Starting Life

Saturday, 4^th Sept.

We were introduced to a girl called Jasmine who is a teacher and would teach us chinese. Also help us with lots of other things.

Jasmine came round at 2:30. And we started Chinese lessons by going over the tones. They are different from what I thought - easier. After the hour, Viny says all the western cues for Jasmine to go. “well, we mustn’t keep you” but Jasmine doesn’t understand and wants to help. We need so much help that I cannot understand why Viny is pushing. I suggest that we go for some shopping so we then engaged on an orgy of consumerism. Bought a microwave, water dispenser and an electric hot plate also a load of Chinese nibbles. After getting them back to the apartment, we had a brief recuperation and then went out for a meal. An opportunity for Jasmine to show us what the Chinese eat. But I would give anything for a cheese sandwich.

Had the Chinese lesson a couple of days later then went to Gulangyu Island with Jasmine. Jasmine's family come from the island and she knows lots of people there. Easy to get too. You queue for a boat the same way you queue for a bus. You pay for it with the travel card that works for all transport in Xiamen and it cost eqiv 60p return. The island is beautiful. Full of old buildings of most elegant design and proportions though many of them are derelict there seems to be some process of renovation. Also lots of art work and museums. Would really love to live there. Being Sunday the place is crawling with tourists. Next time I will go weekday. Met a guy called Sam from Florida/Indonesia. He just arrived in Xiamen and is thinking pretty much the same as us. Cool place – may stay.

Then on to buy a printer from the computing place in town. This is a place that has 5 floors. Each floor has about 150 stalls selling almost anything to do with computers. Adjacent to this shop there are many (countless) computing shops of less reliable kind but easier to haggle. A kind of Naryan type place. Anyway after looking at three stalls we bought a HP1050 for 390 yuan from the first one that was originally the most expensive as Jasmine thought that they expected to buy from them. However, Jasmine chastises them for trying to overcharge us. Anyway it cost about the same as in the UK but then it was made in Ireland.

Last week I bought a power supply for my Dell laptop at this place. No problems, just reached under the counter and produced one. The original seemed to be running very hot and I kept turning it off to let it cool. Eventually during a Naryan session it burned out. I think it was that it couldn’t lose heat fast enough. Similar problem with Viny’s hair dryer. It over heated and tripped out after 10 seconds. The max/min digital thermometer also buggered itself.

This new apartment is beginning to grow on me. We are still looking at apartments for Naryan and we are seeing some pretty grotty places so maybe this is not so bad. It is modern, (our apt. Had never been lived in before) but surrounded by “old town”. My first impression of old town was slum and that also did not please me to be living here but now I am spending more time shopping in the street markets and that place is growing on me too. The street markets are a bit like a walk through anatomy class. All sorts of animal are being killed and chopped up. Takes some getting used to. I think my issue is that I want my meat to be happy before it dies. For the moment, I will stick with veg.

One thing about the back streets in the old town is that they are so quiet. Up on the 19^th floor of this apartment block we can see the old town, the dual carriageway along the shore, the sea and the harbour and the park/mountain behind us; but we can also hear everything. There is always a background hum of the town and we can hear the crickets in the trees and dogs barking half a mile away and the tour boats passing and the cars, and the street vendors, and kids playing. Kind of strange.

Sunday, 05 September 2010

Viny went to deliver her open day class at the school that she is courting. Still no internet. The man should come today (if her were going to come in 48 hours) . But I have no money to pay him anyway so I need to go to find a hole in the wall. But if I do that and he comes, then I will miss him. Naryan is in but he may not hear the knock on the door. Quite surprising since he has such acute hearing.

Friday, September 10^th. Decided to find out about this Wuyuan Bay Sailing Club. Took a 22 bus to the exhibition centre and then walked miles looking for a 49 bus. Eventually went to the offices of this extensive development for the obscenely rich to ask where the 49 bus went from. This development has villas with car parking at the front and yacht parking at the back. See google sat image of the development.

I was a sticky mess of sweat and grime and I went into the offices and girls at the desk immediately recognised that I needed a glass of coke. Then one of them went to fetch someone who spoke English. I found there was no 49 bus but I could get a taxi. We also discussed the new development scheduled for completion in one year. It will contain a sailing centre. Umm!

Went out and hailed a taxi. I pointed on the map to where I wanted to go. He suggested that I wanted to go somewhere else. I said “no” and pointed again. He suggested another place I could go. Eventually he phoned a friend who spoke to me in English and she said there was not such place. I said it didn’t matter cos where I wanted to go was this place on the map – whatever it was called. So the taxi took me to the second place he suggested. I told him to just drive and I would direct him. Eventually we got to the place and there was a kind of complex of boat related companies all in various stages of completion. The taxi driver was surprised. Maybe he had never been there before. The taxi fair was 20 yuan – for that much, why didn’t I just take a taxi the whole way.

