All posts filed under: Blog

So, I got up this morning …

Published by Sula H.

… only to realize that this was probably one of the worst mornings I’ve woken up to in a long while. I had a rude awakening, not just so to speak, but in the literal sense of the meaning. That rude awakening was a knock on my door, announcing a most unpleasant affair: “Your room is flooding!” Yep, and that’s exactly what was happening. By the time I reached my front door, water was streaming in from underneath, and the first thing that crossed my mind was: I wonder when this is going to happen to me! See, it wasn’t my apartment that actually was having the problem (though I got my share of water, too)! But it was the second apartment on our floor to get flooded within two months. A pipe had broken in my next door neighbor’s bathroom, and now the water was flooding the hall, my apartment, other people’s apartments, and of course stood several inches deep in my next-door neighbor’s apartment. So, who am I to complain? Just equipped myself …

Saturday Feature: Happy Everyday

Published by Sula H.

Chinese people love wishes of luck and blessings. You can tell by the many messages they send, reminding you to stay dressed warmly, to drink much water, to wish you a happy everyday. Usually, you can tell, when the end of the month is near, because then the number of such messages increases significantly, because due to the number of free messages allowed by the cell phone companies, people want to make sure they use up all their free messages. Well then, happy everyday to you, too! Messages displayed here are by courtesy of one of my colleagues.

Around Town: Downtown

Published by Sula H.

How about I take you on a little trip into downtown, today? There are several ways how we can get there: We could take the more expensive option, the taxi; though compared to western taxi prices, it’s still a sweet deal. We could also take the public bus, which at times can be quite crowded, and usually goes so slow that you can almost walk faster! (Well, let me emphasize the “almost” here!) Or, we could take my favorite means of transportation – a bycicle. Bycicles are very common here, and what I love about them, is the flexibility. Not much walking (which will happen when you take both a bus or a taxi), and you can quickly weave through the traffic, instead of getting stuck in one of those many minor traffic jams, that often only require two vehicles in order to get perfectly stuck! We could also take one of the little three-wheelers, though those are my least favorite option, because they aren’t necessarily cheap, and you’ll have yourself in for a really …

Food Corner: Strawberry Yoghurt Muesli

Published by Sula H.

Yes, I admit it right away: I’m a Muesli lover! At least when I can help it! True, living in China, one doesn’t always have a chance to get muesli. But I call myself lucky! A couple of months ago, my parents brought me one of my favorite muelis ever: Strawberry Yoghurt Muesli, and every once in a while I’ll allow myself this special treat!

Chinese Corner: Computer

Published by Sula H.

  Lesson #5: Computer   电脑 – diànnǎo   dian = electricity, electric nao = brain diannao = electric brain – computer (If you can’t see the Chinese characters, because you don’t have any Asian languages installed on your computer, don’t worry about it.)

Saturday Feature: Tennis Tournament

Published by Sula H.

I’ve been trying to keep up with exercising this spring, and exercising for me means: Tennis. Usually, I play on the weekends, when there are no classes and the tennis courts are available for everyone. This weekend, however, there’s not much tennis-playing going on for me. They’ve organized a tennis tournament, but I decided not to take part. Last time I played in a tournament, I made first place in the female category, and that despite the fact that I had just started playing tennis two months before that! Nope, I’m not a tennis super talent. It’s just that the competition is rather poor! So I decided, instead of playing tennis, I’d rather just play “audience,” hang out with the referees (most of them I know from playing with them before), and catch every chance I can to play for fun whenever one of the courts isn’t used for a match. Tomorrow the tournament will conclude with the finals, and maybe those will actually be worth watching!

Fun with Chinglish: Let’s Afforest Together!

Published by Sula H.

I love the new signs our school has put up recently all over campus! What would life be without the little tokens of amusement we find all around us? This one reads: “School likes our home. Let’s afforest together!” I’m just glad, no one really cares about this suggestion, or we quickly wouldn’t find our way home with all the trees popping up everywhere! Note: When posting anything in the Fun with Chinglish section, I don’t mean to show disrespect towards anything or anyone in any way. I’m simply sharing the fun we get to have with all those great signs & documents!