theforgottensandwich

Already back and still on vacation!

2009-11-13T18:58:00.000-08:00

Wow, what a great trip it has been! I arrived in LAX on Sunday, 11/8 and was picked up by my friends Kinh and Mimi.

It feels so good to be back, and as a matter of fact, I still feel like I'm on vacation! On Tuesday the 10th, I "traveled" to LA to visit my best friend Kinh, and I got a taste of his lifestyle in LA. Let's just say I was jealous of all the fun he has there, even when I was on vacation in China! As Kinh says, "Son, that is LA!"

Just yesterday night, Art, John (who is now back from China), Mark (John's cousin), Kristine, and Kinh went to a party hosted by Cedric the Entertainer, sponsored by Barcardi. There we got endless free drinks, food, alcoholic snowcones, live entertainment, and free photobooth pictures. It was a really good time, and it was foo FREE! hahaha. Yes, this was in LA!

I'm writing this blog rather fast, and yes, I am so behind on what I've been up to in China. I'll just say for now that Beijing was a nice finish for my trip.

Until then!

11-02: Chillin' in Dalian

2009-11-01T21:05:00.000-08:00

Dalian is blistering cold and bloody windy! I am also recovering from a cold, and I am really hoping that I get well in time so I won't be quarantined at the airport!

I haven't been able to fully explore the city because I'm not too keen on hiking through the icy wind. Luckily, however, John has a car, so I've been riding around with him and SiTong, his little lady-friend. We've been sharing a hotel together, and spent Halloween together at a party at Friendship Bar. Oh we even dressed up too!

John was a Chinese prostitute and I was a cat haha

John, Sitong and I merry making at the friendship bar, John was a bit hit! And the money you see on John's boobs was well earned!

I think we can safely say that compared to the Thai ladyboys in the picture above, John is much sexier!

I was so glad to see my good friend; after traveling and meeting so many new people, it was so nice to be in the company of somebody who knows me. Plus John is awesome! He's like a brother to me.

We went around and saw the beach and the sites around it. We had a good time.

This was yesterday; hot pot really hit the spot in such a chilly place. Matter of fact, we ate hot pot again tonight haha. I don't have the rest of my pictures uploaded yet, and I'm still way behind anyway, but I'm having a great time!

Anyway, cheers!

10-30: The Good Life

2009-10-30T22:51:00.000-07:00

I'm finding it hard to keep up on this blog when I'm so behind, but now that I am on the plane on my way to Dalian, I have a moment..

I spent an evening in Guilin on Sunday the 25th, and the only thing worth mentioning about Guilin is that I got my phone stolen! Somebody must've pulled it out of my bag either while I was walking, or at the pc cafe.

After getting a nice massage, I boarded the train for Hengyang in the Hunan province to visit my dad's hometown. There I stayed with my grandma, and actually really enjoyed my two days spent there. The thing I like a lot about my grandma is that she loves to find fun and socialize. In the past, I didn't really get to see this side of her while she was living in California, but in her element, just walking around in the street, people she knew would stop and greet her, and she was so proud to indroduce her handsome grandson to her friends, whom are always so impressed with my height. Too bad Tong, my taller younger brother, wasn't here, he would get so much attention haha.

Time was very tight in Hengyang and with Grandma's huge circle of friends and family, so I was very busy during my stay. The 2nd day I was there was the most eventful. I woke up 6am to go to the park with my grandma. Her and her friends exercise regularly in the early morning doing Taichi, stretches, and dances, but I think my grandma is there for chatting instead of exercising haha. Grandma then took me shopping and bought me a fly leather jacket for the cold temperture in northern China. Thanks Grandma!

To prepare for the lunch, we went to the meat market. It is such an experience to walk around and glance at the different shops with meat from different animals hanging, cleavers chopping, and live animals, solemnly sitting and waiting to serve their purpose as they listen to exchanges of fast Chinese.

So many different animals the Chinese like to eat, from the "normal" animals such as chicken and pork to the more interesting like frog, snake, turtles, dogs, and mule! They had all of that there!

My grandma wanted to find a really good chicken for lunch, and got to handpick the fluffiest, most healthy farm raised chicken. The one we choose was very loud and had a lot of personality, but after Grandma gave the OK, the lady put an end to the chatter and slit its throat, drained out some of the blood, and threw the poor guy into the feather beater machine. The machine has dozens of rubber sticks that beats the feathers loose as it spins the chicken around. With a slit throat, loss of blood, and after suffering a beat, the little trooper tries to fly out of the machine, but is yet too slow for those quick human hands. It's suffering is ended when it is thrown into the boiling pot of water, which makes skinning the chicken smooth like butter. Needless to say, the chicken was delicious!

After lunch I spent the rest of the afternoon with my older cousin, Qing Qing. Her and I went to park where we played like children. We had a splendid time renting a duck boat on the tiny deserted lake, riding some kiddy amusement rides, ferris wheel; all these things we wouldn't normally do, but it was very meaningful being nostalgic.

We also visited my younger cousin at his boarding school, and we picked him up to go eat dinner with a dozen other family members Grandma has called together. Although I don't say too much to them, it does feel nice getting together with my huge family and being apart of their gathering.

Afterward was much more fun because Qing Qing, her boyfriend, and I went to a local bar. It also happened to be the bar's birthday so it was bumping there. We got a big jug of beer, which totalled around 50USD (so expensive!) and we played B.S. Dice and danced the night away.

The next day I went to Changsha for the airport, but first spent the night at my uncle's oil factory. Staying there was an experience for me because it was in the middle of nowhere and ghetto! They had just moved there and everything was a mess still, and the toilet was pretty dirty. But regardless, I enjoyed staying with my uncle and getting a taste of their lifestyle. But interestingly, I had a dream yesterday night that I had a new job with a nice office, I was driving a nice black car with the roof down, manual transmission of course, and I felt like such a baller! The dream felt so real, and I enjoyed the luxury of the freedom I felt. It was so interesting waking up to such a contrast of the dark grey room. I realized again how much more I want to work for the good life.

I took a plane to Dalian in north eastern China where I am meeting up with my good friend John Sun. After getting on the wrong bus to the opposite side of my destination, I am 40 min away, but finally on the right track to where I need to be, or at least I think haha.

My adventure in Dalian awaits me!

10-31: Happy Halloween!

My 2nd day in Dalian, but yesterday I met up with a CSer, and instead of crashing at Karina's place, we went camping on the beach! In the rain! It was a random last minute idea, and it was marvelous!

Today is Halloween, and I'm meeting up with John Sun and we are hitting up the bars and clubs.

Cheers!

10-22: L's and R's and Rock climbing

2009-10-22T07:58:00.000-07:00

UPDATE! PICTURES ADDED!!!
Greetings from Yangshuo! So far I've spent an eventful day biking around the various sites with Ayang, a Canton fellow I met on the bus. We visited a cheesy theme park called the Ancient Totem Park, where we got a taste of the culture in ancient Guilin. The highlights of the park was I got to hug and take a picture with a live bear, and I won a coconut bra from the dancing competition in their show. Might I add that it looks quite cute on me haha! Afterward we visited the dragon cave which I'm lazy to describe, but will upload pictures to the same blog when I get a chance.

