Zeng Cuo An

It's about time to write a bit about my new neighbourhood. I live in the village Zeng Cuo An, on the south coast of Xiamen island, about 3 km East of Xiamen University. The village is very small, only about 400m across. It's a dense network of narrow streets, packed with low-rise buildings, at most 4 storeys high. The village still has some traditional Chinese countryside farmhouses, but most of the buildup is much more recent, in the typical bathroom-tiled style you see everywhere in China. Many houses have been altered or extended, with an extra floor added, as in my building, or new rooms build in what was once a courtyard.



The reason for all this buildup is tourism. Zeng Cuo An is right next to the beach, and its residents can make good money by renting out rooms in the summer and during the Spring festival. Almost every house in the village doubles as a hostel in the high season. This time of year the village is flooded with mostly young couples who flock to Zeng Cuo An for its small-scale charm and sandy beaches. There is no large scale tourism here, the atmosphere is very casual and low-key.
The beach at Zeng Cuo An is part of a string of beaches starting at Xiamen University (aptly named Xiada beach), and continuing eastward for about 10km, once in a while interrupted by outcrops of rock. However, the lovely boardwalk built along the coast is uninterrupted, supported by steel poles embedded in the rocks where necessary, floating over the waterline, and offering a continuous path for endless strolls. The beach almost completely disappears at high tide, when the water rises up to 5 meters relative to low tide.

In the village itself, the locals mix easily with the ever changing population of young visitors, offering each other on one side an affordable vacation in an uncomplicated setting, and on the other side a welcome economic opportunity. Some local entrepreneurs came up with interesting concepts, such as Sunny Icecream, which doubles as an Absinth bar offering a fine selection of French, Spanish, Swiss, and Czech brands, and also sells ukeleles. Not surprisingly, it's a popular meeting place for local artists and musicians.
Zeng Cuo An is home to several art studios and galleries, mostly sculpture, but also painters and musicians live here. The Dreamer House has frequent performances of international bands, and the Temple Cafe organizes full moon beach parties. It is a restaurant inside a traditional Chinese temple, serving Western food at Western prices. I prefer the small local eateries, where you can find a nice variety of seafood or simply a have bowl of noodles or a serving of dumplings.

I tried to find a map of the village, but all I could find was the map painted on my neighbour's wall. My house is located just to the left of the church (with the blue roof), but obscured by the lush vegetation.
The narrow streets and alleys of Zeng Cuo An are not shown on Google maps, neither on the official map of Xiamen which is on sale everywhere for 7 RMB. Here in the village you can buy a detailed tourist map of Gulanyu island, but a printed map of the village itself is nowhere to be found. Maybe I should draw a custom overlay on my annotated Google map of Xiamen, based on the satellite image. This is a bit difficult however, since the satellite image is mis-aligned with the street map. I don't know if this is a global issue with Google maps, but on my Nanning map it's the same thing. The satellite image is off by 500m relative to the street map, so any markers placed on one, are misplaced on the other. Rather annoying.

Wan Shi botanical garden

The Wan Shi (10 thousand rocks) botanical garden occupies a large part of the hills north of Xiamen University. We entered through the East gate on Wenping road, not far from Zeng Cuo An village. This part of the park is very quiet and without special attractions, other than a nicely winding stone path surrounded by hibiscus flowers going up the hill, with good views on Zeng Cuo An.
After a good hour of hiking, we reached the more developed part of the park where tourists swarm out in small groups. It was a hot day, and we already finished our bottles of water, so we needed some refreshments. Luckily we found a small shop selling cold drinks and snacks, but most of the buildings in this area were rather deserted.

Continuing towards the main attractions of the park, we passed a small temple amidst some giant boulders, and reached the lake near the main gate.

After a lunch of instant noodles with beer we headed for the cactus garden, but in order to reach it, we first had to cross a part of the park named the "Stele forest", which I initially interpreted as a misspelling of style forest, since I had never heard of the word stele, meaning 'a vertical stone slab with inscription'. But that's exactly what it was: most of the large boulders in this area are decorated with traditional Chinese calligraphy, carved out of the rock in bas-relief and painted red.
From the top of the hill, we could see the cactus garden spread out below. Supposedly the largest collection of cactuses in Asia, and indeed very impressive. There is an outdoor area with a sculpture group of camels in a desert-like setting, and several glass houses displaying the most diverse array of cactus species imaginable.

