Are we there yet?
Date of writing: 6 November
If you’re reading this, I must have got my internet connection set up. I blew nearly my last cash at the Digital Jungle on a network cable, plugged it in, and got nothing. I asked BG about it, and apparently there’s some software that needs to be installed to connect to the building’s network. I just spoke to the real estate agent, and he said someone will take care of that when they deliver the desk later today.
At least the TV works. It’s a nice looking 32” wide screen set with a built-in USB port, which I might eventually be able to hook to my computer if I want. I have three channels in English: ESPN, CNN and HBO. They’re all a bit different than those channels back home.
HBO shows the programs in English with Chinese subtitles added. So far nothing I’ve wanted to see. (That’s Ray, of course.)
CNN is the Asia edition, with some of the shows based out of Hong Kong. It’s definitely a more international take on the news. For example, they’re do stories on tomorrow’s mid-term elections in the US, but we also get substantial stories about elections in Brazil, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and so on.
ESPN is also an international edition, and in keeping with the tastes of the world outside the US, they show a lot of soccer, including English Premier League, Champions League, and some Asian games as well. This does not bother me at all. Right now as I type, there’s an NFL game on, Colts vs. Patriots, and it’s Monday morning here. They also cover cricket and rugby, which don’t do much for me.
Aside from those, there are sixty channels of Chinese programming. I caught a program last night about the music scene in Thailand that was in almost all in English. They interviewed someone who is apparently a huge star there, Tata Young. She reminded me a little of various R&B divas, only a little more down to earth. She spoke English with an American accent, making me think she’s spent a lot of time in California, and she’s fairly humble.
I finally got the heat turned on this morning. I tried the thermostat on the wall, but the vents only blew out cold air, so I called the management office and they sent a man up this morning. He fiddled with something out in the little closet off the “laundry room” and did something with the thermostats, and warm air was the result. It was getting pretty chilly in here, with the temperature outside only getting up in to the forties during the day, and down around freezing overnight.
And I’ll finish with a picture I took on Sunday around sunset — that’s why there isn’t much traffic.
This was taken from a pedestrian overpass above a street called Chaoyangmenwai. This is not far from where my hotel was. The shapes of the buildings and the reflections off them really caught my eye.