Blogs from Wudaokou, Beijing, China, Asia - page 6

Mrs C: It sums up the life here. Night time. During the day the weather is hot hot hot, but when the sun goes down, the place buzzes! Street vendors appear selling books, jewellery, clothing and food.... all of which must be resisted until the first paycheck arrives! Bugger! The quirkiness of this city never ends. Everyday there is something else that surprises us and makes us laugh. We went to IKEA last week to boost our kitchen shelving from nothing to something. Just outside the gigantic blue building was what we have fondly named "FAKE IKEA". Why we didnt see it coming is a mystery. A short market street of people selling things that should be inside IKEA, outside. At a quarter of the cost. Needless to say, our first port of call shall now ... read more

Ca y est, me voilà installé, et j'ai enfin internet à l'appart, on a eu quelques problèmes, c'est pour ça que je n'avais rien mis sur le blog depuis longtemps. Je m'excuse auprès de ceux qui suivent le blog régulièrement ;-) Comme je disais, je suis bien installé dans un super appart pas trop loin de l'université au nord-ouest de Pékin. Bien sûr, ici c'est pas vraiment style quartiers sympas avec petit café au coin de la rue, c'est plutôt des grands ensembles un peu partout, mais les apparts sont pas mal du tout, et le mien est absolument mythique (pour seulement 175€/mois en plus)! Ces complexes sont assez marrants en fait, il y a des gardes partout (dont la plupart ont l'air d'avoir 17ans), et les petits magasins peuvent vous livrer chez vous quoique ce ... read more

15 February 2007 9:17 Thursday Oh dear god WHY did I think last night was a good idea? Valentine’s Day Lessons: 1. No matter where you are in the world, greasy Chinese food is excellent hangover food. 2. Working with kids is not a good idea when you’re hungover and after only three hours of sleep. 3. Even free, weak Gin&Tonics are potent after you’ve had a few … or nine or a dozen. 4. I can speak Chinese, English and Spanish fluently when inebriated. 5. Amazingly, short men can be hott, too. Who knew? 6. “Propaganda” is perhaps the most aptly named club in all of China. So yesterday afternoon sucked. I went and mailed all of my books at noon, and then went to the bank to pay the phone bill. That was a ... read more