long commute

I had my first job interview since moving to New York this afternoon. The position was for an entry level floral designer at a small, recently opened florist in Huntington, Long Island. I took the L to 8 ave, transferred to the A, C, E to Penn Station. There, I bought a ticket on the Long Island Railway and got a ticket to Huntington. From the train station it was a good 30 minute walk to the florist. Altogether, the commute was almost 2 hours.

Interestingly, the owner is a scientist by training and had previously held an academic job then later and an industry job. It was more like a conversation than an interview. We talked about my reasons for entering and leaving graduate school, my career plans, and what I hoped to get out of the job. Recently, the owner decided to open up a floral shop that was like none other. That is one that encourages its florists to create non-traditional, unique floral arrangements. The company is really laid back and after giving workers basic training, florists are given free reign with their creativity. It would be a great opportunity to learn about the floral industry and get hands on experience and training in floral design. So, I’m keeping my fingers crossed.

On the return train from Jamaica to Penn Station, I ended up making conversation with an older gentleman. I was looking at my subway map- trying to decide whether I should take the subway or the train back to Williamsburg- he thought I was lost and asked if I needed help. Turns out he’s a French native and a physics professor at Columbia. We talked about places we’ve traveled and would like to go in the future, compared lifestyles in the US vs. France, how we both ended up in New York, etc. . . it was a really nice discussion and made me think about how nice it is to randomly connect with a total stranger.

Weekend Recap

So the weekend with the folks was nice. The arrived around 5pm on Friday and I helped my dad unload the car and bring everything up the stairs. I forgot to warn them about the 4 flights of stairs and no elevator when they were deciding what to bring. After we finished unloading the van and they rested a bit, we all walked over to the Sea and had a nice dinner there. My parents loved the food and thought the prices were even better than Newport News!

Then we walked around Bedford Avenue for a bit and I showed them a little bit of Williamsburg. . but it was getting cold and they were tired so we made our way back to the apartment. My mom helped me sort through my boxes, put everything away, and do some light cleaning.

The sleeping quarters were a tight fit. My parents and I all in my bedroom! My dad was out cold by 8:30 p.m. and my mom by 9:30. . . I decided to go out to the living room and finish reading “Running with Scissors” before trying to go to bed around 1a.m. But between my dad’s snoring and their trips to the bathroom (I shouldn’t have served them so much tea!!) during which I would cringe because I worried they would wake up the roomie, I just couldn’t sleep. I told my dad to sleep on the bed and I grabbed the blanket and went to sleep on the sofas. . unfortunately, around 5 a.m. the heat started coming on. .and if you are not from New York, you cannot imagine the noises being emitted from the radiator and heating poles were making. Needless to say, I did not get much sleep.

The next morning was a slow start. I made breakfast and coffee for my parents and once the roomie was awake, my parents started chatting him up. I think he handled himself well. Eventually, we headed out to Chinatown and found Nha Trang Restaurant on Baxter. . .the appetizers were so so but the main courses: sour soup, beef stirfry with pickled vegetables, and a whole gingery fish hit the spot. The weather was miserable but we managed to go to Pearl River Mart and a few random clothing and furniture stores. By 3pm I was crashing, so my folks and I headed back to Williamsburg for a little R&R.

The roomie, George, Q2, my folks and I met up for dinner at ICI restaurant in Fort Greene. I finally decided on the restaurant after reading rave reviews on New York Metro, citysearch, and hearing good things about the place from a CT friend. The restaurant has a little bit of notoriety because the owner was the former general manager on the show the Restaurant.

http://www.icirestaurant.com/

You walk downstairs and enter a cozy restaurant lit with candles and instantly feel as though you could be in Europe. The food was delicious, simply but excellently prepared with fresh, quality ingredients. The waitress made a very good wine recommendation and was quite attentive throughout the meal. Between the six of us, we ordered almost everything off the menu and from the looks of enjoyment on everyone’s faces, there was not a bad dish on the menu! We ordered steamed clams with lime and cilantro and the grilled squid with smoked paprika and lemon to share. I ordered the skate with greens and a side of pureed butternut squash, my mom had the monkfish special, my dad and George both got the shortribs, Q2 ordered the flying pig, and roomie got the chicken. Of course, we all made just enough room for dessert and we split the chocolate cake, pomegranate panna cotta, and plum crème brulee. What I liked about the dining experience is you get wonderful food without the pretentiousness of a Manhattan restaurant, and at a fraction of the price to boot!

My parents left early in the morning and it was a nice visit. I’ll spend the rest of the day tidying up the apartment, getting a haircut, and looking for a Halloween costume. Maybe go to the grocery store, make some curry for dinner, and go watch Entourage at George's if I'm not too tired tonight.

Parents in town

The folks are descending on Brooklyn this late afternoon/evening. . . so my afternoon will consist of making my apartment look as presentable and clean as possible and figuring out where I will take them in the city.

Depending on what time they arrive and how tired they are, we’ll either go to a restaurant in Williamsburg or maybe Korean in mid-town. For lunch tomorrow I thought we’d try a Vietnamese restaurant in Chinatown. I decided to give the Vietnamese restaurants here a second shot. I think since living in LA and having an overabundance of cheap and delicious Vietnamese restaurants, I have become a snob about Vietnamese food. (It probably doesn’t help that my mom is a very good cook) The problem is compounded by the fact that Thai and Vietnamese restaurants in New York are “hot” so there is much more emphasis on being trendy and cool rather than actually authenticity and taste of the food.

Most likely Sunday brunch will be dim sum. My birthday dinner I haven’t decided on a yet. All I know is that I will be dined out by the weekend. . .In the daytime we’ll probably walk around Chinatown and Soho and do some window shopping. Hopefully it’ll just be a low-key weekend with lots of quality time with my folks.

Belated birthday dinner

Yesterday was Q2’s birthday so tonight I treated her to dinner. We went to Momofuku on the LES for some tasty fusion Japanese food.

There are two owners- a Korean guy and a man from Texas. You can see their influences on the menu. We split two entrees: cheesy grits, shrimp, and pork sausage dish and pork neck noodles. The grits were delicious, a refined Southern dish. The noodle soup hit the spot with bold flavors that remind me of my mothers cooking.

After dinner we walked a couple blocks to ChikaLicious Desserts, a great little after dinner spot. The desserty specialized in a prix-fixe, three-course dessert, wine pairings for an additional fee, with three times a week menu changing..Q2 and I decided to share the more seasonal apple bread pudding/cake with granny smith ice-cream as the main dessert. It was preceded by the tiniest scoop of panna cotta and followed by petit fors.

Everything was superbly made and well presented. I would recommend it highly, especially if you are like me and feel that a meal is not complete without eating something sweet.

"Before" Pics

I've gotten a few emails about how I haven't posted apartment photos yet.

So here it is. . this was basically the state of my apartment for the first two weeks of living in Brooklyn. . . pretty bare. More photos to follow.




Before

runner's high

The weather has been beautiful this week. After two weeks of being unable to work out (the first week of moving was just too hectic and it was raining every day last week), I finally started running again yesterday. It’s also a good way for me to get to know the roads and neighborhood better. I start from my apartment and run northeast to McCarren Park where there is a track. I do a few laps depending on how my legs are feeling and then loop back around the town, weaving through different streets. It feels so good to be running again.

Once I’m feeling more settled, I may join a running club. There’s two that sound particularly interesting: the Resevoir Dogs and the NY Harriers. Both sound laid back and like a good group of people.

Spent the afternoon looking and applying for jobs online. Then met up with a high school friend for dinner in the West Village. We went to Bar Pitti where of course we ordered the Rigatoni Pitti which was a yummy combination of pasta, turkey sausage, peas, and cream. The dinner was simple but quite tasty. That was followed by tea and a crepe for dessert at Café le Henry. Nice to catch up and think we’ll be hanging out more often.

Weekend

Saturday afternoon, the roomie, George, and I headed back to Newtown, Pennsylvania. We organized the furniture and things that we wanted to bring back to Brooklyn. By 7 pm, we were all hungry so after much deliberation, we settled on Chick-fil-a. Its one of the few fast food restaurants that I really like and would get cravings for while I lived in Los Angeles (there was only one Chick-fil-a that I knew about and it was in some random mall quite a drive away). In any case, it was George’s first time going and unfortunately the Newtown Chick-fil-a did not live up to normal standards. . the chicken was not crunchy enough, they messed up our orders, and the fries did not have their typical crispiness.

After dinner, we got ready for a hip-hop party being thrown by a co-worker of the roomie’s sister. The scene was like a big frat party except we were in a bar and everyone was of legal age. We stayed for an hour or so and made our way to another party a short distance away. That party was being held in a very, dimly lit club. The music was better and I got to dance a bit. Around 2:30 a.m. the lights came on and the DJ started playing some really cheesy song to get everyone to leave. Somehow we decided to go get a slice of pizza.

I guess in Philly, there are only two late-hour pizza joints. We waited for nearly an hour before we got our slices and spent probably 2 minutes eating it. . Exhausted, we all went back to the roomie’s sister’s apartment and crashed.

Four hours later, we woke up and went to the U-Haul to pick up the moving truck. The truck only had two seats in the front so George and I had to share a seat the whole day. Next, we drove back to Newtown and loaded the car with furniture. After a three hour drive, we were back in Brooklyn. We went to George’s and picked up a chaise then to El Taco Loco II for a late lunch. By 3:45 p.m. we were unloading the truck and carrying furniture up four flights of stairs. The move didn’t take so long but we were all exhausted, in need of showers, and a warm meal.

But it's done. . . and all the effort was worth it to have a more homey apartment.

To Dine Alone or Not to?

Spent the afternoon working on cover letters and waiting for the cable guy to come. To my pleasant surprise, he showed up within the scheduled window! I can’t tell you how nice it is to be connected to the world again!

