We found an apartment!!

We did, we did! I love it and I think its perfect. Its actually neither of the two we were considering yesterday that I had mentioned in my previous post. We went back to those two places today, the first one had possible construction going on next door at some point in the next year, and the second one had no closets! I am so glad I went back and checked. After a year in Monterey with no storage space and barely any closets, I will never do that again! My clothes will NO longer take up the spare bedroom, haphazardly strewn across the bed.

We checked out another apartment building in the business district of the city, and we loved it. We also really like the business district, it has a nice feel to it, lots of restaurants and shopping but not quite as crazy as the other area we were looking at. We will have a quick subway ride (5 stops) to our language school, but its no big deal, like I said before its really easy because its one subway line and we don't have to switch... you just get on and get off 5 stops later, easy! Anyway it will be good for me!! I don't love public transportation... at all... so it will be good to broaden my horizons!

This area of the city also gives you the feeling of real city living. The tallest building in Beijing is next door to our building, and the buildings down there are all really tall like a usual downtown area would be. I think our building is something like 37 stories high. For the first month we will live on the 29th floor, and then switch to the 15th floor... I'm sort of scared of heights... hah... so we will switch later on, though 15 is still fairly high and gives you a great view of the city! Our apartment is also just down the street from a really cool park called Ritan Park - 日坛公园。Once we move in I will be sure to take pictures of the park and surrounding areas, I thought that would be a cool post to give you the chance to see what I see everyday.

Anyway here are some pictures of our place! Its 2B/2B which is perfect for us since its just us. I love the decor! and the place has a huge swimming pool, a fabulous gym, free pilates.... what more could I ask for? Breakfast is also included everyday! as well as wi-fi (yay!), weekly cleaning, and international channels including HBO! Its furnished so what you are seeing is exactly what we get. We will make it our own with pictures and stuff like that.

Living room


Master bedroom


Master bathroom - look thats a TV! hah


Second bedroom (we are switching to a queen bed)


Kitchen - it has a dishwasher! Our place in CA didn't and I will never do that again! hah. Its interesting because in China, the kitchens are really closed off to the rest of the house. Its really different from the U.S. in that respect! Our real estate agent told us Chinese like small closed off kitchens because they cook with the wok and a lot of smoke/steam occurs.


And this is one of the surrounding buildings. I think this is the one the gym is in.


We also went to a local park today - this is not Ritan Park that I mentioned above, this is a random park in an area my friends are choosing an apartment.

It took these guys on this cart, with a horse, longer than us to get down the street. It was really funny but the horse had a mind of its own and did not want to cooperate with them.







We are going to The Forbidden City tomorrow, and also to Beihai Park - so lots of fun pictures tomorrow!

Thanks for looking!

Steph

An OOTD, Looking for a place to live, and I'm exhausted.

Yeah, I am pretty exhausted today! We went out from 9:00am until about 5:00pm looking at a long list of possible apartments to live in. That is seriously exhausting work! My husband is out with friends enjoying 北京烤鸭 － Beijing roast duck. You've probably heard of it as Peking Duck, Beijing is famous for it! I would have loved to have gone but I am seriously wiped out and wanted nothing more than to sit in the hotel room and go to bed early... so here I am. This will be a quick post because of how tired I am!

Here is what I wore around Beijing today:


After my first day walking around in jeans, I switched to wearing dresses and I think thats the way to go! This is the J. Crew double v-neck dress in "shadow," my Linea Pelle double wrap leather bracelet, and my J. Crew multi-strand mixed metal necklace. I wore gold sandals with it. Comfy summer dresses like this are the way to go in hot weather, and anywhere else you need to use a Chinese-style toilet... funny, but true, a dress is not only optimal for squatting but also for making sure your clothes don't touch the ground! Who knew I'd openly be talking about toilets and using the bathroom on here?! ha ha!

We went around to about 10 places today in our search for the perfect apartment, and my husband and I have it pretty much narrowed down to two. Both the apartments are great, they are just in different areas of the city and we are debating which area we should live in. One is in the business district which has great restaurants, both Chinese and Western style, as well as nice shops and just an over all new and modern feel to the area. The other apartment is in an area that feels a lot more busy, though I don't know if that is an accurate description - its in walking distance to school and also great shops and restaurants.

But, like I said, one of the areas feels really busy. Think TONS of crazy cars/drivers, bikers, and people walking every which way. Come to think of it, I am going to do a post on crossing the street in China. Its seriously an art form that I haven't quite figured out yet.. so is the driving here... there is a method to the honking. I'll just start with this: we follow the natives because there is no other way to do it. When we crossed the street yesterday we were literally in the middle of the road, buses passing us on one side and cars on the other, with barely a foot on either side of us between us and these vehicles. No one slows down or stops. I thought I was going to maybe die. lol.

Well, I need to cut this short - I am halfway delirious and falling asleep as I type. (Completely arbitrary highlight and italics, proof!)

SOON - more pictures from Beijing, a post on the art form of crossing the street - maybe I'll need a video of this, that may be the only way to capture it... and information on the apartment we choose!

