Inside the hostel we were welcomed by a young, smiling pretty girl named Edie. That wasn't her real name but young Chinese people give themselves English names that are easier to pronounce, for some reason they are always old ladies names though like Mavis or Bridget. We could see into a lot of the rooms around the courtyard and they were really big and homely with Chinese furniture and ornaments and their own modern bathrooms. We were shown to ours a cupboard just big enough for a bunk bed and a light bulb, tiled from top to bottom like a toilet. We had to share a bathroom which came complete with a bath mat made up from years of stray pubes and a toilet seat that fell off every time you looked at it. Why do I always pick the cheapest rooms? We were still trying to squeeze our bags into our room when we were greeted by Viviana a lady in her 40's who dressed and spoke like a hippy. Every other word she said was a swear word. Her warm welcome started with God it's s*** here! I'm not lying, we had never met her before and the first thing she said to two strangers arriving in a new place was God its s*** here. Then she proceeded to slag off all Chinese people, and said that all the food was s***, right in earshot of Edie. Now I know you might read my blog and i often tell it how it is, but at least I do it behind there backs. I decided I didn't want to listen to someone so negative and got up and left. I really believe that if you are positive it attracts positive things, and other positive people. Perhaps this explained why someone who was so s***ty was having such a s*** time. I got ready to go out having a well needed shower, I could still hear Viviana constantly b****ing about everything to Steve and I was getting really wound up, I really hoped Edie wasn't listening. I sat back in the courtyard while Steve got ready, after a while of giving Viviana the silent treatment she eventually got the message and left. It had got dark quickly, and Edie had switched on the lanterns and put some music on, the place was so relaxing somewhere between hippy and bohemian. I got talking to Edie, and she told me she was from southern China and was working here to get to experience Beijing. It turned out they had a bar down the stairs so I bought a beer which was twice the size of a normal beer and ice cold, which is very rare here. Then a slim young hippy looking girl with long blond hair came in. I introduced myself and although she was French she spoke good English her name was Melody, and she was living in Beijing as part of her travels around the world. All thoughts of going out back into the craziness that is Beijing left my head and I was already on my second beer before Steve was ready. I should mention that Steve is now much quicker at getting ready and no longer straightens his hair - unfortunately the straighteners broke - it remains a mystery... Other people trickled in and joined our table. There was Hanz a Dutch guy, the same age as me but much younger and prettier looking, he was strangely very proud of his Dam building heritage. Then there was Rikki a young American Iranian girl who was very bubbly (not code for fat this time), and Alex a French guy with a long ponytail (need I say more). They were all friends of Another Alex who owned the hostel, he joined us and eventually Steve and I were invited to have dinner with them. We ordered in and when it arrived even more people joined us there were about 11 of us all sat round a table eating, KFC, pizza and the best Chinese food I have ever had. It wasn't until halfway through the meal i realised i was using chop sticks. Everyone had amazing travel stories, Hanz told how for the last two years he had hitchhiked and stayed with people he met online, all the way to China barely spending any money and getting odd jobs when he needed. I was completely in awe and lapped up everything they said, I was also a little drunk. Before we knew it we were in a taxi on our way to a club. We got out of the taxi and the street was full of westerners, all out for a good time. Hanz got us a mojito from a guy called the Mojito man (i wonder how long it took him to come up with his name). He was serving them at the side of the road and we stood in the street dancing and drinking. The street was full of clubs but there were no doormen, no dress codes and no entrance fees. You could just wonder from club to club and they were all as great as each other. The place was buzzing and I loved it, After months of saving and planning and weeks of traveling finally i felt like i was free, and i danced like a crazy from the moment we arrived until 3.30 when everyone else had had enough.