Went to Silver Spurs on Broadway with the roomie, George, and a couple of their friends. The burger I had was pretty tasty but of course did nothing to sate my longing for some good Asian grub. I would do anything for a bowl of hu tieu (thick rice noodles) with seafood, a sizzling pot of bibimbap or tofu soup, or a couple of heavenly rolls of sushi.

Sigh, but that would have meant dining alone. It’s strange since I have no qualms about going to a movie by myself. But restaurant dining, with the exception of fast food or airports, I just cannot bring myself to do alone. Maybe it’s the awkwardness of not having someone to talk to during the meal. Or perhaps the curious/pitying glances of other diners.

One of my best girl friends in LA would probably tell me that it’s ridiculous that I can’t just go to a restaurant by myself to enjoy the food that I would like to eat. But eating out, enjoying food is a communal experience that I feel should be shared with good friends and families. But then again, there will always be times when I won’t have a dining partner on hand. So perhaps I should follow the wisdom of Nike. . .

Tea Haven

Sitting in “Splendor in a Kettle” on St. Marks place, enjoying a teapot of roasted matte and their wireless internet, and eavesdropping on the pair at the table next to me.

It’s a first meeting for a trainer and a potential client. In the hour that they’ve been meeting, I’ve learned the following:

-Her family is from Eastern Europe and the parents are currently living in California

-She’s been living in New York for a year attending Parson's

-The trainer was not athletic growing up but uses this to relate to his clients

-He’s from an Irish family, loves carbs, and loves to cook

-His motto is moderation is key

Turns out his hourly rate of $40 (preferably $50/hr) is kind of steep so she has to okay it with her parents. Although he’s pretty charming and says all the right things, I can’t tell if he’s sold her on it. They leave and he insists on picking up the tab. Smart move- I may have underestimated the guy.

dinner with fabulous P

Today was another dreary fall day. You know the type of day. You take one look out the window and it’s so cold and rainy that all you want to do is curl up under the warm covers and take refuge.

I spent the better part of the morning researching various temp agencies in New York. I found four that seemed particularly appealing. By the afternoon, I was feeling a bit stir crazy. So I went to Union Square to mail a package and find a coffee shop to work in. I spruced up my resume and finished a report that is long overdue.

I met up with P for dinner at the Republic. She’s as stylish, cool, and beautiful as ever. Always down to earth with a great attitude about life. Had some yummy calamari and the noodle soup hit the spot and warmed me up. P seems to be in a really good place in a happy relationship and nice job. It’s always to see good things happening to nice people.

rained out

I am waiting to meet up with a friend that I’ve known since middle school. After what seems like forever, we are actually living in the same state again. In college, I was in Virginia or China and he was in New York or Israel. After college, I moved to Los Angeles and he was still in New York.

We were supposed to go to Central Park and walk around and catch up. It’s raining though so we’re going to meet up in Williamsburg and find a coffee shop. It’s nice having a history with someone. Don’t need to explain so much and you can just pick up where you left off.

Rather Uneventful Day

Waited for the beds to be delivered. They arrived at 2:45 p.m. (past the window that was agreed upon originally). Went to Chinatown to exchange some blinds for my windows and was able to get a wok with the store credit.

Came home and made a quick trip to the grocery store. Made some chicken orzo soup with a little too much orzo. The roomie put up blinds for me and we watched “Fight Club”.
Maekre had been suggesting I watch that movie for some time. It was pretty thought provoking. Think I’ll get more of the subtleties the second time around.

Weekend in Newtown

Friday was a good day. Went with VK to Aquagrill in SoHo and had a fabulous salmon sandwich. The East Village is such a cool area and I will definitely explore it more.

After that, met up with the roomie and George to go to Newtown, the roomie’s hometown. Before going to Penn Station, we stopped at 1-800-Matress to check out some beds. We tested out different beds for about half an hour before making our purchases. I ended up going with the Nation’s Pride Legacy Plush. It is an incredibly comfortable bed, with just enough firmness and softness. Probably the best bed I’ve ever owned and it better damn well last me 10 years cuz it wasn’t cheap!

Then we hopped onto an hour and a half train-ride to Trenton. The roomie and George amused themselves with monkey talk and taking photos. The evening was nice and relaxing; home cooked meal (stir-fried noodles and stir fried rice), drink at Isaac Newtons, then renting a movie. We stayed up until 3 a.m. watching Harold and Kumar go to White Castle and various dating shows.




The next day was comprised of an IKEA and Target run. We managed to go to Pat’s for the best Philly cheesesteak and cheesefries I’ve had to date. George and I were invited to stay for an extra night and dinner out since it was the roomie’s dad’s birthday. It was a nice dinner at a local Chinese restaurant. After dinner, we went through the roomie’s old furniture and things and decided what to bring back to Brooklyn.

This morning we filled the car up to capacity with various items and I’ve spent the better part of the afternoon cleaning and putting them away. Now I’m waiting to meet up with Q2. We are probably going to the Sea for dinner and maybe stop somewhere for drinks after that. Should be fun.

Pleasant sleep

In the middle of the night, I heard the sound of a heavy rainfall. I got up to close the windows. I fell back asleep to the steady beating of raindrops. This is something I've missed dearly while living in Los Angeles.

Ahhh, blissful sleep.

Crappy Cable Companies

Not having regular internet access has been a huge pain. Every morning I turn on my laptop hoping *please please please* that I can tap into someone’s wireless. Most mornings that wish is unfulfilled. When I get desperate enough, I make my way to the roomie’s lab to use the internet.

Two days ago I did some research to see what internet providers there are in Bklyn and what packages were offered. It seems that Time Warner Cable has a monopoly out here. So I called to find out more details. Of course they have one of those annoying automated systems.

The Machine: Say “1” if you speak English. Say “2” if you speak Spanish.

Me: One

The Machine: Do you have existing service or are you a new customer.

Me: New customer

The Machine: Say “cable” if you are interested in cable. Say “internet” if you are interested in internet. Say “digital phone” if you are interested in digital phone.

Me: Internet

The Machine: Please wait for a service representative to answer your call.

In the background is some recording extolling the great customer service that Time Warner Cable has.

So after a minute or two of waiting, a woman gets on the phone. She asks me what I’m interested in (wasn’t that the purpose of the automated system) and where I live. Then she proceeds to give me a range of options. It seems that I can get basic cable and internet on top of that for $29.99/month for the first six months. That sounds good but I have to double check with the roomie to make sure that’s okay.

After okaying things with him, I call Time Warner back and have to go through the same annoying routine. Finally a get a new sales rep on the phone. She again asks me what I’m interested in. I tell her I’m interested in internet and ask her what packages there are. She lists a variety of very expensive plans (lowest being $90+). I say that their website and a previous representative told me that I can get basic internet and internet for $29.99/month. She states that that is for returning customers only.

I am obviously confused by the conflicting information and ask her if that is the best she can do in terms of plans. Then she cops an attitude and tells me that she has already told me what plans they offer and how could I ask for more. So I said thank you and hung up.

Fed up with dealing with Time Warner sales reps, I asked my roomie to take care of it. He got a completely different story yesterday when he called. Apparently, we could get cable internet without getting ANY internet. So he placed an order and hopefully a week from now, I’ll be set with internet.

moving in

wireless internet in the apartment has been pretty spotty so i've been unable to blog regularly the past few days. i'm going to call time warner today to start internet and cable services- very exciting

moving into my new apartment has been a lot of fun, but it's going to take me at least a couple of weeks to get everything done. basically we are working from a clean slate as i sold/donated/gave away a lot of my things in los angeles. the sole piece of furniture i have in my bedroom is an airmatress that i've been sleeping on.

i have good friends. jpan came up for a couple days to help me clean the apartment and do some shopping. qq picked me up from the airport, brought take-out chinese, and lent me a comforter, sheets, and basic necessities.

the apartment is beautiful and has incredible potential. lots of space, high ceilings, great wood floors. my room has french doors and two large windows with great sized window sills. i found some blinds that are a natural, cream color at the pearl river mart. there will probably be an east-asian theme in my room.

actually, different rooms in the apartment will have different themes. the bathroom- african (which part, i'm not sure yet, ask my roomie, he's the expert) and kitchen- mediterranean/provencal. the kitchen is very spacious and has all new appliances. we'll put a high table/counter in the kitchen with tall stools/chairs for casual eating.

there is a common area that will be divided into a smaller dining area and a living room. the living room decor is going to be inspired by a tibetan wall hanging i bought in china 6 years ago. there's great colors in it including beautiful golds, oranges, reds. so i was planning on buying some gauzy material to hang on the walls and we'll buy some loungey stools, pillows, etc.

today i'm stuck at home waiting for deliveries. so i'll wash and put away the plates and glassware that we bought yesterday. surprisingly i found better prices for better quality at pottery barn than chinatown (who woulda guessed?)

tomorrow i'll try to upload some before pictures so you can see the progress.

waiting for "john"

i hate tardiness. i got up extra early this morning to finish my last errands, e.g. workout at the west LA YMCA for the last time (aww), go to the post office, pick up drycleaning, and clear out the remaining odds and ends in the apartment, before the car transport guys were scheduled to come at 11am.

at first i didn't mind, i ate breakfast, repacked my suitcase, and waited. and waited.

it's now 12:20 p.m. and there's no sign of john, the driver. no call no nothing. i called the office and got no answer. so here i am, still sitting around in my dried sweat, gross, i know, but with my luck they'd call as soon as i start soaping up my hair!

i still have to meet with my landlady this afternoon to give her the keys and so she can take a look at the apartment. i did a good job cleaning. vk would be proud. in any case, i promised a friend that i'd get him a UCLA shirt so i have to make my way over to campus too. . and then there will be a nice dinner with some friends and a farewell party and karaoke this evening. should be fun. chikster promised to sing a song for me:)

and tomorrow will be the start of a whole new chapter. . .