One reason I wanted to come to Yangshuo was to volunteer at an English school I found through the CS website. They offer a free stay, meal, and beer for participating in their English exchange corner. Each evening, a topic is presented and we volunteers lead the students in conversation and/or debate to help them practice their English. Many of the students speak very well, and they are quite lucky to have such a special opportunity to meet and interact with English speakers all over the world; they learn a lot more than just the English language.

Ayang and I woke up bright and early to meet up with Laura, another volunteer, for rock climbing. We were picked up by our guides named Adong and Chang, and we made our way to the nearby mountain.

The Chinese language has only a fuzzy distinction between the L and R sounds, and it is so easy for the Chinese to mix up the two. Having both sounds in it, Ayang, Adong, and Chang had such a hard time with Laura's name; no matter how hard they tried, everything kept coming out as "Raawla." Interestingly enough, when I told then to say "Rowla," they said it perfect! It was the funniest thing because they have the capacity to say it, just in their mind the sounds are programmed backwards.

Here with Laura and Ayang

We just finished our climbs, and I can say that it was a bit challenging, but very satisfying. Rock climbing works your hands, arms, shoulders, legs, toes, and mind as you are hanging from beneath the cracks, finding and pulling yourself to the next ledge. It is much easier than I describe it, but by the 4th most difficult climb, my muscles started giving out, and for the first time I relied on the rope to keep me from falling. It felt so good afterwards to have finished!

Following the activity, we had some awesome local food, and I decided that I wanted to do the Chinese fire cup treatment. The way it works is very interesting: basically the Chinese use fire to burn the oxygen in a cup creating pressure, the cup is immediately put on and sucks onto the skin, in this case my back. This practice is said to suck out and release the toxins from the body. The only draw back is that it leaves huge monsterous purple hickie spots that take weeks to heal. For this reason I was hesistant at first to do it, but I remembered the wise words of my father: "For your HEALTH!"

I really need to upload pictures, but when I do, I will add them directly to this blog. Until then!

Cheers!

P.S. I still have pictures from Thailand to share, look forward to those as well

10-20: A day in Hong Kong

2009-10-20T10:24:00.000-07:00

Monday the 20th, I made it a great day spent wandering the streets of Hong Kong.

The night before I briefly looked up things to do, and even was given some suggestions from Mrs. Kong before she left for work. She had woken me up quite early and needless to say, I was half-asleep, still closed eyed and couldn't understand a word she said; I woke up and smiled at the detailed directions to the various metro stops she wrote out for me.

So I set out to the Shenzhen metro, which convenietly connects to the Hong Kong metro, and bought a ticket to a stop on the Hong Kong Island district. On the train, I was miserably cold, and decided that I was shivering too hard and would just get out at the next random spot and abandon all plans for chance. The stop I got off of happened to be the center of Nathan Road, which is a crowded shopping street. I walked around exploring the shops and stopped for a Hong Kong lunch. Without a clue of what to try, I walked into a crowded restaurant filled with locals stopping by on their lunch break. I told the waiter to bring me the most popular dish, and was served a bowl of noodles with beef chunks and tendon.

The food was just alright, for the broth was on the salty side, but with a full stomach, I trekked back to the streets.

I asked some locals in the street to point me in the direction of something to see, and I arrived at the famous clocktower. There were a few individual travelers hanging out in that area, and I asked one of them what he recommends doing in Hong Kong. My new friend, Till, who is traveling from London did recommend to me a nature hike he took, however, we decided to explore the city together, hiking in the city to various spots in the city.

First we found the Starwalk, which is the Hong Kong equivilent to Hollywood's walk of fame.

We saw Jackie Chan and Jet Li's plates among many famous Hong Kong actors we didn't know.

We took the metro to go to the bird garden street market, which sells everything birds, from birds to cages, to small crickets to large grasshoppers and locusts sold by the bag! My favorite bird I saw was the beautiful toucan with its colorful beak. Wouldn't that be an awesome pet!

Next we moved onto the goldfish market, where you can find everything aquarium. It is so interesting how Hong Kong organizes itself to have similar stores all bundled together! I could imagine how much fun it might be for a Hong Kongnese to spend a day walking around the goldfish market and building himself the best aquarium with the most beautiful coral and exotic fish, picking up the coolest props and figurines to put inside the tank. Probably spend a good day's pay or more, but prices are still reasonable compared to the states.

The night was starting to fall, and I wanted to go to the Peak on Hong Kong Island to enjoy the daily city light show. At 8pm each night, the skyscrapers light up, and at the Peak one can enjoy a view of all te buildings. I bid farewell to Till, who was going to meet up with his friend, and headed for the metro.

To get to the Peak, one way (the special way) is to take the tram, which has a history of over 100 years.

Up at the peak, there are many shops and restaurants, most of them expensive. There is also a wax museum, which I didn't go to, but I did go to a very fancy restaurant to buy just a oyster to sit down and enjoy the view. I looked pretty absurd compared to the rich patrons, but I didn't care because I'm on vacation!

Above is a picture of the Peak Tower. After spending a good hour and half checking out the place, I bought a cup of coffee and went to the roof of the tower just in time for the light show.

Unfortunately the weather wasn't so nice; it had rained a bit and it was pretty foggy, but I still enjoyed te view of the city.

This day in Hong Kong was exactly what I needed after Thailand. Although I was under time constraint, I felt so free being by myself, again letting chance be my guide. For a combination if several reasons, when I was in Thailand I somehow forgot how to let myself go. I was a bit more uptight with my money and also my social relations and I was less the usual Greg. I was in desperate need to renew myself; I really needed to give myself a break from everything and everybody and toss all plans and go with the flow. At the end of the day, I felt so accomplished for making such a great eventful day when I started fresh from nothing.

Since then, I've been in Yangshuo for four days, and since rock climbing I've gone to a watercave and took a mudbath there, taken a bamboo raft down the stream and also today hiked to the top of Moon Hill (I will add pictures later)

Back tracking to yesterday Saturdat night (10-24th), I learned that my favorite bar in Yangshuo was having a musician play some folk music there in the evening, so I went to the Kaya Bar to see Music Lao Yu (Music Old Fish) perform. It wasn't much of a crowd and the mood was quite serious, but I liked one of the songs he played called Hua Fang Gu Nian by Cui Jian, who is considered the first Chinese musician to play rock music back in the 80s. Anyway, at the break I introduced myself, started chatting with him, and when he went back on stage, he invited me to join him using the bar's djembe drum. There was nobody in the bar anymore, but we put on quite a show!

Music is an amazing channel that can catalyze a connection between hearts on different frequencies. Although we've never played together before and I don't know his songs or style, it wasn't long before we found a comfort level and we both came alive in the music. It was such a big compliment on many levels to feel the mood and dynamics of the room change, and even more so when he thanked me for playing and inspiring him. Wow, that hit me deep because here is a multitalented musician that travels all around to perform, and my drum playing on the simple djembe was able to turn around and change the complete feeling if the musician and his songs. This experience reminded me (again) just how much I love music.

Right now I have arrived in Guilin and tomorrow (Monday) I go to Hunan to visit my grandma. In the meantime, I miss all of you and can't wait to see everybody! Take care in the meantime!

-Greg

Phi Phi: a vacation from vacation

2009-10-17T00:14:00.000-07:00

My trip to Thailand is slowly coming to an end, and tonight I decided to just relax in the hotel by myself. A lot has happened in the past few days and I am a bit burnt out haha. It has been fun and quite an unique experience in this beautiful, but crazy country.

