It's the Little Things, part 五

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Spring is in the air, people are out and about, their spirits as high as the hot sun. There’s something in the air, as if something exciting is about to happen, and people are more eager and energized. Yet, a sense of normalcy exists, allowing China’s quirkiness to glow, the smiles and hot sun as spotlights.

1. I went to my favorite Muslim noodle shop for lunch after a not so strenuous trip to the supermarket. It was about 2pm and I couldn’t wait any longer to eat. One of the women who works there quickly verified that I wanted my usual in Mandarin so fast I still don’t know what it’s called. I sat down and was about to get a cup for my tea from the dispenser when I realized it was empty. The woman’s son, who I’m guessing is about 12, came bouncing out of nowhere. He works there too, taking orders and usually biking them to their delivery destination. I got his attention, and in my toneless Mandarin explained that I wanted tea but there were no cups. His face lit up like I’d just given him a new bike.
He dashed off to answer the phone and get another order going before digging for some flimsy cups that are kept under the work counter. He refilled the dispenser and handed me two. (They’re so flimsy that my friends and I call them condom cups, and two makes it much easier to hold and drink from.) I glanced around to figure out where to steal tea from, and just as fast he grabbed a pitcher from two other people. I love being a valued customer.


2. A man with a fan. In his pants.

3. Let's hear it for Chinese sisters!
I wanted to buy a ticket from Guangzhou to Kunming for my summer travels. I had been told by Fearless Leader that I could:
a) Go to Guanzhou and get it in person
b) Have him purchase it using the automated phone system and then go pick it up a day or so before I leave. But this way guarantees that I get the ticket.

So I opt for #2. But FL tells me that the system isn't accepting my passport number. I'm guessing because it's a different number of digits than a Chinese passport number, but I could be way off. He suggests either hoofing it to Guangzhou (ugh) or having a Chinese friend help me. By the way, they might have to reserve it under their name and ID number and go with to Guangzhou to pick it up.
Are you kidding me?

So I went and asked Carrie for help. There's got to be an easier way, or perhaps it's a small glitch in the system. She looks at me like I'm crazy. Apparantly there are all sorts of little neighborhood shops where you can buy your train tickets in advance. No need to go to Guangzhou to pick it up, either. AND she can take me there to buy one. Right now.

We ran into Iris on the way out, who offered us the driver and school car for our adventure, but we opted for Carrie's motorized bike, since the roads are narrow where we are headed.

The whole process took 10 minutes. Carrie just saved me 5+ hours and 150RMB and the hassle of an extra Guangzhou trip. I walked away with my upper berth, hard sleeper ticket for a mere $50. Not bad, considering I'm covering the entire country (think southern Georgia to Arizona). The trip will take 25 hours. With my upper berth, I can nap and strech out a bit.
I could have flown to Kunming for the same price, but I don't want to deal with the hassle of the airport and I want to see China. That's the point of this trip. And I can't see it from the plane.

4. Carrie and I went out for lunch at a hotpot restaurant. Hotpot is like the 2 course of fondue, where you dip/cook the meats and veggies in a seasoned broth. The Chinese pride themselves on freshness of food, so everything you select is brought heaped onto trays, freshly washed, cut, and ready for cooking. Very little is prepared ahead of time.

As I was digging in to my vegetables and waiting for my shrimp to cook I was started by a movement. It scared me so badly that I jumped back with such force as to move my chair a little. One of the shrimp was still alive and had jumped on the plate! Talk about fresh!
There was only one way to remedy this problem. I tried to get him into the pot with my chopsticks, but he was a slippery fella and jumped again. On the second try I was successful.

He was delicious.

5. Dian Xin, or dim sum as it's called in Cantonese, is the brunch favorite of many, including me. Tyler, his fiancee, and I all went out for a delicious brunch today. Their favorite restaurant is a bit different from what I remember when I had dim sum in Boston years ago, but this isn't Cantonese style. We picked our little bamboo steamers filled with food from a table and desk-sized steamer. We loaded them on to the tray, the worker counted them accordingly, and we proceeded back to our table.

While it's not as cute as having someone wander around with a cart, it was nice to not have someone (besides the uncontrolled boy at the next table) yelling the entire time we were eating. And we were able to ask whether they had meat or seafood in them. When I had dim sum in Boston, even if they said it was shrimp, they never mentioned that it was shrimp and pork. Here, there were some just veggie options and some seafood options. My favorite was a redbean and rice dessert topped with a peanut. The perfect ending to a perfect brunch with friends.

6. 14 year old boys who wiggle their eyebrows at me when I announce it's exam time always amuse me. Especially since those who do usually speak very little English and are forced to rely soley on facial expressions. Yes, keep wiggling and hoping that it will affect your grade.

7. There's something to be said for a good thunderstorm. I hadn't seen one in years, but this past week I've had 2! The move in very quickly. On a 15 minute bus ride the sky went from blue to grey to black and the rain started to fall before I got off the bus. By the time I made it to the magazine stand by my school it was starting to look like it was going to be bad. While I waited to get more minutes put on my phone it started to rain so hard that I was forced to lean over and into the stand to keep dry. I ran to my school and by the time I reached my room it was raining so hard I could barely see. The storm continued for over an hour.
Last night it moved in quickly. I didn't even notice it until I heard a clap of thunder and my room was twice as bright from the lightning. I tried to watch the storm out the window, but it was raining so hard that I got soaked very quickly. The storm continued for over an hour, possibly 2, and it was finally quiet and dark enough for me to try to sleep.

8. Tyler and his fiancee have a new apartment. It's on the 16th floor and has quite a view. From the balcony they can see the Shenzhen Bay/Pearl River Delta and Hong Kong. Including his fiancee's parents' apartments!
I'm hoping they'll let me camp on their balcony when the weather cools down.

9. I really can't think of anything to say for lucky #9 besides that this year has flown so quickly, and while that's sad, it also makes me smile. It's been a good year, a fun year, a crazy year, and I'm already looking forward to next.
And the kids don't know I'm coming back. It will be nice to surprise them in the fall.

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Photos

A Man with a Fan
Who of course moved just as I snapped this photo.

Comments

[Yunnan Province]

Actually Lijiang, Zhongdian(Shangri-la) and XiShuangBanNa have much more to offer than Kunming.