Caroline - a French friend from Paris - came around for some internet squatting last week (the connection in her dormitory is atrocious and doesn’t deserve to be called internet). We treated her to her first ever Chinese Hotpot and she’s now a convert. Couple of pics 
Okay, went to another Temple Festival yesterday with Siqi and her cousin, only this time it was much bigger, with a lot more people and a lot more things going on. We got up nice and early and made it in time to watch a reenactment of the QingLong Emperor (Qing dynasty) during a prayer service - which was interesting. Afterwards, we went to another stage to see some traditional Beijing entertainment - Cross-talk (a form of standup comedy with two comedians, lots of playing with words, incredibly funny if you understand!), Beijing Wrestling, Chinese Magician, 快�?� (A singer with two wooden clackers - a bit like castanets - who creates a rhythm and sings along - again, usually very very funny lyrics!), Acrobatics and a few other things.
After all that, it was time for a food break. Temple festivals are very popular for their lamb kebabs (originating from Xinjiang province- where there are lots of Muslims) and today’s were not at all a letdown. Even better (and quite randomly) there was Spanish Churros for sale (deep fried donut-like twists covered with sugar and chocolate) and 臭豆�? - stinky tofu - tofu that has been left to ferment and smells like my Dad’s socks; which is then deep fried and coated in a spicy sauce and eaten with cocktail sticks… YUM!
To finish off the day, me and Siqi took a bus to the French Cultural Centre in Chaoyang District (lots of foreigners live and work here) and watched a French film (also has Chinese subtitles) called “Filles Uniques”. Its a great little cinema that I go to quite regularly (got to keep my French up!) and its less than a pound per showing for students.
All in all a great day out, gonna take it easy today and laze around in the house again
Below are some photos for you to peek at:
I headed to one of Beijing’s many temple festivals today with Siqi and some Leeds friends for a little wander around. There was an insane amount of people on the street and lots of entertainment, crafts and food stalls. It was nice to have a walk around and get involved in the Chinese New Year celebrations. Here are some photos:
I have been making this noodle dish quite a lot of late and it is really really really tasty!
The sauce consists of a spicy soup made of sesame paste, vinegar, soy sauce, dried chillies and chilli oil. Add some fresh noodles and bok choi and we’re away. If you are feeling like adding some extra greasiness then sprinkle on the peanuts and dried yellow beans.
Be prepared to break out into a sweat - the peppers used are Sichuan chillil peppers! Not for the faint of heart.
Jono