I haven't got a chance to post photos here, and will wait till I get to a computer in China.

Perhaps the most interesting day I had was my 2nd day on the island of Koh Phi Phi. Ash and I decided to take a tour around the island in a sailboat. This tour almost didn't happen because literally right when we were about to take off, it started raining like God's fury. Captain Bob, knowing the weather temperment of Thailand, was smart to maintain our patience by taking us to lunch first. The rain in Thailand recurs a few times a week, but only lasts for at most an hour; after we finished lunch, the day immediately cleared up and was beautiful as ever.

Our first stop was monkey beach where wild monkeys wait expectingly for tourist to visit, bringing them their sustanance of bananas. Monkeys are cute, but they are quite unpredictable. My tour group snorkled over to the beach while I kayaked over with all the cameras. The monkeys came out and greeted us, and I thought it was so cute to have a playful monkey climb up my arm and rest on top of my head. Out of my terrified group of tourist all whom remained in the water, I was the only brave one to venture out and get a closer look at the monkeys. Another monkey climbed jumped and climbed on me, which was again really cool. I wanted another picture and was on the way toward Ash to hand him my camera, and a third monkey climbed on me, which was perfect right until his friend ran up to my leg and bit me! Monkeys are known carriers of rabies, and at this point I was through with monkey beach; I now officially hate monkeys! All I had to do after the tour was get a rabies shot (which I later found out is actually only 1 of the 5 shots I'd have to get throughout the coming month) but I was trying my best to keep my cool while I wanted to strangle that little bastard!

10 minutes later we arrived at the next stop for the next activity: cliff jumping. We swam to and climbed up the cliff, and one by one jumped off. When it got to my turn, I was so scared and shaking, and last minute downgraded a couple meters to a smaller jump. At this point, there was no backing out, and although my mind was resisting, once I counted to 3, I flung myself off screaming on the top of my lungs! The drop was the scariest feeling I've ever felt, but even more than skydiving, I've never been more alive! Compared to my preplanned skydiving adventure, the danger and fear in just climbing up and jumping was much more raw. I climbed up once again, this time jumping off the big jump which I initially backed out of. I felt so refreshed that I forgot my anger from the monkey bite 20 minutes back in time!

We then explored Maya Beach, which is the beach in Leonardo Di-Caprio's movie "The Beach." It truly was paradise with turquoise clear water over the softest, finest ivory sand.

Right after we snorkled the other side of the beach, which was cool but just alright. The sun was about to set, so we made our way back to the boat to watch the sunset while sipping some beers. The view was just marvelous!

After the 7 hours, I had to get my shot, which cost 1300 baht. I felt so drained and burnt out at this point, but still went out and tried to socialize. It was a bit of a drag, and the people around me could feel it. I decided it was about time for me to slow down and spare a day for myself to recenter: a vacation from my vacation.

Perhaps the monkey bite had some to do with it, but I've also been feeling less of myself since being in Thailand. A mass of reasons come up, from spending too much, feeling homesick, worrying about both my near and distant futures, and also my decreased ability to tap into the present moment and enjoy the presense of other people. Ash has been such a good friend to me, and has been reminding me how to let go and just have fun and enjoy the holiday. However, when it comes down to it, all of my problems stem from me not paying attention to my inner-self.

I slept in and spent the early afternoon walking around the village, and spending time with just myself. I found a nice place with a beautiful view of the ocean and green hills to write some postcards. It felt so nice to be quiet for a change, and to be away from Toca as well.

I treated myself to a nice burger, which I really miss eating. After my satisfying lunch, I asked around and found a hike to the 2nd highest point if the island. The hike was quite challenging for there were so many steep stairs that seemingly climb to the heavens. On the top, I enjoyed a marvelous view of the whole island, able to see the two opposing beaches. I found a nice place to sit and started writing to myself in my journal. One hour flew by and was just in time for the sunset. It was an amazing time. I felt so good afterwards and was ready to finish strong with a good night of drinking and socializing.

I saw some Thai boxing at a bar that gave out free buckets of drinks to volunteers who wanted to spar. Next door at the Irish Bar, they had a ladyboy caberet show, but it was so cheesy; we left after a few minutes for the beach bar party. It was the good old fashion party night.

It is now early afternoon in Bangkok, and I just finished my 2nd rabies shot. I'm am ready to leave Thailand, and in a few hours, I'm on my way back to China!

Cheers!

Slowing it down

2009-10-16T09:08:00.000-07:00

The hotel room in where I rest
Too soon for bed, I turn my head
There lies a table, a wooden desk
My soul gravitates to it to sort this mess.

To start, I find a cigarette
It's my friend in times of loneliness
Together we share fond memories
Of family, friends and familarities.

Together we miss the love back home.
The laughs and hugs before I gone
And what I'd do to find that place
Where here nobody knows my face.

Together we miss the stupid times
Where time it seems spent wasting minds.
But times like those we shares our hearts
It's love like that that needs no smarts.

I'm left alone with a bowl of ash
But in my heart those memories last.
When I rest and hold them dear
I feel a little less lonely..

10-13 Crash course in how to enjoy Phuket in one day

2009-10-12T23:34:00.000-07:00

While many people do not like the down time of transportation, I love it because it is extra time for myself to sleep, read, think, and in this case writing in this blog. Right now, I'm on my way to the beautiful island of Koh Phi Phi.

Yesterday I spent an exciting eventful day in Phuket with Ash and Louie, our CS host. Louie sure knows how to live the life here in Phuket; owning his own business gives him so much time for himself, and he spends a lot of time surfing on the beautiful beaches.
That is just what we did! Louie gave us both surfing lessons, and we both stood up on the board for the first time. I did lose one of my contact lenses in the water, but I cleared my mind from frustration in some hot yoga.

Louie gas made it his goal to go do his yoga for 30 days straight, Monday being his 8th day. He goes to a yoga studio that practices a style of yoga that takes place in a room with a temperture of 91 degrees. On top of that, the master there was a hardass and worked us to the core for the 90 minute class; let's just say I've never sweated harder in my life! I was so drained after the workout, but I found myself feeling refreshed and rejuvinated after 30 minutes.

The night began with BBQ shark for dinner, and we made merry by drinking, playing pool, and I got another jam in with a band I didn't know! I felt like a rock star, and I even got a Thai girl to give me 5 baht to dance with her! Hahaha it was a fun night.

The best part of the night for me was learning how to ride a scooter. Louie had gotten pretty drunk and couldn't drive home, and because I was sober, he taught me how to drive a scooter. Piece of cake! Never before had I thought I'd be able to ride a motorcycle, and although this wasn't a motor cycle, it was a good intro to perhaps my next vehicle! Who knows...

Unfortunately my camera was out f power that day, but cheers to such an eventful day! I didn't want to leave Phuket, not until I made it to the island of Koh Phi Phi...

10-12 Fast and faster times in Thailand

2009-10-12T22:52:00.000-07:00

Monday morning, already on my 3rd day in Thailand, and currently I am in a taxi on the way for my flight to Phuket. Bangkok is checked off the list!

My first experience staying at a hostel was here in Bangkok. Lab'D hostel, which means "sleep well," is said to be one of the nicest hostels out there, and I only paid 300 baht a night, which is around nine dollars. Arrived at 3am, which is an hour behind China, so I was really beat and tired. As soon as checked in, I was ready to crash, but Instead first went out for a cigarette and fell into a late night Tuk Tuk adventure!

