Just a quick one today. I've heard from ABSOLUTELY NONE of you that you want to hear more about my workplace. Well, you're not going to get off that easy.
First, the building. I work on the 9th floor.
Elevator etiquette calls for you to cram in as tightly as possible, and on each floor where the door opens, try to punch the 'door close' button before the person getting off can clear the threshold.
This is the creative area:
I know! It looks like an office! Amazing!
There's about 30 people in the creative group, three of whom speak English (the creative director, the secretary and one peer.) Of the remaining 27, at least one of them LOVES Kelly Clarkson and Linkin Park.
Here's my cube:
Now THAT monitor has seen some hard use.
The view from my window:
The buildings are walk-up apartments, between 4 and 7 stories, and they extend for many blocks. The look to have about 30 years of hard use behind them, a sharp contrast to the 2-3 year old office buildings on my side of the street. Those colorful squares are tiny shops, each maybe 10 feet wide. Haven't been in them, but there's one just out of range of this picture offering a 'full body massage' for 48 yuan, about $6. Talk about value!
My daily coffee ritual:
Eat your heart out, Starbucks!
And lastly, the view from the office:
So's you knows, I'm pretty sure that ain't fog.
IN OTHER NEWS:
A SCOTSMAN, A PAKISTANI AND AN AMERICAN WALK INTO THIS JAPANESE RESTAURANT...
...and proceed to have a very nice meal that doesn't involve any gross or upsetting food. I went to lunch with a couple fellow expats who have been in Beijing for some time. Good to meet more friendly faces.
