We all have regular habits that preserve our sanity. Maybe we find solace in our daily routines. We watch our favorite movie or listen to our favorite song; we follow a run with a piece (or pieces) of chocolate; we have a martini at the end of a long week. When you live in Huzhou, or at least when I/foreigners live in Huzhou, the sanity-saving martini is getting out of Huzhou. In my case, getting out every three to four weeks at most.

Because Shanghai is full of things that provide relief. Like City Shop, where I can gaze longingly at tubs of yogurt and cream cheese and at boxes of Cinnamon Toast Crunch that retail for over 10 USD.

In Shanghai, there are cupcakes.

Huzhou doesn’t have cupcakes.

In Shanghai, there are quirky, colorful international neighborhoods nestled among the humming beige blandness.

There are historical sites to be stumbled upon, like some important Communist Party meeting house and its garden.

And then there are the things that provide relief that aren’t exclusive to Shanghai. Like boyfriends/husbands who hold their girlfriends’/wives’ purses for extended periods of time without worrying about jeopardizing their masculinity.

And grandfathers with their granddaughters. [And the grandfather’s comb-over no longer ‘over’]

And babies with shocking hair.

And fathers with their babies.

And getting caught taking a picture at just the right time.

Lately, I’ve felt like my life has been lacking in a coping mechanism. I’ve got cooking and a few friends and the gym, but I’ve been missing that outlet. Luckily, Shanghai is like a power strip for my outlets.

I started playing the viola in the fourth grade. I started to really get into it around seventh or eighth grade. My grandparents bought me a super nice viola that I affectionately named Gustav. Then viola took precedence over every sport and club I did. I was in a ton of orchestras and quartets and orchestra pits. I wasn’t a particularly gifted player, but I worked hard and made first chair. And then I went to Wellesley. And I tried to play the viola there, but so many things just didn’t fit.

So after my first year, I stopped.

And I got busy with other thing. Like movies. And I got unhappy, and found unhealthy outlets.

When I was home this past summer, I seriously considered bringing Gustav back to Huzhou with me, but it’s a heavy, bulky case, and with two suitcases already, it would be tough to schlep all the way back. So I left Gustav in America.

But this year without yoga or movie-making or movie-watching has left me with fewer physical and creative outlets. So last weekend, I went out to Shanghai and bought myself my third viola, with a case, bow, shoulder rest, and music book.

Have you ever wondered how much sanity costs?

1800 RMB (roughly 300 USD). That’s how much.