The Weekend

Friday: Didn't do too much. I played some basketball, and every thought as to the skill level of Asians was confirmed in just a few games. They don't play from an early age, so I guess it's not surprising that they aren't very talented. It was fun to play, though, as I hadn't played in a little while. The jumper is still there. Afterwards, I showered. I didn't go out, as I didn't really want to do so, so I stayed in and read. I'm enjoying my book.

Saturday: I didn't really feel like eating breakfast, so I didn't. And that not eating turned out to be my best meal of the day. Lunch looked like someone blew their nose into a plate and served it to me. I ate a little and then got a sandwich.

Gunter and I went out with some people we know to dinner (per Mom's instructions, the names of these individuals: Angelique from France, Laticia from Switzerland, Wolfgang, Dominic, and Josef, all from Germany), in a place downtown called TST (I'm really not sure what it stands for, but I'll just go with it). We went to a little dive on the side of the street. Everyone enjoyed their meal, except for me, as I got beef in soup with noodles. I, however, failed to realize this: beef (US)= beef and beef (China)=cow. I got a couple pieces of meat, a lot of pieces of stomach, and a lot of pieces of God knows what. It was either tendons or cartilage or an udder or something. So Saturday wasn't my best day in terms of eating.

After "dinner" we walked around TST, and it's quite an interesting place. There are people all along the street trying to sell you Rolexes, designer hand bags, and massages. I also had some woman ask me if I like beautiful women. I'm not sure what that meant, but I politely declined and hurried away. Aside from that it's a nice place - it's much more China than the other areas to which I have been up until now. I did manage to find a nice tailor there, where I can get a tailored suit for pretty cheap (less than US$150). So that was good.

After walking around for a bit, we went to a bar on the 30th floor of some hotel. The view was spectacular - you were able to see the entire harbor and surrounding buildings. I guess they priced that view into the drinks: there were eight of us there, we each had one drink, and our final bill was over US$100. But it was nice I guess.

When we got back I was very tired. I'm not sure if I have mentioned this, but my roommate Gunter has been kinda sick lately. Last night he couldn't stop coughing, which made falling asleep particularly difficult. I got into bed around 2:30, didn't get to sleep until after 7:30 (and the sunrise) and woke up at 12. I was not a very happy camper this morning. I did however manage to drag myself to lunch with a friend (another German, Johannes). For lunch, I had a club sandwich, and it was one of the best things I've had here yet. That really brightened the outlook on the day. Then it was off to the library. I was able to read the weekend FT, get all my work done, and print out all the handouts I need for the week in a pretty short amount of time. I was pleased. I then came back to my room. That's where I am now. It just started raining pretty well, so I'm not sure what the dinner plans are yet. Hope everyone has a nice, relaxing Sunday. Go Bears. And how about that BC football team?