In order to better familiarize myself with Zhuhai, last weekend and this weekend I jumped on bus 69 (now coined by others as “Matt’s Favorite Bus”) to see some of the popular Zhuhai attractions.

A Bunch of Stairs Across from Jusco
I really have no idea what the actually name of this place is, it’s just a bunch of stairs across from the amazing Japanese supermarket, Jusco. The scenery way just mediocre, but I met some really funny Chinese people. It all started with a random after rain shower. I was just reaching the top of the mass of stairs and it really started to pour. I (not being very bright) had my expensive and big Nikon camera and no bag for it. So, like any somewhat intelligent person, I sought shelter under this small Chinese pavilion at the top of the stairs. I wasn’t the other somewhat intelligent person around, because soon enough their were about 10 of us under this one pavilion. The only problem was that I was the only waiguoren (foreigner). The first 10 minutes under the pavilion was really uneventful, I just stared at the rain while the Chinese children and their parents played around. That soon changed when one really cute Chinese girl came up to me and said hello. I said hello back and smiled at her. Now, when the tall white guy smiles, the Chinese get really excited. So, for the next 30 minutes I heard every bit of English that these people knew… ok, that only consisted of half of the ABC’s song, saying “how old are you”, and hello and goodbye (numerous times). I really learned that a smile goes a long way, regardless of what language you speak.

Jinshan Park (景山公)
I had planned to go to this park on my adventure last weekend, but I couldn’t find it (I blame the rain!).  So, this weekend Suzie, a Chinese teacher at my school, was my tour guide and helped me find it. We hiked up the mountain (in the blistering heat), then rode a some type of sled down… Suzie claimed I cried on the way down, but I wouldn’t believe her!

Gongbei Underground Shopping Mall (拱北地下广场)
We went shopping in a basic underground shopping mall. I bought 3 ties for 100 yuan (about 15 USD) – I’m not quite sure how long they will last, but it wasn’t much of an investment to experiment with. If you want 7 yuan (1 USD) DVD’s or Wii/Xbox games, this is the place to go. We have lunch here too. Suzie told me to get the soup, so I did. She also told me that I was eating duck blood and duck stomach (along with some tofu)… I really wish she didn’t tell me that.

Beijing Normal University, Zhuhai (北京师范大学珠海分校)
Lastly, Suzie and I went to her university to walk around. The campus is away from the city and the scenery is wonderful.

Check out the pictures on my Picasa Web Album gallery!