杭州 Day 28-30

Sunday, October 12, 2008:
杭州 Day 28 - West Lake Solo Photographic Tour

中国 Day 31
Asia Day 34

• Today, I woke up (as you may have guessed) LATE. I got up around 1:30pm after being half asleep when I should have gotten up. I did laundry, planned my lesson for the next two days, and hung my laundry once it was done washing. I boiled some dumplings (wtf, there's some sand in 1 out of 5 dumplings) and wontons (omg, delicious). They were store-bought, by the way o_O.

• Even though I was hours behind schedule, I was adamant about going to West Lake on a solo photographic tour. So, after all my errands were finished, I left the house with a backpack and my fanny pack. My face was covered in SPF 70 sunblock and I sprayed some DEET to avoid getting touched by mosquitoes. Also brought two bottles of water, an umbrella (which I decided not to use), and plenty of tissues.

• From where I live, all I have to do is turn right and walk 45 minutes to reach West Lake. I timed myself; between waiting for traffic lights to turn green and some of the distractions around me, it did only take 45 minutes. I left around 4:05pm and got to West Lake around 4:50pm.

• On the way, I saw some interesting things. I need to remember to take a picture of this, but near the daycare center (next to my school), there's a condom dispenser. I walked a few blocks and heard the siren of firetrucks. One after another, they kept passing me; I think I may have seen three total. I also saw this traffic sign with a man who looked like he was walking. It was a blue sign that I have never seen before - I should get a picture of it because it's quite odd - one of his legs are raised and there is an arrow under it. I think it is a sign dictating where a pedestrian should walk, but a CAR had parked under the sign o_O. After walking about 25-30 minutes, I saw a place where the firetrucks congregated. I saw no smoke nor flames, but there were groups of people watching and taking pictures with their camera phones and cameras. About 6 firetrucks were parked, along with a few police cars. I knew I was getting close to West Lake when I saw a pagoda nearby. I walked a bit more until I saw the lake.

• There's a dramatic change in scenery from the school to the lake. First, an observative walker will witness shops upon shops in an urban setting with few trees. Twenty minutes of walking brings the pedestrian to a more shaded area with many trees and more stores. After walking in this shaded area for another twenty minutes, the walker will finally see willow trees and other signs (i.e. water) that he or she is close to West Lake.

• I crossed the crosswalk and smiled with a sense of achievement as I made my way near the edge of the lake. I turned left and sauntered around the lake. On the way, I saw:
- People, lots and lots of PEOPLE.
- People that weren't couples sitting on the benches.
- Some historical statues.
- Lotus leaves in the lake, next to a Chinese-architectural building.
- A man with a Polaroid company jacket squatting over to take pictures of this lady and her kid. It must have been the father, but I thought it could have also been a random guy whose purported skill in photography is illustrated by his brand-name jacket.
- Statues of a couple.
- About 8 girls eating black corn. To be more specific, it was probably blue corn that was given a black eye. The corn is almost a dark indigo color and its color made me curious about its taste...
- Starbucks. There's one next to a lake. I saw a laowai sitting there, as well as a Caucasian lady with some foreigner friends.
- A West Lake sunset! It was beautiful!! What more can you ask for? Mountains, water, boats, and greenery - all were present at West Lake's splendid sunset. Ah, if only there were fewer people :P

• My feet were starting to hurt. To be more specific, my left foot was hurting (felt like it was starting to get blisters), while my right foot felt just fine. Around 5:10pm or so, after the sun had set, I decided to head back the way I came. I pondered two modes of transportation to get back to my school (via taxi, or via bus), but I thought it'd be really cool to just walk back all the way, for the experience.

• I gave in to my desire to try something new. I bought a black corn on the cob! I asked the man how much it was and he said, "五块" while using his hand to show me "five." I thought it was kind of expensive, but I bought it anyway. He told me I could choose which cob I preferred. When I bit into the corn, it tasted like Chinese corn - it's not crunchy or sweet, but it's quite chewy.
• After I walked away from the stand, I was puzzling over why he had made the hand motion in addition to telling me how much it was. I thought, maybe he thinks I'm a tourist so that he can overcharge. However, I also guessed that most of the Chinese there were tourists. Yet, did I somehow act in a way (by how I walked or asked the price) that told him I was a foreigner tourist, instead of a Chinese tourist? What a conundrum.

• On the way back, two women asked me for directions and I had to tell them I didn't know. -_-. I stopped by a store, whilst still chewing my corn. I bought some bread, when one of the cashiers said to her co-worker, "啊，她的玉米是黑的！" (Her corn is black.) Then, they talked to each other about corn. I was amused.

• I got a text asking if I wanted to join some of the foreign teachers for dinner. I texted back, "Yes."

• Around 6:30pm, I stopped by the local fruit/produce store and saw the chestnut man. This man roasts chestnuts and keeps them warm under a red blanket. I was craving chestnuts, so I bought a small bag for 7块. Thanks, Chestnut-man!

• I got back to my apartment and rested for a bit. Around 7pm, I joined Romaine, Vanessa, Thomas, Jason, and Zicheng for dinner. We saw a set of open-air stalls selling food at Jiaogong Lu awhile back, so we returned today to try some of this greasy street food. In Hong Kong/Guangzhou, they call the street food stall "dai pai dong" (大排档), while I think the Taiwanese call it the night market (though Taiwanese food is a whole different cuisine). So, the guys chose a place and I ate duck fried rice and rib soup (pai2 gu3 tang1 => 排骨汤) for 13块. Not bad, but it was a bit greasy.
• On the way back, I was conversing with Zicheng in Chinese. It was funny because we were talking about terms such as "吹牛皮"/"吹牛." I kept having to toss in some English (shows I'm not fluent yet -_-). It was funny because he brought up whether I knew the meaning of "拍马屁"...I said yes. I told him I thought the "屁" meant fart, as in 放屁, but he said something about pi4gu3 (屁股), or butt. This led to a hilarious conversation about fart.
• Z: *Sniffs*, as there is something stinky in the air (not love).
J: 这是什么味道？ 是不是你？
Z: 不是我。 是他。 *Whispers* 老外放屁。
J: 啊，中国人放的屁是香的。
*Romain looks backwards and gives me a look.*
Z： 不是，人放的屁都是臭的。
J： 你怎么知道？。。。是不是有经验的？
Z： 你从来有没有闻过香的屁？
*Jing cackles wildly, whilst Zicheng stares, bemused.*

• Came back to read for a bit.

• Today was such a great adventure!! Yes, I walked to West Lake and back...and explored alone!!! :D. 'Twas about approximately 45 minutes each way (I just had to reiterate that). Next time, I'm thinking of going by bike...

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Monday, October 13, 2008: 杭州 Day 29, - Teaching Day 11

中国 Day 32
Asia Day 35

• I got my second rabies shot. I walked all the way from my apartment to Wulin (武林) Road because three taxis rejected me (and I did not feel like waiting around). The trip took approximately one hour (hehe, I navigated with my online 3D map before I made the trip)!!! I explored a lot of the city and felt accomplished when I made it to my destination. At the health clinic, a different healthcare worker injected me with the shot, so the stab of the needle was not as bad. I took a taxi home afterward...

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Tuesday, October 14, 2008: 杭州 Day 30 - Teaching Day 12

中国 Day 33
Asia Day 36

• I bought a bright yellow shiny bike from the man on Wenyi Rd. It was 314块 with the accessories (basket and lock), 298块 without. I awkwardly rode it through the streets and back to my apartment. It was a scary adventure.