Xiamen noodles

Xiamen obviously has different local food than Nanning, including noodles. Rice noodles （米粉） are seen everywhere in Nanning, but here in Xiamen, wheat noodles （面） are more common.
One of the most simple dishes is Ban Mian （板面）, which is often nothing more than a small heap of thin flat wheat noodles drenched in a mild peanut sauce, with a pinch of chopped chives for decoration. It's cheap (3 RMB), but rather boring.

More interesting is Mian Xian Hu （面线糊）, pictured above, which uses thin wheat vermicelli (also known as Misua) in a clear broth. It is usually garnished with small cubes of congealed duck's blood, but sometimes enhanced by a choice of seafood, meat, or vegetables, according to taste. Each additional ingredient adds to the cost, so the price can go up to over 10 RMB per serving.
My favourite ingredients are shrimp, clams, squid, and seaweed. Quail eggs are also nice, and there is usually a good selection of meatier stuff, like pig's or duck liver, chicken hearts, fish balls, or shreds of chicken, beef or pork.
Another popular local noodle dish is Sha Cha Mian （沙茶面）, which are wheat noodles in a peanut-flavoured spicy soup, with additional ingredients added to taste, just like with Mian Xian Hu. You can find it everywhere in Xiamen.
Yet another style of noodles commonly found here is Suan La Fen （酸辣粉）, pictured below. Not a Fujian dish, but originally from Chongqing. The noodles are made of sweet potato, which creates transparent, rubbery thick round noodles, which are very elastic. Served in a spicy-sour beef broth, with lots of garlic, some green leafed veggies, and optionally a fried egg on top.

Got internet!

Today I got my home internet connection, yay!
The 15 year old boy who showed up around 3 in the afternoon to connect me was in a hurry, and not in a good mood. He did help me to get the wiring as I like it though (not through the window, but through an existing hole in the wall), but almost gave up when the connection between the ADSL modem placed in the shared space and a wall-mounted RJ-45 jack in my room failed. After some probing with a cable tester, he told me the internal cabling was my own responsibility, but then I noticed that the RJ-45 plug he had crimped to the modem end of the cable had misaligned contacts. He replaced it and all was fine. He left immediately without saying a further word.
Anyway, I now have a proper 2M internet connection, which hopefully stays connected for most of the time. In Nanning I had only one or two short interruptions during the past year, but looking at the outdoor telephone wiring here in the village makes you shiver. I keep my fingers crossed.

Authentic Shaxian style snacks

Zeng Cuo An village has a lot of small eateries, each with a good choice of local dishes. It's always a challenge to navigate the menu of these places, offering only a long list of Chinese text, without pictures to help you choose.
With the help of Xiao An, I annotated this photo of one such menu with the pinyin and English translation of every item. Hover over a the text to see the translation.

It would be nice (but a lot of work) to collect menus of all the restaurants in the village and annotate each of them in a similar way. Presented on a website, including links to photos of the actual dishes, would make a great directory of Zeng Cuo An snack food. I could even allow people to comment, or add a rating system per dish, thus creating a crowd sourced guide to Zeng Cuo An snacking.

Change of contract

Things can happen quickly. After I came home from a swim at high tide yesterday afternoon, my landlord came up accompanied by a young Chinese couple. They where interested in renting the other room. After my landlord showed them around, I spoke briefly to the girl, who speaks perfect English. They are both college graduates, and have jobs on Xiamen island, but not close to Zeng Cuo An village. However, they like the atmosphere here, and are looking for a place to live. I could imagine myself living on the same floor with these people, they seemed nice and well-mannered.
After they left (still undecided), my landlord told me he would build a wall in the shared space, dividing it in two, the better half (with high ceiling and windows) to be used by the couple exclusively, and the remaining part, which includes the stairwell and water connections to be shared.
I was left in disbelieve and anger. How could he take away most of that lovely big space, after I had signed a contract for a year? he might as well have removed the windows from my room. Unbelievable he would do that. I could not talk about it, because I needed the help of Xiao An for translation, and she was out.
Later that evening, we spoke to him. It turned out that the couple did not want to share any space. Fair enough, but then go find another place, I would say. But they negotiated a deal with my landlord to build that wall, and then they would have 2 rooms, and pay 1500 RMB per month. My contract for my room and use of the large shared space is set at 900 RMB per month. I would surely get a big discount if I would be deprived of that extra space. With the wall in place, their space would be twice as large as mine, so it would be fair to charge me half their rent, or 750 RMB. Still, I was very unhappy with this plan, my room suddenly became a lot less attractive.
After a lot of talking by Xiao An (again deserving huge credit!) we arrived at a new deal: I would rent the whole floor for 1600 RMB (as was also proposed when I first saw the room last week), and could find another tenant by myself, or just keep the whole floor to myself. They would not interfere anymore.
Well, that was a good deal after all. We sat down and wrote a new contract. I would pay the extra rent and deposit as soon as possible. The couple will not be very happy when they hear about this, since they already had payed a 1500 RMB deposit, but had not signed anything. Of course the landlord will reimburse them, and probably has to offer an extra amount for compensation.
After the initial shock, I now feel quite pleased with the situation, and happy that my landlord did not push it through for the sake of more money. By abandoning the deal with the couple, he misses out on 650 RMB per month extra income each month. Thankfully, fairness prevails over greed.

