Ranghulu, Shan's Bachelor Party, and the Foreigners

It's been a week and it will be amazing if I finish writing this post tonight (I teach the Kindergarten at 8:00 am tomorrow) but I figured I'd go light on the words and heavy on the pictures.

On Friday I had my first classroom observation by the school and I passed with flying colors, it was easy honestly because for some reason my students decided to be on their best behavior and it's hard to mess up a half hour class where the highlight is "Hello, how are you. I'm fine, thanks."

In case I forgot to do a formal introduction for the Chinese teachers, here they are from left to right: Vickey, Kelly, Susan, Elaine, and Anna.

The Chinese Teachers

And of course my partner in crime, fellow Yixi'er, and the homie, Kurtis. I caught him in his natural habitat and in his traditional clothing (by the way the Buckeyes just killed the Buffs as you might know).

Kurtis and his Buckeyes

So Sunday after class Kurtis and I took the 2 to 2 1/2 hour trip over to Ranghulu (see previous post for map) for our buddy Shan's bachelor party and to get out of Yixi for a day. The cab ride is 45min and about 50-70 yuan, the bus ride is much longer and you have to switch buses buuuuut it's a whopping 6 yuan ($1).

Right when we got off the bus we headed to get some Mala Chuanrs (I finally looked up the word for shish kabobs in Chinese. "Mala" is actually the variety cooked in oil unlike the grilled ones at the end of this post) with Kurtis's old friend and Chinese teacher at another one of the schools here. Mack was cool, very friendly and helpful translating and I offered to pick up the bill which didn't even dent my wallet.

Chillin with Mack and the owner of the Chuanr Stand

Afterwards we headed over to Orange Bar (or O3) for the bachelor party aka a bunch of foreign dudes drinking like college kids. Flip cup and beer pong included.

(Most of) The Whole Crew

The Other Room at the Orange Bar

Joe and The Owner of Orange Bar, Leo

Liam with Kurtis's Orange Bar Picture

German Alex

Will, Crashed on his Couch to Avoid the Late Night Cab Ride

So now you've met some of the crew, I haven't had the chance to get pictures of everyone yet. Not to mention this particular night was men only (no dancing girls Mom, don't worry).

Will and Katie (not pictured, yet) were kind enough to let me crash on their couch that night and the next afternoon a couple of us Men got naked and soaked in some hot tubs and lounged in the sauna at one of the local bathhouses. Here is the lone picture, outside of the bathhouse for the benefit of the readers...

Heading to Relax at the Bathhouse

And finally Kurtis and I were on our way back home, we only have one day weekends but we pack in as much as we can!

Here's a couple more pictures of Ranghulu, it feels like there is construction EVERYWHERE in China and this place was no different.

Build, Build, Build

And for my architecture friends here is a most-likely insignificant building with an interesting design. I've been trying to take as many pictures as possible but sometimes when everything looks the same you just get bored doing so.

Homework for Rob and Ron: Write me a Report on this Architecture

So back to work today and luckily I only have 4 days of teaching followed by a week off for Chinese National Day (Oct 1), after class we got some Chuanrs again and this time I got some pictures of all the action. Next week I have two weddings to go to so I'll be busy, but I'll either fill in my post with some pictures of my apartment or maybe wait til after the weddings to keep it interesting.

The Spread at the Chuanrs Stand

The Cooking Action

Life is simple here, wake up go to the market and get some fresh fruit and vegetables, teach some class, and just relax. China might be a hectic country but out in Yixi the pace is slow and easy, yet there are still things that happen everyday that you just shake your head at. For example, walking to meet Kurtis to catch the bus I noticed a little kid with some pants on that were missing, shall we say, the hind quarters...he proceeded to relieve himself without having to move the pants at all. I've seen this happen a half dozen times since.

TIC