Wednesday.

Today I met some really interesting musicians in a shopping area near our hotel. Rio (one of the translators on the trip and the coolest guy ever) went with me to interpret, and we interviewed some guitar shop owners about what its like to be a musician in Beijing. The answer: hard. The shops were so small that when a customer came in we had to move so they could fit inside. But they talked about the same issues facing Austin musicians, which was interesting to hear. What was even more interesting was what they thought about America. More than one person said something to the effect of,”Well, its not like in America, where you can just stay home all day and play music and the government gives you health insurance and pays your bills.” I’m definitely moving there, wherever that is. Anyway, they were really cool guys, and one played me a song by his favorite band that sounded a lot like Explosions in the Sky, so I told him he should check out that band and he had already heard them. Small world.