I'll make sure to post really soon!

Steph

Finally in Beijing!!

Thank you everyone for all the well wishes! The flight was great, it actually went by pretty fast (as fast as a 14 hour flight can go), and before I knew it we were finally in Beijing! The time difference is + 12 hours, so its a difference of night and day, which means huge jet lag. My husband and I woke up yesterday at 2:30 in the morning and we were both wide awake. Last night was so much better though, we went out all day and made ourselves really, really tired, then went to bed and we were able to sleep from 9:30pm to 5:45am. Awesome! Hopefully that is my first step to getting over the jet lag.


This is the sign from customs at the airport. We are the foreigners here in China, or waiguoren, 外国人. Or, as we have heard a lot of already as we make our way around town on the subway, or as people run over to us pointing and excitedly exclaiming, "laowai!" - 老外. Laowai is the colloquial way to say foreigner. It doesn't necessarily have a bad connotation, I think its all in how its used... hah.

Yesterday we went to our new language school to register and sign up for classes. I'm so excited to start Chinese classes again! About a month and a couple weeks after graduating from my DLI Chinese program, and its definitely time to start going back to class to learn new things and even get some refreshers. Chinese is the sort of language that you really need to stay up on!

Luckily my Chinese has proved useful already - in the subway station, at the hotel. Its funny because I always start with English, and its like - why? Why do I do that? I never understood that in the U.S. when people who knew the language, at least a little bit, started with their native language and then switched to English as a last resort. Well, I know why after just a few days here ... its so much more comfortable to use your native language!! But I'd be doing myself and the people a disservice if I always start with English - so my goal is to immediately start with Chinese from now on and if I get stuck, switch to English and see what happens. Most English-speaking Chinese take one look at me and speak English, so I am going to work on answering them in Chinese and see if I can get them to speak Chinese with me instead of English.

Yesterday at the hotel, housekeeping knocked on the door and asked me if I had laundry. I didn't know exactly what she was referring to, so I said something asking about towels, did she want to switch out our towels? She looked at me and told me she didn't understand. I called for my husband - and luckily he didn't hear because I know just as much Chinese as he does! He's just way more outgoing than me, and not at all self conscious like I am. SO, I switched to Chinese and asked if she wanted to change our towels - she had a really surprised look of relief on her face and broke out into a huge smile. I explained in Chinese that we just arrived the night before and our towels were still clean, so we didn't need new ones. It was really awesome to use my language like that! And that stuff is so basic, its really majorly within my "ability" zone.

One thing that we really need to work on is the names of different foods and Chinese dishes. We didn't learn a lot of that type of info because there are so many varieties, but actually being here, you sort of need to know or else you really have no idea what you are ordering, and the English translations are usually not very useful. Yesterday we had a friend who has been living here a year already help us at lunch, so our food was delicious. The Chinese food in China is really different from Americanized Chinese food, and SO much tastier! I have to admit though, that I am the type of person who could eat Chinese food once every 2 months and not crave it for another 2 months. The food thing is going to be a challenge for me! Luckily our friend also pointed out some non-Chinese restaurants that she says are actually very good.

This is the Chinese restaurant we ate at for lunch. It was packed with natives and for good reason - its delicious! The food in China is so cheap. We ordered like 5 dishes, 4 of us ate and we had enough to feed a small family in the end! And it was only about $20 total.


These were so delicious! I don't know what type of meat it was and at this late stage I don't want to know either.. :) Sometimes I think you are better off not knowing. Its probably just pork. Anyway these are definitely going to be a favorite of mine I can tell!


Yum! This next dish had these little round things in it, don't know what they are, and they have a sort of almost numbing effect. Anyway this was a really tasty dish.


Yum! My friend called this slapped cucumbers. Whatever, it was good! very crisp and refreshing on a hot day!


We took the subway for a quick trip to Tiananmen Square. SUBWAYS IN BEIJING... are an experience. One word sums it up: SARDINES. We were packed in like sardines. Its so tight in there you don't even need to hold on because you are surrounded and squeezed in so tight, you all just sway together and no one falls down. At one point, the subway stopped at a station, NO ONE GOT OFF and several more people GOT ON! It was CRAZY. I have no idea how we all fit. Its nuts.

Anyway on the way out of the subway these two guys ran over two us and asked us to take a picture with them. The funny thing: this happened all day long. We were blatantly stared at and had our picture taken, whether we were asked or whether it was sneakily taken. I think a lot of the people who stare or who are so shocked by us are from smaller towns, not from Beijing.


This is our first view of the Forbidden City - we didn't tour it yet, thats a half day at least and we were still so tired.


This cute old Chinese guy selling China flags in Tiananmen Square.


Two Chinese something-or-other (I'll have to find out) guard Mao's tomb in Tiananmen.


And my husband and I in front of the Forbidden City.