When I went outside, I met a collective group of travelers each from a different country. The craziest one out of them was an Irish chap named Brian, who is probably the most energic and outgoing person I've ever met, even though he hasn't got ANY sleep at all for a few days! Brian really wanted to ride and later drive (which he did) the TukTuk, which is a mini motored taxi that seats 4 or 5 people. I wasn't planning on going, but they insisted that I take Toca along with them for a ride to the river. Toca is quite popular! I've met so many people because of this drum, and they probably like it more than me haha! Anyhow, the ride was a great first taste of Thailand for me; we squeezed 7 people into the Tuk Tuk and felt the rush of the Thai wind as we raced with ourselves down the alleys. What made it better was Toca's natural ability of bringing everybody together in merry making and song! We enjoyed riding to the river and watched as the night slowly melted into broad daylight.

After sneaking in a few hours of sleep, a few mates and I found each other and decided to go to the weekend market. We hiked a but and took the Bangkok Skytrain, which basically is an elevated metro, to get there. Along the way, we made music and watched amusingly at Brian interacting with the locals with his broken Thai. What I observe of the people here is that although they may not have much status or money, they are quite happy, greeting us with warm smiles and a genuine friendliness I don't see in many Americans. They live simply and easy in such a seemingly complicated city, and they generally seem content with their lives, at least on the mere surface.

I made a friend from London named Ash, whom I'm traveling to Phuket and Koh Pi Pi with. Yesterday we had a wonderful day exploring Bangkok more less like traditional tourists. We saw such a beautiful side of the city. I took a lot of photos and haven't got a chance yet to upload them, so I will save it for a separate post.

The side in Bangkok, actually only a small part that gets the most attention, I didn't really enjoy was it's darker carnal side. Perhaps I was not in the mood for partying like I had originally planned; I think I prefer a slower pace of living while it seems most people traveling here in Bangkok live fast, and the rest of them live faster.

One of the famous attractions here is the naughty ping pong shows, which I will not explain. From what everybody says, it is something that isn't necessarily enjoyable to watch, but is a must see when in Bangkok. Several others at the hostel were going and Toca and I tagged along. Because of Toca, it was very fun and exciting hiking there, for he helped generate excitement with songs about pingpongs and Bangkok; everybody was so pumped! However when we got there, it was saturated with sleaze. Long story short, among other things one of the ping pong balls hit my hand and I was overr it! Half of the group stayed and watched, and I left with the rest of us.

Now I think that should address the first question most people have about Thailand. Now, I am a bit behind with my posts, but look forward to pictures and stories of the enjoyable experiences Of Thailand!

click on the pictures

2009-10-07T12:44:00.000-07:00

Hey, I just noticed that the pictures from my recent post have to be clicked on to fully see it. I will try to post from my ipod instead from now on. First time trying photobucket direct html.

Or does anybody know how to fix this? email me @ hangreg.yan@gmail.com

Thanks!

My favorite words in Chinese

2009-10-07T09:22:00.000-07:00

Probably my most used phrase in Chinese is "Hen(2 accent) you(3) yi(4) shi(4)" which translates into "it is very interesting. It literally means "having a lot of meaning," which says it all about my trip to China!

I took a 9-hour sleeper bus from Xiamen to Shenzhen, which wasn't so bad because my seat was a nice little cot where I rested and read. I took a picture because I've never been in a bus like this before; you even have to take off your shoes!

I am in Shenzhen right now staying at Mr. and Mrs. Kong's beautiful luxurous home; they are the parents of my foster sister Tina, whom lived at my house for the past 2 years. It is actually too nice here, and I don't feel like I'm backpacking anymore! Like in Xiamen, I am nearly being spoiled here, but yes, I'm loving it!

I was invited to go eat lunch at the house of a family friend, and it so happened that a Professor from the states was visiting as well; my dad really wanted for me to go meet him, and I also thought it was a great opportunity to expand my horizon by meeting with somebody with a lot of life experience and wisdom. I was excited to meet this professor and his wife, but instead of intellectual mind stimulating conversation, I found myself in the middle of the most mindless, asinine, egocentered lecture about Christianity being the only "correct" way to live and about all the works they've done, God be the glory of course. Right at the start, I thought I made it clear that I respected their beliefs, but agreed to disagree, and even changed the subject, but Professor Cai wasn't done and pursued to continue his lecture. After this point, I didn't even get a chance, or want to say anything more. Then his wife jumped in to finish up, and she was just getting started. Without even asking me about who I am, she believes she already knows me and exactly what is wrong with me. What made it worse was that instead of at least sticking to the point, she AK47ed random arbituitary bits of her faith, jumping from testimonies of the people she has helped, to what a horrible person she used to be, to how hard it is to find dresses that are not for prositutes, and to finally telling me that I'm living a foolish lifestyle, and eventually I will come back to God. Then she gave me a cute little gospel booklet. I was so disappointed.
Oops, I seemed to have preached a sermon of my own; it has nothing to do with them being Christians, it's just such a shame that these people were so stuck inside of themselves to bother to conversate with me.
Well Dad, I tried haha :)

Right when I left, my good day started. I met up with Mrs. Kong's niece and a couple of her friends. They took me shopping, and I bought quite a few things including a new fake Levi's wallet, fake BOSS cologne, fake CK underwear, and a fake BOSS sachel. Haha what can I say, I got a really good deal, especially since one of the friends, Kevin (a girl), is a master at haggling. We grabbed some street food and Sichuan hot and sour noodles.
Starting from the left is Me, Kevin, Xiao Yuan, and Zi Han.
We went to a outdoor bar and met up with some more friends, and we played a drinking game that I'll translate into "B.S. Dice" The rules are hard to explain, but basically it involves bluffing the number of a die rolled for a said number. It is a lot of fun, and I am taking this game back to America! I also taught them how to play quarters, which they loved!

Today I woke up bright and early to go visit some sites. Mr. and Mrs. Kong took me to see the portrait and statue of Deng Xiaoping, who was a diplomat that made a huge impact on the economic rise of China in the 1960s. He is especially a hero in Shenzhen, because it was him that turned Shenzhen from a small fishing village into a very successful and busy port city, ranking 2nd only to Shanghai. Mrs. Kong and I took a picture with the famous portrait of Deng Xiaoping.

To get to the statue, we made a short relaxing hike in Shenzhen park. Even more enjoyable than the statue was listening to a girl play the Chinese violin called the Er-hu on the way up. I've heard quite a lot of people play the instrument, but I've never heard somebody play it with so much dynamics as this 14 year old girl. There is just something about the way she plays, the expressive, yet relaxed sadness in her songs, it's like she's trying to tell a story.

Mrs. Kong took me to the Museum of Shenzhen's history, and served as a great tour guide and a Chinese teacher! I learned a lot about Shenzhen, and how to say words like communist in Chinese haha. It wasn't an art museum, but I took some pictures of things I found visually appealing. Shenzhen a fisherman's village check please!

