My weeks are becoming routine and filled with classes and homework. There still is the occasional story, but mostly nothing out of the ordinary. From here on out, most of my blogs will just be highlights of my week and weekend. I am preparing a few special topics like food in Beijing, places you should visit, and maybe a few interviews with some of my Chinese friends. They have some interesting stories and insights!
This weekend, I picked up my suit from Lisa's Tailor. My friends and I went into her shop a total of three times over a span of about 2 weeks. The first appointment was to pick out the material for the suit (I chose 30% polyester, 70% cotton because it was more economical), the style of the jacket (I went with the classic look: two-button closure, notched lapel, single back vent, and 3 exterior pockets. We also were measured for our size. I chose a slim-fit due to my lengthy, stick figuresque body. The second visit took place about a week later and was a fitting. There were only a few minor adjustments for my suit like pants length and bringing out the waist a bit. Finally, the pickup was the third meeting. The pictures shown on imgur are from the third meeting. I am a proud owner of a "from scratch" suit. Time to hit the opera and the equivalent of Broadway, if they have one!
On Saturday, I went on a TBC (The Beijing Center, the program I am enrolled in through Loyola) sponsored bike riding activity. We rode from our campus to Chaoyang Park. It was about 45 minutes of riding, but the bikes were nice and the view of the city from the “bike lane” was fun to say the least. In China, there is a marked bike lane like I previously mentioned, but vehicles drive and park in it all the time. The buses were probably the most annoying because they liked to cut off the cyclists to get to their bus stops. I got my revenge on a few buses with a little help from my fellow cyclists. We formed a small peloton and merge in front of a bus showing that it could not push us around. While on the same vein, for safety, I wore a helmet. Not trying to give my mother a heart attack, but that was about the safest part. I was riding alongside my fellow Loyolan, Jarek, and he kept joking about how we would probably have to merge onto a Chinese highway to get to the park. Well if it counts for anything, we were on a busy road most of the way (in the “bike lane”) and then we had to get on the highway. Just imagine about 20 or so people on bikes in the “bike lane” with cars merging on and off the highway. It was quite the experience, but worth it. The park was a lot of fun! The admission to the park was only $0.42, but the rides cost $6.67 each. I allotted myself 1 ticket to any ride, but more on that later.
We had a picnic lunch in the park. I hadn’t found out until that morning that I would need to pack a lunch, so I bought a loaf of bread and same apple jam to make sandwiches. This proved to be a good idea, as some other students didn’t get the memo about packing their lunches. Everyone shared what food they had to make a nice lunch for all! Amongst the other picnickers were brides and grooms! I saw at least 6 different couples getting their pre-wedding pictures (I don’t know if this is just a China thing or a universal one. The bride wore her dress and the groom wore his tuxedo). There were lots of shops in the park. One shop sold scooters for little kids ($20), 2-person tents ($30), and what I thought was really weird, a speedbag with boxing gloves ($25). There was also an interesting selection of hats with some of the most profound words of the English language (explicit ones of course).
After lunch, we all walked around and enjoyed the scenery. One group of students wanted to do bumper cars while my roommate, two friends, and I wanted to do a rollercoaster (go big or go home, right?), but we never thought about the safety standards in China. As we arrived to the ride, we saw them doing a test run with nobody on board. We appeared to be the only riders (whether we were just the bravest or stupidest, I don’t think I can objectively answer that) in line for the ride. The ride consisted of a 30ft drop into a loopty-loop and then two consecutive corkscrews. It would only last about 40 seconds. As we boarded, I chose the front car (because the back is for suckers!). I fastened my seatbelt and then lowered my harness. The attendant came over to check us and saw I had incorrectly secured myself. The belt wasn’t to keep me down, it was for the harness to stay down. Unlike in the States where the harnesses click as they come down over your head, the harness I was using had no locking mechanism other than this puny seatbelt. It didn’t hit me until we started our ascent to the top of the hill, I could unbuckle myself and jump off at anytime. I think that was the only rollercoaster I have actually been on where the screaming was warranted. After we arrived safely into the station, I think the four of us had decided that was enough for the day and we headed back to campus on our bikes.
Sadly, the pollution was too high to do the 5k race in Beijing. However, I found out that the 5k takes place at the end of every month so I will have many more chances!
In other news, National Week, which celebrates the founding of People’s Republic of China in 1949, starts on Wednesday (October 1) and lasts until the 8th of October. I had originally planned to visit Qingdao, but those plans fell through due to me having to apply for my resident permit and not receiving my passport back until the day before the holiday starts. This is the famous holiday where millions of people will head back to their hometowns, thus rendering any form of transportation a nightmare. We were told by our school administrators to start our return back to Beijing from our various vacation spots at least two days before we had to be back for school or otherwise we might not make it back in time.
As for me, I will spend National Week doing homework and visiting some famous spots in Beijing (as long as I can get through the crowds). I am sure I will have more stories next week!
Until then… thanks for reading,
Zack Zehner
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