After it all sank in, I felt hugely relieved that I now have complete control over the whole floor. I could find a new tenant, possibly a classmate, which would halve my monthly expenses on rent, internet access, and other shared cost, like buying a fridge and washer. On the other hand, I have the option of keeping the floor to myself, and use it for other purposes. I already imagined a wild idea: to start a small artist residency here in Zeng Cuo An, which is already a place favoured by arty folks. I could invite artists from Holland or elsewhere to stay for a month or more (at their own expense, of course).
I could use my dormant nonbreakingspace foundation, registered in Amsterdam, to organize this. Setup a website, create some buzz, etc. I already came up a nice sounding Chinese name: 老马艺家 (Lao Ma Yi Jia). Haha!

+86 1516 002 1734

That's my Xiamen number. I needed a new local number, not only because using my Nanning number is more expensive outside of Guangxi province, but more importantly I need a local number to get internet access. The internet provider is affiliated with China Mobile, and they both use the account info for shared registration. Without a local registration you can not get internet connection to your home. My landlord does not have a computer, so there is no internet connection. However, there is a telephone cable directly to my room, which can be used for ADSL. I ordered a one year subscription today (2M at 600 RMB for the whole year, plus 58 RMB for a modem). I have been using open WiFi networks the past days, but they come and disappear at random, so that's not a permanent solution. I should have my private connection within a few days.

My Address in Xiamen

I live in Zeng Cuo An village, which is on the south coast of Xiamen island. This is my address in Chinese (copy & paste to envelope or mailing label):

361005

中国福建省厦门市思明区
曾厝垵村曾厝垵社352号

马克 (15160021734)

CHINA

Put the postal code (361005) in the top left corner of the envelope or mailing label. The last line is my name in Chinese and my phone number. Please include it, so I am notified when mail arrives.

The sender's address is put on the bottom right or bottom left, or on the back. Use smaller text for the sender's address to avoid confusion.

My global coordinates are: 24.4323,118.1205.

Contract signed!

Yesterday morning we went out to continue the search for a suitable apartment. Here in Zeng Cuo An village we had already seen about everything available, so we went to the neighbourhood around Xiamen University again to check out some more real-estate agents. There is not that much available in the price range up to 1500 RMB, but we saw an affordable (1300 RMB) but very small room at the 31st (top) floor with a tiny balcony, but super view, looking east towards the sea. This tiny room (12 m²) without kitchen was in a rather curious hotel-like arrangement of rooms across two floors all belonging to the same apartment (shared front door), but each with its own bathroom and balcony. There was also a much larger one available for 1700 RMB (36 m²) with a larger balcony with even better view to the West, overlooking the bay and Gulangyu island. Quite impressive, but also without kitchen.
The other offers were all less interesting, so this left me with the choice of a nice but not so big room in the village, or a tiny high-rise apartment with a view. In the afternoon I decided in favour of the village. The atmosphere in the village is so much different than in the city, so relaxed and casual. The proximity to the beach (250m from my doorstep) and the peaceful environment (green hills at equal distance to the back) made me do it. We went over to announce my decision, but there was a problem. That same morning, another man had inquired, and after seeing the rooms, had announced he wanted to rent both. The landlady had promised us to keep it for a day, so she did not accept the man's offer, even though he was willing to pay on the spot. It turned out that the landlady thought I would also rent the whole floor, instead of just one room. But when I said I would need only one, she hesitated. It took Xiao An quite a bit of sweet talking to convince her she should give it to me. In the end, she agreed, but now I have to pay 900 RMB per month instead of 800, unless I find a tenant for the other room. In that case she would bring it down to 800 again. I agreed to this condition, so we sat down and filled out the contract, and signed the deal. I payed one month rent and one month deposit on the spot, and told her I would pay the remainder (another 2 months) tomorrow, after going to the bank and to the police station to register my new address.

