The Horse Outside My Window Is Normal, Right?

Happy Monday, beautifuls - I hope your weekends were swell, and your Monday will be even swell(er). 

I thought I'd pause the China posts {not that there are too many of those left} for a day and instead recap my weekend. Because I know you are all just dying to know what a college student does over a weekend. Here's a clue: it went exactly as you thought it would go - it involved frats, pizza, and textbooks.

FRIDAY

Because Friday morning and early afternoon were so full of errands, Kylie and I treated ourselves to Philz Coffee as a reward for a day productively spent. Have you NorCal dwellers ever been here? Its "Ecstatic Iced Coffee" is gold-star deserving and puts my girl Starbucks to shame, which says a lot about how terrific it is because I don't give up my overpriced, oversugared 'bucks for any coffee. 

Friday night, on the other hand, was plain and simple - a hot mess. It started out with good hair and best friends, and it ended... with a phone in the toilet (not mine, sorry Cass), too-loud Miley Cyrus songs and really strange frat decorations (a wall-sized mustache made out of Christmas lights? Hello, I don't see what you're going for here?), and detours to see even more friends before going home for a nice, looooong sleep.

SATURDAY

Such a nice, long sleep in fact, that we all slept in and missed breakfast, lunch, and snacks(2x). So Cassandra and I caught up with Leah on her way to the library and tricked her into driving to San Francisco with us and KB.

Next stereotypically college thing on the weekend list? Pizza.

This is a pizza place that the softball girls have heard about from their trainer for ages, so it's long been on our Must Visit List. And oh, was it worth the two hour there and back drive (the traffic! Holy goodness SF, who do you think you are? LA?).

So the pizza had the potential to be some classy stuff, but I think ultimately our behavior sabotaged us. See, it's this really nice pizza joint in San Francisco called Tony's, maybe you've heard of it, I think it's semi-famous. Everything was fine and dandy, except because of cell phone troubles and traffic and finding good parking, we didn't get seated until maybe 3:30 and we hadn't had a lick of food the entire day.

Gone in .23498 seconds flat. But literally.

Cheeeeeese.

Give us our pizza, and we're some happy kids.

Margherita Pizza - they only make 73 a day, and the recipe apparently won some pizza-making contest in Naples, Italy. It was delicious and all, but my main question is - who exactly picked the number 73? Not 70, or 75, or 100?

The New Yorker - amazing, amazing, amazing. End of story.

The ricotta. It kills you in the most heavenly way.

Famished as we were and dressed sloppily in sweats as we were, we probably seemed like high-class hobos. As in, we considered ravaging leftover pizza from the trash, and we finished the complimentary garlic bread before the waiter could even walk away from the table, and the four of us attacked the two large pizzas, and didn't have enough wits about us to figure out how to split the bill evenly... so yes, all of this might have led to our de-throning as the epitome of class. 

After this, it went something like: go to Safeway to buy gelato, watch the football game on TV with a group of chill pills while eating the aforementioned gelato, and then after we were winning by quite a margin (Go Card!), we went on to watch Orange Is The New Black. #Obsessed #LikeTheRestOfTheWorld

SUNDAY

Studied in Starbucks until we couldn't anymore. I believe that there is a point in every study sesh when everyone just gives up. It's not usually verbally stated, but when things like this start happening, you know it's all over.

{I was explaining blogging giveaways to Cassandra, and this is what I found in my inbox. Ha. Ha.}

Also, I understand that this post was mostly about pizza. Sorry. So here's a picture of a horse that just walked by my window.

Peace out.
-

Linking up with Sami today.

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On Lake Xuanwu and This Crazy New Feeling

Earlier, I had one of those moments. The kind when you're going about doing something extraordinarily ordinary, but then you pause and think, but wait, when did we become such grown-ups? Since when did we learn to behave, or at the very least pretend to behave, like adults?

My parents at the entrance of Lake Xuanwu;

my dad forever acting his age (not).

These moments come every now and then, like in class when we're going through the obligatory introductions, and suddenly it's become so natural to say "Hi, I'm Caroline, I'm from Houston, and I'm a junior this year." It seems like just a moment ago, I was saying the exact same thing - but in high school and with a mouth full of braces. Time's a sneaky one, isn't she?

Trinkets? Yes, please!

Just now, Cassandra and Kylie and I drove to the bookstore to grab some textbooks. On the way back, the sky was at that stage where it's a dusty blue tinged with a bit of fiery orange and hazy purple, and the music in the car was loud - you know, all the things that tend to make the mood on the side of nostalgic. And we were talking about jobs and meetings and work, and then all of a sudden, it just hit me how normal this was. How being adults has become so ordinary and simple, and how the heck did we get here so quickly?*

Bananas, I tell you. It's all bananas.

