January 8th, 2016

January 8th, 2016

9:44am

I hope I've got the writing stamina to get through this next day and not have to keep playing catch up.

Waking up just after 6am, did some writing here. Okay, you know that part. I had to leave to make the trip to Zhongshan Square once again, to finally get that moneygram, and return to the Web International building to meet Stella, who was going to help me finalize the apartment documentation (Vicky has left for a holiday in Japan I believe).

After flossing it became apparent that I don't have a place for trash. Okay, something to look into. In the meantime, you just rest here along the sink, little used piece of floss.

As a reminder, I hadn't brought water with me, so after brushing my teeth I rinsed my brush and mouth with the travel listerine I'd brought along. That kind of makes sense, right? My shower has a see-through glass door that swings both in an out, which surprised me. The shower has an overhead um showerhead, roughly twice the diameter of any showerhead I was familiar with. By the size and its placement it looked more like it was supposed to be a large light fixture than a place for water to come out. Sitting along the pipe was another showerhead, smaller, with a more rectangular design, this one could be removed from its station and waved around however you like. I had some trouble switching between the two showerhead functions, the only obvious switch between the two was merely coming unscrewed as I turned. It was a push/pull thing.

Well, I didn't want to pull the thing off anymore than I wanted to unscrew it! If that thing falls down the drain, it is GONE!

Slightly cold shower, when you rotate the handle to the warm side the water pressure goes a bit, which isn't ideal, but it's also hardly unusual.

It was about 8:10am when I left the apartment, a little later than I wanted, but for a 20 minute bus right to Zhongshan Square, visit at the bank, and 20 minutes back, I surely had a ton of time before my 10am meeting with Stella at Web. Right.

I went to the spot indicated on my hand drawn map where I could catch the 405. I didn't see any listing for it, and considered the possibility that Vicky gave me some bad info, and meant the 505. Tough call, as usual. I waited for a few more buses, but no 405's appeared. I decided to start running, either until I made it all the way or until the appropriate bus showed up. Half a block later was the sign for the 405, which did make sense with my map, I had drawn it a ways to the right, but I thought it meant I'd just run out of room at the top of my map. Did I do it on purpose? Lucky coincidence? Whatever.

The 405 itself showed up soon after, but it. was. PACKED. Even if I wanted to get on, it wasn't happening. I hmm'd and haw'd a bit before deciding to follow the 405 on foot. I'd have kept up better if I didn't waste time thinking about it, but of course it was going to get away at some point. It's a bus.

I couldn't have been running for too long after this, maybe ten minutes?, when I happened to be at another 405 stop right when another 405 appeared. I hopped on, paid the 1 yuan, and squeezed to the middle, where I took out my notebook to check on my map-ah-HA no, it was a ruse! While pretending to look at my notebook I was ever so subtley looking at the time on a fellow passengers smartphone device. Hmm, what time was it?... either 8:43 or 8:53, I forget.

As people got off I moved my way to the back and eventually had a seat open up, ripe for the taking. The bus travelled south and got onto Zhongshan road just before the archway that was my first experience of Zhongshan road, so we were almost immediately back on familiar ground. I wiped away the fog from the windows to try and keep track of where we were- though I had been assured that the end of the line was Zhongshan Square.

We hit what must have been the end of the line. Everyone got off- the bus driver got off so fast to start smoking I thought he was practicing the big finale of a stage production of "Speed".

That was a joke, but I would also totally watch that.

I walked off, but it didn't appear to be Zhongshan Square. Looking back at the bus driver, he was now thoroughly committed to life as a private smoking citizen. His bus driving days were over.

Looking ahead I saw a sign with three arrows revolving around each other in a circle- that must mean that's where the roundabout is that indicates Zhongshan Square. Okay, when I say it like that it sounds very obvious, but at the time I was quite pleased with myself. I called myself a "Dynamo of Finding Stuff". Yes, I definitely used the word "dynamo".

At the circle, to my right was the ICBC I had first gone to, and therefore to my left, yes, was the Bank of China.

I filled out a new moneygram form, all the same information as before, plus a new date. But it took forever to be seen! And when I was finally seen, it took twice forever to get my money! I must have been there an hour waiting to see what would happen. I'd have been on the edge of my seat if I didn't almost fall asleep a couple of times. They asked me what Province Toronto was in. Classic security feature.