The address registration at the police station this morning was a surprisingly quick and easy affair. In Nanning it took me 4 visits to the police to get all the papers, stamps, and signatures in order, but here all I needed to show was my rental contract and passport. I had made copies of everything (my passport, the contract, my landlady's ID card, and I had spare passport photos), but all that was not needed, unlike last year in Nanning. Just 10 minutes later I walked out with a stamped registration of my new address, which I will need later to extend my residence permit, after registering at the university in September. My current residence permit is valid until September 15, so I can still use it to re-enter China after my trip to Holland in August. Splendid!

Apartment hunting in Xiamen

We arrived in Xiamen much earlier than expected. Instead of the anticipated 25 hours, it took our overnight sleeper bus only 15 hours to cover the 1500 or so kilometers, which means we arrived at 4:30 in the morning. The bus was parked in a quiet street in downtown Xiamen, near the bus station. Most people got off, but the driver let us sleep for another hour and half, until the bus finally drove up to the staton. We took a taxi to our hostel in Zeng Cuo An, where we arrived at 7, after having to ask for directions many times in the narrow streets of this seaside village on the south side of Xiamen island, not far from the university.
Nobody seemed to know the place. Finally a street cleaner pointed it out, less than 50m from where we were standing. At the hostel everybody was still sleeping, but Xiao An managed to wake somebody up and have her agree to store our sizable luggage. Our room was still occupied and we could not use it until noon, so we left for breakfast.
I had booked the room for 5 days, to allow enough time to find an apartment, but it soon became clear that we wouldn't need that much time. We spent the morning scouting rooms in the village, which I had chosen on my previous visit in May as one of two areas most suitable for living. The other being the direct surroundings of the university, or even on campus. The reason it seemed suitable was that this village has a unique atmosphere that you won't find anywhere else on Xiamen island. With its narrow winding streets and low buildings, and its location right opposite the beach, it's hard to beat. It's a place where quite a few artists live, and there are a lot of small bars and eateries. Because of its proximity to the beach, the area also attracts a lot of tourists (almost all Chinese), and there are many hostels. The road along the beach is dotted with large restaurants, some of them right on the beach in modern glass architecture offering superb views while dining in style.
In the village, rooms and apartments are offered for rent directly by the owners, instead of through agencies as in the more urban areas. Available space is posted on walls and telephone poles, with a short description (only in Chinese) and a phone number. Xiao An proved invaluable here as my real-estate agent, making the calls and asking for directions. Some people refused to rent to foreigners, but we found one nice room on the top floor of a 4 storey building, which was obviously added later. There where two equal sized rooms there of about 16 m², each with a private bathroom with western toilet (which seems to be the norm in Xiamen, unlike Nanning, where the squat toilet is standard in even the newest apartments). There is also a larger shared space, with big windows, but no kitchen. The water and drain connections are there, but no appliances. The rooms are also quite bare, with only a double bed, a wardrobe, a desk, and A/C. Everything new, but rather spartan.
The rooms were offered at 800 RMB each, and the landlady suggested I rent both, to avoid trouble with another tenant in the other room. I would have the whole floor for myself. It does seem like a good offer, but I don't really need two bedrooms, let alone two bathrooms.
After viewing this room, which was the best on offer in the village, we also visited some agencies to see what they have. A bit further up from the coast, but still in Zeng Cuo An, there is an area with high-rise apartment blocks. This is also where the apartment is which I visited in May, where the students of the Sandberg Institute lived for some time. However, it is now abandoned by the institute. We saw some 2-room apartments with kitchen and balcony, going for 1500 to 1700 RMB a month, but they where not really very attractive. A bit old, with musty furniture, aging appliances, and spotty bathrooms.
We took the bus to Xiamen University, and after a very nice and expensive iced mocha, served in a tall glass with whipped cream on top, we visited some agents there. I had seen some apartments in that area in May already, so I knew what to expect. Prices are higher here, from 1500 to 2000 and more for a 2-room apartment of 30 to 50 m². We saw some, but again, nothing very attractive.
I set a limit for myself of 1500 RMB a month, with is already 50% more than I spent in Nanning. Xiamen is quite a bit more expensive, and I rather spend my money on food and other pleasures than just the monthly rent. That said, the 800 RMB room in Zeng Cuo An is at this time my best option. I will have to buy a fridge, and maybe a washing machine, but that will total to no more than 1000 RMB, so overall not such a big expense. Today we will go out again to view more apartments, but I think I will make my decision very soon, tomorrow at the latest.

