Christmas for Halloween!!!

Carly threw a Halloween party at her house tonight and I searched around for possible things to dress as. Since I don't have any sort of a wardrobe here and buying clothing in China is almost an impossibility for me, I decided upon the easiest thing....I would go as China. The last tenants left a Chritmas tree, garland, a wreath and even stockings. I wore a green tank top and brown pants (I was embodying the physicality of a tree) and plastered myself with Christmas. It was a hit.

The part was wonderful.
I got to hang out with some of the Chinese teachers and I met a few more Chinese people. We bobbed for apples and I completely lost. In fact, anyone who went against a Chinese person lost....eventhough the Chinese people had never gone apple bobbing before. Go figure! Since lots of us brought stuff, I was able to try some punch (a wine and Sprite combination)---very nice, as well as some Chinese snacks----interesting. The pastry cakes were good, except for the one that tasted the way freshly cut, wet grass smells. That one wasn't so hot. I also got the chance to try something I have been intrigued by for a while....chicken. Now this is not just any chicken, it is cooked, air sealed and sold on grocery shelves for ages. You open the bag and eat the chicken wing/hen's foot, or whatever else it might be. I also tried seasoned tufo of this kind. Though the chicken tasted like plastic---the Chinese people thought this was funny to note, but they did agree---I could see myself eating it one day on a long walk/hike. It wasn't bad at all.

After we left Carly's house around 11, everyone went home, but I accompanied the British people to Harry's bar...I am quickly learning of the power a pub has in pulling British people in. Eventhough we were the only ones in costume, the band was slightly dressed up, so we weren't complete fools. It was supposed to be a Halloween party. The band was great. They were able to sing REM, the Cranberries, The Beatles, Robbie WIlliams and practically everytthing (although mostly british central) and sound almost EXACTLY like the original singers. At the break the lead singer and I had a chat about the band. They're from the Phillipines (he has a wife and 2 kids that he's saving up to bring to China), but they're in Suzhou for a year in a "Battle of the Bands" competition, playing everynight, making decent American dollars. He invited me to sing with him, but when I declined the offer he simply dedicated a Cranberries song to me (we had talked about their music between sets). Since it was a nice gesture, I got everyone I was with to join me on the dance floor (which we made by pushing a few chairs and a table out of the way. After that song they went into some Elvis and since we were all dancing in Halloween costumes there was no way anyone could look sillier, so soon, the whole bar was dancing. It was GREAT!

There was actually a point at the end of the night, where I realized something: I was in China, listening to a Philippino band sing English songs in an American bar, while I, a Canadian, sang along with 6 British people to the Beatles' 'Hey Jude." What a mixture; what a moment!