I think they said afterwards that my name was wrong on the moneygram-- which was the problem from the day before, but hopefully Jordan made his point to the right people. Well, whatever the reason, I got money. Now let's hope I never need to return for a moneygram again. At least, not in China. Do you think I can set up a Paypal account in China? Probably not. 

Leaving the bank a guy asked for a dollar, and in my head I said the quite harsh "fat chance bud". It... took a while to get the money. And I was tired, I was all Grinchy.

Walking towards the 405 bus stop, and I knew I was low on time. I decided to grab a taxi. He didn't understand when I said "Roosevelt Plaza" but when I wrote it, plus "Xi'an Lu" and "Huanghe Lu" on my notebook he understood. I reached back to try and figure out the seatbelt (from what little I examined the only thing that made sense was "fighter pilot harness" which wasn't an entirely unreasonable design choice for these streets...) but the driver looked back and waved me off, as though I was being silly for wanting a seatbelt, that those are for the plebes, and that I should relax. Possibly the seat covering made it impossible to click in.

The taxi drive over was... actually pretty nice. I've been in much worse taxi rides in Canada. We brushed a little close to some pedestrians the one time, but they were the ones doing the jaywalk thing.

I checked the time: 10

Then I realized that wasn't the time. A radio station?

The ACTUAL time was 10:18am or so. We got outside Roosevelt for 10:26, and when I motioned for the driver to write what I owed him he pointed at the "radio" which now said, what was it, 15, 16? Anyway, that was the meter right there, the taxis just start at the 10 mark for all rides. Much cheaper than I had feared, so that was good.

It was just past 10:30 when I got to Web, with Stella nowhere to be seen. Had she come earlier and left? Was she late? Was she aiming for the 11 time I cited the night before, despite the note I was given from Vicky saying 10? I wasn't wondering too long before Stella arrived... though I never did ask which of those options had just happened. Early for the 11am meeting? Who knows.

We met up with the realtor person and the landlady, I handed over the three months rent that was the entire point of the moneygram, signed this or that (I don't know) before riding over to some government registration place. I thought it was a police station, but no, I guess it was too nice for a police station. Very boxy design on the outside.

We drove back to the realtors office, where we split up, Stella and I going to Food Bazzar for lunch, and who cares what the others did. They had a sandwich. I don't know.

The whole time Stella and I were having a good time talking about pop culture and the like. She talks to me in very simple terms, and I'm like yes I get it, but then I go ahead and talk right back in simple terms. That's just how we have to talk here to understand. No offence is meant on either side. Though I keep getting that 'arm-held-in-front-of-me-so-I-don't-wander-into-the-road' thing. I can cross the road! And also, if there's one thing you don't have to worry about, it's me running out into traffic... more likely you'd have to push me onto the street to get me going.

I asked about the proper pronounciation of "Zhongshan" and it turns out to sound a lot like "Junction". Interesting.

And to say sorry you say (this is my best phoneticism including the intonation): "dwui boo tei"

Now that I think about it, we may have been interrupted before getting all of it. Maybe that's how you say sorry. Apparently, just saying "sorry" also works. And "boo" (more like "bo") means no, or stop. I think.

Stella showed me a combo deal at Food Bazzar that cost 15 yen, so 5 over my alloted meal budget, but yielded a fair amount more. I also picked up a container of watermelon pieces (and a couple of those mystery orange melon pieces... it's not a mystery because I'm in China, I just always forget what they're called. Usually paired with the green melon pieces? One of them is called honeydew? Thankfully it was 90% watermelon) because I was feeling fruit deprived. I've seen some banana/plantain peels on the ground, so SOMEWHERE I'll be able to find some potassium, amirite kids?

Stella pointed out some porridge, and I got excited at the prospect of familiar oatmeal- but found only soup. It seems water+rice=porridge over here. Good tip.

After eating we met back with realtor and landlady, this time hitting up the police station, which, yeah, is pretty rough. A police car drove up to park, its tires squeaking, and everything about the car looking rundown. Obviously there are very different budgetary concerns in Dalian compared to Toronto, different priorities.