After we had a big dinner with my host's family, the three of us went to the Shenzhen Splendid China & Chinese Folk Culture Village to watch a performance. This is one of Shenzhen's many amusement parks, and what is cool about this place is the music, people, and culture from all of the different regions and groups in China gathered and brought together in this park. Exploring this big park takes more than a day, and I said to myself that I will go back another day to take some photos. Tonight we went primarily for the show called "Dancing with the Dragon and the Phoenix." Let me tell you something: the show was AMAZING! It brought together various styles from numerous regions of China and like colors on a canvas, it painted such a beautiful picture. I am killing it with my explanation, but here are some pictures to help

When the night couldn't get any better, we finished this show to find a free show just starting with other performances. There was a Chinese rock band, other cultural dances, and a Chinese singer comedian. At the end, they invited us all to get together and dance! What a great night! What a great day!

Pictures 3: Xiamen and family

2009-10-04T12:46:00.001-07:00

I did manage to catch the train on time this time! It was a 23 hour ride in the hardseat; uncomfortable, but it was a nice time for me to quiet down and have some real me time.

On the train, I thought it was funny when this angry old man started yelling at the steward. He was speaking in the Minnan dialect so I couldn't understand what he was saying, but it seemed to be something really stupid. He was going crazy on him and I had to sneak a picture!

The first day I went to explore Gulangyu island by myself. On the ferry, I met a fellow Chinese guy named Hu Zi, who was also traveling by himself and he invited me to accompany him. It was nice to meet a Chinese guy as open minded and brave as he, and it seems that more and more natives are breaking out of the mode of tradition.

Here is Hu Zi at the Organ Museum. Gulangyu is sometimes called the "Island of Music" because of this Organ museum, but more famously for hosting China's only piano museum containing over 200 pianos, which we didn't get to visit due to time.

Gulangyu is a very scenic island where many Chinese and tourist like to visit to get away from the city. There are no cars or motorcycles here, bilut people do indeed live here.

School's out!

Xiamen is known as one of the cleanist cities in China. Here is a view of the city from the island, the ferry takes only 5 minutes and charges only for the return trip for a small price of 8 kuai.

Back at my uncle's house, I enjoyed a nice view of the city from the balcony on the 26th floor. Let me introduce to you my family

My two cousins and I. Le Le (right) lives here in Xiamen and Shan Shan is visiting 4 hours away from San Ming. They are much more well behaved than I ever was, and they shares a wonderful time with me in Xiamen. We enjoyed some Chinese BBQ, while Le Le played with his food.

Mid Autumn Festival dinner with family. Starting with the left, my mom's younger brother (LeLe's father), older brother and his wife(Shan Shan's parents), Le Le's mother, cousins, Grandma and Grandpa..

We celebrated the Moon Festival with a tradition unique to Xiamen: a 6 dice game called "Bo Bing"
The objective of the game is to roll multiple fours and four of a kinds to win red envelopes containing different amounts of money based on the degree of the players roll. Grandpa looks quite happy from rolling high. Everybody won some money but

I came through with the 2nd highest roll possible with 5 of a kind. It was all for fun,but man did it feel good to win!

The rest of my trip was well spent with my family, and I got a chance to relate with my family; opportunities like this are hard to come by.

This week flew by, and tomorrow I'm on the way to Shenzhen! Until then, don't crap out!

Pictures 2: Shanghai2

2009-10-04T05:38:00.001-07:00

Here are some more photos from Shanghai

Dave, Gabbi, and I went to the tea district in Shanghai to visit our friend Nancy and her shop. We had a little tea party there, and Nancy taught us all how to serve tea with elegance as you can see in the pictures above. Afterwards, the three of them made their way to get massages done by blind people; they are said to be able to feel all the sore points, and although it is good for your body, they are quite rough! I on the other hand parted ways to go to...

Teppanyaki!!! First time experience for me, paid 160 kuai for all you can eat meat, sushi, sashimi, beer and sake; quite a deal! I was invited to attended a birthday party for Matar, an Israeli American who co-owns an entertainment/event company in Shanghai. His friends were all very upbeat and in the mood to party, and the bottomless all you can drink sake and beer brought the life to the restaurant! Yeah we were LOUD!!

That same night I went to two different popular clubs called Sin and the other Mao. I lost the house key from partying too hard, and as you know from the Parkou story, we had to climb to the 2nd floor, and climb down. This is Gabbi trying to smile after he fractured his tibia:

Poor guy. In China, most people don't use ice cubes, and therefore stores don't sell them. I had to buy a Popsicle, strawberry flavor of course, and smash it in a bag for him to use for his ankle.

We took it pretty easy the next 2 days, and watched a few movies, got Gabbi some salad to help his foot, and had a dinner potluck party at Dave's place. Dave invited his old friends as well as some new friends we met through couchsurfing. I took a few pictures, but unfortunately didn't have my SD card on me, therefore those pictures are stuck in my camera's memory. We had a great night.

The next day I left for Xiamen!

Mid Autumn Festival 10/3

2009-10-04T01:47:00.001-07:00

I realized tonight at my family's midautumn festival dinner how unfair life is. Behind the current success and smiles, one cannot see the struggle and hardship from the tough roads my grandparents, uncles, aunts, and parents walked in their time. For the first time I appreciate the once annoying advice and stories my grandparents and even parents told me, and although I may not take their advice, I can understand the love behind their words of tough encouragement for they went through times where they themselves had to settle life's handicaps.

It almost seems so cliche to say it, but I feel very grateful for my family. It took me a few days to finally humble myself to sit down and listen, and go by their flow. My grandma was then able to share with me her stories of being an orphan and then raising my mom and her brothers, and although I may have heard the stories before, many times in fact, this time I truly felt them. It was very humbling to feel so lucky for not knowing the struggle and bitterness that my parents and their parents experienced growing up.

During my stay in Xiamen, I didn't go to one bar, and didn't get to explore it much on my own like I originally planned, but I had a valuable experience shared with my family. Inside me now burns a fire with the duty of honoring my family and my roots, and although my direction isn't yet clear, I will strive to fuel this fire myself before life does it for me.

Pictures 1: Hangzhou and Shanghai

2009-10-03T02:27:00.000-07:00

The other day I lost my camera in a bookstore and was pretty bummed because I didn't have anymore pictures from my trip. After I prepared my mind to let it go, I went back to the shop to see and saw that they found it! I was overjoyed because I thought surely somebody had taken it! I was so happy that I took a picture with the girls that worked there

They were a little embarassed but I insisted! Hahaha

Let me take you back to when I was in Hangzhou a week ago. I spent my last day enjoying the beautiful West Lake in the rain, which people say is when the lake is most beautiful.

I paid 40 kuai for a boat ride in the lake, and although I only have 2 pictures, it was very relaxing to listen to some Joe Hisaishi, the conductor of the score in Spirited Away. What was even more relaxing was biking a lap around the whole lake; I think the rain only made it more fun and interesting! Haha!

I took some pictures while going around, I feel that these pictures hardly do any justice. My photography skills need much improvement, but either way it is one of those places that you just need to visit for yourself.

I made my way back to Shanghai that evening, met this crazy Chinese guy named C.C. On the Dtrain He didn't know much English but I took him to the Bell Bar to the weekly couch surfing party. He made a lot of friends being the riot he is haha.

My next few days in Shanghai was a little more quiet than thei initial visit, but we visited various cool places

Above is a very cozy coffee lounge hidden inside a random alley. It had a very homely feel to it that made it real nice.

Above pictures were taken at the Plum Gallery. They told me that the plum represented happiness. Back in the day when the only food they had to eat was rice, they would cook it with a plum inside so that its aroma would sweeten the rice. I bought a postcard there.

