Day 25 in Daqing

Well, I had enough of staying here, with further delays at work. Forced a departure date for tomorrow, and since the delays were not my fault (though I did hold them back for about a day, but that was rightfully done, and one day is nothing compared to the weeks that I have stayed here), they did not hold me back.

Taxis ...
Would you take a taxi that already has some passengers in it? I guess the context had to be clearer. If you were in some god-forsaken place, without other options in sight, that might not be such a bad idea. Of course, there is a risk that the gang could be in cahoots, and there might be smoe dire consequences from entering that taxi... but I sure did not think about that while I was here. Perhaps it is just the environment, where the people are not shady and just want to go about their life. It is not so 'complicated' here. But I think in a large part, it is me. I just do not have sufficient ability to be wary of my surroundings. Especially when I am tired and frustrated.

And how about allowing your taxi driver to pick up someone along the way? Again, context. If it seemed like a preplanned thing on his part, perhaps it would be a good idea not to agree. If it were in the middle of nowhere, perhaps it is also good to ask if it is a wise thing to do. After being picked up in a partially occupied taxi twice, I was quite agreeable for my taxi driver to pick up a guy from a road off the highway towards my hotel. It was not a place where people would be waiting for taxis, but there he was. I did not even attempt to see if he was potentially dangerous. I did not think very much at all. I think I have got to be more sharp while I am in a foreign place. It is nice that the people in Daqing are a pretty okay lot, but that does not apply to other places in general. Must remember that.

Connection
It was funny, cos I had this opportunity to meet this other guy who is in the same field, and we had so much in common that it was such a pleasure to chat about everything from work to life. For someone with my job scope, I might think that the only people who could really understand what it is like are the colleagues. But even among colleagues, you may be lucky to find more than one who can relate to you that well. I think I now have someone to look up if I decide to go to Shanghai for a weekend trip now!

In the event that I do decide to go overseas for holidays... I will go where friends are... I think.
Friend/s in
... Shanghai - 1
... Beijing - 1
... Amsterdam - 2 (the other in the Hague doesn't count, since he is returning home soon)
... Edinburgh - 1
Not a very international list as yet.

But now, I am just looking forward to going home. A little more than 24 hours before I reach home!