i have now been here for three weeks, and i feel like i'm really starting to settle in. The first three weeks were fun, sure, but that was just the romance and the adventure of being in a new place. now, i've got a job (well, an internship, but it's a reason to wake up in the morning) and i'm starting to fall into a schedule. i'm even going to join the local beijingers in buying a bike, something i'd avoided during my previous times living here. i'm very excited about this, as it will make my commute much easier, saving me about 10 kuai while giving me a nice workout. i'd always worried that biking would be tiring on my embarassingly weak muscles, but since i've discovered that beijing is about as flat as middle america, i'm not so worried.
next week is october holiday, a vacation shared by all residents of china. it's a time when a huge number of people are mobile, traveling to all sorts of vacation spots. unfortunately, i didn't get around to planning anything in time, so i'll be hanging around beijing. which is probably best, although i thought a trip to yunnan would have been killer.