Working through the weekend

There is an enormous amount of hustle and bustle going on outside, and the fact that it's Saturday nevertheless disturbs me. I attended an opening ceremony and orientation this morning; I had to be down in the lobby at 7:30 to walk there. The opening ceremony was in Chinese and translated to English. The orientation was in Chinese, then translated to English, Japanese, and Korean. That means it took 3 times longer than it might have. After that, my fellow English-speakers and I were sent to a lecture hall where we were informed of the laws of China, instructed on how to convert our visas to residence permits, and given the name and address of the best pub in Beijing. That last, of course, is a matter of the opinion of the officer who was giving our lecture.

In a little less than an hour, I'll set out for a party which is being thrown to let the new internationals meet one another. This hold equal parts promise and suspicion in my mind. Friends being the promise. Suspicion lurks in the corners of my mind for anything that seems entirely benevolent. ...what is the agenda? It's rare and lovely when there is none.

I also have still more banking to do today. One day this will be straightened out. That one day will only happen when I don't have to deal with the Zhongguo Yinhang or Bank of China.

T