Last Saturday, I had the opportunity to go back to my ex-landlord's place to pay them a visit. It's always nice to visit old friends again. This time however, I was actually on the way to the library, so I decided to pop in about 2pm to catch up with them.
Well, as usual on Saturdays or Sundays, some of them are out for some fun but a few of them were around. In fact, it was rather rowdy as usual with my ex-landlord inviting his friends over to play cards. My ex-room mates were having their lunch in the room too.
The "
New kid on the block", whom I wrote about some time back is now starting to feel more comfortable. She told me she still does not like Singapore but at least the work isn't too bad. Her working hours are quite normal and she does not work on weekends. After being around for a while, she realizes that she is quite lucky as some of us migrant workers have to work on weekends too. For example, while my sister is allowed to take a day off a week, she had not taken a day off in 4 weeks, all in an effort to earn more money to send back home!
Another ex-room mate who was around was one we called "Chilli Queen" because she is so fond of hot and spicy stuff. She's also a good friend and just like me in the past, she usually prefers to stay home on weekends so that she don't have to spend money unneccessarily. Most of us try to save as much as we can in the short stint in a foreign country!
Actually, you can see (and hear) from the videos that we Chinese speak rather loudly, especially the men! A local friend once told me that the way we speak sounds like we are picking a fight! Ha ha! But that's just they way most (not all) of us speaks.
It's aways nice to visit old friends again. While I love my new room and the privacy it gives me and my sister, I kind of miss the friendship, gossips and even the bickering at the old place!
Yes, I noticed that men from China tend to talk very loudly. I remember once I had to exit quickly from a Beijing hot pot restaurant when men across my table started talking, shouting and became very rowdy.
ReplyDeleteI would say good thing you moved out. Not sure if I see correctly from the video; how come male and female tenants allowed to stay in the same big room??
The place has 2 rooms and a hall. The landlord stays in one room. Most of the males sleep in the hall and the women sleep in one room. However, sometimes, the men come to our room to join us for meals etc... I am also glad I moved out... but always have the fear that my current landlord may want the room back and I have to start looking again! Hmm....
ReplyDeleteHaha... I see. Thought I saw one guy lying down on a lower deck bed. probably, just relaxing there after a nice meal. I also noticed, most of the men are walking around half naked without their shirts on? Its a cultural thing, I guess; quite a common sight in China during summer, where men roll up their T-shirts, exposing their bellies. And the best part.... nobody cares!! That's what I like about China.
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