just a brief note on the closing of my yoga studio. several years ago, the studio opened a posh studio in zhuzilin. at the turn of the year, they moved from zhuzilin to chegongmiao. the studio was not as upscale and many of the older clients left. however, the teachers were good and i continued. last week, we learned that the studio, moving to a converted factory notwithstanding, was still loosing money and would close on june 30. however, saturday, june 21, i went to find that the doors were locked. the workers who had done the renovations were there trying to get their money, which apparently the owners had not paid. indeed, for the past few weeks, the head of the construction crew had been sitting in the lobby, glaring. now i know why: the owners have clearly been giving him the run-around. anyway, tonight i’m going to another high-end yoga studio to see how it feels. i do feel less likely to invest in a longterm membership…

this vanishing is a familiar theme in shenzhen businesses. however, i’ve always treated it as a phenomenon somewhere between fact and urban myth; one hears about it regularly, but actual encounters with vanishing servers and clients are rare. indeed, this is the first time that it has touched me so directly. one of my friends clearly has more experience in these matters than i do. as soon as she heard the news, she went to the studio and cashed in her card for merchandise. then again, she can wear local sizes. i stuff myself into the extra larges and still feel an unpleasant squeeze. one of my classmates had a yoga mat and several outfits locked inside. she’s not sure if she’ll be able to get them back. in the meantime, the five of us who showed up for class exchanged phone numbers, promising to report if we had news or a new studio.

also, how can you not love the shenzhen metro website? other metro webstes provide information on schedule and stops; shenzhen gives updates on the state of construction! (right now the city is building three lines.)