Post the Seventh: Does Not Translate

Hello again!

The end of last week saw a spike in work/tests/quizzes, hence my absence. Do not fret, however, since I've got some pictures to share! Also, some things:

• This weekend CET took us to Sun Island ( 太阳岛 , taiyang dao), which given the weather was anything but sunny. The sky oscillated between grim & drizzly and morosely cloudy - until we left, that is, when suddenly the sun came out in all it's glory. Two friends and I still managed to enjoy our time on the island by playing in Naive Bear Park.

Literally, Stupid Bear Playground. Sounds fun, no?

An odd perversion of Bambi.

In reality, these things would probably not be friends.

Double-decker merri-go-round!

A cute little walkway thing by a lake. This place was filled with about six or so brides all getting their pictures taken.

• Last week, my two Sun Island companions and I discovered a lovely street near campus filled with fruit and vegetable stands, outside restaurants, and a random assortment of stalls selling cleaning supplies, school supplies, etc. One of the restaurants has the best variety of meat and vegetable dishes I've seen in China as all are delicious. The other restaurant, while failing to compare in food quality, has better service and has kao bing ( 烤饼, fried bing). For those of you who don't know what bing is, there really isn't an explanation for it. It's sort of bread but sort of cake and also sort of a tortilla thing. It also varies in appearance, consistency, and make-up depending on what it comes with. You really just have to eat it in order to understand it.

On the left, beef-on-a-stick. On the right, kao bing. (Sorry there's a bit missing - I was hungry).

Hot Dog Dog says "Enjoy Freedom!

• Corollary to the previous bullet point, Harbin really isn't Beijing. This difference was evidenced today by a physical fight taking place in our restaurant. Three friends and I arrived at the kaobing place and were about to order food when the fight actually began. It is suspected that a patron a) insulted the restaurant owners and/or b) refused to pay his bill, thus ensuing the conflict (nobody seemed to understand was happening except for the two actually throwing punches). Naturally, we retreated across the street and, like everyone else (including passing cars/taxis/bicycles), watched as the two men fought and eventually took their disagreement elsewhere. Unclear of the condition of either man. What was clear was that the Chinese way of staying out of conflicts that don't directly impact you was in effect. At no point did anyone intervene on either man's behalf (except for the restaurant boss who told them to leave the premises out of fear they would destroy his establishment). Nobody summoned the police (though unclear if they would have been of any use). People simply stopped their goings-on and watched the conflict unfold and, when it moved off, went about their business. I am unsure how I feel about that. Part of me thinks that this would never happen in the US - surely someone would intervene. Or would they? In NYC, would people stop? Or walk brusquely by to catch their subway?

More to come later!

魏德