Washing a cup takes FOREVER, b/c you have to wash it with soap and tap water, rinse it with boiled water, and then let it dry completely (b/c its not safe to drink from unless its completely dry). So, what's the solution? paper cups :)
And then there is the process of setting up our apartment. We needed a shelf to put food on in our kitchen (b/c there aren't any counters). So, today we had to take a bus downtown, go through the fruit - veggie - meat market, down a side alley, and into a shop where the price of the shelf we want depends on how much the owner likes us. Once we had the prized shelf (and veggies, paper towels, a chopping knife, cutting board, etc...) we had to lug it through the market maze, play 'frogger' to cross the busy street (no such thing as pedestrian right of way, they WILL run you over!), wait in the freezing cold for 10 minutes til the bus comes, then shove our way onto the bus (b/c in east asia, shoving is not rude at all) where people stare at us the entire way home (b/c we are foreigners). Since we can only buy as much as we can carry, we keep repeating this over and over. Some days (like today) it is just draining. The buses, freezing cold, trying to communicate, etc...
But, there are comforting things. There is a bakery/coffee shop in town that reminds me of home (although the coffee is not nearly as good as o'henry's). There is a river walk that will be gorgeous in the spring and summer. There are locals who are incredibly kind and helpful (when they aren't shoving you out of the way to get on the bus). And when all else fails, there is KFC (dont judge, its the only western restaurant within a 5 hour bus ride).
hope this gives ya'll a picture of life on the other side of the world :)