Let's backtrack for a second, though. Right after our visit to the Confucius Temple a couple of weeks ago, my parents and cousin and I decided to hit up Lake Xuanwu - another must of a tourist hot spot in Nanjing. But to our family, it's slightly more than just a check on the famous attractions list. You see, my parents grew up together. They met when they were itty bitty monsters and lived in the same neighborhood, a neighborhood that's only about a stone's skip away from this lake.

Get them reminiscing about the old days, and you'll hear all about how they, along with their brothers and sisters, used to pile into a boat by the train station on one side of the lake, and ride it all the way to the several islands on the lake. 

They used to skip school (so hey parents, get off my case about going to morning classes, geez), and spend their days swimming in the lake, fishing for crawfish and crabs, climbing trees, and finding animals to terrorize. They tell us about the pranks they pulled, the laughter they shared, and all the grand times they had around this lake.

My mom and cousin;

we rented a boat, because on the lake was the breeziest place in the city on that day.

My dad always says that there are lots of "secret spots" on several of these islands that belong to him and my mom, from way back in their courtship days. (Vomit.) Plus, most of the {few} pictures I have of either of them in their childhood were all taken by this lake - there's one of my dad when he was a toddler, with his parents. There's a few of my mom with her sisters, all in pigtails and barefoot. There's a couple of them, with their gang of troublemakers friends and siblings, all of them grown and with their own trouble-making tots and grand-tots now. 

So yes, I guess you can say that this lake - its water, its lily pads, its bridges, its statues and weathered trees and the pavement beneath the feet of thousands of tourists - holds a great deal of history for my family. And I bet you, when my parents walk through it every few years, they get that same sense that I got today. That feeling of, how did the time pass by so quickly? How did we get here so fast? It's an outrageous moment that leaves you feeling like you got punched in the gut, but it's necessary in the way that it makes you stop drop and roll the stressing and the responsibility and all the gosh-darn thought that comes with being an adult, and it lets you just re-live the carefree past for a few seconds and it lets you be grateful for everything that we're given, all the experiences we've had.

To pile on even more sap, we visited their childhood neighborhood after we left the lake, but alas, that's a story for another day. {As in the next day that I feel like blogging - how do you people balance blogging with a life?}

Trees full of memories, and some wishes too.

Well, it looks like I was quite the Chatty Caroline today, so I'll go ahead and apologize for the lengthiness. Blame it all on the nostalgia. It's a talkative one.

--

*Also, I was so gung-ho about being an adult and all... and then I just spent a good forty minutes trying to figure out how to work the printer, and raced to the dining hall to beat everyone to the free Swedish Fish. And I completely flipped out when I saw a horse today. So I guess there's still a lot to work on before I'm fully an adult. Thankfully.

14

On Confucius's Temple, Craziness, and Coming Back Home

Over the weekend, my life did a complete 180*. On late Wednesday, I was still deep in the heart of China, and now on this Monday morning, I'm freezing my little arms off in the early chilliness of the Bay Area, California.

It was a chaotic weekend, complete with trains and planes and hotels, and a humongous Chinese holiday, elderly dancing groups, food (lots! of! food!), the best movie showings on a plane that I've ever seen, flight delays, San Francisco, my family being together, more! food!, moving in to my dorm, unpacking, reunions, and starting school. Yes, on the last week of September. I can't tell if it's a good or bad thing that we start so late, but man am I excited and relieved to be back at Stanford.

This morning has been a real busy one, getting situated with classes. It's kind of funny how immediately I've settled into my school routine - I think I'm still running on last year's schedule a bit, because my roommate and I arrived at class one whole hour early. So forgive me if I'm scatter-brained this week; it's because it's been cuh-ray-zee.

Hard to believe as it is, a little less than two weeks ago, I convinced my parents to take me to Confucius's Temple, one of the main attractions in the city of Nanjing, and always a pleasure to visit. 

It's a mecca for prayer, souvenirs, street food, and modern day shopping. 

And a lil sprinkle of gimmick, too.

But who wouldn't want to dress up as an Emperor or his concubine for some photos? 

The maze-like alleyways full of little trinkets are always fun to visit.

 Also, the circles on my mom's shirt are hardcore trippin' me out.

Just sayin'.

