Inflatable Rainbows (or: cellllebrate good times!)

Sooo I was gone for a while. I was writing my senior honors thesis and it pretty much ate my soul. There was a rough patch there where I didn't even think I was going to finish it (nor did my professors, great motivation there), and therefore not graduate with honors.

Yeah, April was a long, sleepless month.

But I'm back! I can't promise I'll be around for long- this month is crazy full of graduation prep, including finals and senior week, but at least MY THESIS IS OVER. Nearly. I defend it tomorrow!

Hey, all that aside, here's a colorful picture of some inflatable rainbows outside Xinghai Square in Dalian. September 2008, during a visit from my mom.

So...Celllllebrate good times, COME ON!

Xin Nian Kuai Le

Happy New Year, written in Chinese on a window at Abashi's in Dalian. Where it is doesn't matter, all that matters is there's pretty lights.

Happy New Year!

Last look

My last day in Dalian. My good friend Sigma was over from Taiyuan for New Year's, so I took her to the marvelous Xinghai Square.

Sweet snack

Hope everyone had a good Christmas.

This was taken at Erqi Square, close to the fabric market. I think this couple was mute, or deaf, or maybe both, but they sold the most delicious sticky rice snacks.

The guy would pack some special rice into the metal cylinder, and then the woman would put a lid on and let steam rise through it so that it would congeal (?). When it was finished, she would put a stick through a hole in the top, take the cylinder off, and coat it with sugar before handing it off to the customer.

At ten cents a piece, you better believe I bought in bulk.

Light the Night

Zhongshan Square, Dalian. The citibank was actually in Zhongshan; the Intercontinental and other building behind it were branched off of Youhao Square, one block west.

One of eighty-some new photos I uploaded to my flickr set of Dalian night scenes, which begins with this picture here.

Yay for catching up on pictures! I'm only 13 months behind now.

Though the Looking Glass

 Xinghai Beach through the slightly tinted windows of the 202 tram. Passed this site every day on the way to and from class at Dongcai. The elevated tram tracks made for a great view of the ocean, and on a clear day the visibility was so amazing you could see the rocks in the distance, and beyond.

Nice try

Outside Tesco. Heping Mall, Dalian.

The earth did not shatter and swallow me whole when I snapped this. I was shocked.

So much for beach towels

Super tentage to shade the Chinese from the sun. Part of that whole, "white is beautiful, tan is not" culture. Xinghai Square, September 2008.

Chinese Parking

This specific photo is from my apartment complex in Dalian; this one isn't so bad, but I've seen some ridiculous parking jobs. Chinese people have this knack for squeezing into the tightest spots, whether or not it's really convenient ...or safe...or legal....

Forlorn Vegetable Vendor

A night street in downtown Dalian, tucked behind the Zhongshan Hotel at Victory Plaza. Unlike some other shopping streets, this one offered solely foodstuffs- vegetables, fruits, chestnuts, noodles, pastries, chicken heads...you know, the usual.

But of course, with that much variety and competition on one street, times can get boring, and you're left staring at tomatoes as you wait for customers.

(I never came back to this street after the first night. I meant to, though. Shame.)

Steamy Night

The mildly famous 'top of the hill.' When I arrived in Dalian it was still winter, but as spring crept up the tiny restaurants set up their chuanr (like grilled kebabs) stands, all in a row. At night, in the chilly air, you could see the smoke from the chuanr as you walked up the Dawai hill, as crowds of people huddled for warmth around the coals.

Seaside

Hey, my internet's been fixed!

This photo was taken at Binhai Lu, or a long stretch of road along Dalian's coastline. It has gorgeous views and an entire day could be spent walking along the road. Or, if you don't have all day, you can hire a taxi to drive you for a certain distance/length of time. I did this three times; with my two best friends over May Holiday, when my dad came to visit in June, and when my mom visited in September. 

Also, notice the clarity of the water. This is generally not seen in China and is an example of why Dalian is known for being one of the cleanest cities in which to live.

The CPC Building

At least, that's what I always assumed it was. Located in the middle of Zhongshan Park, Dalian. 

The night I took this, my two best friends and I were walking back to Dawai from the place where they tutored (coincidentally, where I would end up living the next semester- Xinghai Ren Jia). They walked the route four or five times a week, and it took about an hour and a half. By the end of that semester, both of them had lost significant amounts of weight.

Cross-cultural Communication

Better known as, Chatting up the white guy over a beer or two. (Or thirty.) 

This was after a punk-rock show at Hopscotch Bar, so the fellas actually discussed their favorite kinds of music for a while. We also had fun with their obnoxiously large cameras that were sitting on the table.

My Mom/我的妈妈

In the spirit of Mother's Day, today's post is of -who else- my mom. She came to visit me in Dalian towards the end of September, and it was great to show her "my city" -school, apartment, friends, all that. 

This picture was taken at Xinghai Square. In writing this post, I started thinking that I took very few pictures of my mom.... Then I realized that an entire folder of pictures from that day is missing. Uh-oh.

For all your DVD needs

[This picture is blurry because I had to sneak it while the owners were looking away.]

To get to this shop, which has every DVD from My Fair Lady to the latest Seth Rogen movie, you have to first enter the maze that is Victory Plaza. Find the legit CD/DVD shop on the third underground floor, and ask to "go downstairs." The girl there will grab her keys and take you 

to the end of the hallway, 

through a set of doors, 

down three flights of stairs, 

and into a tiny hallway lined with closed doors. 

It's extremely dodgy, but the DVDs were cheap (a dollar) and of reliable quality. Every time I visited them I brought a different friend with me -always a Westerner. After a month or so they started to recognize me and a simple nod of my head came to mean, "Take me downstairs."

"Bottom of the Hill"

The "bottom of the hill" referred to the street at the base of the hill where Dawai was located. (For example: "Wanna grab lunch at bottom-of-the-hill Chinese?") There was a 24-hour karaoke place always brightly lit up- even though its sign proclaimed "25 Hour KTV". Every night the street vendors would face the KTV and ease their boredom by watching the music videos playing on the enormous outdoor screen.

How is this a selling point??

Seen in one of Dalian's Carrefours (French grocery chain in China). Then seen again in another Carrefour on the other side of town. They stayed on display year-round. I'm not sure what kind of subliminal messaging Carrefour is up to here.

Sunset at Echo Cafe

Echo Cafe, Dalian. An adorable little bookstore & coffee shop two blocks away from Olympic Square, perfect for small meetings and photo exhibits. It was located under a highway ramp, so the roof was domed and always reminded me of a hobbit's den. (I obviously know nothing about hobbits because that is probably all very incorrect.)

Feeding Time at the (Student) Zoo

Taken at the middle/high school located beside my university (Dongcai). 

Every day, this couple would bring lunch to the students and pass it to them via the school gates. Because of the large amount of food and specificity of the orders, I believe the parties on both sides of the gates had an agreement in place for this daily routine. 

Admit it, with the iron bars and the frantic manner in which the students try to hand over money and get their food, you can't help but make the mental jump to "zoo".