Long story short, we got hooked up with free beers by Mike Sollevey because he forgot that we arranged to meet him there; he is the chef there. The Boxing Cat brews their own beer, and for the first time in China, I tasted real beer. I'll admit, I got used to the diluted Chinese beer and I had to drink my one and only beer very slowly. Lasted me the whole night haha.

After my iPod crashing three times, I think I will post the pictures in segments since my pictures this time are much more bigger. To be continued...

Family in Xiamen

2009-09-30T13:00:00.000-07:00

I found a proxy! It feels so good not to have to type from the iPod touch screen :D

I took a 22 hour train to Xiamen and arrived Tuesday in the evening! It was a long uncomfortable ride, but I finished reading the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. I finally got to quiet down and invest some time on bettering myself. Great book by the way! There is so much I learned and still need to learn from the principles in the 7 habits.

I was picked up by my jiu ma, or specifically my mom's younger brother's wife, and we arrived at their beautiful home on the 26th floor. My grandma and grandpa on my mom's side were there to greet me. It has been many years since I've seen them,and they have an endless playlist of advice and things to say to me. They raised me from when I was born until I left for American when I was two, and it seems they haven't yet adjusted to the change I've gone through the years. They had much to say about me not being to write Chinese, staying up late, eating out, taking my "tired" jiu ma on a walk, spending too much money, AHHHH!!! I love my grandma and grandpa, but to be honest I wasn't quite ready for it, and it really test my patience. Haha I became really grateful for my parents because they are MUCH more chill! Anyhow, I need to "begin with the end in mind" and proactively be a good grandson and find a way to make a real connection with them. Family comes first afterall.

I am ashamed to admit that I originally did not want to visit my family during my trip to China. Selfishly outside of obligation, I thought it was really out of my way when I just wanted to enjoy myself on my holiday. Digging deeper, however, the real reason is because I wanted to avoid the trouble of them misunderstanding my being. Really, I felt it was quite out of the way for me to try to break the preexisting mold of who they think I am, and I hate being treated like a baby, especially like an American baby. It was my laziness, or even fear perhaps, that kept me from seeing this as an opportunity to show my true self and to show off what a great job my parents have done in raising a man. Also, as my Momma reminded me, there is a lot that I can share that will make my grandparents really happy. As I write this paragraph, I feel my paradigm shifting, for I am taking off this coat of obligation, and I am now here because I want to have a good time with my family.

Besides, my Aunt and Uncle are really cool. My 17th year old cousin is even cooler! When he got back from boarding school for the holiday, I taught him some djembe, and he really impressed me! What can I say, talent runs in the family!

Haha, I didn't even get a chance to mention what I did in Gulangyu Island today, but I will save it for a time when I have pictures up. I also still have yet to share some more pictures of Hangzhou and my return to Shanghai.

Until next time,
Cheers

Parkou sport

2009-09-26T20:12:00.000-07:00

I just can´t get away from Shanghai.

So I have an interesting story to tell. Friday night, after a night of dancing and good times, I lost the house key, probably when I was attempting to do handstands on the dance floor. My roomate Gabbi and I had to climb up to the 2nd floor to get in. It was pretty funny and cool to climb in, however, the next day we were locked in and had to wait for Dave to get back with his key to let us out, since his door still needs the key from the inside. Gabbi and I was starting to get hungry, and we decided that we would climb/jump down and get somes food. Unfortunately, we are not the parkou wall jumpers, and Gabbi took a leap of faith to land himself a busted ankle. ¡Que lastima! It was such a bummer because he still has a few more days to go on his holiday, he still needs to go see the doctor to check on it. Although painful, he is being a trooper and trying to keep the best in spirits.

I will add photos when I find a better interenet connection

A little bit of rain

2009-09-21T22:59:00.001-07:00

This is gonna be a long one...perfect if you print it out to read on the squatter

At the moment I'm in Hangzhou on my 3rd day. Today I'm taking a break from vacation and doing nothing for I've been out and about everyday of my vacation; it was a rainy day today anyway, although people say that the West Lake is more beautiful when it rains. I will instead catch up on my blog, for a lot has happened since.

Last Thursday I went to Suzhou for a day trip with a young German couple. It was just our luck that it rained that day, for we didn't get to go to any of the gardens, which, Suzhou is known for. We did, however, take a canal tour in a boat (I won't have pictures until Germans send some to me) which was pretty chill. My travel buddies were on a tight budget and in a bad mood, so they didn't want to do much. I ended up going to a temple by myself and met up with them at Starbucks. They were nice and whatever bla bla, but at that point I realized how much it mattered to travel with people that are on the same page as I am; I know if I went with the right people I would've still had a blast despite the rain.

That same night we got back to Shanghai, and we sent the couple off to take a train to their next destination. It just so happened that another CSer named Gabriel came to surf Dave's couch. This guy is a trip because he is a ball of energy; him and I clicked right off the bat, plus he was also a drummer. Anyway, he was informally invited by another CSer to attend a dinner party that was themed after the movie "Chicago." None of us had an idea of what exactly it was, we thought it was a CS event at a restaurant. So we went dressed casually only to arrive to an nice office filled with nicely dressed people. And I went asking around for couch suffers haha. I did manage to quickly find Irving, the only CSer there, who was there becaused he was a business associate. Turns out, he mistakenly invited his friend to come, whom invlited Gabriel, whom invited us. He had actually just called his friend to tell him not to come because the party was intended for business associates and close friends of the CEO.Haha but there we were! The party hosted by Interface, a designer carpet company, celebrating and promoting their new line of carpets; we helped them celebrate by partaking in their open bar and buffet.

We also enjoyed watching the performance of these there. dancers.

They weren't... haha.. it was amusing to watch them struggle to keep in line. They probably got the gig last minute because not all of them knew the routine.

After we went to eat and drink at a Japanese restaurant. Instead of sake, we drank shouzhu, which is made from wheat instead of rice like sake. Spent 100 kuai on my meal, which was by far the most expensive meal I've had in China.

Afterwards we took the party to Cees Club, which felt like a hidden gem in a basement in Shanghai. Drinks were very cheap, awesome Chinese electronic music playing, and an underground atmosphere (if you will)
The walls are filled with graffitti and drawings, and you can ask for permanent markers to draw on the walls yourself.

We were really digging the music and couldn't help but dance!

I also tried a fire shot for the first time. I forget the name but it was France and it taste like licorice. The French love it, but I cannot yet handle it haha there.

Friday morning I was woken up by a knocking door at 9 am, and I got up to discover 2 more surfers waiting at the door. Dave, who was staying at his other flat, must've told me when I was drunk because it was quite unexpected; I could barely open my eyes! Teddy and Priscella were way cool though. They are from Reunion, the French Island, and they have been traveling since last March! They are traveling all over the world, wow! However, staying at Dave's would be their first experience couch surfing. Anyhow, after Gabriel and I had completely waken up, I took them to get some local noodles. I also had then try some stinky tofu, delicious!

We spent the day walking around Shanghai, one of my favorite things to do. We went to the park in People's Square

We even found this interesting building. Must be every Chinese girl's dream place

Inside there is a photo booth, which we used but didn't buy. There was also a salon where you can get treatment to make your skin "plastic smooth." Oh, even can your wedding dress there and after you are done, you just go upstairs to the Barbie Cafe to get your salad with everything on the side! Only thing though, all the Chinese Barbies only come live and life-size and are NOT for sale!

