Last week I went to open a bank account at Key Bank, since they're in both Ohio and Colorado, where I recently moved to.
First, let me explain Chinese banks, generally speaking, from a foreigner's point of view.
I wouldn't have been able to open an account without the help of a friend, with the amount of papers you have to sign and the person behind the window has to stamp. not only does she have to stamp it, but get her boss to come over and pull out HER special stamp secured in her pocket, and then stamp with her own one more time.
I tried signing up for online banking myself, I think, and never figured it out. They gave me a changing password keychain, and again a bunch of stamped paperwork.
When my card got stolen, I had to go back to the original branch that i opened the account at. There was lots of paper, stamps, and signing, actually I had to copy a statement that said something along the lines of a waiver, but I was so slow in writing the clerk did it for me and I signed, she stamped.
Then I had to come back a week later to pick up the card, and after slightly less stampage I had a new card with the same number.
If you use your card outside of your province, there's a fee, at another bank (not abnormal) a bigger fee, and some banks (even bigger ones) won't let you use other cards.
A lot of hassle, all for a little piece of plastic to keep your money safe.
I walk into Key, tell the woman who was helping me what I wanted, and 10 minutes later I have a checking account. One signature, one piece of paper, and no stamps. It went so smoothly that when she asked if I had any questions I hesitate and say, "I can do everything I can do at this branch at a Denver Branch, right?"
Duh, i know, i didn't actually need to ask that, but she was polite in her 'duh' response and I explained why I asked.
Still waiting on my card in the mail though... maybe i forgot to sign something.
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Retail
Over the holiday season (early November to end of December) I worked in the retail industry. I am not going to reveal the name of my employer, as I may same some critical things that may or may not apply only to the establishment I worked at (I can guess that it applies everywhere though). I worked in a department store in the misses department, and learned more than I thought I would, and have a few requests to shoppers that have not worked in retail.
I was in the misses department, thankfully, though it wasn't until much later I realized how lucky I was. It was so much easier to learn about products there, as opposed to say, fine china or children's clothes.
What was my job exactly? As a sales associate you are responsible for not only checking out customers but helping them find items, cleaning out the fitting rooms, and organizing racks and shelves/putting away fitting room merchandise (called recovery in the bizz)
I was thankful to be hired in this position, apparently around the holidays they hire a lot of seasonal "folders and fluffers," whose job is solely recovery, not always fun for an 8 hour shift (though nice when needing a break from dealing with people). Also a lot of people in Jewelry. In fact at my orientation 20 of the 23 new associates would be working in jewelry.
I filled a shift in jewelry one time (if you know me you know I wear little jewelry). It was the most unpleasant shift ever. I have never been able to understand why people spend so much money on jewelry. Maybe I've never had the expendable income to allow for it, or can't appreciate fashion, but still. $25 for a pair of ladybug earrings that look like they came out of a quarter machine at the grocery store, $180 (marked down from $300) for a necklace, while, albeit nice, i can just think of so many other things I could spend $180 on. Worse than that (because I realize that's something I'd need to get over working there on a regular basis), is the downtime. In misses, there's always recovery to do (even if it is sizing the clearance rack), but in jewelry there's just not as much to put away. And what there is to put away isn't fun for me, and it's tiny. I am not graceful, and as I put away earrings on their little tiny hangers and onto the little tiny racks, i felt like a bull in a china shop, knocking down as much as i put away.
I've never been much of a shopper, but now know lots about how it works.
Take coupons for example, the company mails, and advertises lots of coupons. People would come in with a 2 inch thick stack of them, and we would go through and figure out which ones would work best, and if it took 2 or 3 (or 4 or 5) transactions to maximize their savings, we'd figure it out. Something I didn't mind doing as long as there wasn't a huge line of customers, I'm all about a good deal.
make sure you read the fine print though, as the thing you want to buy is usually what is excluded. people would ask me why, and I'd read the back of the coupon and point to where it says "Excludes ______" and then they'd get mad.
also, most everything will go on sale. just hang in there. and if you come back after the fact, bring your receipt with you, most stores will do a price adjustment 1-2 weeks after you purchase something.