still in love with craigslist

so the used fridge that my old roomie, vk, and i had bought has been a pain up the wazoo. twice i almost had a sale and both times it fell through. the latter was just last night, two days before i have to move!

starting to get worried now. i just need to get it moved out and i don't want to put up the money to rent a truck and beg my friends to help me move it.

next i call the store that i buy it from. will they buy it back? no, they are overstocked. in fact they won't take it back for free!

now i'm getting desperate.

i talk to my landlady and she was unwilling to buy it from me or let me sell it to the next tenants. . in fact, she wanted to charge me $100 for movers to move it.

alright, i'm throwing in the towel. i need to move the damn fridge before tomorrow and decide to post it on craigslist for free.

within ten minutes, i've gotten five calls from people willing to pick it up today! ahhhh. relief.

i am in love with inventor of craigslist

so yesterday i had a mild panic attack about the difficult task of selling/dontaing/getting rid of all my furniture. after an initial rush of purchases made through the econ dept, there were no bites. this was not good considering i have two days to move out of my apartment and a few days before i leave the west coast!

yesterday i decided to post a few of the larger items on craigslist. . within minutes i started getting calls!

this morning i was able to sell my sofa, my dining room table, two rocking/recliner chairs, a large black bookshelf, and a couple of small picture frames!!!

there were two sets of customers. the first was a couple, both undergraduate students. one at ucla one at usc. they managed to carry the massive, leather sofa out of the apartment. i was very impressed.

the second customer was a nicer, older guy. i was worried at first because he was wavering about the dining room table. in the end, he decided to go for it plus the whole slew of other items. turns out that the woman he was dating was goin to visit his apartment tonight for the first time. . although he had been in the process of re-doing his apartment for awhile, i guess he needed that stimulus to prompt him into action. it was actually cute that he was going through all that trouble to impress a girl. . .

well, just finished posting the rest of my furniture. . .keep your fingers crossed for me!!

one foot in LA

internet access has been sporadic the past couple days. . . good news is that the roomie and i decided on the williamsburg apartment. it's good to have a home:) it's still not an ideal situation but i think the best we can do under the circumstances.

i'm back in LA now, wrapping things up with school paperwork, moving, cleaning, running errands etc. i'll probably be moved outta here within a week or so. .

this weekend was nice. hit up hollywood with a couple of friends and got to get a little dancing in. (always fun) my friend's friends started a party bus/limo business. . great idea, the one drawback to going out in LA is public transportation is poor so whenever you go out in a big group you have to worry about having a designated driver. . a serious pain, plus a lot of clubs and bars are not walkable distances from one another, seriously limiting your options when you're in the mood to party. so their service allows you to bar/club hop without having to worry about driving yourself, you can bring all your friends, and party away! fabulous!

next weekend will be the going away party. one of my friends from san diego will be in town for the weekend so it'll be lots of fun.

Day Six (out of steam)

Basically today was a dud. The roommate and I looked at zero apartments. Not completely because of our lack of effort. We contacted a few real estate agencies but didn’t’ have any leads. On top of that, the broker for the Williamsburg RR apartment that we actually have first dibs on, called to ask what our decision was. There was another party that was interested in renting the apartment and had submitted an application.

Actually, There are two apartments open for rent in the building: one on the 2nd floor and one on the 4th. After mulling things over, we decided if the application was on the 2nd floor apartment we would take it and if it was an application for the 4th floor we would take more time. Turns out that the other applicant was flexible so we have more time.

The problem is that we are just t-i-r-e-d of looking! So we ended up just talking about the reality of signing the lease on the RR and living in that situation. I think we just feel defeated and are ready to give in. But then I realized that we each will have to put in over 2G for the 1st month’s rent, last month’s rent, and broker’s fee. . . (gulp), seriously wiping out all of my savings . . . really depressing. . I need to find a real job.

Day Five (slow day)

I think N and I are definitely slowing down in our apartment hunting, having exhausted most of our resources and our morale! We focused our efforts in Williamsburg (near Bedford, Lorimar, and Greenpoint) today.

We met up around 9 a.m. with ambitious plans: (1) meet with “no fees” company that acts as a middleman between apartment owners and potential tenants, (2) meet with Chinatown real estate agency, (3) meet with Williamsburg real estate agencies.

The “no fees” company had no listings that were in our price range or interesting for us. We decided that the novelty of living in Chinatown would eventually die down and then we’d be stuck in a dirty area of town in a tiny apartment with no closets.

So we headed to Williamsburg and found that none of the agencies opened before 10:30 a.m. Instead, we went to a bagel shop and got breakfast. I had an amazing everything bagel sandwich with eggwhites, cheese, and ham all for $3.00! It was large enough that I was able to save half and eat the rest for lunch! Hmmm . . . New York bagels are really significantly better than those in the West Coast!!

After killing time, we went to various real estate agents and over the course of the day looked at three apartments.

Apt 1. Essentially the same layout, in the same building, as the RR-style apartment on N5th near Bedford. Great location. Beautiful, dark hardwood floors and quite spacious.

Apt 2. On Bedford. Larger than Apt 1 but much more open and more difficult to divide into a share. Moreover, the apartment wasn’t as well maintained.

Apt 3. Greenpoint. Beautiful large apartment. Perhaps the largest apartment we’ve seen in New York. Large kitchen, and three rooms that could be used for bedrooms/living room as desired. The ceilings were high and it had been recently renovated. The only downside was that it is a fifteen minute walk to the L-train which would be a pain late at night and during inclimate weather.

Basically, I’ve decided that I have a stronger preference for living in a hip area of town vs. living in an awesome apartment that is farther from the hotspots. At the end of the day, I’m moving to New York so I can experience city life not to have a great apartment.

By 5pm, N and I were beat. So we rewarded ourselves with yummy frozen margaritas and the best chips and salsa I’ve had in awhile (Vera Cruz). Later we met up with J for dinner at the Sea. A great Thai restaurant, quite affordable by any standards, and which is beautifully designed. After dinner, we had a drink at Laila’s that was just a hop skip and jump away from the Sea. . . and on my way back on the L to the 6 Express uptown, I realized how nice it was to be able to be in walking distance to all of that and be a fifteen minute train ride back to Union Square. . . so tomorrow is another day, and hopefully the last day of searching!

Day Four (Williamsburg no More)

So today was a disappointing and thoroughly exhausting day. We looked at six apartments and found out that we did not get our first choice Williamsburg apartment.

Apt 1. Lower east side. Great location. A “flex-2 bedroom” which turned out to be essentially a one bedroom with a storage space that isn’t big enough to even sit up straight while sitting on the “ground”.

Apt 2. Chinatown. The positives: proximity to Chinatown restaurants and shops, it has a small patio, and it had decently sized rooms for lower Manhattan. The negatives: a stone’s throw away from the train tracks, it is a basement level apartment, there are no closets, and probably no viable way of setting up an AC unit.

Apt 3. Chinatown. This apartment is actually adjacent to Apt 2 but much larger and had closets. The main downside- it had already been rented!

Apt 4. Park Slope. Perfect apartment: newly renovated, high ceilings, beautiful hard-wood floors, very large living room, medium sized bedrooms with closets, and a large kitchen. Most likely the largest apartment we’ve seen. Unfortunately, neither N nor I are pumped about living in Park Slope. Moreover, the apartment is about a fifteen minute walk from the busiest parts of town.

Apt 5. Park Slope. This apartment is smaller and not as nice as Apt 4.

Apt 6. Supposed to be in Park Slope but is actually in Prospect Heights. Very large but not in a great neighborhood.

I guess long story short. N and I were seriously deflated hearing that we didn’t get our first choice None of today’s apartments gave us the right vibe. And we feel that after four days of serious apartment searching, we’re back at square one . . . well, at least there are four more days of searching before I have to head back to LA. And there is always hope that a new day will bring better things.

Day Three (feels like thirty three)

Apartment hunting in the NYC is seriously a full time job. And after three days, I’m already getting exhausted. We saw six apartments today but are still homeless (well, technically I’m not but N is).

Apt 1. Boonies of Greenpoint. Apartment itself was nice but it is far far far from fun spots of town and a trek to the subway station. Very spacious and the neighbors/realtors seem quite friendly.

Apt 2. N and I both got the “this is it” feeling. It is a two bedroom share (supposedly railroad but the rooms are on opposite ends of the apartment) with a nice kitchen but tiny living room. But it is sunny, there is a shared garden out back, and it is a perfect location in Williamsburg.

Apt 3. Larger and only a few steps away from Apt 2. Would be great for a couple but is a railroad that was converted to a 2 bedroom. The bedrooms are separated by French doors which is not ideal in terms of privacy. There is a nice sized common area though and a larger kitchenette. There is also a private entrance for the back bedroom.

Apt 4/5. We actually never got to see the insides of these apartments because the broker brought the wrong sets of keys. They are both in Chinatown. The first quite close to the train so the problem will definitely be noise. However, it is in the basement so possibly it is not so bad. Looking into the windows, the apartment seemed quite spacious and there is supposedly a garden. The second apartment was a little farther away from the train tracks and closer to the center of town.

Apt 6. In the lower east side so location is great. In our price range but teeny tiny. The larger bedroom is decently sized but the smaller bedroom is tight and there is essentially no living/dining area.

I guess the decision that N and I still have to make is whether we’d prefer the cool parts of Brooklyn or the LES/C-town. The former definitely has appeal as far as a great artsy vibe, more open space, cleanliness, and seeming quality of life. The latter is more urban and has a grittier feel, which is also cool, and it is within walking distance of a very happening scene. Right now it’s a toss-up.

The upside is we had a possible lead in Williamsburg (cross your fingers and knock on wood) and should hear back from the agent soon. The idea of living in or near Chinatown is also appealing. It would be a neat cultural experience and the location is great to the cool spots in the lower east side and east/west village. Also, dining options are spectacular, affordable and I’d be close to cheap grocery stores.