We went back to Taikang Rd where the Bell Bar is to visit the other shops. There is a lot of color there, and the avenue is saturated with culture.

I spent a good 20 minutes in a photography shop looking at black and white pictures of Chinese people in their daily lives. It was amazing to me to be move by.these pictures; something about the brief moments captured in these photos make different emotions arise in me. Although these pictures were from decades ago, I felt a deep connection with the people in the images, felt a connection as a Chinese man.

After we grabbed some pizza, I had to rush home to pack and meet-up with my friends to take the train to Hangzhou. I had originally met this group at the Bell Bar on Tuesday, and by chance we arranged to go together to Hangzhou. It was also by chance that I took the wrong metro going to the opposite direction to the wrong station. I was devistated and felt so stupid! We had missed the our train! I rushed back to the correct station 30 late, and we got last minute standing tickets meaning no seats for 2 hours in the slowest train. The three guys changed their mind about going and it ended up only Aurelia going. I was really bummed but they were all so cool about it, and although we didn't get to ride the ultrafast D-train in our business class seats, we were going!

The train was so packed, but we actually had a really good time chatting; we took turns sitting on my drum, "Toca." We arrived in Hangzhou greeted by swarms of Chinese hustlers trying to take us to their hotel and word of caution: don't trust them because they scam and rip you off! We walk past them and found a PC cafe to find ourselves a hotel last minute. After we found one, our taxi driver took us to the wrong place and we walked the rest. I was carrying both my bags and drum, and I felt like a true backpacker for our 20min walk ha! Then I stepped into the hotel...

I ended up paying about 150 for my room, which is a bit expensive but it was pretty nice. Also before we got in the elevator, a bat flew in the hotel and was flying around in figure eights. I wanted to trip it out by singing and it flew toward my face and I had to fall backwards on the floor! I spent a few minutes trying to get a good shot with the camera, but failed

Next day we woke up for breakfast and headed for the West Lake. We couldn't find a taxi, so we decided to walk and find a bike to rent. Along the way, by chance we ran into an Aussie with a map, and it so happened that Aurelia and Andy had met in Shanghai the week before. We invited him to come along with us, and we started with great difficulty to ask around and find how to rent a bike. To get a bike for rent, one needs to buy a card, and one can only obtain these cards at certain locations. We realized that it is such a Chinese thing to do to just give an answer just for the sake of having an answer to get rid of you, regardless of the answer being right or not. We finally found the place and got our bikes and we rode alongside the lake to go to the Lingyin Temple.

The government sponsers a bicycle renting system that allows people to rent a bike to go from stop to stop. There are stops everywhere and the first hour is free, each hour after that is only 1 to 3 kuai, therefore getting around in Hangzhou is very convenient.

We ate at local restaurant with the fish from the lake, which wasn't very good, but I tried the eyeball for the first time. Not really that good either!

We briefly stopped at the Tea Museum but we were really looking to drink some. This medallion is completely made of tea and we were thinking of taking it and throwing it into a jacuzzi

We found ourselves a tea house by the lake, and we got ourselves a quick cup of tea. Usually however people go and drink for hours while eating the snacks and desserts they have there.

Aurelia and Andy both returned to Shanghai that evening, and I took a taxi to meet up with my host, Pan. Such an intelligent and cultured guy, he didn't seem like a typical Chinese, which he says partially because he studied abroad and also the fact that his parents have money.

We went to the Knight Bar and I ordered a minikeg, I was invited by the band to play onstage with the . The drummer, Jay, is a CSer. Good times

My 2nd day in Hangzhou was quite interesting. I went with Pan to go meet up with his business partner, who is a good friend if his, and we played drums in the underground walkway for money. I sang and banged the drum and had a little box for people to give money. I ended up making 4.10 kuai haha

The guy looking at me in this picture tried to sneak a picture, but I caught him and made him come over to give 1 kuai! Jiang zi cha bu duo!

Pan is in the process of opening up a muffin shop call Muffin Queen at a popular park which many locals and tourist visit. We made our way to pay a visit.

This was actually pretty scary because I almost slipped into the water!

In th evening I met up with some other CSers at Wusan night market. We first grabbed dinner, then window shopped the street. We stumbled into a really cool match box store

They had all sorts designs. Only in China can you find this justaposition.

Te four of us CSers were talking about national anthems, and I decided that it would be cool to try to find a local Chinese from the streets to sing the national anthem. We asked many people and finally found a girl brave enough

I was quite satisfied, and with that said, I am satisfied with this post. I hope it was a good read! It is already Tuesday afternoon and it's still raining. I'm soon on my way out to the West Lake to see it in the rain, and tonight, I'm on my way back to Shanghai! I.do miss that city and I sound like every foreigner that visits when I say I want to move there...maybe...per chance

I apologize for such a long post but like I said, it is perfect for te squatter. Oh speaking of which, I've only had the "privelage" of using the squatter twice. Not so bad for China, but I almost dropped my camera in there!

Anyhow, I'm gonna stop babbling. Look forward to shorter post!

Cheers!

Ps I posted a link to my photo bucket with sone more pictures. It should be on the side. Also, you can email me to keep in touch @ hangreg.yan@gmail.co

Everyday just gets better

2009-09-16T07:11:00.001-07:00

So I'm back at BurgerKing using the free wifi again! Haha. I just had dinner with my dad's friend Steven Cai, who is surprisingly cool. He is a traditional Chinese guy, kinda reminds me of my Dad in that he is always goofy and smiling, but he is more fun hahaha no offense Dad.

I just wanted to finish updating from ealier.

Monday I went to sing karaoke, or as the Chinese call it: KTV. My goodness, KTV is so nice in Shanghai! They have a whole floor with dozens of rooms and even more host and hostesses working there. By far the best place I've been to. Not only is everything the top of the line, you can drink and smoke in the rooms
as well; no more sneaky sneaky like we do in Elvis!?
Haha these photos don't do it justice

Afterward we had some Beifan food at a nice restaurant. It is the food from the home town of my host, who is from the North East. Absolutely delicious.

After we went to an open mic at the Melting Pot. It was so much fun because I've never been to one that welcomes anybody to come up all at once to jam TOGETHER. And guess who I saw: Yan, the awesome drummer from the Jazz Club! I got to play alongside with him, such a privelge! Even let me try out the set! Oh btw, this wasn't no boyscout bang bang bop, it was a jam! I mean real real talent

Tuesday night was real cool. I went to the Bell Bar on Taikang Road, which is like an artist alley with unique shops; a lot of culture there. I will post pics later for it is a rather complicated process, but anyway, there I met a lot of interesting people, including many CSers. By random chance(really random) I met this group that happened to be going to Hangzhou this week, and now we are going together. That's the short version, but I'm guided by chance. I love this feeling.

Today I decided to take a day trip to Suzhou tomorrow, Thursday. Again this was by chance.

Anyway, I'm about go catch a taxi to go see another show. Yan the drummer is playing with his band., this time he invited me to come haha

Time to roll out!

I hate mosquitoes!

2009-09-15T21:54:00.001-07:00

I already have about 20 bites and legs especially are all scratched up! I can't stop scratching!

On the bright side, I've been having a lot of fun ever since I was picked up by David Ji, a friend of my family.

