Being Direct

Sometimes I really appreciate the Chinese for their directness. Like for instance, here:

 Both of these shops are CD/DVD shops. But how the heck would I know the yellow one sold DVDs? I wouldn't. Luckily, the blue shop tells me exactly what to expect. Unfortunately, the DVD I bought didn't work in my computer. I'll have to try it in a different computer to see if its just me. More than likely, it is. This computer is definitely on its way out.

I also thought this was quite funny. A fake Apple Store. How do I know it's fake? I just do. :)

My Best Friend's Wedding

I'm not abroad right now, but I wanted to share some pictures from the wedding I attended last night. The very first person I met in college got married last night. She and I met at the on campus bus stop our first day of school. We were the crazy freshman who decided it was a great idea to take an 8 AM class, so we were both sitting outside bright and early to catch the bus to campus. We were at the first stop on the bus line so the entire bus was empty. Rather than sit in our own rows, Rachel sat next to me. Every. Single. Day. I'm not really a morning person. And it was a little odd to me that when all this space was available, that she would choose to sit right next to me. Needless to say, we've been friends every since. Friends, roommates, coworkers, travel companions... you name it. Her husband was also a coworker of ours.

It was a fun weekend and the main reason I came back for a visit from China. It was such a beautiful wedding and a great chance to spend some time with my closest friends from college :)

 This is the groom (Marian), me, Rachel (the bride) and Chris.

 Chris and I at the wedding.

Rach and I at the reception.

Fire Cups

One of the things I thought would be interesting is to try out some of the different types of Chinese medicine while I'm in the motherland. So last night when Joanne wanted to get a massage, I went. One of the options they had on their list was the fire cups... at 20 rmb/time, we figured what the heck? Some had compared the feeling to a cat bite. Some said a minor tingling feeling. Um, no. Unless the cat was a jungle cat mauling his prey. Then, maybe I could agree with that description. I asked the lady as we were going in if it hurt, and she said "yes, very much" as she smiled at us. I guess I should have turned around there and walked out, but I figured she probably didn't understand because then her next comment was "very comfortable". Yeah, right. Joanne has some better pictures, but I found the first two from the internet and the third one is my back. The morning after (we're talking a good 12 hours later...)

So first, the practitioner takes a cotton ball dipped in alcohol and lights it on fire. (they are holding the cotton ball with a pair of tongs) Then, they quickly put the fire in the cup, remove it, and stick the heated cup to your back, creating a suction. (The fire is only briefly introduced to the cup). This continues until your back is covered in little glass cups. The whole process takes less than 2 minutes for about a dozen cups, maybe more. After that, they cover the area with a sheet, and leave them on for 10 minutes. The first minute or so isn't bad, it feels like something is leeching on your back. Then, it grows a bit more intense. By a bit, I really mean tremendously. I wouldn't say it was incredibly painful, but it definitely is uncomfortable enough that after your time is up you are so ready to have those little things off your back.

Apparently fire cupping is a way to improve your blood circulation and help treat a variety of ailments like high blood pressure, back pain, the common cold, bronchitis.... I've seen a whole list of things it claims to treat. I don't know how much of that is true, but I can say that once the cups were removed, you don't feel sore anymore. And those giant red circle are not as painful as they look. The darker ones are a little sensitive, but not awful. I did sleep really well last night and I haven't been sleeping through the night so maybe it had something to do with this? Who knows.