Last year, on Christmas Eve, the foreign teachers were invited to a special Christmas buffet held at a nearby 5-star hotel. The meal is normally 600 rmb, a kings ransom (to put it in perspective, 600 rmb covers 6-months of my water and electricity bill, or an entire year cell
My Favorite Apps for Working and Living in China-Part 3
This is the third and final post recommending apps for living and working in China. In case you missed the others, you can find Part 1 here, and Part 2 here. I’ve already covered Chinese specific apps for daily life, and apps for learning chinese, but what about non-specific apps
Taro Pudding and Late Night Noodles in Fuzhou, China
A few weeks ago my best friend Color had some job training in Fuzhou and asked me to visit him. Always one for adventure I said why not, bought a ticket and 4 days later was on my way to see him. Fuzhou is located in southern China, on the
Teddy Bear Thai–Honest to Goodness Real Place
In my trip to Shanghai last weekend my friend asked me what I wanted to eat for dinner. Shanghai has so many options I was overwhelmed. “How about Thai?” he suggested. Sounds good to me. “How about Teddy Bear Thai,” he said. Sounds very good to me. Yes, a teddy
We Got a Subway Now!! (The More Delicious Kind)
Things have changed a lot in my little boonie city since I first arrived. It used to be I would go out to a dirt/rubble road (with chickens and dogs running freely) to a little shack or food cart to get my dinner and pray I didn’t get food posioning
Across the Bridge is Some Darn Tasty Noodles
If you are an avid reader, with a really good memory, you’ll remember that I have been to Kunming before, two and a half years ago. I didn’t write much about the city, just one entry on the amazing park, because well, we didn’t do much. At the time, I
Prepare to Drool
One day, in my intensive Chinese course, my teacher said we were going to take a little break and watch a movie. “It’s not really a movie, but a show about he special foods in China,” she explained. A break from speaking Chinese and watching a documentary on food?! Sign
Tea Season: Have You Gotten Your Virgin Picked Tea Yet?
Springtime is tea time in china. The time most of the green tea is plucked and roasted for the coming year. This time is so popular for picking tea that the approximately 3 month period is broken down into four different “growing seasons.” Some of the best, top end teas
The Voyage of a Fish in China
I should start by saying I am not a fan of eating fish. But I’m in the clear minority here in China. In almost every restaurant there is a tank, or small cooler filled with fish just waiting to be eaten, and every supermarket has a tank. In fact, when
China Fail
I know I’ve bragged talked a bit about learning Chinese here on this blog and how my progress has been. Maybe I’ve made it sound a bit too easy, or my level a bit too advanced. I offer this small tale from my recent travels as antidote to those past