Tomorrow will bring another day of searching. And another day of praying to the gods of Craigslist.

day two of apartment hunting: exploring williamsburg

Only looked at two apartments today. Both in Williamsburg. I really like the nabe. It definitely has a trendier vibe with lots of artists and young people. Would really like to live here too but apartment prices are really overpriced.

Apt 1. WAY overpriced. Not well maintained and a sketchy situation. The guy was trying to get out of a lease and was probably also trying to make a profit off of us.

Apt 2. Promising but wasn’t sold. Decent location. 15 minute walk to the hipster areas of Williamsburg. Newly renovated, nice kitchen and bathroom. The bedrooms were decently sized with okay sized closets. Teeny tiny living room though.
Had dinner with future roommate, his friend, and former roommate at Teddy’s. Had some delicious nachos and deep-fried portabella mushrooms. Walked around the nabe and had some frozen yogurt after that. . .now to rest up and start another day (hopefully with better luck) of apartment hunting.

first day of apartment hunting

Started the first day, of what I forsee as a long week of apartment hunting today.

We looked at four apartments in Brooklyn today with no luck.

Apt 1. Not a great location. Not great for a share. Poor use of space.

Apt 2. Not a great location- too commercial.

Apt 3. Nice feel. Very nice, dark red wood floors. New paint. Nice skylight. TOO SMALL!!

Apt 4. Not a great location. Poor design and use of space.

The good news is that I was pleasantly surprised at how much I like Brooklyn, especially Park Slope, Carroll Garden, Brooklyn Heights, etc. There’s a lively atmosphere with cute restaurants, shops, and bars. There is a nice park nearby. Overall, it seemed clean, safe, and fun. Moreover, there are amazing tree lined streets with gorgeous brownstones . . .I would be a very happy woman if I could find a decently priced apartment there.

The evening was fun. Met up with an old friend and her boyfriend for tapas. After the boyfriend went home, it was a relaxing girls’ night. Enjoyed some drinks and talked about love, life, relationships, etc. Girlfriends are wonderful.

disappointing delta song

Spent most of the day in an airport or on a plane. I flew Delta Song for the first time in my life. . overall, I was not impressed. Although I appreciated being able to check 3 bags and free headset, I felt that the airline was trying too hard to be “cool” and not hard enough at being efficient. They also took away my blanket before we even landed! The regular Delta flights are much better organized, serviced, and managed.

My original flight was cancelled due to bad weather in New York, which I found hard to believe. Next, I was transferred to the next flight to New York. At first that flight was delayed by a half hour, then an hour, then two hours, then a half hour again!!!

In any case, I arrived at my friend’s apartment around 9 p.m.. After lugging 4 suitcases (3 large and one carry on) up four flights of stairs, we walked to a nearby Vietnamese restaurant for a late dinner. My dish, lemongrass flavored beef skewers with rice rolls, was pretty good.

It was a nice evening. We stayed up until 2 a.m. just chatting.

busy week

it's funny, one of my friends told me for someone that doesn't have a "job" i sure do keep busy.

on top of tutoring, i've been doing some editing work for one of my grad school friends. meanwhile, i'm also in the process of packing up, selling my stuff, and finding a new apartment. i'll be back east from the 16th-25th looking for a new pad and don't know how internet access and time will be. . so if you don't here from me for a week or so, don't panic.

and for my LA friends, don't despair. i'll be back to hang out and finish moving for a couple of weeks and will find myself back in sunny so-cal at the end of oct, mid-nov, and next june.

locked out

i slept well. very well. 9 hours. that's is abnormal for me but i'll take it on the rare occasion that i do.

groggily (before my morning cup o joe), i made my way over to the kitchen and scanned the mess that i had left last night. i spent the evening organizing my recipes, looking through magazines, and doing some research. so gathered up the trash and decided to take the trash out. i grabbed my keys and trash bag and headed out the door. made my way out to the garbage cans out back of the apartment.

walked back up to my apartment and had a sinking sensation. i had forgotten to put the housekey back on my keychain!!! ARGG. i debated what to do. jiggled the handle for a few seconds. then decided to knock on a few of the neighbors' doors. no one answered.

then i realized that although i didn't have my cell phone and couldn't call my landlady (i have very few numbers memorized), i did have my car keys. i drove over to my friend's apartment and used her phone to call my former roommate. luckily she still had my landlady's phonenumber.

long story short. i called my landlady, stopped by her home, borrowed her set of keys, and got back into my apartment.

lesson to self: memorize landlady's number and never ever leave keys inside!

bummer

i had to cut my run short today because i was late for my meeting with the girl i am tutoring for. so after i finished tutoring, i decided to go for a walk, get some sun, and get a little more exercise.

because my clothes had no pockets and i didn't want to bring a bag, i grabbed my housekeys, ipod, and on a whim, stashed a $20 in my shoe. there's some cute japanese shops and grocery stores in walking distance to my apartment.

and off i went for a brisk 45 minute walk. weaving up and down the streets to the rhythm of the beatles. halfway through, i realized that i could no longer feel the bill in my shoe. i felt around for it for a bit.

seriously bummed.

20 bucks would have bought me the makings of a nice dinner or some cute new gadgets from the tokyo outlet store. . .eventually, i decided to let it go. and hey, i probably made someone else's day, right? no longer in a spending mood, i dug out some frozen fish and veggies and had a less than great meal at home. (sigh)

echo park and silver lake

just got back from e's. we met up this evening and decided to walk around echo park. it's got a beautiful park with a lake in the middle. the major attraction of the town. . what was even better was one street (douglas?) lined with rennovated victorian homes. finding it took some work. first we parked and attemped to walk it. after walking up and down some steep hills and circling around the same streets, we decided to get back in the car and find it by driving.

it was well worth the effort. some of the color schemes made me raise an eyebrow (shades of purple on one, dark forest green on another, etc) nonetheless, very beautiful and very east coast. made me forget that i was in LA.

after that, we drove over to silverlake. silverlake is a lot of fun. quite hip, bustling even on a sunday night with interesting shops and restaurants. we stopped at the "kitchen" for dinner. a smallish restaurant with only ten or twelve tables but pretty packed. we had a bottle of red wine left over from the hollywood bowl ($3 corkage fee!), shared a spinach salad with goat cheese, grapes, and walnuts tossed in a citrusy vinagrette. for an entree, i had the tri-tip beef stewed with onions over garlicky sauteed spinach and mashed potatoes. e had a soy-sesame marinated flank steak with wasabi mash and stirfried veggies. both were excellent. mine was tender and very flavorful. and the marinade on e's entree was suprisingly good. i've had similar dressings on seafood, but with steak it has a much more unique flavour. all in all, a delicious dinner without breaking the bank.

last of the summer days

growing up on the east coast semester system, labor day is a mark of a new school year. . perhaps because i have never really been out of school, i still think of september as the start of a new year and may as the end. . . but i'm still in LA and have grown accustomed to the quarter system where classes start the last week of september. . so i'm making the most of my time in california and remaining summer days.

right now, i'm waiting for e to come pick me up to go to the hollywood bowl. . i think it's amazing that i've lived in LA for 3 years and have never been! tonight is a "night with copa with pink martini and bebel gilberto"!!! we're bringing a couple of bottles of wine and stopping for some take-out from thai town. should be a great, relaxing night!!

http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tix/performance_detail.cfm?id=2225

tomorrow i'll be running errands but have an apartment warming party to look forward to. and sunday i plan to drive down south a bit and go bask in the sun. if it's warm enough. . .if not, there is also the LA county fair which could be interesting.

if there's time, i'll stop by the farmer's market and get some fresh produce to make dinner for my lovely friend a. she's had a rough summer with comps, etc. but come monday, she'll be a free woman again and we can party like it's 1999.

virtual window shopping

i love the internet. . you can browse, find reviews, buy anything you want (with expedited shipping for those birthdays, anniversary's, etc too).

i've spent the better part of the evening looking at digital cameras online. . .the canon sd20 and sony cybershot dscp200 have caught my eye. . hmmm. . .

anyways, here's some great sources for reviews on various high tech gadgets recommended by my crazy CT friend.

http://www.steves-digicams.com/

http://www.cnet.com/

selling it all

in the spirit of moving to new yawk and starting a new life, i decided the best thing for me to do is to sell, give away, or donate all my old stuff (except clothes and things with sentimental value) and buy new (used) stuff once i get there. today, i made a list of all my possessions:

car
ikea coffee table (standard issue)
(pimpin) black leather sofa
bed with no box spring or real mattress
blue lounge chair
two rocking woven recliners
dining room table with 4 chairs
t.v.
v.c.r.
dvd player
t.v. stand
two desk lamps
one halogen lamp
one metallic lamp
two cd racks
ironing board/iron
cookware, dishes, etc
shoe rack
3 bookshelves
2 barstools (expertly assembled by former best roommate ever)
various framed prints, wall-hangings
lanterns
clock/radio
dresser
desk chair

hmmm. . . kinda weird that at 25, that's all i've accumulated. . .but then again, the most valuable things are the photos, the cool decorations i've bought traveling to other countries, and the experiences and friendships i've made. i guess i'm feeling a little nostalgic.

taking the plunge

the past week or so in so-cal have been wonderful. i've been enjoying the nice weather, one-on-one time with my friends, great food, etc. . . and while the idea of living in venice beach was really appealing, the idea of hanging around, feeling stuck in limbo, and putting my life on hold, so to speak, is not.

knowing that my goal is eventually to pursue a career and new life in new york, waiting until the spring or summer or fall of next year, somehow seems silly. furthermore, one of my good friends is actually in need of a roommate right now, so it seems like a good opportunity to take the plunge and move cross-country once again. it's 99% decided in my mind, and now i just have to start thinking about the logistics of moving (i HATE moving).

