me, Yumin (Chinese), Mega, Olly, Candy, Andri, Devi (Indo), Candra, Hokky (Indo)



All the girls in the place!

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas

That's right - it snowed! (A few days ago). I would have blogged sooner to post photos, but I was unfortunately sick in bed with a feisty hangover that day, and my camera is out of batteries so I had to wait until one of my friends posted their pictures online! I am sneaky like that. And well, I kill two birds with one stone, because this picture is practically an entire class photo.



13 of the 18 people in that photo are Indonesian... Not surprisingly, my Indonesian has improved dramatically this semester. Our 'listening class' teacher is the lady in the middle, with the pink handbag.

Unfortunately, the snow melted almost entirely the same day. But I'm hoping for a pretty heavy downfall between now and Christmas so I will get my first white Christmas!

I ate meat with a knife and fork!

Yes, yes, very exciting. Today is/was Christelle's birthday - she's a Canadian/French girl (Quebec actually). So we all headed out to a relatively fancy restaurant called Annies for eats - what particularly interested us was their chocolate fondue (but more on that later).

I ordered the New Zealand rock of lamb with vegies, and oh my.... it was FAN-BLOODY-TASTIC. I took a photo, but it's only on my phone so you'll have to wait until I return home to see (which I'm sure you all shall). Watching Horacio trying to eat with a knife and fork was hilarious... The poor tyke could hardly cut his chops, but I'm sure with a set of chopsticks he could have worked wonders. For dessert, Mega and I split a cheesecake, and also had chocolate fondue. Chocolate fondue was clearly created on by God on the seventh day... It combines the decadence of chocolate with the goodness of fruit - a tad like the goodness of a crab, in the convenience of a stick (Dave Hughes fans will know what I mean, in reference to the fantastic-ness (yes, it's a word) of fish'n'chip shop crab sticks).

After dinner, Mega, Olly, Xavier and I headed to Club 13 - a club near university that I've been trying, unsuccessfully, for months to drag people to, but nobody is ever interested, primarily because the club specialises in metal, heavy metal and death metal. Tonight was a tribute to Dimebag Darrell - the lead singer of Pantera who was shot and killed at one of his concerts. It was really odd to see Chinese guys with dreads rockin' out to metal music, but lots of fun. And I am very glad I finally got some people to Club 13 - they all loved it so hopefully we'll get the chance to go back before I leave (tomorrow night is a Sgt. Peppers tribute night, so fingers crossed).

42 days to go, and 80 hours of class to go! Photos to come soon!

Dad, why did they build the Great Wall of China?

My friend sent me this, and I had to post it. Dazza, eat ya heart out!




(Click on the picture to make it bigger)

Syndication

On the weekend just passed, Candy, Mega, Yumin and I headed to a dnb party (drum'n bass - it's a style of music) and I've got some pictures to share! The party wasn't overly fabulous, but the music was great, the drinks relatively cheap and the bourbon a-plenty.

Another exciting thing to point out - this was our first time catching the brand new subway line - Line 5. If any of you have been to Beijing in recent years, you may know that there were 3 subway lines - 1, 2, and 13. Yes, Chinese people cannot count. Or they're just quite ahead of themselves. Well, finally we have our Line 5, and it is gorgeous! The inside of the station looks like a museum, it is clean and colourful and very modern. It's so nice, we didn't want to leave.











You may notice that Candy is absent from all the pictures - she is highly allergic to cameras.

Chh-chh-chh-chilly!

Just a quick message - it's cold. Really cold. It was meant to snow today, but it hasn't so far and I'm disappointed. It snowed a tad two days ago, but nothing spectacular. Most nights are below zero now, and during the day it struggles to get above 10. I have also learnt that it is near impossible to blow your nose when both your hands and your nose are numb - I may have broken my nose in the process, I'm not too sure.

That's about all the news I have really. My daily routine is so boring and monotonous now - wake up, class, lunch, return home, do homework, eat dinner, watch tv/movie, sleep. Except for weekends when all I do is sleep, eat and watch tv.

UPDATE - 65 days til I leave, 67 days til I'm eating a Banno Pub parma.

我通过了 (I passed!)

Yes, it shocks me as much as it shocks you! Considering the *cough* mammoth *cough* effort I put in in the lead-up to my exams, I was very surprised to find out this morning that I had passed every single class! Well, the only shock was my reading exam mark. Everybody found the exam harder than performing DIY surgery, and I was one of the lucky ones who just scraped through with a pass. Anyway, my results are as follows:

Normal class - 82
Oral - 83
Listening - 78
Reading - 67

For comparison, a 60 (out of 100) is the minimum mark to pass the course. And for further comparison, anything higher than 80 in Australia is a High Distinction. So I'd like to think that I received two HDs, one D (distinction) and a C (credit).

Needless to say, I think I'll be putting in a tad more effort for the final exams... I might even get the double figures in terms of hours spent studying!