Returns. Wow! the things people return, from worn to washed to purchased several months ago, my store took it all back. It was the worst after Christmas of course. I had a woman return something, and the money could either be returned to her husband's debit card (which she didn't have with her) or store credit. with a debit card return you need the card and pin (for your protection) and she didn't have it, and didn't want store credit. she said "why would i have his card with me? can't i get cash back?" not my fault on this one, no need to get angry. but customers need someone to blame, so all i could do was apologize as she rushed off in a huff. A lot of people don't understand that return policies are the way they are for a reason (security, liability, like why would we give you cash if you purchased with a card). and actually my store has a comparatively lax return policy.
also, please leave the tags on (2 barcodes at a lot of stores will get you far without a receipt) or at least bring them with you. and if there are no tags, you'll have to go to the department they came from.
Customer Service.
So apparently a lot of people aren't very good at customer service. This is not a surprise to me, although I don't go shopping as much as your average Suzie Consumer so I experience it less. I realize I'm tooting my own horn here, but many a customer commented on my customer service, how refreshing it is to have someone smiling all day and being helpful. A smile really goes a long way.
And associates love to be helpful. or they should because what's the alternative to helping a customer (i'm talking about responsibility to do so aside here), recovery? please, I'd rather talk to someone and hear about their party that they're shopping for or family dinner or whatever any day.
Some people love to talk, and it's amazing how long people will just stand and chat with you..
Fashion Consultant.
This was not in my job description. The first time I head "Do you like this?" and turned around to see a woman wearing a pleather rhinestone studded jacket, all I could say was, "oh, do I like it?" before i could consider an appropriate inoffensive response.
It's crazy the amount of times that I spent 15 minutes or more helping customers picking out clothes. I did my best to steer people away from fashion disasters. but then again, I have so little fashion sense who knows how I did. So customers beware, of associates like me, who mean well but really have no idea what they're talking about.
Sales Goals.
Each shift I worked I was given an (arbitrary) dollar amount for a sales goal for the day. Okay okay, i'm sure it wasn't arbitrary, in fact i bet a lot of money and time was spent figuring out how to calculate them. Luckily for me, making these goals had basically no bearing on my job (though i've heard at other dept stores if you don't make your goal for a few weeks in a row your out, no matter if you been there 3 weeks or 30 years). every employee is given a "scorecard" based on sales goals, items per transaction(ipt), and loyalty (how many credit accounts you open). You get 0 to 55 points on each section, e.g. one week i had 55 pts in goals, 0 pts in IPT, and 0 pts in loyalty.
woo! 55 points sounds like a lot to me! but who really knows. Say I was a full timer, when review-time comes around, my raise would be based on this scorecard (known to the full timers as the 'wall of shame'). I'd probably not get a raise, because my ipt and loyalty were always low, mostly due to i'm not pushy regarding credit cards (which people actually thanked me for), and even if someone was buying 20 items, I might do 4 or 5 transactions in order to save them more money. But these things, and that I give people a great shopping experience aren't quantified and therefore have no bearing on my raise.
no wonder associates aren't very nice sometimes. In order to keep their jobs (income and benefits) they're pressured into sometimes out-of-their-control goals. my heart goes out to y'all.
Theft.
it made me sad every time I saw theft (well the aftermath) the two big ones i saw were tag switching and fitting room. I'd be organizing a rack and spot an item that had an incorrect price. Upon further investigation someone has switched this tag with the real price so they can get a 'better deal.'
once i walked into a fitting room to clean it out, and saw a cute shirt, wondered which brand it was. well, it was from another store, which means someone walked out wearing something that belonged in the store. grr.
And now I'd like to make a few requests for the next time you go shopping.
If you try something on, you don't have to put it away, but at least hang it up on a hanger and bring it to the rack outside of the fitting room. If clothing is damaged from the way you treat it when trying it on, no one will buy it, just like you wouldn't want to buy damaged items
If you are going to put it back on a rack, find the right one. don't just throw it on any rack, this is much worse than leaving them in the fitting room, because it may be a long time before that rack is thoroughly gone through.
Also, when finding something on a rack, say you knock something on the floor, it takes you 10 seconds to clean up after yourself, but hours for us to clean up after everybody. Would you make a mess and leave it like that in your own home?
Returns. figure out return policy before coming back to the store. call or check online to see if you can return something without the receipt or card, or if you can return it from a different location than you purchased it. It saves everyone time and frustration.
