ni pang ma?

class started yesterday - 2 days down and i really like it so far. as for learning, i can say hello, how are you, and other very basic conversation points. i can't yet ask for the toilet (apparently that's higher level) nor can I say yes. both japanese and cantonese use "hai" so i'll go with that for now. in my class are 2 other people: chris, a 30 something guy from the netherlands who's decided to take 6 months off his job to teach scuba in the phillipines (and learn a little mandarin in the meantime) and akiko, a 30 something ecuadorian/japanese woman who has recenty moved from new york via tokyo. of course while living in ny, she lived in the wellesley on 72/3rd....know it? chris is only taking the class for 2 weeks while akiko will be there for the long haul with me. a whole 8 weeks. it will go by faster than i can imagine. i'll be able to sleep tonight knowing you are now on a first name basis with my classmates. yippee.

it finally cooled down here. its in the low 20s (c) so its around 70. pretty sweet. it didnt make sense before when people were shopping for sweaters and jackets - still doesn't really - but at least now they'll be able to wear another layer. my buddy here ricky everyday tells me its "fucking cold" even though i consider this weather really enjoyable. he called off his wakeboarding the other day cause the water was gonna be too cold. i called him a bitch and he wasnt sure what that meant so we were all set.

i saw quantum of solace the other day. it was action packed, similar to casino royale. apparently the chileans are furious since they filmed it in chile but claim it takes place in bolivia. i'm not too sure of the politics down there but i guess i'd be pissed if they filmed something in stupid canada and said it was new york. im sure that happens all the time but don't tell me. actually i couldnt give a shit it probably does happen all the time.

the movie theatres here make so much sense. you choose your seat before you walk into the theatre, so you know what you're getting into. there is even a live map online so you can book online and pick your seats. this is fucking genius. if you knew your seat would suck, you wouldnt go to a movie. they also charge different prices depending on the day of the week and the time of day. this is no matinee system. fuck the matinee system. discounts go pretty late in the day as tickets slowly become more and more expensive. the most expensive show is still under US$10 and the theatres are pretty nice. theres supposedly an imax theatre in kowloon. i'll see anything in imax i'm still pissed at myself for not seeing the dark knight in imax. speaking of pissed, i enjoy imax so much, i'd probably watch r. kelly peeing on a girl if it was in imax. maybe i'd watch that anyway. unclear.

i was really proud of myself today. like a jackass, the day i got here, i blew out the power to my iHome ipod player by not converting it appropriately. good work, asshole. i was sure i could find a new power plug and today i did! i went to this bootleg computer centre in wan chai - turns out about 7 buildings away from my class - and went to this random stall where this guy had what i needed. not only did he have what i needed, but it came with the piece so that i can use it when i get back to the states. whenever that may be. for hk$130, i'm amped. its around us$15 which was more than worth it to believe i have a decent brain. i probably got ripped off and probably could have haggled the guy, but i was so psyched to be able to listen to my ipod in my apt that i didnt really care. ballinoff!

all of that joy went away when i left my atm card in the atm machine later today. butterdrums! i guess i was in such a good mood from the power adapter that i didnt give a shit about my atm card. good work. i hope someone found it and withdrew the remaining us$112 in my account. go ahead and have it! i figured it out when i went to this store called IT (sweet hong kong brands) and paid for these 5cm jeans and didnt see my stupid atm card. i was like "fuck!" at the register and the girl behind the counter was like......um, did you think these were cheaper? or are you mad that we can't communicate? the answers, in order, for the record, were no, and definitely! no problem though, i called citibank on skype (skype me! name is dannykirschenbaum) and had them cancel my card and send a new one to another branch in central. not bad at all. could have been much worse.

here is a street level view of my hood......




ladies and gentlemen, i present to you hysan avenue. i know, it's nice. can you see that mercedes dealership in the back? do you think that guy behind me knew i was taking a pic so he jumped to that pose? he looks good. i high fived him immediately after i realized what he was doing. he wasn't into it, but he also wasnt against it. i don't blame him at all.

as a final thought, if you haven't purchased/downloaded/stole john legend's new album, evolver, don't even finish reading this entry and go get it. if you can tell me how to send it to you, i'd be glad to do so. now i can listen to it as much as i want with my ihome ipod player. fuck yes. oh, and in case you don't speak mandarin and are wondering the title of this entry........

ni pang ma........are you fat?