I am currently in the hotel room after our caligraphy class. I went there with a very open mind and was actually excited that I could bring back home that would bring some variety to the art work in the Lutz house. Kiersten kinda has the monopoly, and now it doesn't look like I will still be able to add anything. We went there, and for the second day in a row our art teacher doesn't speak a lick of English, not even hello. As I said yesterday, I am not the artsy type, I have never been good at it, and pair that with the terrible handwriting I have, calligraphy is something that I would not be good at. He painted on his paper, then put it on the board for us to copy, and I thought that I did a pretty good job on the first one. I was like okay, this is going to be alright, and I can bring this stuff home for my parents. Then he comes over and totally butchers my paper by showing me the "correct way" to do it. Seriously it looked about 90% correct, but now I had random characters all over my paper. It was about as frustrating as when, in 9th grade, Mr. Eckenrod told me I was solving algebra equations wrong, even though I was getting the correct answer. I stayed as long as I could, but I left after about an hour of this guy painting over all of my work.
I got back to my room today, and turned on the TV and was instantly feeling better. For the first time, a NBA playoff game that wasn't featuring Yao Ming is being shone live, not tape delay. We have a free day today, so Shawn and I are going to take it easy and walk to a market about a mile up the street to get some supplies we had forgotten.
Here are some other observations I have made in my time in Hangzhou
The totem pole of driving goes:big trucks and busses, little trucks, big cars and taxis, little cars, mopeds, bikes, and then pedestrians. It will be a "good time to walk across the street" sign and you still have to watch for cars doing U-turns, mopeds and bikes. The rule of the road is if you can get the nose of your vehicle in the correct lane, you have earned the spot, so there are some interesting lines at stop lights. Cars also pass on the right a lot more than in the US. Cars will pass in the oncoming traffic lane also.
The college we are staying at has a road running through it. It is similar to if Wartburg would open the black gates and let cars drive through the campus. There are so many students that the sidewalks are always packed, so mostly you walk in the street, and then you get honked at by mopeds, bikes and cars because you are in the way. Mopeds here are also different than in America, they are all electric, so there isn't a high pitched noise to warn you they are coming. Cars here are generally more quiet too so it is hard to prepare from the attack from behind.
Another difference is tipping, it is not allowed in China. We have tried to tip taxi drivers, waitresses and our hotel housekeepers, and no one will take it. They feel that they shouldn't be rewarded extra for doing their jobs. They feel their wages are enough for their job.
We leave for Beijing at 11pm our time (10am Central time)
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