Like I’ve said before the weather here has been pretty hellish. Shanghai has broken all sorts of weather records and Hangzhou has been named the hottest city in China right now. (And I get to live here. Yay.) According to Xinhua News Agency for 6 of the 7 past days
Living in the Inner Circle of Hell (aka Southern China Summers)
I’d like to establish the fact that while despite growing up in New England, I’ve lived in my fair share of warm places. I lived in South Carolina during summer (with a car with no a/c), stayed in very tropical hot places like Australia and Indonesia, and survived my fair
You Never Know What's Going to Happen
One of the benefits of sticking around this summer is spending time with people I probably wouldn’t see otherwise. Case in point? Last night I went out with 6 former students. A few had just graduated, but most had graduated a year before. They were some of the first students
My New Roomie!
Yep, for the first time since college I have a roomie again. I’m moving to the big city of Hangzhou and shacking up with my friend Jason. I wrote about him a few times on my blog already. We met a mere 7-months ago but it feels like much, much
"What Are Your Travel Plans this Summer, Becky?"
With only a week left of classes, I’m getting the same question over and over again. “Where will you travel to this summer?” During the summer I always spend at least a month traveling all over China, and my students and friends know me well enough to expect it by
I Went to a Wang Leehom Concert!! 王力宏演唱会！
Sick of me writing about Wang Leehom yet? Well, tough ’cause I’m gonna be a fan girl for a little bit and tell you about the concert I went to this weekend! I don’t want to come off sounding like a total hipster, but the fact is that most bands
Taxi Stories
I’ve been spending a lot of time in Hangzhou with my friends. While I sometimes spend the night at one of their houses, I usually prefer to take a taxi back home. Hangzhou is a 45-minute drive from my school and there are always local taxi’s waiting in the city
Long Time, No See 好久不见
Did you know the English phrase “Long time, no see,” actually comes from a Chinese phrase? It’s true. But it has been a long time, no see, my dear readers. Probably thought I was off doing something cool, eh? Alas that is not the case. Well, not quite. I mean,
The New Face of Communism
A common image, when you think of Chinese communism, is those 60’s retro posters with men and women looking strong under different Communist slogans. You know, things like “Study Mao everyday,” or “Build a harmonious society.” Often they would depict women wearing the same clothes as men, their hair tied back and
Heaven and Hell in Hangzhou
Nearby my small city is the famous city of Hangzhou. Hangzhou is one of the most famous cities in China and there is an ancient saying regarding it’s beauty: Above there is heaven, below there are Hangzhou and Suzhou. But there is one part of the city that will make you