Chinatown

Brit boy (the young man I met at the hostel who needed a blog name) and I decided we wanted to explore Chinatown. I had read a lot about Chinese opera in several tourist books. When we inquired about tickets we were even told to book early because it fills up fast. Needless to say, I was expecting something spectacular.


So Brit boy bought tickets for the two of us and we made plans to hang out that night in and around Chinatown. When I got home that evening, I decided to have a little fun and I actually put make-up on! I figured it might be nice to look good for an evening at an opera performance. We boarded a bus and headed into the city. While on the bus he told me how the place was really small with a very tiny stage. Basically it was a restaurant with a simple step up onto the "stage." We joked about being the only ones and how weird that would be. I would have never expected that, since we had to get tickets early...After a short walk through Chinatown we came to a simple door behind a street market.

When the door was opened I felt as if I was entering someone's house. It was so small and we were the only ones there. We were running late, so I thought to myself, "we can't seriously be the only ones tonight?" Well, we were. After being seated an old Chinese women brought out a simple soup and turned on a tv that was playing a Chinese opera. I started giggling as I looked over at Brit boy and said, "do you think that is our Chinese opera experience?"

We hoped it wasn't as we continued to be served our dinner. I found out that Brit boy did not know how to use chopstick! It was a good meal, but definitely simple, like I was invited over for a family dinner. Shortly after our plates were cleared, we thought more guests would appear for the "performance" but actually it was just an older man who gave the presentation. He spoke for thirty minutes about Chinese opera. I started to worry that I was only going to learn about Chinese opera and not actually see any of it. Then two people appeared who were dressed in elaborate clothing with caked on make-up. Here was the performance I had been waiting for.

As Brit boy and I prepared for the show I noticed that the old man pressed a button on a CD player. The music started and so did the singers. It was a recording and the two people in front of us were lip-singing! LIP SINGING!! I could not believe it. We paid money to see a "mock" Chinese opera. And the sad part is that they only performed one song. I had no desire to take a picture, except the old man practically forced us. He was very proud of his two actors that we took a pictures before we left. I think we were both disappointed with the experience. It was a waist of our money, but it really made for a funny story. Brit boy and I heeled over laughing when we walked out the door. I only wish I could write in words what it was actually like.

Although it was a weird night, it also had a way of bonding us. We had something fun to laugh about as we walked around the street markets. We even did a bit of flirting as we were purchasing souvenirs. I could tell he didn't want the evening to end as he asked me if I wanted to share another dessert. So we sat down at a restaurant and picked a local treat. It was a type of pudding, but looked more like jello with lycee fruit on top. It tasted gross to me, so I just ate the lycee fruit. Then we headed back to the hostel, but neither of us was tired. So we talked for a while on the rooftop. I thought he might give me a kiss goodnight, which I would have welcomed, but he only hugged me as we headed downstairs to go to bed. No worries though, it was still on his mind. As I was about to wash my face and brush my teeth he stopped me in the hallway to say goodnight with a simple kiss. I fell asleep that night with a smile on my face knowing that tomorrow was going to be a great day!