真的吗，中国政府？真的吗？

So, the great Chinese government has struck again!

But seriously, this past week I got a taste of what it must be like to really be a Chinese citizen. I've never been more thankful to be an American with the Bill of Rights. I thank the Lord for the wisdom of our Founders and the value that they, and now we, place on freedom of information and the freedom of speech. I honestly believe you will never appreciate this freedom until you live without it and I've only barely scratched the surface of what it is like to lack these rights. Because of all the international hubbub at present (at least, I'm guessing it's the reason), the Chinese government has cracked down on internet access, blocking more and more websites which also produced an unexpected and very inconvenient interruption of my proxy server. Basically, I was completely cut off from the world; I couldn't access news, blogs or Facebook. I had no idea about anything that was happening in, was it Libya? The fact I don't know for sure is a testament in it self. You know that giant earthquake that happened about a thousand miles from my present location? Yeah, hadn't heard about it until Katie emailed me later to make sure I was unaffected. Thanks, Gov, you're a keeper.

Lesson to learn from China: Never belittle Pizza Hut for being class-less.

Have you ever been to a Pizza Hut with a hostess? Or how about one that serves wine? Or how about one that serves a surf and turf pizza? Yeah, me neither.

But oh my goodness, cheese is AMAZING! But seriously, I've missed cheese a lot. Most other flavors are covered if you know what to get, but cheese is sadly lacking, which makes a Hawaiian pizza absolutely amazing. And eating with a fork was oddly satisfying and foreign, all at the same time. Also, China has something America needs: Pizza whose crust is really a circle of pigs in a blanket. Better than stuffed crust? Possibly. There are also weird things with crusts involving shrimp puffs. We didn't order one of those.

I wish I had a slightly more interesting story for you this week, but sadly my week has been full of studying and such. I pulled something close to an all-nighter Thursday night studying for a whole lot of quizzes and such and it surprisingly paid off quite nicely. Sadly, though, I've been exhausted since yesterday afternoon and have thus had a slightly bland weekend thus far. Midterms start the week after this coming week, and they will be intense. All of my classes have spoken components, including presentations and such, which could easily kill me.

Today I went down to St. Sophia Cathedral with a few friends, which was really beautiful. The weather has broken and the snow is gone. It's so different to see that square full of people and little kids blowing bubbles instead of snow and ice! We also went to lunch at a nearby place recommended by the Chinese roommate that came with us and I think it's where we came up with 'spring rolls'. Basically, you wrap up different dishes (dishes you could eat otherwise) in little tortilla-like wraps. As they're name is 春饼 (spring pancackes), I'm tempted to think this Chinese fajita gave rise to the 'spring roll'.

This evening we went to dinner with the whole program to a restaurant that serves classic dongbeicai (local-style dishes) with an interesting Cultural Revolution atmosphere. The place is all made up, with the waitresses wearing military-style outfits like what was worn during Mao's time along with performances of Cultural revolution songs and choreography. Not gonna lie, it was hilarious. Then they came on with a modern sort of comedy/musical number that involved a male singer that reminded me of a Chinese cross between John Mayer and Justin Beiber who sang songs, put his feet behind his head and chugged beer. Hilarious? Only completely. Oh, and then there was this part where he licked his own nipple. Awkward? Yes. Hilarious? Also yes. Then he motorboated his co-star.

And now I'm sitting in my room trying to justify going to be early again and thinking that if I'm not partying it up with everyone else, I should be studying. Instead I'm watching a Chinese soap opera.

I apologize for this posts lack of photos or clever, fun links for you to enjoy, but for some reason my Google images is failing me and I'm too lazy/tired to upload any new pictures. :P

Yeah, so...

Oh, I'm going to HangZhou for spring break. It'll be legit. There will be pictures. And stories. And tea. Just hold on to your hats. Those rice-picker kind.