"Look! Foreigners": Guangzhou Pt.1

Guangzhou was my 1st destination. I traveled there with 2 other teachers, and none of us could wait to reach warmer weather. But, wouldn't ya know it, we were stuck in the Chongqing airport for a few extra hours due to "fright delays".
. . .
Realizing that the idea of a taxi from the subway station to our hotel at 11 at night was far superior to the idea of meandering around in the dark for a few hours in hunt of our lodging, we hailed the next cab. Yeah, we would have never found it. The cab weaved down and back the freeway on-ramps and through a part of town which looked strikingly similar to the road beneath the Viaduct around Pioneer Square and Safeco Field. Chain link fences, railroad tracks, and just some sketchy alleys. But things are never as they seem in China. Safe? Sure. But it sure doesn't feel like it.
. . .
From the taxi we saw 5 black guys walking down the alley. "Look! Waiguoren!" (We always get a little excited when we see foreigners.) One of them was dressed in full Arabic garb. "Cool." They were staying at our hotel which conveniently had an Arabic restaurant.
. . .
Room 702.
We stood in the elevator looking at the buttons for awhile.
"1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6...where's 7? there's no 7. how can there be no 7?!"
By way of the elevator there's no 7, so we went to the 6th floor -- logical. Coming out of the elevator and turning the corner we saw a stairwell with old chairs stacked on one side. It looked like the staircase to the attic where they put the undesirables.
We were in 702. Quasimodo was in 701.
. . .
Needing a little fresh air and, perhaps, a late night snack, we ventured out.
"Hey look! There's a shop with Arab clothing." "Yeah, and there's another Arabic restaurant...and another...and another...and there's more black people...a lot of them...WHERE ARE WE?!" We would find out the next day from some local friends that our hotel was situated in "Little Africa" -- the Muslim quarter of Guangzhou. Mostly black people, a few Chinese, 2 white guys and a pale girl. Out of all the minorities, we were the minority of the minorities.
. . .
Click on this post's title for pics!