curious dc

My blog is moving! Well, sort of.  I'm still keeping this one around, but decided to start a new one dedicated to photography.  So check-out curious dc at http://curiousdc.wordpress.com/!

Born Again Subway Rider

Beijing's traffic has been really bad lately. I mean REALLY BAD.  You see, my office is located about an hour away from home, so I've been commuting 2 hours a day, everyday, for the past 2 years.  I don't like the commute, but I refuse to live near my office simply because it's not exactly the most foreigner-friendly place.  And because the subways are always jam-packed during rush hours, I've been taking the cab to work.

But lately, traffic has simply gotten out of control.  There have been a few times when I was stuck sitting in a cab for 2 hours going to the office and coming back!!!  That's four hours of commuting!  Once it was so terrible that I almost missed a friend's birthday dinner (it was one of those days when I wanted to cry simply because it was so frustrating).

So to keep my sanity, I'm going to take the subways again.  I hate them, I hate the maze-like transfers and I hate being shepherded around like sheep, but at least I won't be wasting my time inhaling exhaust fumes, 4 hours a day.

:(

Recent Happenings in the Jing

Drinks at one of my new favorite spots - Contempio Bar

Contempio in daylight - the 600-year old temple

Bustling hutong life

Delicious toasted peasant food...yummy

R&R at Kocoon Spa

Pinkberry copycat that serves fried chicken sandwiches

Who's reading my blog from Brazil?

Crawfish

Remember those nasty buckets of crawfish in Shanghai?  They used to make my skin crawl.

I tried one this weekend...still don't like them.

Blogging Again...

It’s been awhile since I updated my blog.  Lately, I’ve been so busy that I haven’t found time to sit in front of my computer and type for fun. I remember those nights when I used to sit at my desk at the SP apartment, play music in the background, and blog.  Back then, I didn’t have a lot of friends in Beijing, so blogging was a way for me to find comfort in my solitude, reflect and try to make sense of my experiences here.  Although it wasn’t always fun, I actually cherish those moments when I did have time to sit back and reflect.

Summer flew by this year.  It started off with a jam-packed month of World Cup fever.  A bunch of us entered a fantasy World Cup league, using it as an excuse to get together, but also get excited about the games.  I was never much of a soccer fan, but all of a sudden, with money involved (100 RMB), I had a vested interest in the teams and the ear-splitting vuvuzelas.  

My family and I met up for a short reunion in Hong Kong during the Dragon Boat Festival.  We gobbled up all sorts of food as we explored the city – roast goose at Yung Kee, fresh seafood at Lei Yu Man, vegetarian at Lantau Island, and of course mango pudding off the streets. I caught up with my girlies LW and Gilligan and bid adieu to my family as they journeyed southward to Vietnam.

MC came to Beijing for music camp in August.  She started off plucking the guzheng at our apartment, then concluded with a concert at the National Orchestra Hall near the Bird’s Nest.  We took short excursions to nearby ancient village Cuandixia and climbed up the steps of the Bell and Drum Towers.

This summer was also slightly bittersweet.  True to expat life, a bunch of my friends moved out of the Jing to continue their journeys in other parts of the world.  I have to admit, it’s a little sad because they all  coincidentally left at once, but such is the life of an expat, and this is what keeps our lives interesting.  Plus I now have an expanded network in other countries, which is pretty freakin’ cool.

Then something happened last week, which unfortunately brought back some unhappy memories.  I’ve moved on for the most part, but I guess small events can sometimes trigger your emotions and haunt you a little (don’t worry, I’m totally fine).  Instead of making plans and going out and about, I’d rather be a hermit tonight and stay in with my sentimental self.

So while I’m retreating and reflecting (and healing), I shall once again, play music in the background, pull up the screen and blog.

World Cup Fever!

Muhaha

Best picture of the night :)

Lei Yu Man

Happy July 4th!

Cuandixia

One of my favorite shots this summer

Girls dinner

MC's concert

Like mother like daughter?

MC and her campmates

Tea and Chinese desserts at Lao She Teahouse

Night shot of Qianmen

Lunch at Saveurs de Coree at NLGX

Drum Tower

Appearing pensive...

Last dinner at 北平楼 (BeiPing Lou)

Roommates at DSST

MC is back in the Jing!

MC is back again! This time, she's staying with us for 3 weeks, and she'll attend music camp.  Yup, you read it correctly...music camp!  My mum has been playing the guzheng (a Chinese harp-like instrument) for  the last few years, and her teacher (originally from Beijing) organized a 2-week long summer camp here!

I picked up MC from the airport late last week.  Brought her back to my place, and then we journeyed out to Shaoyaoju to rent an instrument.  Since then, MC has been happily plucking away at home, practicing before music bootcamp begins next week.

Pluck, pluck, pluck

Spanish Tapas at Saffron

The Beijing restaurant scene seems to be on a tapas frenzy lately.  Over the past six months, I've seen 4 new Spanish restaurants open up, all located fairly close to one another and all serving sangria and tapas.  Why would all of them cater to the same market, which only represents a sliver of the Beijing population? I have no idea, but I'm not going to complain!

This morning, a few girlfriends and I met up at one of the older Spanish establishments in the city - Saffron at Wudaoying Hutong.  I came here about 2 years ago for dinner - didn't exactly love the food back then, but I always loved the rustic setting at Saffron, so when my girlfriends and I had to organize brunch, I was glad to give the restaurant's food a second chance.  And I was happy I did!

Our brunch started off with foie gras...

Followed by a Serrano ham and tomato bruschetta

Then we moved onto the grilled mushrooms...

And nibbled on some manchego cheese...

Before digging into the seafood paella!

Brunch mates Susan and Karen

Brunch mate DSB

Would I come back to Saffron? Absolutely!