March Madness

(Note: Due to the work schedule/ too much time spent having fun on part of the author, blog posts about January/ February travels will be posted later)

So the month of March got off to a somewhat rocky start with the theft of my cell phone. However, things have improved significantly: last weekend I visited Xiamen and this weekend I am flying to Hong Kong for the Rugby Sevens. And yes, I do work full-time.

The real world means growing up and penning new chapters of life. My best friend from college started a new chapter of her life last week with the birth of her son. My younger sister started a new chapter when she scored her first job in the hospitality industry, thereby achieving a long-term goal of hers. I love experiencing the real world as an expat, but it means that I often miss out on life-changing events of loved ones.

The real world also means getting to spend your hard earned money on fun things, like bills (not) and weekend trips. A girlfriend and I hopped on a fast train this weekend and watched the countryside flash by in-between marking physics papers and glasses of wine. Our destination: Xiamen, an island city with about 5,000 foreigners.

Xiamen is bit more international than where I live and houses corporate giants like Boeing, Dell, Coca-Cola and GE. The city has been given the unofficial title of being the most attractive city in the Fujian province; it is filled with delightful colonial architecture and a pleasant vibe that I couldn’t quite put my finger on. Also unique to Xiamen is a strong western pub presence- the main draw for our visit during St. Patrick’s Day.

We occupied ourselves during St. Patty’s day with a trip to Gulang Yu, a smaller island off the coast of Xiamen reachable by ferry. Xiamen was forced to become a port city during China’s loss in the first Opium War and the Gulang Yu also reflects the British influence through beautiful Victorian architecture. My friend and I enjoyed lunch on the porch of a beautiful courtyard restaurant and spent the day exploring the island by foot. I received the distinction of being the only person to swim in the ocean among a beach full of people clad head to toe in clothes on 80-degree day.

My friend and I crammed ourselves back onto the ferry and, to our dismay, discovered a huge wreck back on the main island of Xiamen. We were told that there were no cabs going anywhere. Refusing to give up our corned beef and cabbage dinner plans at a local Mexican restaurant, we headed towards a back street in search of a taxi.

This side trip resulted in one of the most interesting and disgusting scenes I have witnessed during my time in China. I have seen a lot of things in my time in the Orient, including fish heads splayed on blocks off ice at the local Sam’s. The moment I turned the corner to see a row full of dead chickens dripping on live fowl while a woman covered in innards plucked the feathers and sliced open a squawking, live bird takes the cake.

That night, I enjoyed margaritas and the best corned beef and cabbage I have had in my life, which is saying something as I come from an Irish-American family. The next day as I boarded the fast train, I couldn’t help but think about how much I loved Xiamen. It has a very international feel and a plethora of expats, all of whom were very interesting and have a unique story to tell. I can’t wait to go back and explore more. Well, maybe no more meat markets. 再见