And for those of you who miss me, I'll be back in Australia in exactly 70 days. Better start counting down!

76 days to go

Have I officially caught up on my blogging? I think/hope so! I guess I had better actually write something instead of just posting pictures, and let you know what I'm up to at the moment.

I'm just about half way through this semester - we have mid-semester exams next week which I should be studying for right now (but there's always tomorrow). I think I am finally beginning to like my teacher, or perhaps just hate him less, I'm not sure.

I have some more news to report.
- I successfully completed a Star Wars marathon (13 hours of telly was really a struggle, but I pulled through)... Next weekend we're doing either the Indiana Jones marathon, or the Bourne marathon, which at a measly three movies each will be a walk in the park compared to the six Star Wars episodes.
- (Something my parents may not be so proud of) I drank a whole bottle of bourbon in one sitting. My new classmate Olly (British) threw a hat party a few weekends ago, but I don't really remember much. Good times.
- I have been sick in the past week, so I've been cracking open the snake bile cough medicine. Yes, I even googled it - it is made from the bile of a poisonous cobra, and two random Chinese plants. It tastes and has the consistency of honey, and does the trick, so I'll be bringing a jar home. If you're game, you're more than welcome to try!
- My room has heating! This may not be big news, but for a while I was quite worried I would freeze to death in my room during the upcoming winter like my poor guinea pig. But in the last few days, they have definitely turned the heating on. Apparently the heating system is under the floor, because the tiles are very toasty to walk on. I only realised when I sat down on the floor to clean out the fridge.
- Which brings me to my next point. The weather is lovely! Maximum temperatures of around 10 - 15 at the moment, with the overnight temp occasionally dropping below 0. Also, the sky of late has been blue more often than not. Pity it wont stay like this for long. I wouldn't mind snow for Christmas though.
- Which brings me to my NEXT point (and I want sympathy here) - I have scheduled class all through the holiday period. Oh yes, that involves all the good days - Xmas Eve, Xmas Day, Boxing Day, New Years Eve AND New Years Day. Almost everyone I know is already planning on skipping those days, but I cannot afford to miss too many more days thanks to already missing a few classes due to being ill, so I'll probably be the one student in class on those days.

I guess that's it. It's really getting down to the final weeks of my stay, and I've started a countdown on Facebook (a website like Myspace for those out of the loop). As of today, I have only 76 days left in Beijing! I can almost taste the Banno Pub parma!

桂林山水甲天下 - Guilin

I am finally catching up on my blog - it's only taken a few months. So, our next installment is Guilin - a relatively small town (1.3 million) in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. We were there during the hottest part of the year, so it was quite like spending 3 days in a sauna.

(Again, I apologise but my memory is a little foggy, so it's going to be mostly pictures - Dad did apparently keep a little journal, but it's not exactly nearby for me to use).

Fubo Hill - this was right outside our motel







Moon Hill





Two pagodas in the centre of town



Reed Flute Cave



We took an all-day tour to Yangshuo, a nearby town about an hour away by road, but we sailed up the Lijiang river. The first picture is the scene printed on the 20元 notes, which our very excitable tour guide kept reminding us.





Downtown Yangshuo



The grandaddy of all trees



Our little boat ride - with Dad doing the audience participation bit



Dad catching a strain of the Avian flu



More downtown Yangshuo

生日晚会 - Birthday Party

Last night, as you should all well know, Gaoshan, Jiwu and I celebrated our birthdays together with our mates. We wined and dined at a Korean restaurant just near university. We had booked a private room, which had two long tables set into the floor - hard to explain, but you actually sit on the floor and there is a recess under the table for your feet, so it feels like you aren't actually sitting on the floor. The service was wonderful - we arrived to find everything already set up for us, all we had to do was order the meat and alcohol.

The beer flowed (not in my direction though [15+ bottles]), as did the soju (a Korean alcohol with no smell, hardly any taste, no burn on the way down, and high alcohol content - served nearly frozen, like a slushy [4 bottles]). The food was delicious as it always is at Korean restaurants, and I think I ate a lot (at least it felt like a lot, but you see, I was wearing my new corset, and it is impossible to overeat in that thing). Us birthday kids were also served a traditional birthday soup, which tasted a bit like Japanese miso soup, but with a stronger fish flavour and more seaweed - very tasty.

Here is a picture of what we dined on - the Koreans really must love doing their washing up, either that or they just love a good side dish!



Let's have a look at some new faces now, shall we?



Clockwise from the top, we have the waitress, Candra (you should already know him), Nalisha (one of our new classmates from Kyrgyzstan (I think) - she's a real doll, and is Candra's girlfriend), Beiya (also a new classmate, from Russia), Me, Oliver (or Olly - British chap, also a new classmate, and Mega's new boyfriend) and Andri (you should already know him too).

How's about a group photo now?