My favorite thing about Confucius's Temple is that it's a nice balance of the traditional (see: ancient-style architecture, a hefty history that dates back to the Ming dynasty, and a good place to observe the practicing of the Buddhist faith) as well as the modern (you are greeted by Haagen Dazs, Burger King, and Pizza Hut upon arrival). The best of both worlds, as my good friend Miley would say. If she wasn't so busy spiraling down, down, downward {dog - I see dat Pilates bod, girlfriend}! 

Snails.

Mmm. Appetizing. 

And this treat isn't from Nanjing - it's actually from Beijing,

but I needed to have one before I could leave China.

It's candied shanza - and is basically, in my opinion,

caramel apples - that's more tart and more tiny.

I have a few more China posts to share with you,

and then I'll hit the ground running with real-time, college, sunshiney California updates!

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On Getting {Culture} Shocked, Part Dos

For Culture Shock, Part Uno - click here.

Today I consumed entirely too much liquid in too short amount of time, and needed desperately to relieve myself. TMI, I know, I know, but there's a point to this - bear with me!

I was out in public and began to locate the nearest restroom, simultaneously reaching into my purse for a wad of TP because we never take TP for granted over here when using a public restroom. Puts a whole new meaning to the idea of small luxuries, amirite? 

Anyway, I finally see the sign directing me to the ladies' room, take a deep breath and hold it - then, I walk in briskly, kick open a stall door with might, and am met with with the very unsightly and much dreaded presence of ... a squatty toilet. Now, I know that there are benefits to squatty toilets {not quite sure what they are, but there must be a few}, and I've also seen my fair share of squatty toilets that come with all the fancy bells and whistles {sometimes, literally} but... IMHO, there's just a certain amount of shame that comes with literally having to pop a squat, to pop a squat.

when faced with a squatty toilet...

This is way, way, WAY too much information for a Tuesday morning, and I'm really sorry. It's just that when you're abroad, it kind of dawns on you that it's really incredible how different even our most basic practices are. We all use the loo. But, how? We all eat. But, what? We all go out to have fun and participate in social events. But, where? So on and so forth.

In smaller doses, these are a few other things that I've found shocking about the Chinese culture:

common beauty products found in Asia whiten and brighten

COMPLEXION \\ the standard of beauty over here is - the paler, whiter, "milkier" your skin is, the more beautiful you are. Basically, you're in the clear if you resemble a ghost. Once, I saw an infomercial for a cleanser that would whiten your skin and apparently it's a huge hit in America ... I call BS, you infomerciallers - clearly, you haven't done your research properly or you'd know that all we Americans need for a boost of pretty is a good bake in the Cabo oven. 

DRINKING WATER \\ in California, we are truly blessed to be able to drink tap water - this much, I've now realized and am thanking the heavens for every single day. Over here, when you are offered "water," you are given hot water or hot tea. Cold, plain water is a novelty. Forget iced water altogether. And you never, ever, ever drink water from the tap without boiling it first. Gotta get rid of the sick and nasties.

Water? Here you go.

TELEVISION \\ the Western concept of a TV show is an episode a week for a few months until the season ends, and then we wait for the next season to come on. It's very consistent. In Asian countries, TV refers more to "TV series," which is more like a drawn out movie. They only air a show when it's completely done filming, and then there are 2-3 episodes per night for a few weeks until the show is over. It's more cohesive. Rarely is there more than one "season."

Honestly, because I'm the worst when it comes to surprises and not knowing the end to things, I prefer the Asian way of television. I think it's why I'm not really a fan of TV shows that are currently filming/playing on TV - I mostly watch them when they've been off the air for a couple of years. Hellooooo, Brothers & Sisters! I think this is also why Pretty Little Liars gives me so much anxiety.

COMMERCIALS \\ on a similar note, commercials are also VERY different. USA = consistent commercials throughout an episode, and cheesus, I hate it so much when they cut to commercial right after a cliffhanger. China = at most, only one commercial (usually none) during the episode, but right when it ends and is about to go into another episode, they play a repeating infomercial for a straight 20+ minutes. Or, they'll have the same 2-3 commercials play for half an hour. I disapprove of both these countries' options. I like Netflix.

NO MEANS NO \\ or does it? In China, it's customary for you to say "no" even when you mean "yes," especially when it comes to accepting gifts or treats from others. It goes something like no! No, seriously! Seriously, no! No, stop. No, really, I don't need this. No, no! OK, fine, I'll take it, but you really shouldn't have. Don't do it next time! Seriously, don't!

...aaaaaand, thank you Jen.

Tomorrow is my last full day in Nanjing -

I'm half dreading it, and half willing it to show up faster.

Later, gators!

