Not a Happy Camper

So here's where I am right now. I'm stuck eating noodles with very little flavor (as part of my very bland diet the doctor has put me on), I'm taking 10 pills a day, not including the powder I need to mix with hot water and take three times a day as well. I'm tired all the time, I'm behind in class and my homework, partly because I keep sleeping through my alarm, and I have a twenty page paper due this weekend that I haven't started writing.
I. Am. Not. Happy.

Medicine

So I'm having stomach issues and went to the doctor last night to pick up some medication. I noticed they take a large amount of drugs for a very short amount of time. For instance, I received one drug that I take two tablets of, after meals, three times a day. I also have a drug I'm supposed to take one tablet of, but not at the same time as the first tablet because the first would kill it. I then dissolve a powder in water and drink that three times a day. You would honestly believe I was close to dying if I received that much medication in the United States. And this isn't a special occasion, I received four drugs when I went in with a cold asking for allergy medicine.
Although he gave me so much, I only have enough for three days. That's also similar to when the last doctor only gave me ten days worth of allergy medicine that in the United States I take almost daily year-round. In the United States I would have been given one drug to take for ten days with a warning to eat "bland foods" and drink lots of water (which is what this doctor also instructed).
Just a little observation I made while having my life momentarily revolve around which medicine I'm supposed to take next, and with what.

Hot Pot

So yesterday Elena and I tried going to the art district but it was closed by the time we got there. We did manage to see two exhibits and a whole bunch of cool graffiti though.

Afterward we decided to eat at a hot pot place!

For those of you who don't know what hot pot is, basically you order a bunch of raw ingredients and then cook them in this boiling/simmering metal pot on the table that's full of some flavored stock you would have ordered already. Usually it's one pot to a table but we went to a "mini hotpot" place so Elena and I ordered two different stocks but shared the ingredients.

I cannot describe how good this thing was. My stomach had been bothering me since I got here but this for some reason just made me feel so much better. It was a really nice place but thankfully not overly expensive. 还可以 as my teacher would say. There was a point of worry though because the waitress was going to make me a dressing but I wanted to tell her I was allergic to nuts first. Unfortunately I had no idea how to say that and had to call Marketus and ask him. I think it went well though I'm not sure because she had to give the phone to someone else and then I accidentally hung up on him and couldn't get back in touch with him. The point really is she just didn't make me  a sauce and I never had an allergic reaction.

Shanghai next couple days

From Halloween Party on Friday Night

So I'm ill. again. It's official- China and I don't mix. At least that seems to be what my body is trying to say. Don't worry- no fever, no pain, just bleh. I'm cutting my trip short because of it but it's nothing to worry about. Seriously though- BOTH travel weeks?! Come on Body/China, give me a break!
It's also rainy and gross today so I may go out later to take pictures of "The Bunds" but I'm going to wait a bit. Last thing I want is to get caught in the rain. Maybe I'll finally get my haircut- there's a place two shops down from her apartment that looks promising.
Anyway, last night Elena and I went out and ate at this "Italian" restaurant. I say that but I'm sure the Italians feel the same way about our Olive Garden so I shouldn't be so snobby but... w/e. I had chocolate milk (which they put ice cubes in...) and fries. French fries, by the way, they have down here in China. Have yet to have weird or bad fries. And ketchup- that's fine too. Spaghetti sauce? Not so much. Tastes like ketchup.
I'm still going to stay for Halloween here so I can see the old bunker and watch black-and-white horror/Halloween movies. Then I think Thursday I'll head back. I need to work on my paper and intern stuff anyway (not that I will but, you know, I should).

Shanghai Day 1

Today was my first day really seeing Shanghai. It started out late because we went to a Halloween party the night before and I didn’t get back until just before 5am. So I didn’t really wake up completely until 11. After I found out where Elena, my friend whose apartment I’m staying at, ended up after the party (she stayed with other friends after I left), I went out to take pictures.

I started out just walking down this street that is, like, the main street of Shanghai called Nanjing Road (lu or 路 means road). I have never been stopped so much in my entire time in China as I was in the hour walked down this street. I must have been approached fourteen times by people trying to sell me fake merchandise. I’m slightly surprised they’re there though; the place is lined by stores, legitimate stores, so why would a foreigner be interested in purchasing from a person on the street something fake they can buy in a legitimate store? Anyway, I mainly walked down the street for the architecture.

You really feel like you’re in another China here- like, it’s still China but it’s not at the same time because there’s this very cosmopolitan and international feel. A lot of the architecture is European inspired, in fact, there’s an entire street of just European architecture I plan to take pictures of tomorrow. I saw it tonight when Elena was showing me where the hostel was but I didn’t bring my camera. I had actually been looking for it today but I didn’t bring the map she had so I didn’t know exactly where it was and didn’t want to get lost.

Also, I found that here the people pronounce “shi” words like “si.” I got so confused! I actually thought my lunch would be four kuai but it turned out to be ten. And then, as I was eating, a lady who didn’t speak English sat next to me and started trying to talk to me and kept using “si” instead of “shi.” Luckily, I eventually figured it out and was able to understand her a little. I will say I’m practicing my Chinese here a lot more than I thought I would, which I’m happy about because I don’t think I’m going to go to Nanjing. It’d just be too much of a hassle to get there and then figure out how to get back to Beijing, and cost more money. The hostel here in Beijing is pretty expensive and I already decided I want to stay to Wednesday at least. Elena said for Halloween there’s going to be a screening of black and white horror movies in a former bomb shelter which I think will definitely be interesting.
So my next blog entry might be coming from a hostel. Definitely sounds like it'll be an interesting experience- keep you posted!

Leaving for Shanghai

So I was supposed to have left by now but I got absolutely no sleep last night. My brain would not shut up about the Vampire Diaries episode for some reason.
Anyway, I'm pretty much all packed now and going to take a taxi to the Beijing South Railway Station. I leave at 10am and then arrive about 5 hours later at 3pm. I actually have a friend who's living in Shanghai and she has been kind enough to let me stay with her for the weekend. She's already found a number of Halloween parties for us to go to! I don't have a costume yet but I'm sure Shanghai has something; it's such an international city.
After the weekend I'm not sure what I'm doing. I might stay in Shanghai and look around but I really think I'll go to Nanjing. That way I can use my Chinese and see another historical city.
Alright, now I really need to go. I'll try to post pictures and updates throughout the week!

Observations

Hey, so I thought I'd better post something since I haven't in a really long time.
It's starting to get cold here and it's happening fast and with it have been a few changes. One of which is the doorways. Here in China they leave the doors open because so many people go in and out; however, they also put up these construction type, plastic... blinds to hold in as much air conditioning as possible.

They had them up at my school but now that it's cold out they've put these up.

My guess is to insulate and keep the heat in.
Something I noticed earlier and have been wondering about are the stairs here in China. All over Beijing, especially with older buildings but still with some new ones, the stairs look like this.

I've been wondering why they do this for a while and my best guess is so that, when they were pulling a wheelbarrow or carrying the emperor, they would have some friction and the load wouldn't run them over. I suppose I could Google this but I'm just too lazy. Anyway, these stairs are everywhere, even in the subways.

Unfortunately this is really all I have. I didn't go on the excursion today because the air quality was so bad but, looking at pictures on Facebook, it doesn't look like there would have been too much for me to take pictures of anyway.