Leavin' on a fast train

I'm sitting here in Eddy's (my uncle's) apartment in downtown Shanghai, waiting for a little while until Aaron and I set out for Shanghai South train station to board our train to Hangzhou.

Shanghai's been lots of fun, and it's been great to spend time with Ed. I think, though, that my mood's been somewhat hampered recently by my periodic pent-up frustrations with China and Chinese people coming to a minor head. Especially here in Shanghai, anyone who speaks english well is only doing so because it's part of an often-well-crafted snake-oil salesman attempt to part a foreign fool with their money. In addition, I was cut off from my addiction to the internet for several days due to my own absentmindedness, and forgetting to pack my electrical-plug converter. No juice = no computer = frustration. I'm only now charging my battery at Eddy's, since he's got one of the universal multi-plugs I've come to love here.

The music scene here in Shanghai is great, and it's already a city I like a lot. And I've been thinking about the "what next" portion of my life, and am - as of now - thinking I could sign on for another Tour of Duty over here. But not in Wenzhou. Nonono. Somewhere else. Somewhere like Shanghai. and it really fits in a lot of ways. Musically, culturally, girlfriendilly, and probably even job-opportunitilly. With a year of real-life, respectable-school-based teaching under my belt, I feel like I may have a shot at a bigger venue like Shanghai. Who knows? It's in the deck, and we'll just see how they shuffle.

Hangzhou is next on our agenda. Due to funding issues with the school (they have lost 2 months worth of my pay, and I can't do anything about it until I get back into the Zhejiang provence), I didn't initially want to go there... but there was no train to Wenzhou... so Hangzhou it is. Hangzhou is supposed to be quite beautiful, and is well-known for its West Lake.

Though my camera is now FUBAR (a motor in the lens seems to have died), I'll keep trying to take pictures to post up here later... or at least make Aaron take a bunch.

That's all for now. Hope all remains well on the other side of 太平洋
(CS)WC Out.

You might break your spine