Friday

No classes today, Friday, so one thing I like to do to is to make a little expedition across town. The ultimate goal is the Peace Corps office, but there are a few choice stops along the way. So I takde the 56 bus to the 77 bus and ride it to Sabrinas, the imported grocery store where I pick up one of the many staples of life (Grape Nuts, liquid Soy Milk, tomato sauce, or, today, some of the little creamers for coffee). Across the street from Sabrinas is one of the better known Amercian style restaurants: Peter's Tex-Mex Grill. As you can tell from the name, they specialize in Mexican food, but they also have burgers, spaghetti, club sandwhiches and other American staples, and arguably the best ice cream shakes in town. My favorite is the burrito, which is huge, and at three American dollars would be a bargain in the States, but at 25 yuan it is pricey for your average Peace Corps volunteer. So I don't come here too often, obviously. But the burrito will be my meal for the day, it's that big.

After finishing the burrito I head across nearby Sichuan University (not to be confused with my university, Sichuan Normal University) where the Peace Corps office is located. It's quite a hike acorss campus, about three quarters of a mile, and there are so many twists and turns I often get lost and rarely take the same way twice. But before I get to the Peace Corps office I stop at a little combination dvd and used cd store and see what is in stock. The guy selling the used cds knows me by now and always tries to show me something. Today it was the Rolling Stones, which I passed on, but I did pick up a Dave Brubeck cd in the "This is Jazz" series for a little more than a buck. DVDs are even cheaper.

Then it's to the Peace Corps office. Today it is to check if a package has arrived (it hasn't). I usually stop by the medical unit and pick up some hand santizer and go up to the bookshelf and see if there is anyone has turned in any new books to read. Then I see who is around and see what has been going on at Peace Corps China. Then it is another stroll to the 56 bus and back to Sichuan Normal University.