Saturday, I went to a soccer game with some other CSers, Shanghai versus Beijing. Haha there were so many injuries; three goalies went down, including many other offense players. In the end, Shanghai was playing short of players. As another CSer observed, the Chinese people are very into their football that you could hear the mood of EACH kick when they go "eeeehhhHHHHH!" and "Eehhh..." Haha it was a tie game at 1 and 1. Yeah, the Shanghainese are pretty rowdy at the stadium, reminded me of the Chivas fans. They had to keep the visiting Beijing fans locked up in a room for safety reasons haha.

Sunday the 13th, My host Dave and I took a hike through the Shanghai city to go to a drum circle. On the way walking, We shared the headphones on my iPod and I had a blast banging them drums as people stared at us passing through haha. Here is the drum circle.

Along the way, we stopped for some Xinjiang food at a hole in the wall. The Xinjiang people are a Muslim minority in China, and they look like a mix between a Chinese and Arabian. We had naan and lamb skewers, and another lamb dish. It cost 75 between the two of us, but it was quite delicious!

After the drum circle, Dave, his friend Laura, and I went to East Nanjing Rd, which is the most famous shopping street in China. We walked the lively crowded strip, reminded me a little of Vegas because of the bright lights and beer in my hand. Also, a lot of foreigners there.

Afterward we walked over to get a nice view of the Bund, which is still under reconstruction. We got to see the Bund Tower from a distance. Here is a view from a
nearby bridge

We then walked to a restaurant called Cloud9 on the roof on a 32floor building. There we got an magnificent view of the Bund. Picture is a bit blurry

We ended the night strong at the Jazz Club. Drinks were a bit expensive at 50 kuai for a beer, but the live jazz band was phenominal! The trio band consist of a piano player, bassist, and drummer. Besides from nailing the jazz, what made them great was their chemistry with each other. When they played, they had so much feeling and soul, and what's more is that one can feel that each of them owned the music opposed to it belonging only to one or two of them. Here is a bad picture of them on stage .

Wow, I'm pretty behind on my posts. I actually did this one twice because I accidently deleted the first one. I now have two new German CS roomies, whom are waiting for me at BurgerKing so I must go

Everyday keeps getting better and better. I'll have to update my past 2 days later!

haha it just don't stop!

First night

2009-09-11T19:52:00.001-07:00

So I figured out that as long as I have wifi, I can post blogs through my iTouch. Pretty cool since I'm beating the Chinese gov't, but sucks because I don't like typing on the iPod. Haha I'll stop complaining

Went out yesterday night with my host and two other German girls he is hosting. For my first night here, it already feels like I've been here for a couple days. Dave, Caren, and Carina are great genuine people that I instantly click with. I wish I had an iPhone so I can post their picture. But anyway, we ate Cantonese food and went to Samiyam, the music event, which turned out to be a club party. The really like the mix of electronic dance and house music played by the different DJs, but what struck me funny was I never seen so many people just dancing with themselves. Guys, girls just standing around, staring on the musical visuals on the wall, doing their thing on their own. Even couples don't dance with each other!

What was really cool was toward the middle of the event, the crowd's attention shifted to the back of the room to the African drumming of a drum team. They really threw down the house! Dancing to the loud beats of the drums, doesn't get much better than that!

I ended up getting home around 3, and for some sick reason I woke up at 9:30 this morning. My sleep schedule is all messed up

In downtown Shanghai

2009-09-11T04:06:00.000-07:00

I took the subway for the first time; made 4 transfers and was confused as hell! Made some brief friends on the train that helped me navigate. Made it in one piece and was picked up by Dave Wei, my host. So far my couch surfing experience has been real cool. Dave is very hospitable. Him and I hit it off right away, for I can feel how much love he has for life and culture. We are going to the People's Square soon for the Samiyam music festival in a little bit. I'll update soon!
-- Post From My iTouch

Arrived in Korea

2009-09-10T13:30:00.000-07:00

I am at the airport in Seoul, Korea using the free wifi. My next flight is in 3 hours.

Although slightly uncomfortable, the flight was alright; they served bimbimbop for dinner haha. I mostly slept on the plane, but I did see Star Trek.

Anyway, what I wanted to say in this post is that the past few days has been very warm and awesome. Smeagol's birthday party was a blast and thank you to everybody that made it out. My dad delivered quite a toast! Cheers to you! Yankee doodles karaoke and late night joy ride was fun, although I passed out in the car haha. Wednesday my momma took me out to lunch for Peruvian food, thanks Mom! And the last minute get together at the Anteater pub sent me flying high before I got on the plane. Kinh, thanks for Shen Shun Gumi, you're the best!

Blogspot is blocked in China, but Kristine is going to help me post my emails to her. Thanks Kristine!

Maaan, I have such awesome friends and family. I think I'm actually going to miss you all haha

In the meantime, stay tuned. SUBSCRIBE please!

Much cheers,
Greg

...I'm hungry now, I want some more bimbimbop..

-- Post From My iTouch

A more formal introduction

2009-09-08T00:05:00.000-07:00

So 2 days from now I am gone!

I am starting to feel a little nervous for my trip because I can't believe it is actually happening! It felt so far away, and I think it is starting to hit me; so exciting! I am going to China for 2 months on the purpose of finding myself in independence. I am backpacking, couchsurfing, staying in hostels, visiting my family, and meeting a lot of different interesting people on the way!

At this point, my stay in Shanghai is planned out, and I'm halfway planned with Hangzhou. The past weeks, I've kept busy with couchsurfing request, and I learned how much more it takes to find a couch.

After making a profile, one must get references by getting involved within the couchsurfing (CS) community. Host are more likely host if one has references, as many members ONLY host surfers with references. I started my involvement in early August by attending a "Taco-Tuesday" meet-up with some local CSers. It was quite a learning experience for me as my new friends shared with me their stories from their travels. Since then, I've attended a dinner held in the home of Elizabeth, the organizer of Taco Tuesday. From these two events I made new friends, got travel advice and my first references.

Making a couchsurfing request starts with finding the right host. There are hundreds of members and profiles, and it is very important to find a host whose personality and interests matches up; CSing is much more than a night's stay, but an experience meeting and sharing with another CSer. After finding a compatible host and getting a feel of who they are, I make my request by introducing myself, relating my interest, and requesting the dates I wish to visit. Each request is personalized and takes much time, as I try to keep my request like a dialogue rather than a cut and paste request. At the same time, it feel like doing college admissions because host often get many requests, especially in the popular cities such as Shanghai, and are often booked or unavailable to host for whatever reason. The challenge I faced in making requests is that I made requests to 2 to 3 people I really like at a time to avoid overlap and cancellations, but people take anywhere from 1 day to a week to respond, and my first wave of requests all were booked. It was initially discouraging, but that's part of the game, and I kept swinging and found a host. Even if I didn't find a host, I must figure that there are always ways around to get around, be it staying at a hotel as a last resort; even a resort is far from the very last resort and it can go way deeper haha. Whatever's clever.

My motto is to let chance be my guide

Stay tuned and I'll update whenever I get a chance!

..in the meantime, I am going to start my packing..so much to do still, I wish it was still Monday.. and I still can't believe it's happening..

2009-09-03T00:23:00.000-07:00

..don't forget your sandwiches...haha

China..in a week from now I'll be on the way. Crazy

I'm saying chance will be my guide, when I'm living on the fly. A little bit tense from being shaken, but I can hardly wait. Let's break the tired cycle by moving extra mile. Gonna go be somebody
So I said,

"Self, stop just thinking about it."

"...