Man in Manzhouli

So, what happened in Manzhouli is this:
 Just as we were arriving the beautiful girl (who had never had a boyfriend) turned round and said “Oh, and my grandma thinks you’re my boyfriend”
Oooh right,
(you might think)
that’ll be really uncomfortable being the fake boyfriend to a beautiful girl, and it was more or less my first reaction, (along with uncontrollable hysterics).
Over the following hours though it came dawning on me that it was more being the fake prospect to the whole family; quite a responsibility.
 
They weren’t very impressed (which isn’t suprising given my level of Chinese), and made me eat meat and dance,
but the worst bit about it really was the fact that this girl hasn’t really bothered to speak with me since we left the hostel, and it turns out doesn’t really like me very much, which is one of those things that becomes rather evident when you’re trying to pretend to be someone’s boyfriend.
 
NOTA BUENA (it’s Latin language for take good note,):- when you are learning a foreign language immersed in that country, you start with body language, pick up common words, bits of grammar and vocabulary, and piece them together, and it’s only fairly late in the game that you can actually speak.   (Unless you’re learning from books and tapes at home,)
——>  Whilst everyone assumes you don’t have a clue what’s going on and you can’t understand a thing, you get a pretty good idea of everything about the situation, although you won’t be able to express it very well
——>NEVER EVER assume that someone with “poor” English can’t understand you.
 If only the people here had known it would have been quite a bit less uncomfortable.
 
So I ran away as soon as the obligatory time was up, and left the poor American woman with what was in reality quite an outsider-unfriendly Chinese speaking group.
 
Went down to Shenyang, stayed in a wonderful hostel,
If anyone’s ever looking for a hostel or hotel in Shenyang, Shenyang Sanpi Youth Hostel (0086) 138 4023 3283 is the place to be.  Super cool, and enthusiastic. (if a little out of the way). Made dumplings, drank white alcohol and played chess with the people there.
And on Saturday I went to introduce myself to an international trade firm, who introduced me to a friend, who said come back and see my dad on Monday or Tuesday I think we can work together.
 :D
 
Came back to Jinzhou, where my saint of a friend had fixed me up with an overpriced, run-down room at a moment’s notice, and saved me from homelessness.
It is sharing with Chinese, near to the Uni, and I said that the quality was absolutely irrelevant, so 2/3  is really not bad.
 
The only other event is that today (mine and my sister’s birthday) my bank card’s stopped working.
So I can’t get back to Shenyang for the interview,
I can’t take my friend out to say thanks,
I’m a bit stuck.
 
China’s never simple.

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