the hostel

No, I'm not going to be talking about that awful movie.

I live in a hostel, and it's a decent one despite its area (Tenderloin). The building was originally an old hotel. The hostel is a branch of the Hostelling International. There's also one just a bus-ride away. If my memory serves me right, it's directly behind Macy's, on the same street with Saks Fifth Avenue and Chanel.

That's right. It's just a bus-ride away to go to the glam from the ghetto.

Nonetheless, I don't know how much it is in the Macy's Hostelling-International. Must've cost a fortune.

The Hostelling International San Francisco (HI-SF) is for EF students and non-EF-students. It's good because of the relatively fast and steady wireless internet connection, its proximity to the school in Fisherman's Wharf, and... well, that's about it.

There are three Residential Advisors (RA) for EF students. They also work as front desk people. These three RAs are way cool. There's Anthony (I forgot his last name) who welcomed me and handled my arrival. Anthony seems to be wearing black nail polish, black boots, and black slick overcoat almost on a daily basis. There's Lydia Petrovich, she's really pretty and does flawless make-up. And there's Daniel Foerste (I wonder if I spell his last name correctly), an artist with multiple facial piercings. His illustrations of proverbs from all over the world are hanging on the walls of the mezzanine dining area.

The RAs might look cool and casual, but they're also very helpful. They try to make living in a hostel, with lots of weird and severely annoying people, almost bearable: check out that star chart picture.

Theey run room checks every Thursday evening, to make sure that we don't have food or drink (except water) in our rooms. You know, to keep the bugs away. A star is given to the cleanest room during the inspection. I got a star on the first week (I won't tell you which room I'm in, though).

I guess I can be clean afterall.

Oh, and that phallic green balloon has been taped on there for four weeks. It was significantly better (and funnier) during the first week. I thought the person(s) living there would just remove it after some time. Apparently not. I have to pass this pumped penis everytime I go out of my room because the door's right in front my door. After a while, it gets boring and slightly irritating.

Well, it's still raining outside. I don't know if I want to go to ODC. And yet I have to shop for grocery for the whole week. AND MY LAUNDRY!!! It's not going to dry fast. Not in this weather.

Now who the heck told me that it never rained in California?