Travels Six: Two people in Chengdu are named Jesse Levine

This is a story that must be told. First a back story ; www.couchsurfing.com is a social networking website like Face book designed for travelers. The idea is to connect people with "couches" or empty beds with travelers looking for a place to stay for free. It works and most travelers use couch surfing - some of my best experiences in the last four months came from connecting with people via couch surfing.

About three weeks ago, in the end of December, I realized that I could email people in Chengdu, through couch surfing, and ask them about teaching English there. Its a fact that many if not most of people on Couch surfing are English teachers. In this search I came upon a girl named Jessie Levene. She's from America likes music and film and teaches English in Chengdu. Since my name Jesse Levine this was pretty surprising. So I told my friend in Dali, Jye Yang, who runs the Smile Cafe' and guest-house where I stayed for about three weeks. I tell her I just found a girl named Jessie Levene in Chengdu. Jye Yang says, she knows Jessie from Chengdu because she came to stay at the Smile Cafe'. "Really?!"

I write Jessie Levene to tell her all these coincidences and she writes back enthusiastically. She knows Jye Yang, she's amazed we have the same name, if she can help me she will, but she's leaving Chengdu and traveling for about over a month.

Moving forward a few weeks to several days ago. After a long struggle I finally pull myself together and plan to leave Dali. It's my last day in Dali and I'm kind of scared of moving to Chengdu. As I'm brewing on my unknown futures and eating some dumplings I notice a White guy with a Chinese girl lock their bikes and come into the restaurant. I was kind of taken by them because the boy reminded me of my old friend, Max Gold, and she was cute - so i was interested. And when they he made a comment in my direction I quickly struck up a conversation. They, it turned out, were teachers in Chengdu. As they were giving me some advice the subject of couch surfing came up. I mentioned Jessie Levene in Chengdu and the Chinese girl gasped. "Are you Jesse Levine?" she said. I AM! Jessie Levene had been so excited by my email she told her friends about it. Her friends were now sitting in front of me in Dali the day before I was planning to go to Chengdu. So I sit down next to them and we go on talking a while. About midway through the meal the Chinese girl, who I assume is the boys girlfriend, says that since she is not using her apartment, I might as well stay there. Her neighbor has the key and here is his telephone number.

Last night, my first night in Chengdu, I spent in a furnished but empty apartment. I have a key and will stay in the apartment for a few weeks until she comes back. Her neighbor is a nice dutch guy who is opening a bar. I met a couple other white guys last night at his bar liked them well enough. They play music out, are in bands, and seemed interested my keyboard playing.

Today, I woke up so happy to have my own place for a little while i spent most of the day at "home" watching movies. The girl whose apartment it is, Xiao Yu, has quite a DVD collection and I watched "An Inconvenient Truth" and "The Good Sheppard" before leaving the apartment.

That's the story. I realize coincidence stories can be boring second hand but I needed to share this one.