my own autumn holiday

so i am on academic break right now. i spent the last few days in suzhou and shanghai, and next i am headed to xi'an to see the terra cotta soldiers and wander the city a bit until next week. it is nice to be back in beijing for a night. i have determined that i am much more of a beijinger than a shanghai person, although according to a friend who lives in shanghai that mostly has to do with me being a tourist and not living there long-term.

more later! i am taking pictures like a madwoman!

bradford

here are a bunch of glimpses of bradford. his clothes always have a perfect fit and strong colors, and are never fussy.

modelesque at the lama temple/yonghegong and the nearby confucius temple. love the sneakers. this is how guys should deal with warm weather.

relaxing at our local park on national day.

in the process of peeling a pomelo, one of a billion fruits available at our nearby market and at stands on the street. allison's excellent dressy skirt/orange slipper combo also made it into the photo...pure essence of college.

front gate

a trip to chic, old-beijing qianmen, south of tiananmen on the solid north-south axis of the central city. "front gate." brian, klang, and allison all in collared shirts...

red lanterns, grey beijing

purple bamboo

i visited the big local park with friends last week. it is only ten or fifteen minutes away on foot and is gorgeous and large--we were there all afternoon and i could probably spend several full days there getting lost and taking boat rides on a number of little lakes. it was hot and clear outside (clear probably due to the the fact that it was near national day--things were still pretty shut down).

american apparel t-shirt (it fits perfectly--how cliche!), chinese scarf from silk street, vintage skirt, trusty black rocket dog flats. glass earrings from my parents.

movers and shakers and quakers

i visited friends at a college near philadelphia two weeks ago. we hung out, ate outside, went to a basement concert, threw frisbee, and wandered reading terminal market and chinatown--generally excellent use of an early fall weekend.

reading terminal market craziness.

marsie relaxing in the afternoon and wearing my scarf.

more scarfness in chinatown.

light tea

rose had a tea party a while before i left the US. she served homemade food, lemonade from a variety of fancy bottles, and of course tea. her living room is perfect in the afternoon--flawless light and a gorgeous table. rose, shan, inez:

rose made her own lacy dress. making clothes is a skill i wish i had; i can cut things up but i can't sew them back together terribly well. i am wearing a super cheap dress that fits surprisingly well...i brought it with me to china and i hope i remember to wear it!

in beijing

here i am, posting from beijing!

the city is incredible. i've spent the last few days exploring everywhere, wandering with new friends by foot, taxi, bus, and subway. i have so far visited nightclubs, shopping malls, junk markets, parks, ancient pedestrian streets, and numerous restaurants. its seems like my life here is based around eating, which is of course okay. classes haven't started yet, which is why i'm making the most of my copious amounts of free time! today is the 60th birthday of the PRC, so beijing is kind of shut down; additonally, it's mid-autumn festival time, so the stores have been crazy.

a lot of things here, including clothing, can be bought by bargaining down the price...this is still difficult for me but i'm getting a bit better! it also feels good to be in a place where i can practice and hear chinese constantly, and where i can throw a few chinese words in with my american compadres and they understand.

i hope to be posting some pictures once i can borrow or buy a power converter to charge my camera! i'll also be finishing up a few pictures from summer in america.