Busy Day

Emily has put up some of the photos on her blog from the talent/speech show that we judged the other day.

Today I was very busy. We loaded up almost all the gifts we have bought people and some clothes and junk that we wanted to take home but didn't have room to pack and lugged it all to the post office. Well, two post offices. The first one just sent us to the central post office. It ended up being three big ass boxes and cost us more than I would have liked to spend, but was still cheaper than it could have been. I think they had mercy on us because we looked so pathetic and lost.

After the post office fun, we went to Starbucks with our friend Maggie and chowed down on chocolate covered espresso beans and iced coffees. Delicious! It almost makes me excited about going back to Starbucks when I get back just to chug down all those delicious free drinks. After coffee, we wandered through Tianyi and I bought even more presents (this time for my soon to be born nephew-and of course more stuff for my niece). So far this trip I have set out to buy gifts for certain people and end up with stuff for Audrey. I go to buy something for Ma or Anna, and BAM! Audrey has two new presents. I suppose she will be happy to see me even if no one else is!

After shopping we visited the local DVD store (all bootleg, but very nicely done) and I bought my last film for my film class-DRAG ME TO HELL!!! BWA HA HA! They have no idea what they are in for. :)
Maggie took us to a nice cultural revolution themed restaurant where we had the best tofu I have ever had, some nice fish with peppers and bean sprouts, eggplant and green beans, cucumber (or as Maggie calls them "concubines") and soybeans. Yum! Easily one of the better meals I have had in China, although I doubt that many people in the themed era ate that well. I managed to spill tofu and pepper juice all over my shorts, so it looked like I had a very unfortunate accident. Luckily we took a taxi home.

My obsession with African music continues, and I have been really enjoying soukous, music from Tanzania, and some strange desert blues. I also have become quite enamored of the photographer Hasisi Park. She took a beautiful beach/sunset/ocean picture that I really loved and a little research on the magical internet turned up her tumblr which I have added to my links list. SOme of her work is a little risque (although that is mostly work she was in, not photos she personally took). But I think that her Hawaii series (that she is working on now) and the photos from Korea are spectacular. It really makes me wish we had money to travel more, but I shouldn't be greedy (after all, we DID spend a month touring Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam!).

Home Sooon!