Then and Now 16 - To the City

Then and Now 16 - To the City
Time: Mid-2007, at my bud's aunt's place.

This Then and Now will be a little odd. First, it takes place over three days, so I'm going to compare it to three days in my married life. It also shows me in the middle of my adjustment and unhappy time while I was abroad, because this set of experiences predates Then and Now 2 by a few days. Finally, it may seem a bit jumpy or incomplete at points because I was still not terribly happy with my new life (I was wasting it, after all), so my memory gets hazy here and there.

One day, while wasting another fine day abroad in my bud's aunt's place playing PSP, my bud's aunt came in and started talking in the local language with her nephew. When she was finished, she left, and my bud translated for me. He said that his father and sister were in town, they were going to head to the city, and they wanted us to come, too. My bud's aunt was also tired of seeing the two of us sitting around her house and doing nothing, and wanted us to get out and do something for once.

I initially protested. I asked my bud if he could tell his aunt and uncle that I'd rather save some money and stay put for the time being. I promised I would be quiet and not bother anybody, and that I would take care of my own food. My bud, to his eternal credit and my current appreciation, absolutely refused. Not only did he see how much of a lazy loser I was being, but he didn't want to bother his aunt with a request so selfish and weird (a foreign guy staying alone with an older local lady). I got silent, my way of showing that I accepted his terms, but wasn't happy about it.

The day passed quickly, with me just sitting around doing nothing with my bud, and we went to sleep. When we woke up, I no longer felt unhappy about going with everyone, but I did feel like the trip wouldn't compare to killing monsters in Spectral Souls. I prepared myself for boredom.

My bud and I packed up a few days' worth of clothes in our suitcases, then his father flagged down a taxi to take us to the train station. We got there with plenty of time to spare, so my bud and I went outside on the second floor to look at the city. I think this was the first moment that I got a good look at the city proper. The only other times I had been up this high was during the plane ride, where I couldn't see squat, and the third floor of my bud's aunt's place, where every window faced the wall of another building. Up there, I was able to see a lot of the city all at once. I didn't really appreciate the view back then, but I still remember the look of the discolored, towering buildings shading many hundreds of people walking about below, and a sky full of puffy clouds above us. My bud was smoking out there, and I decided to join him before the train showed up.

I don't remember much of anything about the train trip, other than that it was very, very long, being from one side of the country to the other and all. I guess having my PSP really helped pass the time. The only thing I remember was that when the train had come to a stop, one of the locals said, "PSP!" as he walked by, then scurried out the door. I put it away, embarrassed.

The first thing my bud, his father and sister and I did was head to the main train/bus/subway station to get us three younger travelers a quick access subway card, because we were going to be doing a lot of traveling there. Before I knew it, we were at the stop where our hotel was. We came out on the second floor of a two story train station that looked out over it, and it was a very nice place: there were trees lining the path leading up into it, and there was a little lake with ducks and fish outside. My bud and I went to our room, your typical, cozy hotel quarters. We locked up our stuff, and I left my PSP behind.

It was getting dark then. We met up with his sister and went to a nearby market where people were shopping and enjoying the night air. It felt strange, like no matter where I went, people were doing nothing but shopping, and that there was nothing more interesting to life. But I decided not to let first impressions get me down, and tried to enjoy myself. Soon enough, I was having fun walking around with the other two, checking out the wares of the shops and picking up a few snacks to eat. I was feeling better about our little trip across the country little by little. The trip culminated with me going to a souvenir shop and buying a little pencil topper shaped like Squall Leonhart, and I still have it in my memories box. After the three of us went home and slept, I decided to keep giving it my best and enjoy the trip we were having.

The next day, we went to an underground mall to go shopping. I bought a little alarm clock in the shape of a pig, and it played several songs. One rousing ditty is still firmly in my memory, because I used it to wake myself up nearly every morning for work while I was at my apartment. We walked for a bit until we came to a very big, enclosed hall. Behind us was the path leading back to the subway, and ahead was a long and winding road that led past hundreds of shops on its way to another subway stop, in case people wanted to walk to their destination and shop on the way. The ceiling was a good hundred feet tall, and there were fountains and plants all around for a very aesthetic touch.

Near a couple of those fountains, there were several groups of teenagers and young adults dancing to music. I asked my bud what they were doing, and he said they were practicing for a competition. I said I was going to walk up to one of the groups and ask to dance with them just for fun, but luckily, my bud stopped me before I made a fool of myself and said that they were too busy to entertain a guest. We watched them for a while before moving on to window shop a bit.

Later, we all went to a beautiful shopping spot by the ocean. It was my first time there, and I was in awe of the ocean sitting right below and next to a busy street with zooming cars going left and right. Every part of the ocean I had ever been to in America was at least a thousand feet from the nearest road. I had a lot more fun at the outdoor market over there than the one from the day before, while the three of us all walked up narrow alleys with tons of shops on either side.

The first place my bud and I got stuck on was a gag shop filled with tons of sexual stuff. Toys, cards, posters, DVDs, it was glutted from wall to wall with some hilariously tasteless stuff. The best thing we saw, and joked about for weeks to come, was a picture of a woman having sex with a giant bee. My bud, his sister and I then took a little boat ride around the ocean for about thirty minutes. We had to wear these geeky life jackets while we were out there, I guess because a lot of the people in this country don't know how to swim. It was a relaxing little trip, and I dipped my hand into the water and caught an old cup that was just floating around in the water while we were sailing, just for fun.