Interesting cultural experiences of note (other than those already mentioned!):

1. Walked off the plane at the international airport, decided to use the restroom... walked in and promptly walked out after I saw it was only Chinese-style toilets, which are flat in the ground that you need to squat over. Don't get me wrong, its no big deal. I walked out because I need to figure out the logistics of all of this - how? How low do you go to ensure no splashage? How do you squat, keep your balance, and make sure your pants don't fall where you don't want them to fall? And with my crampy legs after a 14 hour plane ride? I took a raincheck.

2. A mom in the subway station had her little boy, about 5, stop, drop his pants and pee right there in the main hallway, on the floor. I guess if your kid has to go he has to go!

3. Split pants. Babies/toddlers wear them around here, we saw a lot of this around Tiananmen. Would have taken a picture but I felt weird snapping one. Here is one I found on google images:


When I talk about things like this - I'm not judging or poking fun or thinking its gross - I'm just taking notes. Its really interesting to see these aspects of a different culture!

And I knew you guys would appreciate this:


This is China?! There is also a Zara just a few feet away!


Today my friend (who also just got here) and I are going to take a walk by ourselves. I'll be the only Chinese-speaker so this should be an interesting test! I'll try to add more pictures later!

Steph

Confession: I'm getting nervous

I am! What can I say? I'm only human! I just can't seem to get psyched for the 14 hour flight. Not mention, the thought of eating Chinese food for a year straight.... anyway, I'm a nervous flier in general, though I just adore traveling... so, flying is a necessary evil! One way I try to relax and mentally prepare for the flight is to make sure I have everything I'll need for an enjoyable flight - or, an enjoyable as possible flight. Let's see...


1. Big fluffy blanket from mom's house.... CHECK!
2. Two comfy travel pillows.... CHECK!
3. US Weekly, People, and Instyle.... CHECK!
4. Two good books: The Tea Rose, and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society.... CHECK!
5. Cards! Plain old playing cards, and Monopoly Deal.... CHECK!
6. Lotion, eye drops, hand sanitizer, and my travel must-have, spray water.... CHECK!
7. A bag of homemade cookies from Mom.... CHECK!

I already checked the in-flight movies and Invictus is playing, which I've wanted to see for some time now!

When you fly long distances, what is your favorite thing to 1. keep busy and 2. stay relaxed (especially if you are a nervous flier)?

Any tricks?! I'm sure I probably do them already, but, its nice to talk about it to A. get mentally prepared and B. maybe I'll learn something new!

DO SHARE!

Thanks for all the safe travel wishes in the last post! Don't feel like you need to repeat yourself here! You don't. :)I'm just interested to see what your tips and tricks are.

Steph

....next time I make a post, Blonde in Beijing will actually BE IN Beijing! We leave tomorrow mid-afternoon (wish it was a night flight, oh well!) and arrive Beijing time the following day, 2:30pm or so.

Saying goodbye (or, as I prefer, see you in a year!) to my best friend (one of them)

If we are facebook friends, you've already seen this picture.

Me and my chihuahua Max saying goodbye at 6:00 this morning as I prepared to leave for the airport. I needed one last picture of us, for the year anyway! As soon as I can I will be back to pick him up!

I know some people would say he is "just" a dog. But, he is seriously one of my best friends! He is always happy to see me, and he kept me company when my husband was in Iraq for a year. I've had him for 8 years! Its hard to say "goodbye." When I'm sad, he senses it and comes right over to me to cuddle, if I cry, he tries to lick my tears away. When he is tired, you could hang him upside down by one toe and he would let you... LOL! I love him.

In this picture I was telling him that I will think of him everyday until I return to pick him up.

I know he is in the best hands he could be. He is staying with my mom and dad who will spoil him rotten. He sleeps in the bed with them and my mom makes him chicken and sweet potatoes for dinner. My dad is under strict orders to share his nightly apple with Max - which is something my husband always did, and Maxie loves apples! (Don't worry. Little bites.)

By the way something pretty funny happened today while I was at Dulles Airport. I was making my way to the baggage claim area, and at Dulles, you need to get on a little train/subway type thing to take you to the baggage area. I was waiting in a crowd to get on this train thing... and the lady in front of me was yapping away, turning around and talking to people, even though the train had already arrived. I kept thinking that she better stop talking and get on the train so we don't miss it. I didn't want to be rude and push past her. So, as I finally step onto the train all the sudden WHAM!!!! And I went flying. Flying right into the yappy lady. The doors shut on me! LOL. I couldn't believe it! There was no warning at all that the doors would be closing. As I went flying I let out a "JESUS CHRIST!" which I felt terrible about, but, later decided it is probably less offensive than some other things that could have come out of my mouth at that moment... I was shocked, I said, "Did the door just close on me?" LOL.

...Anyway I am in the D.C. area safe and sound, blogging at a Borders and deciding what book to buy for the plane ride on Sunday.

Just thought the Maxie pic was too cute not to share!

XOXO!!

Steph

BTW I am not going to use "COMPOSE" anymore because the font after pictures gets screwed up and I can never figure out how to fix it! Do you guys use compose or edit html?