Locating an item. If you call a store to look for something, it will expedite the process if you have a brand and good description, even better if you have a product number, which can be found on the internet.
Double check everything. Prices especially. Look at the register as things are being rung up. sometimes signs don't match the prices in the computer, and if it's a lower price on the sign, the store should give that price to you if you show them. Price checkers are good for this.
Also, if you see one item on a sale rack it may or may not be on sale, because it may be in the wrong place. Don't be upset, understand that people put things back on random racks.
also, ink tags. it's frustrating for you to come back to the store to get them removed (if you do have to, bring your receipt), and while associates are supposed to check, be real, people forget. keep an eye out.
I was in the misses department, thankfully, though it wasn't until much later I realized how lucky I was. It was so much easier to learn about products there, as opposed to say, fine china or children's clothes.
What was my job exactly? As a sales associate you are responsible for not only checking out customers but helping them find items, cleaning out the fitting rooms, and organizing racks and shelves/putting away fitting room merchandise (called recovery in the bizz)
I was thankful to be hired in this position, apparently around the holidays they hire a lot of seasonal "folders and fluffers," whose job is solely recovery, not always fun for an 8 hour shift (though nice when needing a break from dealing with people). Also a lot of people in Jewelry. In fact at my orientation 20 of the 23 new associates would be working in jewelry.
I filled a shift in jewelry one time (if you know me you know I wear little jewelry). It was the most unpleasant shift ever. I have never been able to understand why people spend so much money on jewelry. Maybe I've never had the expendable income to allow for it, or can't appreciate fashion, but still. $25 for a pair of ladybug earrings that look like they came out of a quarter machine at the grocery store, $180 (marked down from $300) for a necklace, while, albeit nice, i can just think of so many other things I could spend $180 on. Worse than that (because I realize that's something I'd need to get over working there on a regular basis), is the downtime. In misses, there's always recovery to do (even if it is sizing the clearance rack), but in jewelry there's just not as much to put away. And what there is to put away isn't fun for me, and it's tiny. I am not graceful, and as I put away earrings on their little tiny hangers and onto the little tiny racks, i felt like a bull in a china shop, knocking down as much as i put away.
I've never been much of a shopper, but now know lots about how it works.
Take coupons for example, the company mails, and advertises lots of coupons. People would come in with a 2 inch thick stack of them, and we would go through and figure out which ones would work best, and if it took 2 or 3 (or 4 or 5) transactions to maximize their savings, we'd figure it out. Something I didn't mind doing as long as there wasn't a huge line of customers, I'm all about a good deal.
make sure you read the fine print though, as the thing you want to buy is usually what is excluded. people would ask me why, and I'd read the back of the coupon and point to where it says "Excludes ______" and then they'd get mad.
also, most everything will go on sale. just hang in there. and if you come back after the fact, bring your receipt with you, most stores will do a price adjustment 1-2 weeks after you purchase something.
Returns. Wow! the things people return, from worn to washed to purchased several months ago, my store took it all back. It was the worst after Christmas of course. I had a woman return something, and the money could either be returned to her husband's debit card (which she didn't have with her) or store credit. with a debit card return you need the card and pin (for your protection) and she didn't have it, and didn't want store credit. she said "why would i have his card with me? can't i get cash back?" not my fault on this one, no need to get angry. but customers need someone to blame, so all i could do was apologize as she rushed off in a huff. A lot of people don't understand that return policies are the way they are for a reason (security, liability, like why would we give you cash if you purchased with a card). and actually my store has a comparatively lax return policy.
also, please leave the tags on (2 barcodes at a lot of stores will get you far without a receipt) or at least bring them with you. and if there are no tags, you'll have to go to the department they came from.
Customer Service.
So apparently a lot of people aren't very good at customer service. This is not a surprise to me, although I don't go shopping as much as your average Suzie Consumer so I experience it less. I realize I'm tooting my own horn here, but many a customer commented on my customer service, how refreshing it is to have someone smiling all day and being helpful. A smile really goes a long way.
And associates love to be helpful. or they should because what's the alternative to helping a customer (i'm talking about responsibility to do so aside here), recovery? please, I'd rather talk to someone and hear about their party that they're shopping for or family dinner or whatever any day.