We went back to shore, then after walking around for a while, we met up with my bud's father and more of his family, and we all went to a restaurant to get some seafood near the beach. I don't really like seafood, so I munched on a lot of veggies and bread and drank a lot of soda. But when I caught people looking at me, I popped some of the nasty things in my mouth. Everyone talked in the local language, and I hadn't started my studies yet, so I just politely listened. My bud tried to engage me at points to keep me from feeling too left out, though, and we talked about old times, Guitar Hero and a few other unrelated topics.

When dinner was done, we all went to my bud's other aunt's house to gear up for another trip. We all talked in a mix of English and the local language, and everyone was very patient with me and my poor skills. When the topic of their broken computer came up, I was told it was because their cat had chewed the mouse's cord beyond repair. I quipped, "So the cat killed the mouse?" It wasn't that funny, but everyone laughed for quite a while. Before we headed out to see another part of the city, I changed a lot of my American money with my bud's aunt to the local currency, all for top dollar and no fees. I think, in hindsight, that that move helped me to eat for the month I was in the red after I got my first job. Our last stop was another market, but nothing really spectacular happened here, except eating some delicious food and walking around.

We went home, slept, and woke up to go travel around a bit more. My bud, his sister and I walked around the little pond, discussing the ducks, her plan to move abroad with her boyfriend, tons of little things like that. I was still a bit shy back then, so I mostly listened. After that, my bud's uncle took us all to a restaurant in a department store to get lunch. The greeter welcomed us warmly, and we headed up a few floors to get our bites to eat. There wasn't much to say about the experience except that the food was excellent, my bud's uncle's English was excellent and he spoke happily with everyone, and there was a spectacular view of a park through a very wide, clear window behind me.

A bit later, we all took a bus to the beach. It was a very long ride that took us through wide roads winding around many, many mountains. There were little TVs in the bus, and I entertained myself by trying to figure out what everyone was saying and doing on the talk show we were watching. The beach was fantastic. When we got there, my bud and I split off from his sister and father, and we took a little walk around a miniature garden that led up to a gazebo overlooking the ocean. We stood there, talking about old times, our current experiences in the country, and what we were going to do about housing when we inevitably had to leave his aunt's house. The ocean was as amazing as ever.

After that, the two of us met up with his family inside of a medium-sized, glass-windowed building where my bud's father or uncle apparently had friends. I say this because we were all allowed up to the VIP break room a couple of floors up, where my bud and I severely abused the free coffee and crackers they had out for employees. We ate and talked for a while, then when it started to get on in the afternoon, we took another bus back to the hotel.

Our final excursion for this trip was heading to another seafood restaurant. The bus ride over there was pretty exciting. First, we traveled through the extremely busy downtown area, and I was a bit nervous that the bus driver would hit someone. All the drivers were being very aggressive, including ours, but we still made it in one piece. We passed a lot of little shrines dotting a grassy mountain to our side just before we arrived, too. On the way into the restaurant, I noticed some guy in a car smash over someone's motorcycle. I stared in shock as he just got out, picked it up, then drove off without leaving a note. Ass.

The restaurant itself was a nice little place filled with neon signs advertising all sorts of drinks. There was a little fridge to take out bottled soda (I hadn't drunk anything but canned in ages), and the buffet was packed with all kinds of fish. I took a couple to be nice again, but mostly filled up on salad, candy and drinks. Then everyone talked in the local language, my bud came to my rescue again, and that was about it. That was my trip; we headed back to my bud's aunt's place shortly after.

Maybe it was this trip that got me ready to start living in Then and Now 2, who knows. But one thing is certain: those few days where I was pulled away from my video games, under duress, to have fun, were a lot more entertaining and fulfilling than any day I've lived in the last several years.

As for the last three days of my life...

Day 1
I woke up at 10:30.
I talked with my wife.
I went back to sleep.
I woke up again at 12:30.
I went out for job training.
I came home.
I ate lunch.
I went to work.
I taught students.
I came home.
I roughhoused with my son.
I did the dishes.
I cleaned up the floor and table.
I watched internet movies with my son.
He fell asleep.
I folded and put away dry clothes.
I played video games.
I slept.

Day 2
I woke up at 9:00.
I went to work.
I taught students.
I went out to tutor a student.
I came home to an empty house.
I played video games.
My wife and son came home.
I ate dinner.
I played video games.
I hung up wet laundry.
I took my wife and son to the arcade, then we went to the bank, then we went home.
I talked with my wife.
I played cars with my son.
I did the dishes.
I cleaned up the floor and table.
I watched internet movies with my son.
He fell asleep.
I played video games.
I slept.

Day 3
I woke up at 10:30.
I went out to tutor students.
I came home.
I watched internet movies with my son.
I ate dinner.
I watched DVDs with my wife.
I watched internet movies with my son.
I went out to tutor a student.
I came home.
I did the dishes.
I folded and put away dry clothes.
I hung up wet laundry.
I cleaned up the floor and table.
I played video games.
I slept.