Settling Down - May 7th

Hello everyone,

View from one of the baloncies

There are times when life seems too good to be true. I have at long last found an apartment, no, palace to stay in. For the next two-and-a-half months I will be staying with a very nice plastic surgeon and retired molecular biologist right beside the Summer Palace in north-western Beijing. Their daughter is on an exchange in Colorado but will be back at the end of the month and she is right around my age.

I have only seen my wing (there are three) but it alone has two balconies, a games room with a pool and ping-pong table, a solarium with a shower, hydro-massage room, pet room, laundry room, sauna, three bedrooms, two TV rooms, a washroom equipped with tanning lights, a shower surrounded by an aquarium, two fish ponds, and a sitting room with a glass floor looking over the main floor sitting room. At three stories and 425,000 square feet, this really is grand. There is a catch however, and it is that I lead a group called the English Corner from 8-10 every Thursday. They also asked if I would like to tutor some of the neighbourhood children but they said I shouldn't worry because I would get paid for that. At 3500 Yuan ($530) for the whole stay, I can't complain at all.

House from the garden

It seems as if this new generation of Beijingers is rivalling any wealth of the western world. I went yesterday to a downtown mall and every designer you can think of, from Calvin Klein to Burberry, had set up shop. In a turn of the hilarious, the basement of the mall was dedicated to the sale of knockoff merchandise. I had quite the amazing day walking around, sampling the local food, drinking that terribly strong bottle of gin, and almost getting run over by cars, bikes, and mopeds. I stumbled across a 7-Eleven but instead of slurpees, they had pork buns and fried tofu: the local equivalent to the hot dog I suppose.

I ran into some Canadians and they laughed at me when they said I had no intention of getting a cell phone: a death sentence for anyone living in Beijing, they said. And so, fearing death, I have bought myself a cell phone. It is old, outdated, Chinese, and cheap. All things I would want in a cell phone. I really did want an iPhone but apparently all of the demand has driven up the price incredibly.

View from another garden

I asked the people I am staying with last night what they think about Beijing. They told me that it is rare to find a true Beijinger, that millions are from other parts of China or abroad. "That's why few people give you a second look" Maria commented, "because we are all just foreigners in this city". Maria and David themselves are happily Shanghaiese. This city is so big, diverse, and without a definable character that perhaps it is the native Beijingers that should feel out of place and not the other way around. Just a thought.

These past few days have exhausted me and I'm running on pure excitement.

The adventure continues,

Matt

For young and old alike

Very serious

Gated Community

My room