Update: China? Still here. Still bored.
Epiphany of the week: I was dining at the Kaixuanjinyue Grand Hotel when I spotted a fruit selection at the buffet. I recognized some tiny oranges that I had seen a girl eating, by the pound, on the train from Beijing about a week earlier. I decided to go a little crazy and try these miniature curiosities at the same time wondering what they could possibly be named. Upon peeling one, I realized I had seen a similar slice of orange adorning a piece of cheesecake at Thanksgiving several weeks prior. I sat pondering the citrus' similarities to a Clementine when I suddenly flashed back to a conversation with my students about Putonghua, or Mandarin Chinese. In case you haven't already surmised what my epiphany was, I shall spell it out for you. It took me over a month to realize that those "tiny oranges" I've seen everywhere across supermarkets and streetcorners are actually Mandarin Oranges... In my defence, I simply did not recognize them without their familiar aluminum and Dole "peels." I can only liken this experience to walking into a field of baby corn or seeing a legendary Spaminal in its natural environment, pre-molding and canning. No need to say anything, I know I'm a genius.