Some people love to talk, and it's amazing how long people will just stand and chat with you..
Fashion Consultant.
This was not in my job description. The first time I head "Do you like this?" and turned around to see a woman wearing a pleather rhinestone studded jacket, all I could say was, "oh, do I like it?" before i could consider an appropriate inoffensive response.
It's crazy the amount of times that I spent 15 minutes or more helping customers picking out clothes. I did my best to steer people away from fashion disasters. but then again, I have so little fashion sense who knows how I did. So customers beware, of associates like me, who mean well but really have no idea what they're talking about.
Sales Goals.
Each shift I worked I was given an (arbitrary) dollar amount for a sales goal for the day. Okay okay, i'm sure it wasn't arbitrary, in fact i bet a lot of money and time was spent figuring out how to calculate them. Luckily for me, making these goals had basically no bearing on my job (though i've heard at other dept stores if you don't make your goal for a few weeks in a row your out, no matter if you been there 3 weeks or 30 years). every employee is given a "scorecard" based on sales goals, items per transaction(ipt), and loyalty (how many credit accounts you open). You get 0 to 55 points on each section, e.g. one week i had 55 pts in goals, 0 pts in IPT, and 0 pts in loyalty.
woo! 55 points sounds like a lot to me! but who really knows. Say I was a full timer, when review-time comes around, my raise would be based on this scorecard (known to the full timers as the 'wall of shame'). I'd probably not get a raise, because my ipt and loyalty were always low, mostly due to i'm not pushy regarding credit cards (which people actually thanked me for), and even if someone was buying 20 items, I might do 4 or 5 transactions in order to save them more money. But these things, and that I give people a great shopping experience aren't quantified and therefore have no bearing on my raise.
no wonder associates aren't very nice sometimes. In order to keep their jobs (income and benefits) they're pressured into sometimes out-of-their-control goals. my heart goes out to y'all.
Theft.
it made me sad every time I saw theft (well the aftermath) the two big ones i saw were tag switching and fitting room. I'd be organizing a rack and spot an item that had an incorrect price. Upon further investigation someone has switched this tag with the real price so they can get a 'better deal.'
once i walked into a fitting room to clean it out, and saw a cute shirt, wondered which brand it was. well, it was from another store, which means someone walked out wearing something that belonged in the store. grr.
And now I'd like to make a few requests for the next time you go shopping.
If you try something on, you don't have to put it away, but at least hang it up on a hanger and bring it to the rack outside of the fitting room. If clothing is damaged from the way you treat it when trying it on, no one will buy it, just like you wouldn't want to buy damaged items
If you are going to put it back on a rack, find the right one. don't just throw it on any rack, this is much worse than leaving them in the fitting room, because it may be a long time before that rack is thoroughly gone through.
Also, when finding something on a rack, say you knock something on the floor, it takes you 10 seconds to clean up after yourself, but hours for us to clean up after everybody. Would you make a mess and leave it like that in your own home?
Returns. figure out return policy before coming back to the store. call or check online to see if you can return something without the receipt or card, or if you can return it from a different location than you purchased it. It saves everyone time and frustration.
Locating an item. If you call a store to look for something, it will expedite the process if you have a brand and good description, even better if you have a product number, which can be found on the internet.
Double check everything. Prices especially. Look at the register as things are being rung up. sometimes signs don't match the prices in the computer, and if it's a lower price on the sign, the store should give that price to you if you show them. Price checkers are good for this.
Also, if you see one item on a sale rack it may or may not be on sale, because it may be in the wrong place. Don't be upset, understand that people put things back on random racks.
also, ink tags. it's frustrating for you to come back to the store to get them removed (if you do have to, bring your receipt), and while associates are supposed to check, be real, people forget. keep an eye out.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
A new shore.
The other day I was mowing the lawn, a real treat, since I get to actually walk on the grass. And as the exhaust fumes were slowly killing my brain cells the odor brought on a strong feeling of nostalgia about Dalian.
