Qianmen Hostel is great. It is literally a stone’s throw from Tiananmen Square. The guys have a quad and the girls have a triple. The rooms are small, smell like freshly cut wood, and are less than 10 dollars a night. We have a nice lounge, great location, friendly staff. We also have internet! I would give up the tv, refrigerator, room service, personal shower we currently have at Tianjin (and my first born child) for just some fast wireless internet.
I could do homework in half the time. I could keep in contact with people so much better. I could post more frequently. I paid for an 1hr of internet to try to watch part of the presidential debate. I loaded 5min in 1 hr. In a celebration of internet we all watched an episode of the Daily Show and the Saturday Night Live Vice Presidential debate sketch before bed last night. It was great.
Because I had no new clothing or a towel I was required to use my T-shirt as a towel this morning which left me in my, finally dry, jacket. We took the subway to the Temple of Heaven. The exact purpose of the Temple of Heaven was never completely clear to me. What I do know is it is huge, pretty, has amazing architecture and rose gardens and that today was broilingly hot.
The center of the complex is a massive building that makes a pleasant break from the Chinese obsession with red. I bought a T-shirt of it at the first opportunity just so I could change out of my jacket and stop sweating. The troubling thing about these places is that beautiful and breathtaking as all of it is I feel like I’ve become desensitized to the awe that they are supposed to inspire. Perhaps its best to never travel and just see one incredible thing before you die. I don’t know.
We went to lunch at a place next door and Rachel said that she wanted to go to the Pearl Market. I managed to buy a towel and some socks there. Pretty sure I got ripped off. Perhaps they could see the need in my eyes. Rachel said that she got a pearl necklace that was initially being sold at 40 USD for about 15.
There was also a toy market where I met a very charming couple who were in charge of a stand full of puzzles. They gave me one and said if I could solve it they would toss it in free with the other one. Oh. Irritating. I got it completely by luck. There were also shops selling helicopters, gameboys, scooters, skateboards, legos, it’s amazing how quickly one can go from communism to such aggressive, rampant and primarily illegal capitalism. I’m impressed. We tried to go to the ancient observatory. Zach and I tried to scale the walls with limited success. We then returned to Wangfujing and had starfish. It tastes like cardboard on the outside and the inside (which is what you’re supposed to eat) is some nondescript soft, squishy, dark meat that did not taste like fish or really anything but squishy wetness.
Qianmen Hostel is great. It is literally a stone’s throw from Tiananmen Square. The guys have a quad and the girls have a triple. The rooms are small, smell like freshly cut wood, and are less than 10 dollars a night. We have a nice lounge, great location, friendly staff. We also have internet! I would give up the tv, refrigerator, room service, personal shower we currently have at Tianjin (and my first born child) for just some fast wireless internet. 
I could do homework in half the time. I could keep in contact with people so much better. I could post more frequently. I paid for an 1hr of internet to try to watch part of the presidential debate. I loaded 5min in 1 hr. In a celebration of internet we all watched an episode of the Daily Show and the Saturday Night Live Vice Presidential debate sketch before bed last night. It was great.
Because I had no new clothing or a towel I was required to use my T-shirt as a towel this morning which left me in my, finally dry, jacket. We took the subway to the Temple of Heaven. The exact purpose of the Temple of Heaven was never completely clear to me. What I do know is it is huge, pretty, has amazing architecture and rose gardens and that today was broilingly hot. 
The center of the complex is a massive building that makes a pleasant break from the Chinese obsession with red. I bought a T-shirt of it at the first opportunity just so I could change out of my jacket and stop sweating. The troubling thing about these places is that beautiful and breathtaking as all of it is I feel like I’ve become desensitized to the awe that they are supposed to inspire. Perhaps its best to never travel and just see one incredible thing before you die. I don’t know.
We went to lunch at a place next door and Rachel said that she wanted to go to the Pearl Market. I managed to buy a towel and some socks there. Pretty sure I got ripped off. Perhaps they could see the need in my eyes. Rachel said that she got a pearl necklace that was initially being sold at 40 USD for about 15. 
There was also a toy market where I met a very charming couple who were in charge of a stand full of puzzles. They gave me one and said if I could solve it they would toss it in free with the other one. Oh. Irritating. I got it completely by luck. There were also shops selling helicopters, gameboys, scooters, skateboards, legos, it’s amazing how quickly one can go from communism to such aggressive, rampant and primarily illegal capitalism. I’m impressed. We tried to go to the ancient observatory. Zach and I tried to scale the walls with limited success. We then returned to Wangfujing and had starfish. It tastes like cardboard on the outside and the inside (which is what you’re supposed to eat) is some nondescript soft, squishy, dark meat that did not taste like fish or really anything but squishy wetness.
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