Cooking /// KTV /// Hot Pot x2

So I've been really busy and even yet am writing this while I should be studying. I'm still alive, though my brain is being crammed with overloading information on a daily basis. I hope that my Chinese will improve through pure osmosis.

My studies have still been the biggest priority and also my biggest time killer. It's what I came here for. I'm making a lot of friends but still find it hard to practice my Chinese with them because they speak English to me.

Lately, a group of friends and I have been coooking a lot. It's so much cheaper than going out, not to mention a lot of fun. There is a little food market close to our dorm that we hit up for mostly just veggies(no meat there) and sometimes spices. I consistently use garlic and onion. We also go and get rice from the cafeteria. Overall, the meals end up costing only about 2-3 RMB or about 30-45 cents USD. It's amazing. It's helped me save money to buy cool things or take a trip(I'm going to Shanghai!).

Also, this last weekend was my first time to go to KTV. My PLU buddy Colin and I went out with a bunch of our Chinese friends to KTV(Karaoke). Here, you rent a room by the hour and can order drinks and snacks
to your own private room. We stayed for a couple of hours and had a blast. My friend Bayanna(he's Mongolian) sang a traditional Tibetan song. The girls were all very good. It made Colin and I look so bad.

Saturday night, my friend from Chinese class named Mendis cooked dinner for me. He's from Sri Lanka which is an island located off the coast of India. The food is very similar to Indian food but also similar to Thai food. Considering those are my two favorite foods, I loved it! He also made me Sri Lankan coffee and tea. A lot of the spices he uses to cook with came from home. Something that surprised me was that Sri Lankan people eat with their hands. I ate with a spoon this time but next time I'll be digging right in there with my hands.

For dinner on Sunday and Monday, I went to the .
Sichuan hot pot. There is already a post devoted to the Sichuanese hot pot so you can check that one out if you are curious. Let's just say that spicy oily food two nights in a row was not good for my stomach come today...haha. It's China though. It happens.

I'm buying tickets to go to Shanghai and stay with my friend Eli's parents. I'm leaving Thurs Nov 6 and returning Sun Nov 9. I've been reading up on Shanghai a lot and am really excited to go