12

On Friday The 13th and Battle Wounds

No kidding, nothing unlucky whatsoever happened to me today {on Friday the 13th} ... until approximately ten minutes ago, which also happened to be the last ten minutes of Friday the 13th on my half of the world. It was also just ten minutes ago that I happened to glance up at the clock and even realize that it was Friday the 13th at all. So I'm just over here tap-tapping my fingers, wondering if this is some kind of twisted Murphy's Law at work.

The mishap in question is that my VPN decided to go kaput, bye bye on me. In certain countries {ahem, China} that censor material on the Internet, you need a VPN to bypass various restrictions - basically, it's like one of those proxy websites that we used in high school to get past the firewalls that banned us from Facebook and the like. Except, on a much grander scale.

As such, I'm typing as fast as my fingers will allow me to, in case my miraculously still-running VPN session decides to really, fully, once and for all, die.

---

Thank you all so much for your sweet comments on my last post. I didn't mean to give you guys quite the scare with that ominous title, but really appreciate all of you for caring! I've been out and about and doing everything my doctor told me not to do. Like showering. Even though it's an ordeal that's turned into a bit of a Saran wrap circus, it's worth not smelling like crud for nearly two weeks, I'd say.

But anyway, here I am with proof of my battle wound:

With nothing better to do except stock up on rest and naptimes, I brainstormed a few creative answers to the most commonly asked question I get recently, what happened to your neck? Well... you see, what happened was...

• Edward Cullen got to me. Vampire bites, you know, suck. Badumbah.
• It's a clever cover up for a hickey...
• From that frisky vampire. 
• I'm a stunt double for an action-packed movie, and there was a stunt gone wrong... involving knives and hostages and a sweaty, bloodied up Ryan Gosling. Or hmm, no... Matt Bomer. ROBERT. DOWNEY. JUNIOR. FINAL. ANSWER.
• I decided to be a test subject/dream come true for the people who invent the strange, yet weirdly amazing contraptions in SkyMall. New! Products to help you survive without touching a drop of water! 
• I got mistaken by A for a Pretty Little Liar.
• Just testing out my Frankenstein costume for Halloween. Can't wait till the last minute, y'know...
• Trying out life as a Build-A-Bear.

... and that's all I've got for now. For the last two references especially, click to see a gross, up-close picture of my stitches after the jump. For all you wound-wimps like me, trust me and leave while you can.

6

On Surgery and {Weekend} Shenanigans

In eleven days, I'll be tucked uncomfortably in an airplane seat with little leg room, and I don't think I could be happier about it. China has treated me warmly this summer {literally and figuratively}, and my heart dreads saying goodbye to my little munchkin, but there's a time for everyone to go back home and I'm feeling that the time has finally come for me.

My body especially wants to be back at home right now because I put it through a battering this morning, and all it wants is some mac and cheese, perhaps with some bacon sprinkled on top. My mom felt sorry for me this morning and surprised me with a bagel, a package of deli meat, and a tub of butter, all wildly expensive and from the import store, and let's just say, it made me so happy... I was close to starting a Save Paula Deen movement.

This was me all day:

I apologize sincerely for being an eyesore.

Why the long face, buddy?

This. The long face because of this.

Worry not, friends, it was nothing major. I had a tiny mole surgically removed from my neck and am already as good as new, but because I had to go into the operating room, get anesthesia, wear dorky blue shoe covers, get SIX stitches, and gave up shower rights for a week, I wanted to throw myself a mini pity party through this post. And through real life as well, but there's another name for that. It's called my parents. 

Even having a minor surgery has its benefits though {apart from the obvious health-related ones}. All weekend long, I pretty much got to do whatever I wanted. Soooo, it made for a pretty solid one. Activities included:

Saturday

Dimsum with my cousin and parents,

and then a girls' day out w/ the cuz,

starting with some makeup shopping,

INSANE 90 minute foot massage,

that included a soak in a milk and ginger mixture, neck and back rub,

and this one move that cracked every joint in my back,

and that made me feel like my entire world was coming together,

a hair wash and blowout {for all of $6},

{result},

a breather at the 'bucks,

a long walk,

and then hotpot with the family and this chiclet:

Sunday

sushi lunch with the parental units,

a jaunt out for milk tea,

and then my dad and I spent the remainder of the afternoon

listening to the radio for the Stanford/SJSU game - go Card, go Card!

Then, we met up with my aunt and mom for dinner,

and all headed over to my other aunt's house to hang out with my

other cousin's baby boy - he. is. so. precious.

And then came Monday, D-Day for me.

Here we are.

-

Linking up with Sami today!

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