i am both sad that my days on the west coast are drawing to a close and excited about a new start on the east coast is on the horizon. i will miss my west coast friends dearly, and hope they make there way back to the east too. but in the meantime, there is much to do, the hollywood bowl, korean bbq, chinese theatre, mexico, etc.

labor day

last night was a blast.

we went to asanebo in studio city. it was my first time having omasake at the sushi bar. the chef was superb! the sushi was AMAZING, melt in your mouth fresh, and the subtle touches made all the difference in the world (e.g. lime zest on toro). it was a seemingly endless feast of spanish makeral from japan, toro, yellowtail, blue fin tuna, squid, kanpachi, etc.

the chef was also friendly, not snobby at all, and carefully instructed us how to eat each piece of sushi. no soy sauce. soy sauce. all in one bite to savour the mixture of flavours and textures.

omasake is definately the way to go when you have some cash to spend. it was such an enjoyable experience to be able to eat slowly and interact with the sushi chef.

ahhh. . seriously the best sushi i've had in LA, perhaps ever, actually.

after dinner, we drove to the rumba room in studio city. salsa classes started around 8:15 p.m. and the band started playing at 9 p.m. i switched partners some during the lessons, but mostly danced with my friend. after the lessons, some random guy asked me to dance.

and he was g-o-o-d. too good. while i had a good grasp of the basics, i felt like i could barely keep up with him. it was non- stop spinning, swirling, and fancy moves. but it was oh so much fun. after a few dances, i was beat. we watched some of the expert dancers for awhile. . the nice thing about the rumba room was that there was a wide range of ages and skill level so everyone felt at home.

now i have to finish preparing for my tutoring session. maybe i can squeeze in a run before the bbq tonight.

slow morning

so, i made all these plans for the morning, but it's already past noon and i still haven't really gotten going. i'll eventually (hopefully) feel motivated and start preparing for my tutoring session. tonight i'm going to studio city for sushi and to take some free salsa classes. i'm really excited, it's been on my to-do list f-o-r-e-v-e-r, and i love to dance!

yesterday was fun. my friend and i drove to newport beach and walked along the boardwalk. then we had dinner at the university center in irvine. i'll be going to her wedding at the end of next month. it's a huge wedding, over 500 people invited with 400 expected to attend. most of the guests are the groom's family and family's friends. i am debating on whether or not i should bring a friend. one on hand, it's a good opportunity to meet new people and make new friends. . on the other hand, everyone probably knows each other and then i may be left alone. . hmmm. . i guess i have a month to decide how brave i want to be.

coffee junkee

last night was a restless sleep. i know entirely motivated by the excessive amounts of caffeine. . officially, i went to bed around 3 a.m., mostly scanning various apartment listings on the web. even so, it was a shallow sleep.

Yesterday, after dinner and getting back to the apartment, i had set up the coffee machine. .right before my head hit the pillow, i considered changing the timer, but (1) i thought i could sleep through it and (2) i was being plain lazy.

so this morning, after a scant four hours of sleep. my beautiful coffee machine began to drip drip drip. and then the aroma of brewed coffee wafted towards me. . and like a coke addict, i couldn’t refuse it’s siren call to me.

thus, i am sitting in front of my computer at 7:30, with a big mug of coffee almost ready to start my day. will be ready after i finish the cup of joe. today should be fun, after the post office and some cleaning, i’m headed down to the OC to meet up with a friend. we’ll hang out on the beach or maybe go kayaking or for a hike. i’m excited to see her, she’s getting married in a month. . so there’s a lot to catch up with.

tutoring gig

my friend’s apartment doesn’t have a coffee machine so the past few days i’ve been feeling off kilter. probably driven by caffeine withdrawal, I made the mistake of having coffee at 2 p.m. and an espresso macchiato at 5 p.m. . consequently, it’s 1 a.m. on saturday morning and i’m totally wired!

earlier on this week, i got an email from an undergrad looking for a tutor. the girl got a low score on her mid-term and needs help to pass the final. the exam is in a week and a half and the girl sounded like she needed a lot of help. . at $30/hr, i couldn’t pass it up.

we decided to meet in the afternoon to go over her “problem areas”. . . after talking for a few minutes, it became evident that the main problem was that she hadn’t really been studying and putting in enough effort (her words, not mine). the girl was a 3rd year student, doubling in econ and political science and was unconcerned about her GPA. it’s always shocking to me to meet students that are so ambivalent about learning and about their education.

in any case, i think i’ll definitely have my work cut out for me.

afterwards, i went to the promenade with a friend to pick out a birthday gift. walking along the oceanside and across the pier just reminded me how nice it is to live in los angeles. it will be hard to leave this place. i’ve come to really enjoy and appreciate many aspects of living in California. a friend from college was asking me where i was considering re-locating to. she suggested chicago. there are a handful of cities that i would seriously consider living in, los angeles, new york, seattle, san francisco, and d.c. but the idea of moving to starting over completely, both in terms of career and friends, is too daunting.

after our walk, we went to get dinner at the counter. a laid back restaurant on ocean park. they make burgers to order. i had 1/3 lb of ground meat, grilled onions, sautéed mushrooms, roasted red peppers, roasted chilis, and baby greens with roasted garlic aioli! with a side of onion fries and washed down with stella beer, it totally hit the spot.

relaxing night out

went to a hole in the wall restaurant last night called tlapazola with two good friends- e and c. first thing we notice is that our party is probably about 15-20 years younger than the rest of the clientele. nevertheless, the food was quite good. advertised as a fusion restaurant adding california twists to traditional mexican cuisine, the chefs do not do anything too daring. we shared a masa pancake appetizer with shrimp, essentially pancake stacked with greens in a light sauce and broiled shrimp. i ordered the chicken chile relleno (i’ve spent the past 3 years looking for chile relleno as good as the one i had in new mexico) and my friend ordered the lobster and cheese enchilada (excellent), and Alaskan halibut in two sauces- a mole sauce and caper sauce (also quite good). then we topped it off with caramel flan.

over margaritas, i tried keeping the conversation light or at least off of me. . honestly, i am starting to get tired of explaining what happened with the ex.

so instead we talked about the economics department, about my friend’s 5/6 year long-distance relationship with her boyfriend, etc. after dinner, e and i dropped c off, she had to get up early. then we went to downtown culver city to a cozy hotel bar and spent two hours nursing cocktails and talking about relationships, about falling in and out of love, and taking risks.

an interesting question regarding personal philosophies regarding love arose. is it better to play it safe and stay in a relationship for the sake of commitment and compatibility or should one take risks and hold out for that love of your life? each path has its rewards and drawbacks. probably to some degree, the path one chooses is determined by how risk-averse he or she is. i’d like to think that the latter is possible for everyone, but it requires patience, enduring more pain along the way, and probably luck doesn’t hurt.

i think the reality involves some combination of the two. i think there is some one out there that i will believe to be the most amazing man in the world, with which there is chemistry along with compatibility. but to make the relationship be truly successful, I think you need all three: chemistry, compatibility, and commitment. . ha ha, I guess the three c’s.

checking my list

today has been a busy but productive day. i can tell because almost all of my items on my “to do” list have been checked out. yep, i’m one of those type-a people that likes to make lists and schedule her week in advance. i have a bad memory so this helps me be not too scatterbrained.

cancel contracts with wedding vendors. check.

call landlady and have locks changed. check.

lunch with friend. check.

copy friend’s house keys. check.

rob a bank. check.

groceries and drug store. check.

and so on.

i am going to start looking for a new apartment soon. probably a studio or one-bedroom. honestly, my last roommate spoiled me, we got along fabulously and i don’t think i’ll find another roommate i’ll gel with as much. . .
i’ve had a problem with runner’s knee the past couple of weeks. there are some exercises you can do that are supposed to help, but i think diversifying my workouts would also be good. . to that end, one of my friend is offering to give me his old bike, the only problem is that one of the pedals has to be replaced. another friend has gotten into swimming this summer, so i’m going to start going once or twice a week with him.. . .can’t wait. . should be lots of fun.

crashing with a friend

right now i'm staying with a good friend. . while i love being at home, playing with my a-dorable niece and nephew, running errands with my sister, and keeping my mom company. . .i was starting to go a little awol.

my friend has a good way of putting it, basically when you are at home, you are on family duty 24/7. it's nice to just be responsible to myself. maybe that's a bit selfish. but i think i need it.

in any case, there have been some new developments to the hampton roads scene. a few centers with non-chain restaurants, cute coffeeshops, nice stores, etc. . i guess families with more money are moving in and there seems to be an economic shift towards more high end tastes. while i can't see myself ever moving back to newport news, i'm excited about the changes and the opportunties they will bring for my brother and sister who live near my parents.

dog street

yesterday i met up with two of my college friends in williamsburg. we went to the cheeseshop (which still has the BEST veggie sandwich i've ever had), dessert at baskin robbins, and a walk down dog street.

williamsburg seems quaint now, maybe i didn't appreciate it enough as a college student. . but there is something a bit surreal about going to school in a tourist town, especially one that is a living history museum. there are some fond memories too.

we walked by the old shops where people are dressed in colonial clothes, dressmakers, a bakery, a silversmith, etc.. one summer, i actually worked as a hostess in one of the taverns. shields tavern. i had to wear the whole outfit. full skirt, a long white shift that i tucked into the skirt, an apron, and a white bonnet. black shoes and long socks completed the outfit.

one memory has always stuck by me. . it was an afternoon and a couple of tourists walked by. i was hanging out by the gate, waiting to seat customers in the back patio. one of them came up to the gate, looked at the menu that was posted up, then proceeded to look at me up and down. . then commented, "didn't realize there were asian folks back in the colonial times"

looking back, i wonder if the man realized how stupid his comment was. . . did he seriously think he was being funny? or that i would say, "gee, your right, maybe i should go get a job at a chinese restaurant instead." of course, i needed the money and couldn't really tell the guy off. .so i just smiled politely.

