On the bus, it reeks of down (jackets). (I wasn't wearing one.)
Winter. The season that brings the urge to huddle together for warmth. To that end, the space between you and the next person is already greatly reduced due to the bulkiness of your clothes. It's a real squeeze on the subway seats.
But that's not my grouse. It's with the fact that on public transport, the air doesn't circulate ... much. And the fact that people don't cover their mouths when they cough, sneeze ... talk loudly. If you're unfortunate enough to breathe in your neighbour's germs, highly likely in a usually crowded bus, you will be infected. So that's how I arrived home with my nose running like a tap.
If it's a bun stall, buy a bun!
Buns, or 包, are more popular in southern China than in the north. In the north, another kind of bun with no filling, 馒头, are popular. But don't buy a blueberry pie at a bun stall. At first I bought a 豆沙包, but just out of curiousity, I decided to buy a blueberry pie too. The bun cost Y80 and the pie, Y1.50.
Of course the bun tasted better. I only ever bought buns after that.
And a 烧卖 in China is a steamed glutinous rice dumpling, not a Hong Kong-style pork dumpling.
What's this, an umbrella for a drizzle?
When people whip out umbrellas for a little drizzle, it makes me think this is a place not used to rain. But southeast China ought to get a fair amount of rain, I thought. Perhaps not downpours.
But if they're going to tote an umbrella for every little drop, at least practise some etiquette. How do they manage to keep poking my head with it even though I'm so short? No self awareness?
Girls = better hygiene? Surely you jest.
Dormitory living in China in the off-peak seasons have opened the door to a new specimen of fellow travellers - single, yellow, female. Many of them bring tons of stuff in a roller suitcase, and spread this stuff around their beds, under their beds, anywhere they can. These are also the kind of people who buy a piece of papaya, take one bite out of it, and leave it open on the table in the room for days, peel an orange and throw the peel on the floor. Maybe no one has ever impressed upon them the function of a waste basket.
Thankfully, the cleaners mostly clean the room everyday. Maybe. I suspect someone stole at least Y5 in coins out of my coat pocket. And I'm not saying it's the cleaners.
I look forward to returning to Hangzhou in better climes.
Because soggy shoes are absolutely hateful. And I forgot to purchase a new bottle of 花雕酒.
