Monday, May 01, 2006
Hangzhou Ten
I just returned from Hangzhou after spending two great nights there with a fun group of people. It is May Day, the Chinese Labor Day, and one of three major holidays where everyone gets seven (well-earned) days off. (Most people work between six and seven days a week). Needless to say traveling can get a bit tricky at this time of year, when the equivalent of the entire United State's population tries to travel on the same day. Regardless, we decided to throw caution to the wind and head to Hangzhou for two nights.We were an international delegation, made up of people from all over. These are people who I have been spending a good deal of my time with, especially on the weekends. The group is made up of the following:
The Brazilians, Claudio and Jordão. Claudio is hilarious and always full of energy. He is always telling stories that make him laugh harder than anyone else; his favorite pastime is talking, joking, picking up and spinning around random people he meets on the street. Jordão, the baby of the group at 20 years old, is much more laid back. He can fall asleep 
anywhere (and frequently does). This weekend was the first time I saw him worked up; it happened when I asked him how he felt about Argentineans. Apparently Brazil and Argentina aren't on the dearest of terms. It was hilarious listening to him explain how Argentina thinks they are the best at football (soccer) but they have only won two World Cups while Brazil has won five, and they will tell you Pele played for them, and... However, he does like Argentinean woman, and we just happened to run into one last night. It was fine as long as they avoided the topic of football.
Murray is Scottish and an avid soccer player and fan. Like Jordão, he is often quiet. Part of it could be that his accent is so thick that no one can understand what he is saying. We are all amazed that he once taught English to Chinese student. I would like to hear what they sound like now. But Murray is a friendly guy and always up for a quiet pint. Though he is only 22, he has been in Shaoxing for two years already, and speaks Mandarin with a great Scottish accent.
Nathan is a chain-smoking cynic from Indianapolis. He's got a quick wit, keen perception and won't hesitate to put you in your place. He loves to talk and share bits of information he has discovered (or invented). Like everyone else here, he is an interesting guy. He's twenty-five and has been here for two years. Before that he spent some time in Russia. This trip allowed me a chance to get to know him better, which I am quite happy about. I can see us becoming quite good friends.
Stefan is from Morris, Minnesota and is a student at the U of M there. He came to Shaoxing by himself in February as part of a school program. He worked here as a teaching assistant. Sadly, he is heading back to the states on Friday. It was great to have another Minnesotan around. He is laid back and willing to try anything. We, together with another teacher (Georgina, an Aussie), have been going to yoga together – which is another blog in itself. I am going to miss him when he goes.
Erben is the Turkish textile king of Shaoxing. He is from Istanbul and we have had many conversations about how it is the most mysterious and fantastic city in the world. While I am not exactly sure what his business is, I know that it has something to do with textiles and that half the foreigners in Shaoxing work for him, including Murray, Nathan, Claudio and Jordão. He also is the owner of the (soon to be closed) Turkish Bar, which we used to frequent. If I had to guess, I would say he is in his mid-twenties. Like most Turks I've met, he is a big man, both in body and in personality. He is very passionate and grand, and seldom troubled to use subtly, a definite contrast to the mild-mannered Chinese. Erben's fiancé, 
Chantel is Persian (or so she says). Her parents are from Iran but she is American and grew up in the southwest (Arizona and California). Yet she still has some wonderfully Middle Eastern traits about her. Like Erben, she is also dramatic and full of loud energy; plus she can belly dance (which she tried to teach me last night, without success. She said it's all in the legs, but I checked and I'm pretty sure it's not there, at least not in mine). I've been invited to both their weddings this summer, one in San Diego and the other in Istanbul. I have to say that both are tempting offers...
The eight of us stayed in three rooms in the West Lake Hotel and met up with Alex, a roaming Swede, who was also in town visiting a Chinese girl (named Even – as in not odd). Alex is classic European, pretty friendly, though a bit snobbish at times. I don't think he fully appreciated the fact that I drive a Volvo. Alex is continually flying back to Sweden to go skiing and see friends. I'm not exactly sure what he does in Shaoxing but I am sure it has to do with the textile industry.We arrived in town around eight-thirty, chauffeured by E
rben in his van, the only one of us rich (and crazy) enough to own a car here. We checked into our hotel, freshened up, and then caught a cab across town to a reggae bar near Zhejiang University. I sat drinking a European-sized pint of Tiger beer surrounded by pictures of Bob Marley and Chinese college students watching Stefan have a dance-off with a couple of Japanese guys he met. I don't remember who won. It was also here that I had the finer points of the international relations between the two largest countries in South America explained to me with great gusto.
From there we went to the Traveler's bar, which was pretty quiet. Stefan and I regaled the bar patrons with a jazzed up version of "Heart and Soul" on the piano. Actually, Stefan is a music major, and though his main instrument is the saxophone, he is more than proficient on the keyboard. I just played the base part (poorly) and let him do his thing on the high end. Pianos are still fairly rare here so I don't think people are nearly as sick of this song as most Americans are.I ended the night at a dance club called S.O.S. getting elbowed and punched on a crowded dance floor. I left bruised and beaten around three a.m.
The next day, Sunday, Nathan, Murray, Claudio and I woke up early-ish and walked twenty minutes to West Lake, one of the top tourist attractions in China (for Chinese people). It is a big, beautiful lake with a few islands and crossed in the middle by a nearly-natural causeway. We found a Starbucks tucked into a bamboo woods; we had coffee and waited for everyone else to join us. Once we were all together we went to an Italian restaurant for lunch. I had a mediocre spaghetti alla 
bolognese, which was still a treat. Following lunch the group disbanded, with Stefan and Claudio going off to rent bicycles, Erben and Chantel going to the cinema, and Nathan, Murray, Jordão and I setting off on a six-hour hike around the lake, occasionally stopping to buy a beer or a hard-boiled egg (boiled in green tea) . When we had completed our walk, we caught a cab to Zhejiang University for dinner at the school cafeteria. Apparently it makes some of the best food in the city and is also the cheapest. (I found this out from Nathan who spent a month here when he was a student).
That night we all met back up together at a salsa bar with a live band (well, a keyboard and guitar). I spent a wonderful night dancing like a fool, spinning and being spun by girls from around the world. Alex's friend, Even, turned out to be quite a dancer and we had a great time flying around the dance floor together, we even got applause for our tango. 
P.S. I have told some people, but incase I forgot to mention it, I have agreed to teach here for another semester. I will come back to Minnesota in the beginning of July and stay there through most of August, then it's back to Shaoxing. I am looking forward to seeing as many of you as I can when I am back.