anyways, there's some exiting news hitting the burg. . .this past summer colin farrell was filming the movie "columbus" and now it seems there will be an HBO miniseries about john adams (a tom hanks production http://www.dogstreetjournal.com/story/2629) there. . . i am glad to hear that there will be some more money and business pouring into the town. . . hopefully it'll spillover to the college.

hanging out with the clan

so i have a large family. very large family. my brother is the fifth of a family of eight children. most of the brothers and sisters have had at least two children. needless to say, i grew up with lots of cousins.

a fond memory is of our "band", aptly named the "third generation". my brother and i had matching red leather jackets and i recall lipsyncing along to thriller and other jackson hits. it was a good time and probably the last time in the past twenty years that all of us have hung out together. as with many asian families, there have been moments of drama, conflict between siblings, etc. we've all grown up and sadly apart: some have married and have children *the fourth generation*, gotten jobs, some have moved away and others moved back to the good ol VA. but recent tragedy (the death of my grandfather) have seem to brought everyone close together.

last night, after the funeral, we all made plans to meet up at the rivah cafe in yorktown beach. our clan literally took over the bar. over martini's, sambucca, wine, and good crabdip, we laughed, talked, and caught up on each others' lives. it was really a wonderful time and i hope that it is the beginning of closer family ties.

new beginnings

fate has a funny way of throwing you curve balls. . .i left los angeles in june as an affianced woman, planning on getting a lot of research done on my dissertation in china. and i will return to los angeles as a single woman (for the first time in five years), with a lust for life, eager to rediscover myself, and excited to find and pursue my passion.

i think somewhere in the early part of my twenties, i began to lose myself in a relationship. i suppose that is easy to do, perhaps especially as an asian woman- often eager to please and give into another person's preferences. what i had not realized, is that i was no longer pursuing a career or life that i was interested in. . more importantly, i had forgotten just what that was. in general, i try not to regret anything in life and believe that everything happens for a reason. during the past five years with my ex, i have learned a lot about myself, about relationships, and about life. we had a lot of great moments. and i will treasure those and try to learn from my mistakes.

i have decided to take a year off of graduate school. . . and figure out what i want out of a career and decide what steps are necessary to get there.

while i have grown to love life in LA, i am not sure how long i will stay here. . i think the east coast is beckoning me, and i have always dreamed of living in manhattan. . .but i think i'll just play things by ear, see how life unfolds, and share my stories with you.

i suppose that the new blog is somewhat symbolic. . a fresh start. . .once things settle down and i have time, i will upload all the posts from the previous blog here. until then, be patient while i get this blog up and running.

MIA

to all my readers, sorry for being MIA these past few weeks. . and for those that have emailed me, thanks for your concern. i am a-ok and will fill you in individually, through email or in person.

i'm back in the states, a bit prematurely, to deal with some issues on the home and personal front. i will not be back in beijing this fall. *sorry for my readers that find my life in beijing more entertaining than my one in sunny so-cal*

i'm on the brink of making some big decisions and while this is a confusing/trying time in my life, i am excited by the potential and promise ahead. sorry if this sounds a bit mysterious or vague, i'm just a girl trying to figure things out, so bear with me.

further adventures in a taxi

this morning, i saw the fiancee off to the aiport. at 5 am. i guess the good thing about having such an early flight is that the roads were pretty empty and it only took 25min to get to the airport. after dropping him off, i went to go find myself a taxi back to the hotel.

i had been forewarned already that none of the taxis leaving the airport will run on a meter and that you have to negotiate the fare price beforehand. i also heard that 100 RMB is about as low as they will go. so i exited out of the airport out of doorway 9 to find the taxi cab stand. . . there were a couple of guys waiting outside and they asked me where i needed a ride to. i gave him the name of my hotel and asked him what price he was charging. we settled on 100 RMB.

i expected him to take me to one of the typical red, or green/yellow taxi cars. instead we started walking to the parking lot. he called someone on the phone and told him that there was a passenger and that we would be heading to my hotel. i was starting to get a little suspicious so i asked him where his car was and who he worked for. the cab driver told me that he worked for a hotel and named the hotel. . .my sense of wariness skyrocketed as the walk to the car dragged out and we reached a white unmarked car. . then i basically told the guy that i was not going to get in the car. i didn't think it was good. he told me not to worry, that he worked for a hotel, and that they would take me to my hotel for the agreed 100 RMB. . .but i already had images of being dragged off and who knows what!

so i began to quickly walk away from the vehicle and repeatedly refused to take the cab. . at one point i was nearly yelling. then another woman in an unmarked car started asking me if i wanted a ride. . .i just ignored her and finally found the taxi stand.

i got into the taxi. unmetered. negotiated 100 RMB and was on my way back to the hotel. . in retrospect, i don't know if i really had anything to worry about. . it could have just been people looking for another way to make a buck. but then again, they could have been scam artists or something worse. . .

Mao’s Body (finally), Forbidden City, Shopping, and Hou Hai

Today, the gods looked down on us! (Or the Chinese government decided to stop shooting all the damn chemicals in the air to make it rain) The sun was out, the sky was almost clear and blue, and it wasn’t unbearably hot.

The good weather helped our spirits and we were able to see a lot of the city. We went back to see Mao’s body (sans bag, but the fiancée did manage to sneak in a camera in his pocket, but got no photo). It was amazing the degree of reverence that the Chinese tourists bestowed on Mao. Many bought flowers from outside and placed it as an offering for Mao, bowing several times in the process, as if paying respect to an ancestor or religious figure. We were able to semi-slowly walk by Mao’s body and peer at his resting body. It was almost eerie and it’s hard to describe how he looked. Except to say he was well preserved and there were no signs of decay. His face seemed almost plump and very similar to the painting outside the Forbidden City.

Next, we wandered around the Forbidden City for a couple of hours. After that, we went to Jingshan Park where we climbed up high to a pagoda. From there, we had the most amazing birds’ eye view of the Forbidden City. After that, we decided to take one of the motorbike rides to Hongqiao to do a little shopping.

Besides getting a little dirty sitting on the back of the motorbike cab, it was exhilarating and a lot of fun. The evening concluded with a delectable Cantonese dinner in Hou Hai and a walk around the lake’s perimeter. . .a nice end to the weekend.

a very wet great wall

Today’s plan was to go with my friend and fiancee to the Great Wall. Unfortunately, the rain that started to set in yesterday afternoon showed no signs of clearing up. But the weather did not seem to deter anyone.In the end, we went to Ba Da Ling, perhaps the most touristy part of the Great Wall, but also the most easily accessible.

I was shocked that there was a massive crowd of people climbing the wall, decked out in raingear and bearing umbrellas. It was a pretty intense experience. Climbing the Great Wall, trying to hold your umbrella and not hurt anyone, trying not to get your eyes poked out by umbrellas, and doing your best not to get knocked over by the overzealous Chinese tourists. Surprisingly, it was a ton of fun! Something about getting absolutely soaking wet, makes one feel like a kid again.We left an hour later, wet and cold, but satisfied with the feeling that we had a unique Great Wall experience.




very wet great wall

It's a Small World After All

The (ex) fiancée arrived in Beijing last night. Today we walked around Tiananmen Square. We attempted to visit Mao’s Mausoleum which is in the Square. His body has been carefully preserved and maintained for the past 30 odd years. The line was probably a mile long. Unfortunately, we were turned away because I had a purse and it was too much of a pain to find a place to check it. So we decided to go back on Sunday.




Next we went to Wangfujing to hide out from the rainstorms. While we were walking around trying to find coffee and juice, I heard someone call out my name. It was a Japanese girl I had known from studying at Beijing Normal University 6 years ago!! Imagine that! Turns out she is working in Beijing for some Japanese university. I gave her my cell phone number and we said goodbye.

It really is amazing that given how big the world is, how highly populated China and Beijing are, that you could run into a familiar face!

finding a dressmaker in qianmen

Today I went to Qianmen to go find a dressmaker. I’ve been inspired by the beautiful dresses worn by Maggie Cheung in “In the Mood for Love”. . very contemporary style qipaos in gorgeous silk prints with higher collars, above the knee.

But it was a bit of a toss up as far as finding a dressmaker. The last time I was in Beijing I had gotten four dresses made in very traditional material (the thicker, embroidered silk) and cuts. I can’t remember how I had chosen the place, but they had done quite good work. Unfortunately, I don’t remember the name of the store or the exact address.

So I found myself wandering the very touristy, busy streets of Qianmen- slipping in and out of random alleys- some starkingly run-down compared to the outer sections- until I discovered one that appeared vaguely familiar. Finally, I entered a store that did have a dressmaker. Painstakingly, in broken Chinese and aided with the DVD cover for “In the Mood for Love” I attempted to describe the type of dresses I wanted made. I was measured and the description was written down. For less than USD $100 I was able to order three qipaos to be made. . . pretty good deal compared to the U.S. . . but I won’t know until August 1st if they are up to snuff (wait for pics).

movie night

tonight i organized a movie and pizza night for the group. we ordered 4 pizzas from mr. pizza (a korean pizza chain)- ny style, veggie, combination, and mr. pizza special.

after many failed efforts by myself to locate an english version of the "war of the worlds" dvd, i was rescued by c who had been able to track one down. . there is a suprising amount of dvds for current releases that are in russian. . i suspect that is because the border between russia and china is not as strictly guarded for pirated goods and that there is better monitoring and control of this type of activity in the u.s.

it is amazing the degree of counterfeit/pirated goods in china. and the packaging is getting better and better. . .sometimes i wonder if chinese people even understand that these goods are pirated. you go into a perfectly legitimate looking CD/DVD store, make your purchase, get a receipt. . .it doesn't feel like you are doing anything illegal. maybe that is part of the problem.

in any case, the pizza really hit the spot. and the movie didn't. . .normally i don't fall asleep during movies, but last night i did. . it seemed pointless and plotless. but all in all, it was a relaxing and enjoyable evening.

street fight

a colleage and i were walking to a hubei restaurant that's on chengfu lu. on the way there, we noticed some yelling and people gathering in a circle. it soon became evident that there was a fight with several security guards and a man.

the man was trying to get away and a security guard raced after him and started beating him with a stick. over. and over, again. then other men surrounded him, making it more difficult to see.

another witness told us that there was a previous incident with the young man and that the security guard decided to attack him. the man had just stood there in shock. . .but as the security guard continued to hit him, the young man began to defend himself. and that's when the fight really broke out.

it was really terrible to see. i felt helpless and intuited that that young man must have felt even more helpless. eventually the fight broke up and i saw the young man walking away from the guards, leaning against his friend for support and holding his t-shirt to his head to keep the blood from dripping onto his face. he was so young. maybe 19 or 20.

i don't know if the other bystander's story was correct. maybe the young man had done something wrong previously, perhaps stolen something. or maybe the security guard had a personal grudge against the young man. . or was just on a power trip. i suppose i'll never know.

wedding portraits: chinese style

need i say more?