I agree, there's something a little messed up about reminiscing over pollution, but it is what it is. For whatever reason this made me decide that I might just keep this blog going. That occasionally interesting things happen to me (shocker, I know) and I want to remember them someday. If you enjoy them too, that's cool, if not, that's cool too. It's all good. I might reference my year in China now and again, but that will fade. And besides all of my (appropriate for viewing) good stories are already in my blog. :)
So, here's one for you. On Nov 2 I went to see Steven Page (formerly of BNL) at the House of Blues. Alone. I was hesitant to go on my own, but, unable to find someone to accompany me, I said screw it, I like BNL/Steven Page too much to not go. It ended up being a very small audience and amazing show. I was 3 rows from the stage and I swear he raised his eyebrows at me once, and made eye contact with me multiple times during the show. woo!
After his 3rd encore he was like, "I'll be outside in the lobby if anyone wants to say hi."
what? in the lobby? srsly? So, I hopped in line, with about 30 people ahead of me.
A bit of drama to the moment - I took the rapid downtown and only had 40 minutes until the last train back west.
After about 10 minutes in line, he came out, woo! and thankfully people were being quick with 'Hello's and pictures etc. Well It came my turn, and I said something like
"Hi."
He says, "Hi."
amazing stuff. brilliant work.
"Can I give you a hug?"
That's right, Steven Page and I shared a beautiful embrace.
"it is just so nice to see you. You know, I've seen you from so far away and never dreamed of seeing you, it's just so nice to see you"
okay, had a little starstruck moment (didn't know that I could get starstruck)
"Yeah but now you can't tell your friends or you won't be able to get so close, right? haha"
"I really enjoyed your smile all evening."
What's up. He WAS looking at me all night, woo!
Then he asked my name, and said hope to see you again, signed me ticket. I opted out of a picture, because I feel like I see so many pictures like that and the celebrity generally doesn't appear thrilled to be in the picture. Instead,
"can I give you one more hug?"
that's right, 2 hugs. awesomeness.
I agree, there's something a little messed up about reminiscing over pollution, but it is what it is. For whatever reason this made me decide that I might just keep this blog going. That occasionally interesting things happen to me (shocker, I know) and I want to remember them someday. If you enjoy them too, that's cool, if not, that's cool too. It's all good. I might reference my year in China now and again, but that will fade. And besides all of my (appropriate for viewing) good stories are already in my blog. :)
So, here's one for you. On Nov 2 I went to see Steven Page (formerly of BNL) at the House of Blues. Alone. I was hesitant to go on my own, but, unable to find someone to accompany me, I said screw it, I like BNL/Steven Page too much to not go. It ended up being a very small audience and amazing show. I was 3 rows from the stage and I swear he raised his eyebrows at me once, and made eye contact with me multiple times during the show. woo!
After his 3rd encore he was like, "I'll be outside in the lobby if anyone wants to say hi."
what? in the lobby? srsly? So, I hopped in line, with about 30 people ahead of me.
A bit of drama to the moment - I took the rapid downtown and only had 40 minutes until the last train back west.
After about 10 minutes in line, he came out, woo! and thankfully people were being quick with 'Hello's and pictures etc. Well It came my turn, and I said something like
"Hi."
He says, "Hi."
amazing stuff. brilliant work.
"Can I give you a hug?"
That's right, Steven Page and I shared a beautiful embrace.
"it is just so nice to see you. You know, I've seen you from so far away and never dreamed of seeing you, it's just so nice to see you"
okay, had a little starstruck moment (didn't know that I could get starstruck)
"Yeah but now you can't tell your friends or you won't be able to get so close, right? haha"
"I really enjoyed your smile all evening."
What's up. He WAS looking at me all night, woo!
Then he asked my name, and said hope to see you again, signed me ticket. I opted out of a picture, because I feel like I see so many pictures like that and the celebrity generally doesn't appear thrilled to be in the picture. Instead,
"can I give you one more hug?"
that's right, 2 hugs. awesomeness.
Monday, November 1, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Reverse Culture Shock - Final post
I landed in Denver on the evening of September 29th. Drew, Family, and friends aside I definitely experienced some reverse culture shock. And more surprisingly are the things I miss about China, that I miss things at all.
Some things that I had to re-get used to:
Crossing the street. In China you go, whether there are cars/bikes coming or not. Crosswalks aka target practice are to be avoided. The first time someone waved me across, I was taken aback, almost with dusgust, certainly surprise.
