Now that's a field trip!

Just returned from the 798 Dashanzi art district. Once again, I ditched the bus back and hung out. Wow. I think this is a bigger, more compact, district than any other city I've ever been in. It's at least as big as Riverwest in Chicago, and it lack all the boutiques and furniture stores that have lowered the gallery density there. I think it easily exceeds Wicker Park (Chicago)and Pioneer Square (Seattle) in their hey day. (Hay day?) And I will say that it has a higher percentage of conceptual (would you say cutting edge? Alternative? Not for hanging over the sofa? Dang, what would you call it. Non-decorative?) art than anyplace else I've been. It's not New York, but then again, the New York art scene has become scattered over the past couple decades, hasn't it?

Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I've put together some photos of the area, as well as a photo of Wednesday night's hot pot dinner that was had near Tsing Hua University West Gate. Yum yum. I don't remember ever having hot pot in the states. It rocks.

And the surreal China moment from Thursday? The restaurant where I had dinner had a little flood. There was about 6 inches of water at the bottom of two stairways that led under a second dining room and then up to the kichen in the rear (the topology of the restaurant is a little hard to explain). So did the place close? Nope. The waitresses just waded through it to get the food from the kitchen.