Taxi Cab Conversations

It seems like a number of my blog posts have been inspired by conversations I have with cab drivers and yesterday was no exception.

Last night, five of us went to eat Brazilian food and chill at a jazz bar. The two boys took the first taxi and the three girls took the second taxi which was told to follow the first taxi. . .we’ve been using this method a lot with group outings. . there’s been too many incidents and wasted time spent trying to find everyone. We wanted to squeeze into one cab, but the cab drivers always refuse claiming that the police will fine them 3,000 RMB.

Since I had the address written down, I decided to take the passenger’s seat next to the cab driver. And so the conversation went a little something like this:

Cab Driver Where are you from?

Me: America

CD: No no, where are your parents from?

M: Vietnam

CD: Vietnamese and Chinese people are pretty much the same. . . that’s great. Your Chinese sounds good.

M: Umm. No, it’s really not that good.

CD: You are pretty.

M: (silence)

CD: Is one of those boys in the cab in front of us your boyfriend?

M: (stammering for a bit, before realizing that the lie would make the Cab driver leave me a lone) Sure

CD: He’s a pretty good looking boy. Is he buying dinner for you

M: No. American custom is for everyone to pay for himself.

CD: But if he likes you, he will pay for you.

M: (silence) CD: So where did you grow up? Vietnam? M: No. I was raised in America.

CD: So you were born and grew up in America. Wow, your parents must have a lot of money.

M: No, not really. They left Vietnam during the war and fled to America.

CD: War is terrible. It is pointless. Both sides fighting with the only result is death. (more ranting about how war is bad but I couldn’t catch everything)

M: That is true. CD: So, do all Vietnamese women look like you?

M: I guess pretty much. . Although most Vietnamese women are thinner than I am.

CD: In that case, once I save up some money, I’m going to Vietnam to check out the girls. Well, my Chinese Born American buddies told me I should be flattered. . that it is the Chinese way to speak so frankly. . .nonetheless, it made for an interesting ride, that’s for sure.

riding in style

now THAT, my friends, is what i would call riding in style. . . (and i'm sure infringing on a trademark!!!)




riding in style

inconsistencies

one of the things that makes living in china difficult is that nothing is constant or can be expected to remain the same. this is a quality of american life for which we take for granted, the ability to schedule an appointment in advance and it happen, to expect that your life tomorrow will go as planned and not be dramatically different from yesterday or tomorrow, public transportation for the most part follows its designated schedules, etc. . (not that there aren't exceptions to this).

here, stores and vendors are open when they open. for example, the internet cafe i frequent posts their hours as being 7:30 a.m. - 10 p.m. but i have yet to see them open that early. . yesterday i came at 9:00 a.m. and they were open, today they opened after 9:30 a.m. . . .a friend of mine who was working for a chinese company one day went into work and found the business had shut down compeletey overnight. . . buildings left and right are being torn down. . marked by the chinese character "chai". . .one day they are there, and the next. . ?





inconsistencies

hot HOT pot

The weather has been amazingly cool this week and last night there was a big rainstorm. It made for a good night to eat spicy Sichuan food.

For those who know me well, you know I cannot resist good food and love spicy food- I have been known to douse my Vietnamese hu tieu with WAY too much chili paste irregardless of the effect it has on my digestive system.

So last night a group of 10 of us went to get hot pot. We actually ordered half spicy half non-spicy. Basically what happens is you order a ton of uncooked meat, raw veggies, and tofu. Then the large metal bowl is placed in the middle of the table and heated by flames underneath. Once the broth/oil is boiling, you put in whatever food you want to eat. Then, when it has boiled to your taste, you can dip it in a sesame paste.



What I love about this style of eating (which is actually pretty popular with Vietnamese cuisine), is that it makes dining a very communal activity and allows one to savour the food. Of course, I ate primarily the hot side because it was 100X more flavorful. And although my tummy was not happy afterwards, it was well worth the good meal, great company, and enjoyable evening.

unsuccessful attempt at ordering lunch

Went to “Sculpture in Time”, an internet café nearby my hotel to do work this morning. Around 1pm, I could no longer fight the hunger pangs and decided to walk over to a nearby Old Shanghai dim sum type eatery. The restaurant is a good local standby, cheap (with free soymilk), fast service, and open 24 hours.

I ordered Xiao Long Bao (steamed pork dumplings that are filled with soup) and asked the waitress if they have any vegetable dumplings. (“You meiyou shu cai de baozi me?”)

The waitress said something something baozi (translation: buns with various fillings), which I interpreted was a name for the vegetable baozi. So I ordered those too.

What arrived was the Xiao Long Bao and these barbeque pork baozi. . .hmm. . I really need to work on my food characters some more. . but it was a pleasant surprise, the bread was slightly sweet (which I think is more typical of Cantonese food) and they were better than the vegetable baozi I had had there previously. I guess if at first you don’t succeed, try try again.

cd dvd

For lunch today, I took three of my friends to the best jiaozi (dumpling) restaurant I’ve been to in Beijing. I had been there previously with a friend who is a local here. Otherwise it would have been impossible to find, it’s a little dive, across the street from Renmin Da Xue (The People’s University of China) in the basement of a little store down a random alley.

We filled our bellies with several cold dishes and pork & leek dumplings, pork & cabbage dumplings, and shrimp & pork dumplings. After lunch, we bought some ice-cream from one of the street vendors and decided to browse a DVD/CD shop.

Besides the usual pirated copies of American movies, a scattering of Chinese, Korean, and Japanese movies, I was surprised to find a large selection of Chinese porn. Unabashedly in full view.

Not that I’m surprised there is a demand and market for that sort of thing. . .it’s just that part of me still expects Chinese culture to be relatively conservative.

However, there are signs that this is changing. . it is no longer uncommon for couples to live with each other before they are married, women dress much more provocatively, and there seem to be more Chinese women at the bar scene drinking and smoking as much as the men. I guess China is changing in more ways than one.

Bei Dai He

So the beach trip was WONDERFUL!!! I didn’t realize how nice it would be to get away from the dust and pollution of the city. Bei Dai He is essentially a resort town for wealthy Chinese, Russians, and expats living in Beijing. The pace of life seems slower (e.g. cars actually slow down considerably when your cross the road) and people are more laid back.

Despite leaving Beijing at 10 a.m. we did not arrive at the beach near our hotel in Bei Dai He until 4pm. This was a reminder that everything in China takes time, primarily due to inefficiencies that have not been worked out yet. For instance, it is not possible to buy round trip train tickets in China. You get your one way ticket to your destination and once there, have to push and take great efforts to keep your place in line with the seemingly hundreds of Chinese people that are trying to buy their tickets back.

Once that was accomplished, we found two cabs that were able to take us to our hotel, the Friendship Hotel. An impressive looking three star hotel, the hotel staff nonetheless took an hour to check us in. Mostly, this involved finding our reservations, getting our passport information, and paying. . to top it off, you can’t even get the keys at the front desk but have to go to the individual building your room is in and put down a deposit for the key.




But finally finally we made it to the jam packed beach. The beach or sandy area was actually pretty small. Not realizing that parts of the beach were owned by different hotels and groups, we wandered over to a relatively uncrowded section. However, we were quickly told that that was the CCP’s private beach and we could not be there.

So we made our way back to the Friendship Hotel’s property and found a small spot that got a little bit of sun. Some of the group ventured out to swim or play Frisbee, but I just entertained myself by reading and taking photos. I must say, Chinese men enjoy pretty flashy and skimpy suits!!!

After the sun went down, the group headed back to the hotel to wash up for dinner. Because it started raining, we decided to go to a nearby restaurant rather than the more happening part of town. The restaurant was divey and the food was superb. We ordered fish, baby clams, fried eggplant, shrimp, tofu with duck eggs, lamb skewers, noodles, etc. With our bellies full and all of us tipsy from Great Wall wine, we decided to go to karaoke. It was great, we had an enormous room to ourselves and stayed up late dancing and singing along to the small selection of American songs they had.