Common Courtesy. Not everyone in China lacks this, but in general it is lacking. When you walk thorugh a busy street you just push, and that's acceptable. no apologizing. In stores I'd try to engage the cashier in conversation but would mostly be met with apathy, not surprising with the 15 checkout lanes, each 10 people deep. From the TSA workers who welcomed me at the airport, to the Safeway cashier who happily started me on a club card, so nice.
Spitting. I admit, I did it occasionally. But never inside, or on airplanes (yes this guy across the aisle from me from Dalian to Shanghai spit on the carpeted airplane floor).
Blending in. In China, my favorite part about winter was bundling up so I stood out less. Here, it's nice to do things without the hassle of being a foreigner. Whenever I hear people speaking Mandarin though I run up as close as I can to listen, because I do miss that.
Walking. a 10 minute walk to the store is out. I need 25 minutes for a walk, or bike or car to get to the store. sad. and no open air markets.
Responsibility. For all my complaining, I had a pretty easy way of life in China. I went to work, slept in 4 days during the week, went to bars whenever I could, and swimming in the ocean. Now I'm looking for a job, have much higher bills, etc.
Language. Even as my Chinese got pretty good, anywhere I went communication made things a challenge. So being able to clearly and efficiently communicate exactly what I want to is such a relief. I don't have to get the dictionary out before I go to the store.
Tax. so many pennies!
Clean air. Dalian was a 'clean' city. but even at its best moments there was a dirty haze over everything.
I am so happy to be home. But I wouldn't trade my experiences in China for anything. It may be a few years before I get back to that part of the world. It was a good run China, thanks for the trip, see you around.
Signing Off,
Kate, in the U.S.A.
Some things that I had to re-get used to:
Crossing the street. In China you go, whether there are cars/bikes coming or not. Crosswalks aka target practice are to be avoided. The first time someone waved me across, I was taken aback, almost with dusgust, certainly surprise.
Common Courtesy. Not everyone in China lacks this, but in general it is lacking. When you walk thorugh a busy street you just push, and that's acceptable. no apologizing. In stores I'd try to engage the cashier in conversation but would mostly be met with apathy, not surprising with the 15 checkout lanes, each 10 people deep. From the TSA workers who welcomed me at the airport, to the Safeway cashier who happily started me on a club card, so nice.
Spitting. I admit, I did it occasionally. But never inside, or on airplanes (yes this guy across the aisle from me from Dalian to Shanghai spit on the carpeted airplane floor).
Blending in. In China, my favorite part about winter was bundling up so I stood out less. Here, it's nice to do things without the hassle of being a foreigner. Whenever I hear people speaking Mandarin though I run up as close as I can to listen, because I do miss that.
Walking. a 10 minute walk to the store is out. I need 25 minutes for a walk, or bike or car to get to the store. sad. and no open air markets.
Responsibility. For all my complaining, I had a pretty easy way of life in China. I went to work, slept in 4 days during the week, went to bars whenever I could, and swimming in the ocean. Now I'm looking for a job, have much higher bills, etc.
Language. Even as my Chinese got pretty good, anywhere I went communication made things a challenge. So being able to clearly and efficiently communicate exactly what I want to is such a relief. I don't have to get the dictionary out before I go to the store.
Tax. so many pennies!
Clean air. Dalian was a 'clean' city. but even at its best moments there was a dirty haze over everything.
I am so happy to be home. But I wouldn't trade my experiences in China for anything. It may be a few years before I get back to that part of the world. It was a good run China, thanks for the trip, see you around.
Signing Off,
Kate, in the U.S.A.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Return
Wednesday, September 29, 2010 11:06 AM Shanghai
And so the journey ends.
Getting back from the trip was a whirlwind of getting stuff packed, distributed and tossed. And having my last moments of hanging out with people. Which was really nice, especially yesterday. Okay, last Friday, went to Jinshitan and swam a bit with Dave and Nick. It was nice to finally be at a beach that wasn’t repulsive, in fact it was quite pleasant. We even climbed on and around this little island that when the tide went out you could walk almost all the way around at water level. I walked, Nick swam, I was scared. Then we had a quick snack at a nearby Western diner run by a Canadian, Susan’s. Really good cheap food. Yum-O.
Friday night Tingna and Cici cooked dinner for me, which was pleasant. The weekend was good, hotpot and then took the teachers from Jordan’s out on Sunday, they’re pretty cool, especially now that we’re just friends (my boss is only annoying when she has to be a boss, understandable).
