After a wonderful Korean lunch with my Chinese buddy, Qiao Yu, a lecturer on our course in London who I used to meet up with to practice Chinese and English, she Luke, Alex and I to Yongzhang Dajie, the touristic centre. The cobbled streets and mishmash of Russian, Chinese and Western architecture gave one the impression of walking down a street in a Hollywood film set where only the facades are real and the rest is interchangeable. Nowhere is the juxtaposition greater that at St Sophia Catholic Church which is overtowered by surrounding skyscrapers.
We kept nipping into shopping centres to thaw before continuing our walk and slide to the river. It was frozen! Apparently in winter (it is now Spring, so thank the lord we didn't come earlier!) cars drive across the river. In the end the boys succumbed to Pizza Hut and I drank my re shuai (hot water) and hung out for our visit to the cafe cake shop.
As soon as we got back to our 'hotel' I rushed into my sauna to thaw out. The showers are hot from 7-8am and 7-10pm, and in the evening I do my handwashing whilst showering. Tonight was the big night where I finally did the washing left over from Bangkok - the 32°C there seems like a the imaginings of a sublimly frozen mind. Then it was Cinema evening in Luke's room - 'The Life Aquatic' - I surprised myself by liking a Bill Murray film!
Tomorrow is forecast to be EVEN COLDER! It's mothering sunday - I'll skype the family who are having Sunday lunch at Jo's and then start in earnest to study. Got to revise points as I have a feeling the Dr Zhao has broken us in slowly and will be testing our knowledge more next week.
Seriously cold!
Ice is removed from the street
by teams men with shovels
who fill truck loads
The frozen Songhua river
Flood victim monument
Ice sculpture pagoda
St Sophia catholic church
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