Follow the Rock

This week was the last week of classes for the first Fall term. Most of us who are on the quarter system back home are now pretty much finished, as we arranged our classes so that all of them were crammed into eight weeks. This intense academic schedule has led to sort of a work-hard-play-hard type of situation for the exchange students who are all trying to get as much as possible out of school while still taking advantage of Hong Kong.

So when classes are out for the week, a tradition has developed to go straight from our downtown classroom to our favorite bars in the Wan Chai neighborhood, which is a 2$HK cable car ride away.

Wan Chai is a crazy place that often offends Western sensibilities. The watering holes vary greatly from raunchy strip club to sports bar to French, so you really have to be careful about which door you go through. Our system for avoiding awkward situations is simple: Follow the rock.

Several weeks ago we met up with a few friends at our normal starting position in a place called Heat. We start there because the guy from Anderson has befriended Heat's Aussie owner and somehow got the 2-for-1 drink specials expanded to the top shelf. (China bottom shelf is bad news.) Our wonderful friend from Irvine had been out walking around as she waited for us to get out of class and reported that there was classic rock being played around the corner at a place called Amazonia. After a rousing game of never have i ever, (where I learned that I am quite a normal guy) we left in pursuit of the Rock. What we found was quite possibly the most kick-ass cover band ever. Six Chinese guys, horns in the air, belted out songs that every American knows by heart in twenty minute sets. We sang along to Queen, Bon Jovi, GNR, AC/DC, and Neil Diamond to name a few. Before we knew it it was 5am, although I don't know who discovered this as the band was playing as though the night were still young.