The club seemed to be being built and I could not find anyone there but workmen. So, I went next door to J boats to find three girls at the bar who didn't know much and they didn’t look like boating types, more like a place of ill repute. One of them went to fetch a girl called Karen. Karen immediately identified me as someone who would charter a multimillion dollar yacht. I was flattered since I looked like something the cat had dragged in. Since I did not have much else to do I agreed to go and look at the yachts and spent the rest of the afternoon making the right noises to all the luxurious bedrooms and fly bridge. She told me that the fees were 200,000 yuan an hour to charter. (the Chinese often get their zeros confused. She may have meant 20,000). I made the right noises there too but she quickly assured me that I would get a discount for a full day. I couldn't understand what the bedrooms were for. Surely you wouldn't pay £2K and hour and then fall asleep. The term “sailing boat” didn’t seem to mean anything to her. She kept repeating “sailing boat” in exactly the same tone as I had said it. (tones mean something in Chinese so they repeat exactly). I drew picture of a yacht with sails and she got the idea. Eventually we took a rib to a 42ft Oceanis but still had to see the bedrooms before sitting on the foredeck with a drink. It didn’t seem like I was going to get sailing.

Settling in

Went to see some other apartments. One on about 10^th floor overlooking the sea. Actually almost all the apartments overlook the sea so mystique is losing significance. This apartment is very nice but a bit holiday-home in style and decor. Comfortable though. Many Europeans in the complex.

Looked at another apartment 100 metres from beach – sort of out the door, down the path and onto the beach. The complex was ubra rich villas but this apartment was grotty and dank. Another apartment looked at was a nice layout inside but the nearby buildings were so close you were looking out of the window into either walls or other peoples apartments. We waited by the bus stop near this apartment. The heat was getting a bit much to bear but nearby there was a big sort of shop/warehouse type building with a big “Kitchenware” sign over the door. We thought we would investigate the air conditioners in this building and maybe even look at kitchenware. At the door a whole load of pretty girls met us but there were no signs of any

kitchenware. We asked and found it was a massage place. How much were the massages? They were about 200RMB. Ummm! A bit expensive for a massage. Maybe they mean Massage.

Need to evaluate my feelings about these apartments. However nice they are, the idea of living in them for a year fills me with dismay. They are small claustrophobic shelves in 35 storey buildings. All are pretty much the same layout. Balcony, sitting room with 1,2 or 3 rooms off that with a tiny kitchen. Door opens onto a corridor or stairs. I want space. The heat is also a factor here. I cannot be outside for more than a couple of hours so these apartments are a bit like prisons.

Eventually we settled on an apartment. Not the nicest we had seen but had certain features that would make life easier. The apartment has windows front and back which means we can get a draught running through. The bedrooms are not just off the living area which seems better to me. There are three bedrooms which gives more room. Outside the front door, the communal area is wide and long with windows. Also a caged area where we can put stuff. The block is about 30 stories high and we are on the 19^th floor. Unlike the previous apartment, we are surrounded by “old town” which makes life more interesting. Also very close to bus stop. On the down side, the landlady seemed nuts. She wouldn’t provide a cooker as cooking polluted the apartment. Actually that is true of Chinese cooking. She wouldn’t provide mattresses cos that meant we would sleep or something. Chinese mattresses are no great luxury anyway. We took it and so for better or worse, we are here for a year.

Next day went to the University to see about registering Naryan as a student. He should have registered a month ago but that sort of got left undone. Anyway, there was no problem if he is going to pay then he is welcome. University is a beautiful place and a refuge from the off campus world of noise. Had lunch in what I suppose is a sort of student union or student residential block. Food was one of the best we have had. Waitress spoke good English. Other things that Naryan has to do is to pay – via an account on the campus banks; have a medical at the Chinese immigration quarantine place and find a place to live. While on campus, I also opened a bank account. I wanted to put money into it via my overloaded credit card but they wanted 3% handling fee for putting money in So I didn’t transfer any. Natasha is looking for jobs for Viny. Viny has some interviews.

Took Naryan for a medical check at the Immigration Quarantine place along the coast northwards. I can tell that Naryan is not looking forward to this. The process required ECG, Xray, vision test, an ultrasound scan (I think they were looking at lungs) and a blood test. This is the real test. The nurse stuck the needle into Naryan’s arm and no blood came out so she wiggled it about a bit. Still nothing so she stuck in another needle which did get blood but it dried up after one phial so she ground it about a bit. Naryan had been stoic up to that point went into a state of collapse. The needles were removed and Naryan lay down but then the blood started flowing making a pool on the floor. We eventually got out of there alive.