July 2nd and 3rd As the train chugs into Gansu Province, the landscape changes. Green gives way to brown. Gansu in Chinese means “dry,” and the province is doing well to stick to that name. For hours together I watch an endless panorama of nothingness pass through. These are not the sandy desert dunes that […]
Date: July 1 It’s July 1st. The first day of an epic journey across China’s least explored provinces. And dare I say, China’s most restive provinces. It’s a Friday, and much of the day is spent packing. Just how do human beings accumulate things? It’s unbelievable the things we can do without once we realize […]
Last Thursday and Friday evenings were hotpot evenings. Katzka from the Czech Republic invited Birdy and I for a hotpot dinner. I was a bit unsure whether to accept or not – I don’t mind going for hotpot with classmates like Julie and Jorg. They are quite willing to conform to our vegetarian specifications. Usually, […]
Late on Sunday night, Silk messaged asking us to lunch the next day. She is leaving on the 24th to Shenzhen to begin a new phase of her life – her first job! Don’t we know it all! So, just after class, we arrange to meet her at the university’s South Gate. Silk is already […]
The other day, while having lunch at my favorite noodles place, I met a girl who looks remarkably Indian. I had been curious about her – I had seen her fleetingly, and she was usually with the Thais. There is another woman who looks so much like Rani Mukherjee, but is from Chile. Turns out […]
It’s been a while since I updated this blog. It’s been a quiet week relatively, although it doesn’t necessarily mean free days! Last Friday, it was fun meeting up with Silk in this coffee-house near the university called High Connections. The ambiance was cozy and comfortable. Spread over three floors, all laid out in wood, […]
Last Saturday, Yoke called us to go “cherry picking, drink tea and play mahjong.” Are there better ways to spend a Saturday? Since I couldn’t think of any, we agreed. It was around 10AM when he came knocking on the door. The day was gloomy with a forecast of rain and we were wondering if […]
Voozy was asking for some pictures of Birdy’s new haircut.
Fu Julie has this wonderful streak in her – an innate kindness that is at once heartwarming and life affirming. Having known that Birdy won’t be in Chengdu for her birthday, she invited us, and the whole class along to celebrate Dofu Pi-Eater’s birthday the next weekend we were in town. I couldn’t bear the […]