Hefei

---

Hello.

This past weekend I went to visit a friend from Colorado China Council who is teaching English in Hefei at the Anhui Medical University.

Hefei is like a bigger version of Ma'anshan with no giant steel company. It's the capitol of the Anhui Province and is home to 1.5-1.6 million people. It has a really similar feeling of a big dirty, polluted, bustling city - where old women stiff arm you to get a better placement on the escalator. There are probably twice as many expats and a lot more English speakers than in Ma'anshan (but they just say the same things over and over again - like my Chinese I guess).

I managed to get there about 9:30pm on Friday after one of his classes was ending. The bus ride takes about three hours going South through Wuhu and then across the Yangzi river.

Alex has an apartment that could fit about 5 Chinese families.

We went to an expat bar for a drink or two. They had a live band playing some covers of songs from Wonderwall to early Stevie Wonder. Then, he convinced me to go to a club because he knew one of the guys who worked there and could get us free drinks. After listening to club versions of Old Macdonald had a farm E-I-E-I-O with people in animal costumes and scantily clad women choreograph dancing on a stage, we decided it was time to go back to the expat bar. But, as we were exiting there was a put put golfing green oddly placed next to an internet nook. So, we played a round or two of golf where our shots would be blocked by passing by high heels and internet stools. Arguably, a much better game than mini-golf.

Some people back at the expat bar who spoke minimal English wanted us to go eat BBQ with them. Seemed like a pretty good idea, until we got served some really spicy Eel soup. I could bare about 6 or 7 pieces but the texture was pretty gnarly. It didn't taste bad at all though. Alex called the guy who invited us to BBQ bizarro Pat Sayjack, because he was like a luring game show host. "Just ooonnneeee!?" "alriiiiiight, yeeeaeaaaeaaah..."

Woke up the next day to meet Alex's Chinese teacher at the Hilton for lunch. Really fabulous meal - Beijing Roast Duck, Ice cream, Dim Sum, Crab Crakes, Fried noodles, Chocolate Fondue, egg pancakes.

I lead a really hard life huh?

Walked around an open air market in Hefei for several hours. Its huge, packed full of people and has got cheap Chinglish goods galore! I bought a really ghastly looking sweater that says ipod on it with the old 80's apple logo and a German World Cup jersey for a couple USD each.

As the evening arrived, went to a ping pong gym and got royally hosed by a number of differently people. Following that took a martial arts lesson and got WORKED. After getting drilled for 45 mins the sensei started individually drilling my punches with pads. Everytime i left my guard down by my face we would slap me and every time i dropped my guard by my ribs he would nudge me with his knee (and the nudges kept getting harder and harder). After the lesson he told me i had promise, but that i was too lazy...

Went to sing karaoke with some of his friends after some pizza and it was a lot of ridiculous fun.



Greg

---

Comments

[JAP]

TOO LAZY????
noob. jk. Putt Putt, Ping Pong and Ching Chong. Got your postcard, glad you're doing well.

[The Sean]

haha, too lazy. loves it. the teaching english at a medical school seems cool, is that just where he/she got placed or are they interested in medicine too?

[clashvalian]

TOO LAZY?????
Alex was not really interested in medicine. There's no predictability to the entropic land of China. He teaches English with some emphasis on medicine from a text book he's got. Western Medicine bi Zongguo de Medicine Feichenghao

[clashvalian]

MAN YOU're THE N00b w4y to f4ilxrz

[8lUn7x0rxz 4 Pr351D3n7]

Yeah dood its all powders and tea and dried animal genitals... Its about time that you go on another adventure and then update your blog so I can read about it. You have a responsibility to your people, and specifically me, so that I can continue to live vicariously through you. GET ON UR HORSE IM WAITIN.