All packed up for Xiamen

It's amazing how much stuff you collect in less than a year's time. I came to China 10 months ago with just my small trolley (cabin size) and a shoulderbag, and now that trolley is already too small for only my clothes, let alone all the electronic hardware and books I like to bring to Xiamen. Luckily, Xiao An gave me another, much larger trolley, which I stuffed with as much possession as possible, including my rice cooker, electric kettle, electric hotplate, books, and the bulky winter clothes I bought when it was unexpectedly cold here last January.
I have to leave behind a lot of kitchen stuff though, there is simply not enough space to fit al the pots and pans, bowls and glasses I bought, so I gave them all away to Gary and Jing last night.
I will also bring my 'rabbit' blanket and bed linnens. Bulky, but not too heavy. Since I will be traveling with Xiao An, it should be manageable to get everything onboard the bus. It leaves at 11:30 tomorrow morning, and before that, at 9 o'clock, my real-estate agent will come over to handle the check-out, collect the key and return my deposit. After that, we have to leave with all our stuff, go to the bus station and just wait for it to depart.
I have booked a cozy hostel in Xiamen near the beach for 5 days. Hopefully that will allow enough time to find a new apartment. It is a bit weird to leave Nanning behind after living here for 10 months. Earlier this evening I went out for a bite with Xiao An, and walked home along Huo Ju Lu one more time, bought a bunch of fresh lychees on the street (now in season), and spent the last hours in my empty apartment. I will probably come back to Nanning one day...

Last days in Nanning

Just a few days left before leaving Nanning for good. The past week has been filled with goodbyes and well wishes. Last Sunday I joined a Japanese dinner party downtown with a group of  former classmates and some English teachers I never met before. Most of my classmates have left already, some of them will return for another term in September, or will start a Bachelor's. Others will just go home, or move to another place in China, like me.
I had a nice lunch on campus with 8 of my Chinese friends. They also have left by now, or will do so soon. I met Robert, the other Dutch guy here, at the pool a few days ago. He will stay in Nanning for at least another semester. And tomorrow evening I will have a beer with Gary, my ex-classmate from Australia, who married his Chinese girlfriend recently, so now has a more permanent residence permit. I will give them some of the stuff I can't carry to Xiamen.
I also saw Yanyan one last time. It was a bit strange to say goodbye to her in a slightly detached way, but she didn't seem to be much affected by it, instead looking forward, as always.
I still have to start packing, but that won't take much time. My bicycle is not much good to anybody with the crappy wheel. I will just leave it unlocked in the parking. Someone will find it.

Lotus

Guangxi University has several large lotus ponds on campus, and the flowers have been in full bloom since late May, attracting hordes of amateur photographers. The pink flowers are rising high from the shallow pond among large green circular leaves up to 60 cm in diameter. I took the photo above at a similar lotus pond in Zhong Shan park in Xiamen, when I was there at the end of May.
By now many of the flowers have developed their characteristic seed pods (pictured below), which are harvested by entrepreneurial locals who sell them on the street for 0.5 RMB each. Xiao An bought a couple and brought them home. The seeds held in the conical pods can be eaten raw. They can be pulled out of the the pod, and their soft skin is easily peeled off, resulting in a small white fruit with a nutty flavour and a dark brown stone.