Monday , after running around to banks all day, ugh, I made a carrot cake and we had dinner over Gigi’s parents’ house. The second dinner over there, and I think it was even better than the first. I literally could not stop eating. Crab, stuffed eggplant, clams, chicken thighs, fish, shrimp, niu rou bing(beef in a dough, amazing). Words can’t describe. I’m going to try and recreate at least the stuffed eggplant back in the states, but Gigi’s dad is really quite the chef.
Tuesday, my last day, ended up spending lunch and all afternoon with Irish James, which was nice, because he’s cool and I never really got to hang out with him much solo. Met up with Justin and Nick at Brooklyn then went off to have hotpot for my last meal. Because I love hotpot. Hotpot hotpot hotpot. James, Justin, Nick, Gigi, and Gigi’s friend Jing, a nice crowd. Daisy, Joe, Stephanie, Nik, Sandy, and Scott met us at Bobo’s, where Nick Daisy, James and I stayed till about 3, and then Nick and I went off to McDonald’s for a coffee and to hang out the last bits of time before I had to finish pack and go to the airport (first flight was at 7:55, so I just stayed up all night). When I got back to my apartment the sun was just starting to rise, and above the haze, my last morning in Dalian welcomed me with the rosy fingertips of dawn on a perfectly cool and but not too cool September morning. Cici and Tingna woke up to send me off in a taxi, which was really sweet of them, since it was so early, it was fun living with them, wish I would’ve known them for longer. I feel that way a lot about Dalian. Like in a lot of ways I was only just starting my time there when I left. It was an easy decision to come back to the states, I just wish I could pick out my favorite parts and people of Dalian and bring them stateside with me. Saying my goodbyes were tough but not heartbreaking, because I really like to think I’ll see these fine fine people again some day, in some country, some years from now. So now I sit here in transit, waiting for the next phase of things to begin, my life in Denver. 再见中国我会想你。
And so the journey ends.
Getting back from the trip was a whirlwind of getting stuff packed, distributed and tossed. And having my last moments of hanging out with people. Which was really nice, especially yesterday. Okay, last Friday, went to Jinshitan and swam a bit with Dave and Nick. It was nice to finally be at a beach that wasn’t repulsive, in fact it was quite pleasant. We even climbed on and around this little island that when the tide went out you could walk almost all the way around at water level. I walked, Nick swam, I was scared. Then we had a quick snack at a nearby Western diner run by a Canadian, Susan’s. Really good cheap food. Yum-O.
Friday night Tingna and Cici cooked dinner for me, which was pleasant. The weekend was good, hotpot and then took the teachers from Jordan’s out on Sunday, they’re pretty cool, especially now that we’re just friends (my boss is only annoying when she has to be a boss, understandable).
Monday , after running around to banks all day, ugh, I made a carrot cake and we had dinner over Gigi’s parents’ house. The second dinner over there, and I think it was even better than the first. I literally could not stop eating. Crab, stuffed eggplant, clams, chicken thighs, fish, shrimp, niu rou bing(beef in a dough, amazing). Words can’t describe. I’m going to try and recreate at least the stuffed eggplant back in the states, but Gigi’s dad is really quite the chef.
