Thursday night : W.A.F without translator...
So, tonight, I had to see the famous Flora. A very beautiful lady in pictures via Chnlove and via only one mail of her. But it was just with one picture and she was very beautiful on it.
Many problems at first to be able to see her, first time she was "not available" because outside (out of Shanghai) and she should had been back for today and then calling me.
Guess what? She didn't. But I did call her.
When I was ready, in fact, there was no taxi waiting for me... I had to ask once again, and finally, ten mins later, I got one and I arrived at the adress that Flora gave without any problems.
I was a bit anxious because I heard lot of people singing and I thought she wanted to take me to any karaoke for a first rendez-vous... omg... we could had kill many ducks tonights if I had to sing ^^
Well, so, I asked anyone to call her for me and to say her I was arrived.
A few minutes later, I saw a lady, smart one (little?) and very beautiful, coming slowly in my direction.
So, I knew it was her and her first words were "nice to meet you", but ... the problems were only beginning.
Go and try to guess that her english is as good as my chinese is, just a few words per moments, and she was really "deceived" when she didn't understand quite once of my chinese words
I then showed her via my mobile what I wanted to say, and she said "ahhh", and she said "it's ok".
I think in fact, I heard that hundred times tonight....
So, we were looking for a restaurant, I asked her about some chinese one, and she showed me ... an italian one. I smiled a bit, I then told her "zhong guo", and I showed her all the pizzas and the pastas, and she understood. I said again "bu zhong guo", even if I think the sentence is not correct.
We walked a bit some more, I tried to do some other sentences, but even in english, I was wasting my time, and hers, too.
I think I would have dug my own hole just to sit in it and to wait one day for the hurricane to be gone away. I think I've never felt so poor to discuss with someone, even if I tried all my best to talk to her (even with drawing)...
We finally arrived in a restaurant, it was like a french one (the name was french, in fact), and she asked for a card where we could order, but with pictures on it, so that I could know what to order.
She ordered one soup for her, and 2 drinks, (like some orange juice and watermelon one) and I ordered anything else, which was like some menth, in fact. I tried something that seemed a bit spicy, I could not really say what it was, but I can say that anyway, it was quite good.
I tried so, to talk again with Flora, but all I could do was always hurting myself against the big wall and hearing "wo bu dong".
You can guess that less than 15 mins later, I just wanted to go back home and leave China definitively and never would hear about it up to the end of my life.
'GOT IT... or not?
I don't know why it happened but it did..
Flora had just finished to drink her 2 drinks and her supp and she told me something that I didn't understand at all.
I saw she went away but she didn't say me she was going to closets or anywhere else.
Gues what? I just guessed 3 mins later that she was gone, without saying any "thanks", "bye" or anything like this.
I was very angry and sad too because of the situation.
I waited about 5 mins, she wasn't back.
I then finished to eat, I asked the bill, I paid all (just 98 rmb's, so it was quite correct) and when I was leaving, she was coming back.
But I had left the table where we were sitting.
I looked at her, surprized, and same to her. She asked "why, why.... you, you?" and I replied, "dui bu qi, I didn't know, come, come", and we went outside.
I felt very bad and sad because I did a mistake, I think I should had waited more for her.... W.A.F.
I asked her if she wanted to eat, she just replied "no, no, it's ok"... but I think she was hungry, in fact.
She showed me the closets (I suppose she was there in fact...) and asked me "you want to go?", and I replied that no, it was ok... (it wasn't but I was worried about the situation)
I tried many times to explain her I was sorry about the restaurant and that I thought she was going home, she always replied "wo bu dong".
I was losing my face. Anything I tried to talk with her was like a shame for me.
I blamed to be so bad in chinese. I tried to tell her that we would need a translator, no way to make it understand...
I tried to relax, but no way... I felt more and more embarrassed and confused than anything else, in good conditions...
We then looked for some clothes, and she smiled a bit, showing me a dress and seeing if that could fit me, and I smiled in return, too. We found some nice clothes for her, but when she saw the price (429 rmb's), she wanted to go away (it was like some french shop, so maybe would it have explained the price, I don't know).
By the way, one of the sellers was a little good in english, but when I asked her to translate my mistake about the restaurant, she said anything else to Flora and she didn't understand why I wanted her to come with me at home... I just said "tell her that I'm sorry, I thought she wanted to go home in fact, because she left me and said nothing" ) but oh well... it was a very bad time
We stopped into a Starbuck's coffee and I ordered a Frappuccino, with some caramel.
I showed Flora some pictures about my daughter, she liked it, she smiled because I drawed a little face, saying "ni", and the face was sad, and I told her again "ni". She looked at me, and I said "wo yao", and I drawed a smiling face, she just laughed at it, so it was quite nice to be able to make her smile and laughing.
The lights inside the Starbuck's began to shut down and the man who took my order said it would close at 10:00 pm, and it was almost 09:43 pm in fact.
But when I tried to say it to Flora, she just saw the "21:43" and didn't understand. I tried to understand and translate but it was very hard.
I just can say that, still right now, I always feel sad about that situation... Because of the language barrier, the night was more like a nightmare than anything else, with birds, bees and so on...
She had like a pendant and I told her the name was the same as my daughter, in fact, the meaning (I tried all my best to translate "meaning" while I was drawing it. She didn't understand
So, it was almost 10:00 pm and we have to leave.
Flora, once outside, just told me "you need taxi", I understood and said "yes" but I think that in fact, she thought I needed to go home when it would 10:00 pm, but what she might have thought wasn't what I wanted to say.
I also tried to tell her I'd like to see her again tomorrow but with a translator, I drawed the word "translator", I even showed a computer, I wrote "zhong guo" on my mobile, just under, I put "translator", and at the bottom "fa guo", and I showed 2 directions. It seems that she could have understood that but it just seems.
Finally, she stopped a taxi, I first wanted her to go into it, but she said "no", so then I came into the taxi and went back to the hotel. I looked Flora 3 times and she smiled to me, but I think I can say she lived a real nightmare, too.
Once in the hotel, I wrote her directly on Chnlove, I think that there's nothing to lose or win, by now, into that "situation". Even if, before the meeting I was really happy to see her. Well, I'll see what she would reply.
By the way, Cecilia tried to join me 2 times, I got voice messages, I had to call her back, so I will see her tomorrow, so that we could eat together, by night. I'll see how it would happen, as she already knows I had to meet 2 other ladies and going to Guangzhou.
Well.
Nothing else to say, no pictures today, and I would add "it's ok"...
