chinapies

Monday the first of October is National Day in China. Therefore, this place being the coolness that it is, they give you the week off. Now, why on Earth couldn't they think of something as cool as that in New Zealand/Australia/everywhere else? Instead, in NZ, they just give you the day off, and we go ooh aah, we have a 3-day weekend coming up soon, yay!...

How lame. National Day Week is where it's at!

As a consequence of having such a long and nice holiday, people like to travel, so we decided that we would travel too. At that stage of our planning, however we neglected a little, er, sticking point. A holiday in China does not result in a mere 30,000 people driving up to their batches in Oakura (or Dalian, the Chinese version of such idylicness... idylliality... woteva). Instead we're talking, like, 300-400+ million people on the go. For some reason the word "swarms" comes to mind. So, instead of headin' off to someplace random like Kanding or Beijing, we decided that we would roam around Chengdu on our bicycooters and get a feel for the place. (Did you note the plural use of the word "bicycooter"? More on that inna minute.)

And we had also neglected yet another important fact. As a consequence of having a lovely long holiday, SNU decided that the students would have to study during the weekend prior. Which meant that they must have teachers to teach them, which in turn meant that - hey presto! - our weekend was instantly ruined. Well, it wasn't too bad, but Linds had an 8am class last Sunday, and that had to suck. I, on the other hand, had only one class on Saturday, and therefore I spent Sunday morning snoozing until, like, 10 or something. Sigh.

Anyhow, back to Monday. Hmm, maybe I should Chapterise this thing, like I did with the other one about the bicycooter. Hey, is anyone gettin' sick of hearing about the bicycooter yet? If so, please start up a discussion or something. I don't wanna bore anyone by continued blogging (read: ceaseless-garbaging) about a Chinese-manufactured electric bicycle. As cool as it might be. Dang do I love bicycooters!

The Previous Friday

There, that's better. Chapters are where it's at!

Okay, sorry, I was supposed to write about Monday. If you hadn't noticed, the title of this chapter is "The Previous Friday". I knew you didn't notice. Monday'll be next, promise! It's just that I noticed some photos from Friday's goodness that I gotta show ya's. We got invited to the Sichuan People's Government official party hooplah, and it was a lovely evenin' of just hangin' out and eatin' food. Some pix for you!

Woo, I can add centred text! Niiice. I'm beginning to like ol' googlie groups again. What? Oh yeah, the picture. Sorry. This fancy-schmancy hotel above is where the party was at. Pretty impressive huh? Yeeeaah. Sichuan Peoples Government of the Peoples Republic of China FTW!!! Woops, sorry folks, an inside joke which only Craig and Leon will understand... my sincere apologies.

Hokay, this one is so cool I can't even begin to tell you how cool it is. I can, however, begin to tell you what it is. To begin with, the entire thing is made out of root vegetables. Well, the middle bit we're not sure about, and we're not sure exactly which root vegetables the rest is made out of, but pumpkins and taro come to mind. What you have is a pumpkin dragon snaking around some thing, and as for the four little dudes on each corner? Why, they're the mascots for the upcoming Beijing Olympics 2008! And you could cook them and eat them if you want! Nutritious, delicious and representative of the nation's Olympic hopes and dreams! Awesome...

Hu Wen Bo, Lan Ya, and Lin Yue Xin! Don't Lin Yue Xin look spectacular? :-)

Feelin' hungry now? Those things on the bottom left are cream puffs in the shape of swans. Calico's could learn a thing or two, eh Jan? Btw folks, the pandas are not edible, and it took me hours to pick the fluffy stuffing outta my teeth. That'll teach Lin Yue Xin to take me out in public!

Ok, that's Friday outta the way. Nothin' much else in'eresting happened, we just did TEFL all night. BOOOOOOOrring.

Monday

It's National Day. The day that celebrates the beginning of the People's Republic of China. Cool. Surely they gotta have a parade or something in town? They sure do in places like Beijing and stuff! So we roll into Tian Fu square, armed with cameras, ready for some serious parade action. The place is packed. There's, like, uniformed dudes standing in places, and the fountains are doing cool things. There's gotta be a parade comin' in soon! Kiddies are waving flags. Rat-onna-stick is being sold by the bushel. We wandered around the square...

And then I was I hungry. This tends to put a full stop to any action which I might be entertaining, as eating becomes priority. No wonder I'm fat. Fortunately, we had Lan Ya and Hu Wen Bo with us, so they said we should head to some little hole-in-the-wall place they knew about. So we went. Er, what should I order? Lan Ya tells me what to order. By the time I get to the counter, I've forgotten most of what she said. I say something random. The lady repeats what I just said. Phew! Maybe I did remember? My mandarin is become so elite, I can make up stuff to order and get by. I'll take two of them, thanks, one for Lindsay and one for me. Five minutes later and this turns up:

After spending so much time discussing the merits of Sichuan food, I can now present to you what not to order. This here is the most disgusting thing I have ever eaten in China. I managed about 2 spoonfuls before my stomach gave up entirely. Lin Yue Xin tried one spoonful only, and then stood up rather quickly. If I could say one good thing about this, I would, but I can't, so I'm gonna move on. However, my appetite had disappeared for now, along with my stomach and the rest of my digestive system. Moving along!

The middle of Tian Fu Square, kind of. I don't know what this middle bit is, but (I am about to repeat myself) it's in the middle of Tian Fu Square. There are people milling around down the bottom, and about a quarter of a bazillion people standing around the edge looking at the millers. Oh yeah, and taking photos. Like us. Hmm, maybe it isn't so strange... wait, no, it's more like were strange, and everyone else knows what is actually going on. Hmmmm...

Close up of the cool snake-thing fountain. Er, yeah. Nothing more I can say about this, except... cooool...

Dr. Lurve can tell you who the dude is in the middle there. Pretty impressive, huh. The Chairman is standing outside the Sichuan Science and Technology Museum, which we must visit someday... Er, like a lot of places. Well, at least we can get to this place via bicycooter.

Lin Yue Xin and Idiot. My what a lovely couple! But what the hell is up with that guy's grin? Oh yeah, we know. He rides a bicycooter. Figures.

Flang, this post is getting enormous. And I haven't even gotten to the new bicycooter yet! Humph and sigh. Needless to say, we discovered there was no parade. So why were there so many people around? Well, simply put, Chengduans are either head outta town for National Day Week, or they board up their doors and wait for it to be over. Why? you ask. Because Chengdu is the capital of Sichuan, and it's where every man and his dog (and his wife and family and bicycooter and grandparents) from the province wants to be, coz it's cool. So, essentially, we were surrounded by tourists. And we thought we were the out-o'-towners. Gee.

To be continued, er, next post folks? Sorry...

Pies advice of the day: Not all that looks disgusting is inedible. The following picture may disturb you, and may cause you to lose your lunch and, possibly, some sleep. However, it is absolutely delicious, and I'd recommend it to any of you. It was purchased from a street vendor on Monday, and it's Thursday now, and I'm still alive. Therefore, it passes the test of being able to live after consumption. It also managed to pass through my digestive system without doing what that hot-pot did. Mmmmm. What I cannot tell you, though, is what it is exactly. Your guess is as good as mine. Bon apetit!

P.S. Number of times the word "bicycooter" is used in this post: 9.