Tuesday, my last day, ended up spending lunch and all afternoon with Irish James, which was nice, because he’s cool and I never really got to hang out with him much solo. Met up with Justin and Nick at Brooklyn then went off to have hotpot for my last meal. Because I love hotpot. Hotpot hotpot hotpot. James, Justin, Nick, Gigi, and Gigi’s friend Jing, a nice crowd. Daisy, Joe, Stephanie, Nik, Sandy, and Scott met us at Bobo’s, where Nick Daisy, James and I stayed till about 3, and then Nick and I went off to McDonald’s for a coffee and to hang out the last bits of time before I had to finish pack and go to the airport (first flight was at 7:55, so I just stayed up all night). When I got back to my apartment the sun was just starting to rise, and above the haze, my last morning in Dalian welcomed me with the rosy fingertips of dawn on a perfectly cool and but not too cool September morning. Cici and Tingna woke up to send me off in a taxi, which was really sweet of them, since it was so early, it was fun living with them, wish I would’ve known them for longer. I feel that way a lot about Dalian. Like in a lot of ways I was only just starting my time there when I left. It was an easy decision to come back to the states, I just wish I could pick out my favorite parts and people of Dalian and bring them stateside with me. Saying my goodbyes were tough but not heartbreaking, because I really like to think I’ll see these fine fine people again some day, in some country, some years from now. So now I sit here in transit, waiting for the next phase of things to begin, my life in Denver. 再见中国我会想你。
Tiger Leaping Gorge
Wow. That's what I kept saying to myself as I hiked through the Tiger Leaping Gorge. It was a great hike, and it was a nice mix of, developed enough to have a few hostels on the way and a clear trail, and wild enough to have a few "i could fall off the enge and it'd be days before rescue (maybe) came" moments. Lijiang the city is at about 2400m altitute, and the trail at the gorge (about 2 hours from lijiang) is about 2400-2700 meters. Matt and I took a van from the hostel and so met a couple other people also doing the trail, a couple from Sweden/England, nice people. WE hiked a ways with them, and every now and then caught up to/passed/were passed by other people who started when we did. After sloshing through silver mud for about 15 minutes we had lunch at the 'Naxi family guest house' where we were introduced to Mint tea. Which since it grew in profusion on the mountain (along with sage, and pot), was super cheap and delicious. then onto the 28 bends, which is called as such because it's super steep. I had to take it really slow, later i decided not because I was out of shape but because of the elevation. men with horses/mules followed us in case we got tired, but we persevered! the top was amazing, and really after the bends it was a nice hike. The sun came out in the late afternoon (it started out as an overcast misty morning) and we pushed to halfway house to arrive just before the sun set. The guy who runs it is a very humble host, and the food was good and the beer cold. We watched an almost full moon rise over the mountains as the air quickly cooled and were in bed by 10. the next morning we got going on the trail about 11 and had a nice sunny hike to Tina's, walking over the waterfall covered path where all there was was a 4 foot path covered in wet rocks and showers from the waterfall. scary moments but good ones. Once at Tina's we decided to just stay there and have a huge leisurely lunch then go down to see the tiger leaping stone.
The gorge gets its name from the story about a tiger running away from hunters, and jumping over the narrowest point (27 meters) to safety.
The hike down was scary and slippery, but totally worth it, hiking all the way down to the river to look up at the huge mountains above. We had to scream to be heard over the roaring river, which you did not want to fall into; little chance of survival if you did. The way up was scarier, up the 'sky ladder' which was more or less rebar and wood somehow lashed to the mountain. I was shaking by the time I got to the top but it did make for a quick ascent. After hiking up aa steep trail tot he top, we stopped for a cup of mint tea at the Bridge Cafe and then back to Tina's to hang out, have a nice dinner with a few victory beers and chocolate baba. Naxi sandwiches for breakfast the next morning then back to Lijiang. From Tina's a new road was being built, which was almost as scary as the sky ladder with its hairpin turns and half covered in landslides road.
We could've kept going past tina's to another part of the trail but were content with where we hiked, and on the way to being a bit sore. no need to push things, there's always next time right? I'd love to come back in the spring, when there's supposed to be an astonishing array of wildflowers all over the mountain
The gorge gets its name from the story about a tiger running away from hunters, and jumping over the narrowest point (27 meters) to safety.
The hike down was scary and slippery, but totally worth it, hiking all the way down to the river to look up at the huge mountains above. We had to scream to be heard over the roaring river, which you did not want to fall into; little chance of survival if you did. The way up was scarier, up the 'sky ladder' which was more or less rebar and wood somehow lashed to the mountain. I was shaking by the time I got to the top but it did make for a quick ascent. After hiking up aa steep trail tot he top, we stopped for a cup of mint tea at the Bridge Cafe and then back to Tina's to hang out, have a nice dinner with a few victory beers and chocolate baba. Naxi sandwiches for breakfast the next morning then back to Lijiang. From Tina's a new road was being built, which was almost as scary as the sky ladder with its hairpin turns and half covered in landslides road.
We could've kept going past tina's to another part of the trail but were content with where we hiked, and on the way to being a bit sore. no need to push things, there's always next time right? I'd love to come back in the spring, when there's supposed to be an astonishing array of wildflowers all over the mountain
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