Banana Man // Sanya

My friends who live in Sanya both work for a photography company and they needed to test out their new gear. So I suggested I buy a banana costume and we go to a street market to take pics and film a music video — which is exactly what we did. My friend is working on editing the video, so that will be posted when it’s finished. Chinese people laughed when seeing me in costume and little kids kept shouting “BANANA!”

Back in Beijing

It’s always a bittersweet feeling flying back into Beijing. Immediately, I’m confronted with swarms of Chinese people rushing through the airport trying to collect their five pieces of luggage from their four-day trip. Loud voices come creeping in through my headphones as people light cigarettes in the taxi line. “Welcome back!” my friends will tell me - to which I usually just say thanks instead of going on a rant of how much I loathe coming back here after a relaxing vacation. Regardless of my feelings, I’m back to work and back to my routine, which has its benefits. I like going to the gym at the same time every day, I enjoy riding my scooter instead of having to negotiate taxi prices, and it’s nice to use my computer again (which I typically don’t bring when I travel.)

On the other hand, ending a vacation sucks - a word my father deplores - but it pretty much sums up all my feelings about coming back home. I miss the weather, the new culture, the food, the ocean, the fact that when I wake up, I have no responsibilities. Traveling is great, but getting back to the ‘constants’ in my life is also nice. Perhaps one day I’ll figure out a way to combine them.