The only bad part of the night occurred when we had to pay. The waitstaff tried to charge us around USD $120 after initially stating a 300 RMB (USD $38) cost for using the room. Mind you, we did incur some charges for water, fruit and snacks, and wine, but in no way did it sum up to $80. The staff claimed that we were charged more because they had to stay late to keep the place open. . . but the truth is we were the only customers, we were obviously foreigners, and they wanted to make us much money off of us as they could. In the end, we paid them the 300 RMB plus the amount for the food and drink we consumed. Nonetheless, it was still a great trip, we had a ton of fun, and came back slightly more tan and feeling mentally refreshed.

rising early

i have been up since 6 a.m.

i think it's cuz i am nervous about missing the train to Bei Dai He (the group is leaving at 8:40 a.m.). i don't mind too much because i fall asleep really easily on any form of transportation (except for horseback riding or something, but maybe i could manage that too). and i got to get all my things ready. . i'm only taking a backpack with the barest essentials, towel, change of clothes, toothpaste/brush, latest nick hornsby book (thanks e!), etc.

there will be pics on sunday or monday so you can see what a northern chinese beach looks like. i am sure it will not be as lush as the ones in southern china, but it'll be nice to get away from the pollution and noise of the city. sometimes i don't notice it, but yesterday during my run, i tried to breathe in deeply and couldn't get a good breath of air.

well, have a great weekend everyone. . and hopefully i'll have good stories to tell when i get back to make up for this boring blog (my excuse is i'm still waking up).

Beach Weekend

This weekend, a group of us are going to head to Bei Da He, supposedly the “Camp David” of Beijing. I think the majority of the group is leaving Friday after work, but I may just take the earliest train out on Saturday morning to save the hotel cost and meet up with people there. I’ll probably come back on Sunday morning so I can rest and spend time with Da Ge, a good friend that lives in Beijing.

I’m curious to see how Chinese people act at a beach. I think growing up, my family went to the beach occasionally, but it certainly was not a typical outing. . I remember picking up some KFC on the way there and having yummy corn on a stick and trying to keep sand off of it.

Anyways, the weekend should be fun. Try to even out my farmer’s tan, read some mags and books, and get away from the city for a bit. Some people from Shanghai are coming up to Beijing for the weekend to meet up with as, so that should add to the merrymaking. . and of course, I’m looking forward to trying somewhat fresher seafood than Beijing has to offer! . . Well, come Monday, I hope to share some fun photos from the getaway.

The Perils of Biking In Beijing

I was able to borrow the bike of a friend of a friend. The commute from my door at Quang Ye to the center at Bei Da (Peking U) takes 45 minutes. Riding a bike cuts down the commuting time by 15 minutes. However, the amount of stress and near-death (only a slight exaggeration) experiences may not make it worth the time.

Let me describe the scene. I am riding a black bike, with a broken basket, the seat of the bike lifts up when you pull on it, and the bike is just a tad too small. I try to weave in and out of traffic, following the other bikers’ lead when it is time to cross an intersection. The streets are PACKED! Luckily, or so I thought, there are bike lanes. .Unfortunately, bikers, cabs, and cars also like to use the “bike lane”. To top it off, there are usually a fair number of bikes and pedestrians that are going in the opposite direction. Oh yea, and no one follows traffic light and rules strictly.

Halfway through the ride, I begin to ignore the sounds behind me of cars honking and people yelling, and just focus on the path ahead. This seems to work and somehow, I make it to school safely, cars, bikes, and people swerve around me.

I told my host that I started riding my bike to school. She said “Before long, you’ll be Chinese”. Imagine that.

Cafeteria Ladies

I’ve been staying at the China University of Mining and Technology’s (Quang Ye) Beijing Exchange Center, essentially a hotel. On east side of the building on the first floor, there is a cafeteria. I have been spoiled by the cafeteria’s at Peking University where the food is either self-serve or the dishes are behind glass cases making for easy selection.

Quang Ye's cafeteria has a bit more of the "Communist China" feel. There is a separate room with openings for the servers, the item names are displayed on strips of paper above the openings, and a variety of food are in numerous containers lined up on a table. Students, staff, and teachers all seem to have debit cards which they use to purchase food.

Rather than letting me pay cash to the servers, I must first order the food (a series of pointing, damn I really need to learn my food words). The meats, veggies, and rice are all behind the wall. An assortment of Chinese dumplings and breads are served from metal and glass stands. After making my selection, the servers tell me what the total is. Then, leaving my food with the servers, I walk over to the cashier and tell her how much the food I am going to buy is. I am rung up and receive a receipt which I then hand over to the server to get my food.

On a side note, these type of inefficient payment services are not specific to cafeterias and is quite common in department stores as well. My best guess as to why this still happens is because (1) it creates more jobs and (2) is a low-tech way of insuring people aren't stealing. All in all, I was able to order some stir-fry greenbeans, ma po tofu, and bread stuffed with vegetables all for about 60 cents. The food was nothing special, but the price and proximity to my room makes the cafeteria a good choice when I want something fast.

Happy 4th of July

some funny signs to amuse yourself with (sorry for the repeats)




funny signs

filling in the details

For those that do not know what I’m doing in Beijing. I am currently doing research for my doctoral dissertation, essentially studying the impact of implementing pharmaceutical product patents on the development of the domestic pharmaceutical industry, transfer of technology, and inventive activity in China. I am here on a government fellowship with a group of American graduate students from different universities and programs. I am the only economist among botanists, anthropologists, computer scientists, etc. Provided that my research goes well this summer, I will be able to return to the states in September and begin writing my thesis. So, readers, cross your fingers for me.

Mistaken Identity

Today was a blast. One of my college friends has come to visit me in Beijing for a few days. We went to Wangfujing and explored a ginormous shopping center, bought some things from the fancy grocery store to make mixed drinks, and snacks for the room.

We decided to go to Alameda, an upscale Brazilian eatery and ranked as the “crème de la crème” in Beijing. We shared two prix fixe meals, sampling cous cous, scallops, filet mignon, and sharing a bottle of Malbec wine. The meal was delicious and quite reasonably priced once you do the conversion to dollars. Actually, this aspect of Beijing, the ability to afford fine dining, swanky bars, and enjoy art, music, and culture at a fraction of the price in the U.S., which makes it so appealing to so many expats.

After dinner, my friend and I met up with three other people from the program at Latinos, a salsa club. The band was great and we danced to the wee hours. We took separate cabs back to our hotel since all cab drivers refuse to seat more than four at night rather than risk being fined by the police. Once back at the hotel, I get a call from one of the guys in our group, he had something of my friends and wanted to give it back before he went to sleep. So I asked him to come down and open the door (there’s a curfew at the hotel and doors are locked after midnight). Unfortunately, he couldn’t open it himself and so the doorman had to be woken up to open the door. The doorman unlocked the door, took in our club outfits and make up, then asked my (guy) friend if he had “called us”. [Translation: Were we prostitutes?!]

Well, although that’s not what one would like to hear, at least it’s a funny ending for the night!

Internet Access

Within the first week at my host institution, I was able to get an account so that I could use the internet at work. Luckily, it didn’t seem that difficult to set everything up and use the internet. This was a relief as other group members have had varying levels of difficulty getting access at all or to various sites. All of this of course, seems to be due to government efforts to monitor and restrict internet usage and access in universities.

For the most part, the first few days at work, I had few problems besides a slow connection and the inability to use MSN Messenger or AOL Instant Messenger. However, starting today, I could no longer access UCLA’s webmail or website.

Later it was explained to me that I had been assigned a domestic internet account (i.e. I can only access domestic websites) rather than an international internet account. Outwardly, I accepted this argument however inwardly I didn’t see how that could be since just one day previously I had had no problems looking at international sites. . .

It is a disconcerting feeling that one (at least as a foreigner) gets while living in China, of being watched. Wherever you stay, you have to register with the hotel, dorm, etc so the government knows where you are (so make sure you always have your passport when you are traveling around China!). In my experiences living in foreign dormitories and now an extended stay at a hotel, I know the fuwuyuan (service/cleaning women) know my face if not my name. It makes one learn to true appreciate the freedom one has in the States.

Dui Hua/ Dialogue

Tonight was one of my most interesting, firsthand experiences dealing with political situations in China. As an exchange student at CCER, I was allowed to be an audience member for a CCTV talk show (supposedly one of the most popular) called “Dui Hua”. Six economists, three American and three Chinese, were invited to discuss issues pertaining to the Chinese economy and the audience was comprised of economics students and professors from schools in Beijing. The show became quite entertaining, if only for the tense moments between Martin Feldstein and the talk show host.

Essentially, the host was adamant about getting across three points:

There is “China fever” in the United States- this was supported by recent news magazine articles focusing on the growth of China’s economic and political strength. There is a dispute regarding trade between China and the U.S.- in other words, Americans have a problem with the vast amount of cheap goods being imported from China. This has lead to trade restrictions such as those on textiles.

The acquisition of American companies by Chinese firms threatens the U.S.’s global dominance of the economy.

The responses by the American economists:

There is no China craze. While China is becoming more interesting (particularly to individuals that actually follow world politics or economics), it is certainly not a main focus to most Americans. People are more concerned about Iraq and oil prices This is a non-issue. The U.S. imports a substantial amount of goods from China and in return, however, China imports very little from the world economy. China is the one that needs to open its doors to trade and allow its consumers to benefit from greater variety of products. The issue that should be raised is that market forces do not determine the exchange rate for the RMB. There is no way that the acquisition of a dishwasher appliance company will threaten world dominance (e.g. Maytag acquisition by Haier).

While I feel there was some liberty taken with interpretations of the issues by both parties and that the truth lies somewhere in-between, I have a tendency to side with the views of the American economists. I agree with the argument that at the dinner table, the emergence of China is not the first topic of discussion. I agree that free trade is generally recognized as a good thing and that there will be winners (Americans that can buy cheaper goods) and losers (textile producers in Mexico). I agree that the U.S.’s business sector is dynamic and open to international business. However, I will say that I do not know what the commonly held view is. I think that the general American public is easily influenced by the media and likes sensational news (hence the higher ratings for Fox News compared to CNN). . but I’m not going to get into a political tirade here. . .

Several things struck me as noteworthy during this discussion. (1) The Chinese host + economists and the American economists seemed to be talking at each other than really getting at the issues. (2) That certain issues were avoided because of their politically sensitive nature. (3) That it took more than three hours of filming for a half hour/hour long show. This makes me question just how much of the American economists responses will be edited and how. . . I guess I’ll have to tune in to find out.