One of the best bars in Beijing puts up with the best people in Beijing. Michelle at Irish Volunteer. Spent a handful of nights playing Chinese poker with her.
These guys are the best people in the world. We should worship them.
This is what happens when someone figures out your password to your phone. These are *some* of the best people in the world… but worship might be going a bit far. Gonna miss these guys immensely.
Attended a media event today that involved tasting craft brew. What a refreshing way to end the week. And it was good, too. Slow Boat Mango IPA, 6%, made using all hops. Impressive, guys.
Without getting into the particulars, I went to a housewarming party last weekend. Needless to say, there are bits I don’t remember, including taking this photo:
After reviewing the images the next day, we determined this photo has great meme potential. Here is a suggestion from my friend Bridget:
So here I am jumping on the meme bandwagon. Do you have any suggestions?
St. Paddy’s was great. A late breakfast at The Vineyard Cafe, an exploration of Beijing’s hutongs, an afternoon nap, tasty Sichuan food, followed by one of the best five hours at my favorite local pub. The icing was the snow storm at midnight.
Beijing turned me into a hipster.
A few weeks ago, China Daily recognized the US/EU department, the one I work for, as the best department at the newspaper for 2011. As a thank you, the bosses treated us to a nice meal.
Work dinners can turn ugly in a matter of hours. You aren’t required to drink, but it is a typical custom to do so. I usually partake (shocker), since most of my co-workers think I am alcoholic anyways. The variety of spirits included hong jiu (red wine), white wine (bai putao jiu), baijiu (a white liquor), mijiu or huangjiu (rice wine) and pijiu (beer).
There are lots of toasts made between co-workers, but it’s also the perfect time to learn about your workmates. Mine are great. They always seem so happy and relaxed.
The food was OK. My favorite style food is from the Sichuan region, where most dishes served are covered in chilis. The restaurant we went to was from the Zhejiang region, which is known more for its seafood.
If you check my other blog, reiterway, i’ve posted a video of one of the dishes. Served in a glass bowl, small, live shrimp were drowning in a wine sauce. The shrimp at first were moving and jumping around, but end up “passing out” because they are drunk. That was one of the many dishes I passed on that evening.
The most action I’ve gotten in the past couple of months was tonight … from a Chinese lesbian. It was sweet, though. She said, in mixed English and Chinese, that she could tell as soon as I walked through the door that I was warm and beautiful. After a few minutes of conversation, I rejoined my friends. When we were on the way out, she asked me why I was leaving, and I responded because me and my friends were going to a different bar. She asked me to stay and sleep at the bar. I’m not sure that’s quite what she wanted to get across to me, but that’s what she said. Oh, and this was all while she had her hands all over my ass. Ahhhhh, memories.
Celebrated Australian Day for the first time, and the right way: at a bar during Chinese New Year with an Aussie!
Shared cheap bottles of wine from 7-11 with my neighbors. We spent 200 RMB, $30, on 5 bottles of wine.
