The previous post is Xiamen Train Station (May 01).
The next post is On a bus to Wuyuan (May 03).

Jiujiang (May 02) · May 5, 10:09 AM

There’s no bus to Wuyuan until tomorrow morning. Hotels are booked with holiday tourists. I’m staying — for 50 RMB — at something like a guesthouse. The back window looks out over the long-distance bus station.

The nice lady here has fed me hot water from a thermos and two slightly stale but still yummy steamed dumplings. She’s in the kitchen pealing something now. I may have told her I wanted two or three more. I’m not sure — wo shua de bu hao. She says I’m the first waiguoren they’ve ever had. I think I’m off the beaten path now, and this is exactly why I tried to learn a little Chinese, and I’m excited to see it working. Conversation is broken and very limited by my vocabulary; I should have brought JJ’s book or my flash cards.

Two others have been brought in (later more came, but I only made friends with the first two). Those first two were a friendly young couple with broken English better than my Chinese. We went out late for cheap noodles and a walk through the downtown to our first visit to the Yangzi river.

I accidentally took a five minute shower, which was very rude for being so long (and using hot water).

* * *

Name
E-mail
http://
Message
  Textile Help
http://tom.spacing-guild.net/2006/05/05/on-a-bus-to-wuyuan-may-03