Up three flights, talked to someone (whoever it was) and that was it, I was apartment-fied. We were given a paper on the stairway back down- I guess whoever we talked to above forgot something, which is a funny way to do business. I'd probably be like that too.

I returned just in time for class to begin. And so it goes.

My class just before my lunch break had only one student who didn't show up. I waited around a bit until someone came in and told me I was off the hook.

The group of teachers native to China (um, Molly? Stella... two others...) invited me to join them for lunch at some noodle place in the basement.

I ordered a stir fry thing and, because the girl across from me expressed interest, I picked up this order of sweet, sticky rice, fairly ornate to my eyes, drizzled with honey. What I didn't realize was that she had just had her wisdom teeth removed, and couldn't do much beyond soup, even gumming down these soft treats. Whoops *cue the Price is Right failure noise- "Bom bum bom bomm bowwwnn"* But I got to share with everyone else, so it was a-ok.

I had extra time than the others before I had to get back for class, so everyone ended up leaving me on my lonesome. When I went to pay for myself there seemed to be some confusion, that perhaps I was just walking up and ordering food fresh, or maybe they thought I was from a different table. The waiter gave me a paper with a 44 on it (my order came to 26 or so) and I pointed at it to indicate that it was wrong. He looked again, re-tallied, and this time wrote 48. I don't like where this is going.

I gave up, gave the cashier a 50, and waited for my two-bits of change. She seemed a bit overwhelmed with things, and my money wasn't coming. I had class, which wasn't worth waiting for 2 yuan, if it was ever going to come. 

I felt a little screwed over, but was determined not to make a big deal about it. I'd gotten some free meals the last few days, I was due for a turn around.

Looks like I'm still due- not too long after, a guy showed up asking about the money. It seems he wanted to let my party know I paid, when the bill had already been paid- they wanted to give me my money back! I don't know who this guy is, or how he knew where we were from, but I'm glad he made the effort. So I got the 50 back, and just owe or the 26 to whoever paid originally. I'm not sure who it was, but again, there are a finite number of possibilites here. Much easier than finding an apartment. Plus, it's easy enough to ask... ah, I'm going to ask, be told a name, and then I'll be all "I don't know who that is." Well, good, something to look forward to.

After that the most interesting thing that happened (I need to wrap up, get cleaned up for work and whatnot, maybe finally find a watch before my classes today? Not likely? Yeah, I know..) in my second last class of the day, I arrived a little early because the computer I was sitting at had a clock that was ahead, but this girl Katherine was already waiting for class too. She told me she wanted to go to Australia, which I said was great, and then proceeded to tell her about fire tornadoes (draws and explains tornado, now add fire), scorpions (draws a scorpion) and sharks (draws shark). And then, running along with the days theme of talking about accents (I didn't mention that, but yeah, I'd been talking about accents all day and doing... a version of an accent. Texan drawl. Brooklyn tough guy.) I did a quick Australian accent.. stressing that it was probably offensive to try it, with the kind of mangled result that was inevitable and that she should in no way tell Tom (Australian) that I did an accent. And then I told her about Crocodile Dundee (don't tell Tom), drew Dundee on the white board (teeth on the hat, teeth on the necklace, muscles... vest) and related the most famous part of Crocodile Dundee (or possibly the sequel) the "you call that a knife?" part. It went over really well.

The class required me to explain the parts of a deck of cards, so that the students could flip a random card, know what it was, and then follow the cue to a particular question on a handout that they then had to answer. It went great- and then I got to explain some idioms that use card terminology. Poker faced (Lady Gaga!). Play your cards close to your chest. Being an Ace. Play your cards right. That was good, we had fun with that.

Last class had three people share their research about famous figures- Paul Walker, Copernicus, and Margaret Thatcher. I mostly hovered over their papers and corrected as we went. I wasn't crazy about that, it's hard to be fun when everything you do is "nope, try this, no, no, that doesn't really work..." it was okay, but it was slow going, and it didn't really engage the whole class. I guess that's why that particular class was designated "private" versus the "salon" class.

Okay, that pretty much catches us up.  It's 11:36am now, so it really is time to start moving.

Wish me luck, have a good day