MADE IT

Well guys, I'm all moved in to my new apartment!

I checked out the place last Monday, left for Hong Kong on Tuesday, got back on Thursday, and moved in on Friday! It was a bit of a whirlwind, but I got through it.

My employer sent me a driver so that I didn't have to take all my stuff on the metro, and that was a real life-saver, haha. Actually, let me re-phrase that: I requested that the company give me a driver since they were the ones who chose not to renew their lease on the apartment or find another place for me to live, and they obliged, and the driver was exactly as convenient as I knew he would be. He did, however, arrive in a car with leather seats, so I felt a little awkward about putting my bags of kitchen supplies and bathroom cleaning products inside....oh well haha.

Pictures of the process:

The main street! Next to....the Walmart, the McDonald's, the Pizza Hut, the Starbucks, and the KFC...I may have....moved back....to America...

I hate packing I hate packing I hate packing!!!!!

but look how organized I am uwu
(this is a false impression) (almost nothing else was packed so tidily)

The apartment itself is small, but perfect for one person. It's also a lot warmer than my last apartment because there's less tile flooring and fewer windows to leak heat, haha.

I'm pleased as punch that my green bedspread fits the general theme of the room haha.

It's just all one straight line from the door~

LET ME TELL YOU I didn't realize how much I missed having a desk until I saw this.

Washing machine in the bathroom -thumbs up-

I cleaned house and took all the cleaning stuff from the last apartment even though I didn't buy most of it haha.

THIS DUDE was just stuck on the door and I love him.

I live on the third floor, right at the landing of the stairs!

I'm pretty happy in the new place! The only problems are that there's a doorman at the front gate who always holds it open and I'm....not a social person so I always feel awkward having to say hello haha (also because I'm??? a 22 year old American and people don't hold gates open and greet me like I'm some kind of heiress). I also take the bus to work now, since my apartment isn't close to any metro stations. The bus is just as convenient, but it's less sleek than the metro and traffic is :/

I did see this pretty cool handprint on the bus window the other night though 😐

Two days ago (Tuesday) I went to drop off my keys to the apartment manager at my employers headquarters, which is right next to my old apartment complex. Last goodbyes. :')

Got a mocha milk-cap red bean tea from the cafe I used to go to a lot in summer as a parting gift 😊

My new area is nice, but less decadently tropical haha. It's a more normal residential/shopping area, and not so ~free-spirited~ and ~artistic~. I'm still figuring it out!
 I've taken up running to stay in cardio shape, and it has the added benefit of letting me see more streets more efficiently than walking. My old apartment was close to this beautiful little park that I was hoping to explore more of, alas. 😞 I haven't found anything in my new area yet, but it's only been a few running days yet.
Today I actually went for a night run (our water was shut off for maintenance this morning so I didn't go then because I like to shower immediately when I get home), and tried a new road. Now, fun fact about China is that a lot of people ride bikes/scooters/mopeds etc. and these do not necessarily come with headlights, or the headlights are not necessarily required to be on.
What this lead to tonight was me crossing an intersection, perfectly legally and safely, but not seeing a man on a moped until I was just about to reach the other side. Dear readers, I jumped a good foot in the air. But not just a jump - I was running, so what I ended up doing must have looked something like a spooked horse leaping over a log.
Anyway the man wouldn't have hit me, but he looked back over his shoulder as he rounded the curve and I could see that he was laughing, and I started laughing too, but I also kept running, so I was trying not to laugh and scare the people I was passing who had no idea what just happened.

That's all for tonight... Hopefully I'll get a post about my Hong Kong trip up tomorrow! I didn't do much, but I had some....encounters.

Peace <3