Party Hard

Not everyone here lives in a dorm. Some live off-campus in rented apartments, for a price comparable with the better dorms here. One of our classmates, who is Swiss, invited us all to his apartment for a party on Saturday night. It had to be Saturday because it had to be when his Chinese flatmate was gone.

Alfonso and I each brought a 6-pack of Harbin beer (by the time we left, a 5- and 4-pack) with us as we started the trek. Alfonso, from here on referred to as Columbus, took charge of the map and led us through the back part of the campus (into a lot of walls), for about 15 minutes, before taking us the right way, complaining about the map not being correctly oriented (it was). Once we got there it had been going for a couple of hours and was pretty fun. He'd hired bar staff to provide drinks at a desk. As it turned out, he also hired cleaners the next morning. Unfortunately it all had to stop a bit after 12, but some of us went on to a local bar and had a pizza.

The next day, it snowed, more heavily than I'd seen before here (or anywhere else!). I took the opportunity to go out and look around in the snow. I ended up going to Tiananmen Square (very easy to get to on the subway), which I'd only seen in summer before. Thanks to the snow, there were relatively few people there, and I was able to wander around the area enjoying the scenery unmolested. I left the square itself until last, and discovered Qianmen Street, which extends south from the square. Qianmen Street is full of expensive shops, including one still selling Olympic merchandise (and the locals are still buying it).


Classy establishments, like KFC, on Qianmen Street.

After walking up and down, and checking out the two gates between the street and Tiananmen Square, I went through security (you get frisked and asked why you're in China before being allowed to enter Tiananmen Square) and was able to look around the square itself. It's rare to see it with so few people, probably as rare as snow in mid-March here, so I'm glad I took the opportunity to visit.


Tiananmen Square, looking towards Tiananmen.

Of course, the parties were not over. The next day (Monday), there was to be a student special at a club called Vic's (not related to the nearby Mix, or VapoRub). They were offering a free bus there and free drinks for students. So, naturally, I went. "Free drinks" actually meant "2 free drinks", and with nothing less than Y30 on the menu, that's all I had. It was a bit strange, there were a lot of foreigners (not just students), and a lot of the locals there seemed a bit out of place. They alternated between playing pop of the last couple of years, and pop of the 80s and early 90s. With classes starting at 8, I decided to leave early (2am). I did manage to get to class almost on time too.

The next night was less demanding. I had to ditch my classmates who were going for Beijing duck near the university, to meet with a friend passing through Beijing who took me out for the last good steak I'll expect to have until July. After a very good meal and relaxing chat, I walked back to the subway station through the Olympic park, saw some people dancing with ribbons, and met 4 students from other provinces, who wouldn't let me leave without having a photo taken with every combination of them (they definitely took more than 4! (24)).


Very friendly Henan students.

Which takes us to today. Taking tonight off, and it looks like I'll be meeting with someone I met last time I was here (a teacher who graduated from BLCU) tomorrow night. Thinking about looking for work here, but I've got plenty of RMB for now. Will see how long it lasts when I start going places which aren't free to get in to and buying souvenirs.