A Few Good Finds

New beginnings are a melting pot of emotions. I grappled my way out of homesickness absolutely as fast as I could. I'm glad those days are behind me. Making new friends has been touch and go because I still have no phone, transportation, interest in going out to drink at smokey bars and I'm the only foreigner at my school. Little things like buying a small carpet for my room make me feel more at home and loneliness has been replaced with boredom which seems much easier to remedy. Because I arrived at the end of the school semester my school felt it was best to start fresh after the Chinese New Year and winter holiday. But don't worry, I signed my contract weeks ago and am being paid for all this time at home. Another reason these sometimes endless days have been easier to swallow. So what does a person do with few friends, no phone or transportation, complete illiteracy, an inability to communicate with anyone and no obligations? The answer is simple... absolutely anything I can. Walking to the post office to buy stamps may very well have been the highlight outing of my day. Cooking a yummy breakfast made me feel at home and that was good for at least a couple hours of contentment. But as time has moved on each day has brought with it a few good finds; new places, new people, new things to do, new foods, new markets. The day I found peanut butter was like a flash of hope that I would find happiness here. For $2.15/load I can drop my laundry off and come back later to a bag of washed, dried and folded clothes. The guy there smiles and simply points to the clock for when I can pick it up. The woman at the grocery store knows I like to put my food in my backpack,not a plastic bag and the people at the sushi place know I don't like the dried, shredded beef stuff in my rolls. I found a great Indian restaurant just a 20 min walk from my home. They know I like it mild. I found mint tea in the import isle at another store and the girls at the internet cafe know I like water instead of tea for my complimentary beverage. I found an awesome stationary store when out for a walk the other night. It has everything and I can't wait to go back when I actually need to buy something. I can get fresh squeezed orange juice for $1 from the fruit stand on the corner and if I get up early enough to hit the morning market I can get a real taste of local flavor. A few days ago a girl in her late 20s came up to me on the street and asked if I could help her prepare for a civil service exam which is in English. I told her I'd be happy to help her if she would help me with my Chinese. It was a deal. We meet this Monday. I joined the gym and it's walking distance from my apartment. Score! I'm still in search of a bookstore with a good English selection. I'm flying through my books. And for those of you who know that I have the attention span of a goldfish, I seem to have found some focus here too.