Travel schedule

Last night I added another trip to my already pretty busy schedule for July/August: a visit to my mother in Spain. It has been more than two and half years since I last saw her, so it's about time. Here's an overview:

Date	From	To	Departure	Arrival	Remarks
July 12	Nanning	Xiamen	11:30	12:30 +1	By bus, with Xiao An
August 2	Xiamen	Beijing	20:30	23:15	Sleep at airport
August 3	Beijing	Amsterdam	7:45	17:00	Stop-over in Vienna
August 10	Amsterdam	Menorca	10:00	19:55	Stop-over in Barcelona
August 17	Menorca	Amsterdam	7:20	15:20	Stop-over in Barcelona
August 30	Amsterdam	Xiamen	16:50	10:15 +1	Promo-Award ticket

Bus vs. train

For any destination in China reachable by train, you also have the option to travel by bus. Bus travel is generally faster, but a little bit more expensive (except for high-speed trains, but they are as yet not available in my part of China). The train network is government controlled, while long-distance bus services are run by private companies, often with fierce competition.
For the route from Nanning to Xiamen, the train service is quite slow, taking 28 hours to cover the 1667 km, at 351 RMB for a so called 'hard sleeper' ticket, which is actually quite comfortable. I used this type of travel for my trip to Xiamen in May. Recently I discovered the bus service is only slightly more expensive, at 360 RMB, yet runs a bit faster, at 25 hours. More importantly, the hours are far more favourable, leaving Nanning at 11:30 instead of 5:15 for the train. The train originates in Kunming, Yunnan, and it passes Nanning in the middle of the night. For my last trip this was not really a problem, but next week I will be leaving Nanning for good (at least for the foreseeable future) and will take a lot more luggage, and more importantly, have to hand over the key and collect my deposit from my real-estate agent during business hours.
If taking the train, I would be forced to get a hotel room near the train station to get some sleep before lugging my stuff to the train in the middle of the night. The bus on the other hand leaves just before noon at 11:30, and from the Beida bus station which is at walking distance from my home, so I can drop off the key on the way to the bus. Very convenient. So, I decided to take the bus this time.
A sleeper bus is a bit less comfortable than a train, as you can not walk around or go for a beer in the restaurant car or to the toilet whenever deemed necessary. Instead you have to rely on the scheduled stops for food and sanitation. Nevertheless, in this case I decided in favour of the bus.
Other good news is that Xiao An will join me to Xiamen. I had invited her already several weeks ago, but she was not sure if she could make it. Finally she said yes, so now I not only have a travel companion, but also a good translator to help negotiate deals for my new apartment in Xiamen. For her it will be the first time she leaves Guangxi province, so also very exciting. After 3 weeks in Xiamen, we will both return home, me to Amsterdam, and her to Nanning.

My last ride

With just a week to go before leaving Nanning, I had an accident with my bicycle. While navigating the chaotic traffic in front of the main gate of Guangxi University, I was hit by an older couple on an electric bicycle (an older model, with heavy lead-acid battery). We both saw it coming, and both braked, but it was too late, and they hit me from the left on my rear wheel, which folded on impact. It was a low-speed hit, but the mass of their vehicle easily destroyed my rear wheel. Nobody was injured.
The Chinese usually remain very calm after a traffic incident, all smiles and apologies. In this case it was the same. The driver looked at the damage and told me he could replace the wheel himself, no problem. I did not understand everything he said, but Xian An was with me, so could translate. Luckily she was not on the backseat while it happened, but walking just ahead of me, through the maze of waiting taxis and moto-tricycles, pedestrians, and motorized traffic.
The man drove away to get a new wheel, while his wife stayed with us. They both live and work on campus, probably as maintenance workers. The man apparently used to be a bicycle repair man, that's why he was so confident in fixing the damage.
After quite a while he returned with a rusty wheel, fitted with a reasonable looking tire, inflated hard. It took him only 15 minutes to replace my broken wheel, including transferring the sprocket, with a minimum of tools (a hammer, an adjustable wrench, a screwdriver, and a nail). I had replaced the outer tire on the broken wheel just a week ago, so he was so kind to transfer it to the front wheel, which tire was almost worn out. I did a quick test drive, and all seemed ok.
However, the next day I didn't feel so happy anymore, since the replacement wheel seemed to have some trouble. It didn't ride very smoothly, especially under heavy load, with Xiao An on the back seat (no offense). The ball bearings are completely worn out, so it feels like you're riding with a flat tire. I will leave my rusty vehicle to rest in peace, and will spend my last days in Nanning on foot.