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I'm Drunk & Currently In China (From So. California), Let's Talk...
- Thread starter HappyDude20
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This is a very interesting thread.
I look forward to seeing some videos and hearing more stories.
I look forward to seeing some videos and hearing more stories.
You did promise to, after all...
I know, I know. Family back home is upset as well as they've not seen my face in ages.
Oh I Will. Just hate no longer having a digital camera. Here are a few pics taken a few weeks ago.
Our city has a Western-Style Buffet called "Origus" which features pizza, baked goods and popcorn. It's about 50 yuan a person ($7.65) which isn't a bad deal and we've yet to try it. Our next day of is Saturday and are planning on hitting it up.
As of late i've realized i'll miss the street food the most. Nightly i've been cooking meals, attempting to utilize the ingredients here; such as noodles, tofu, odd sausage and potatoes. (As a side-note, fruits and vegetables here are truly organic. Locally grown and consisting of dirt itself..."Fresh & Easy" back home got nothing on this place!) The meals i've been cooking taste okay in my opinion, though I prefer to leave the real cooking to the restaurants. There are 2 local eateries within a 2 minute walk from our big house. One is expensive at 30+ yuan ($4.50) a dish (Remember, in China all dishes are shared) and the second restaurant is dirt cheap at 5 yuan a dish (76 cents). I've not visited the more expensive of the two, but the lower priced alternative served the most delicious eggplant, drenched in a tomato-paste sauce that's made at the restaurant. (All meals, at any restaurant are served with your choice of rice or noodles.)
Look at me, here I am digressing once again.
I know an array of local teachers here that are a bit upset at how much we get paid. Automatically we earn three to four times more a month than the local teachers do.. and the local Chinese teachers get their salary bonus'd or deducted (monthly), depending on their teaching performance. (All classrooms have surveillance cameras and microphones). Another foreigner living with us purchased a little moped electronic scooter for about $300, and when the Chinese teachers saw him riding around with it, they though he was showing off...considering most of them making about $300 a month....of course, depending on an array of factors. Though that isn't to say you don't see locals with money. I ran into a man at an Electronics Shop one morning when I was searching for the new iPad 2. Considering the iPad 2 hasn't yet been released in China, the sale price is currently 8000 RMB, or $1,222. Personally, there's no way i'll purchase the iPad 2 for such a high price (16GB WiFi), with no receipt, at a shady wannabe Apple Store with no warranty...plus I have the 1st Gen iPad back home. Nevertheless, I ran into a man as he pulled out his iPhone 4 (Which they pay above full retail price) and purchased the new iPad 2. He was nice enough to let me handle and play with it for a bit, in exchange for some english conversation, again considering most people here haven't seen an American in person.
I can't help but wonder that when i'm back home in California, and am feeling a bit down in the dumps for whichever reason that I can always revert my thinking back to these days when I see a man on these streets, singing, making $15 a day without having any legs or arms. Seriously, the most depressing sight i've seen.
None. Well, kinda.
In 2007 I was in southern China alone, forcing me to learn a bit of Chinese.. though admittedly feel i've learned more this time around. I've been proactively throwing myself in situations where i'm forced to attempt to understand the locals, whether it be purchaing street food, purchasing groceries, or simply striking up conversation with interesting people. But it is a challenge.
On the other hand, my buddy, the one who tagged along took a Chinese course back in So. Cal before coming out, so he had a leg up when we first arrived. Now however, I personally feel more confident in my quest of attempting to understand what people here are saying.
Yes. I'm using a VPN service which even allows me to access Hulu, Netflix, YouTube & FaceBook while in China... without it, I wouldn't be able to access any of these sites, though all of MacRumors would still work.
Edit: You'll notice in the table tennis photo there are 3 cups at each end, filled with Bai Jaio (hard liquor), having to take a shot each time one of us hit the other's cup(s). What a night.
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I've not seen incredibly hot girls here. Perhaps this could be due to the random city i'm in, or (most likely) the fact that Los Angeles girls back home are amazingly attractive.
You can eat at decent restaurants for $5 per day in China. (locals can get meals for under $1 at many local restaurants).
If you are paying $5 for fruits and vegetables you are getting ripped off.
If you are paying $5 for fruits and vegetables you are getting ripped off.
The prices I previously listed were set prices listed on a menu on a big board on the side of the restaurant.
Everything in China is def. negotiable.
As for fruits and vegetables, everyday its a haggling game. But I have the best tactic of simply walking away. Usually they'll grab your arm, stop you and agree to the lowest price.
I've only been purchasing food within this past month, either in the streets or in a market. I've visited 3 different markets, located in different parts of the city, noticing different incomes of people stop by. The nice expensive market sells Ketchup and other western-style foods...while the lower priced ones seem to cater to the original chinese ingredients, perhaps for the older generation, at the older (lowered) pricing points.
I've yet to purchase shoes and clothing...but I'm waiting to visit the Silk Markets in Beijing to do that. When that happens, i'll be sure to take $200-$300 and simply purge a bunch of clothes that you won't find back home in the states. Previously, i've purchased unique Vans and Nike shoes that nobody back home seems to have...and they look legit. Whether or not they are is a different matter... but people can't tell the difference, and for $10 a pair, i'm not complaining.
I've been to 3 different homes this past month and every family cooking dumplings asks if theirs is the best i've tried. The women in these families really take pride in who makes the best dumplings. Of course I know which of all 3 are my favorites, though I tell each family individually that theirs is simply amazing to the taste.