Top row - Gaoshan's Chinese friend (I cannot remember his name!), Candra and Nalisha
Middle row - Andri, Jiwu, Me
The next middle row - Gaoshan, Olly
Front row - Andres, Aysesin, Mega, Jiwu's wife (yeah, I'm bad with names)
Missing - Beiya, Candy (she got into the soju a little too hard) and a Turkish friend of Aysesin's

Then out came the cake:



Us blowing out the candles:



Gaoshan:



Jiwu and myself:



Jiwu, Andri and myself:



After dishing out the cake, Jiwu, Gaoshan and I made our speeches (much to my horror) in Chinese. After we had all eaten ourselves into oblivion, everyone headed home, except for Mega, Olly and myself, who headed to Sanlitun for some partying - I was all ready to go home and hop into bed, but I was tempted out with the offer of free birthday drinks. We first hit Butterfly - a very tacky club with music that was released when I was still in primary school, where we ran into Beiya and her friend. Then we moved onto China Doll, for some decent techno music, tasty Tequila Sunrises and bad dancing. Will post photos from Sanlitun when I temporarily steal Mega's camera.

Oh, and how could I forget - my gorgeous pressies! From Nalisha and Beiya, I got the most beautiful red roses, and from Andri I got a mixtape! Yes, a mixtape! Filled with all the music he thought I would love - lots of Mexican bands, one of Bjork's records, lots of Hotel Costes and Colette, and Sigur Ros (the kid's got taste)). Also with the mixtape were some Mexican lollies - some tasty marshmallow/strawberry/something crunchy combinations covered in chocolate called Bubu Lubu, some chocie and a lollypop called Vero Elotes - which is apparently strawberry flavoured covered in chilli! Andres even wrote "caution - hot" on the packet.)

Today shall forever be remembered as the day of the chocolate fish cake

Thankyou everyone for the birthday wishes!

I had a pretty good day considering I had class. The four hours went like a breeze (normally I'm counting down the hours, minutes, seconds), I had my favourite lunch at the shitang (cafeteria), the teacher set only a tiiiiiiiny bit of homework that I had already done, I got free gift-vouchers from a couple of my favourite online stores, I had a massive siesta, and the best bit? Mega surprised me with 40 (yes, 40!) chocolate fish cakes! What are chocolate fish cakes, I hear you ask? Only the greatest thing in the world worth 1元.

They are fish-shaped cakes made from something like pancake batter, with melted chocolate inside, served toasty hot. The seller used to camp outside one of the exits at uni last winter, but the police have cracked down and made everyone move. I had been hanging out for fish cakes ever since winter ended last year, and I thought I'd never find the seller... But Mega did, his new location is right outside the Wudaokou subway station. So she bought me 40! I didn't eat all of them, of course - I shared maybe 20 with my classmates (now I'm the popular kid, because everyone loves fish cakes).

Here is a picture of what is left, so finally my parents will know what I've been raving about all year long. (I don't know how well they will travel, but I might be able to bring some home too... only if you're lucky and don't mind risking possible food poisoning from eating food made on the street - I'm pretty much immune now!)

g - at least with my Tibet blog, I had my journal to go by. This time I am not so lucky, so this may be sparse (but I'll make up for it with pictures). And if you're back home in Australia, just ask my parents - I'm sure they remember more details than I do.

Oh, I guess I should explain for people other than my immediate family that my parents came to China to visit me for 2 weeks at the end of the school holidays. We just did the touristy thing around Beijing, then headed down to Guilin for a few days too. I have no idea in what order we did, or where we went every day, so lets just look at some pictures, shall we?



Apart from that, I don't really have any news. Friday night our classmates and I are having a massive birthday party, because it was Gaoshan's birthday on the 18th, and Jiwu's birthday today as well. We're heading to a Japanese restaurant near uni, which should be fun. (P.S. Mum and Dad, I'm squandering this fortnight's rent to pay for the dinner - because in most Asian countries, the host pays for the dinner). So no doubt I will have lots of photos to share then.

And I promise to post about our trip to Guilin soon!

Fumu lai Zhongguo Pt 1 (Parents come to China)

Ok, this is where it gets interesting - at least with my Tibet blog, I had my journal to go by. This time I am not so lucky, so this may be sparse (but I'll make up for it with pictures). And if you're back home in Australia, just ask my parents - I'm sure they remember more details than I do.

Oh, I guess I should explain for people other than my immediate family that my parents came to China to visit me for 2 weeks at the end of the school holidays. We just did the touristy thing around Beijing, then headed down to Guilin for a few days too. I have no idea in what order we did, or where we went every day, so lets just look at some pictures, shall we?


Somewhere in the Minority Park


The Tibet area of the Minority Park


Dazhongsi (I think!) Great Bell Temple - The largest bell in China. This is a photo of the decorative dragon on a smaller bell.


The next few are taken at Summer Palace






These few are taken at the ruins of the Old Summer Palace






Obviously dad found this odd/funny/interesting. It's funnier when they stack or crash.

See, I told you it would be primarily pictures. I think I used the word 'primarily' loosely. Will blog soon with Guilin pictures!