(no subject)
One day Anders invited us to tag along while he applied for a visa at the Soviet Embassy. There wasn’t much entertainment in those days, and Erica and I were curious to see the mission, reputedly the biggest in Beijing.
While Anders went inside, Erica and I scampered delightedly around the manicured grounds. Neither of us had seen grass since we had left North America. Mao, believing grass harbored mosquitoes, had mobilized Chinese schoolchildren to uproot every shoot. In Beijing, trees grew out of plain dirt patches. Even the parks were just expanses of dusty earth, punctuated with a few bushes.
--Jan Wong, Red China Blues
While Anders went inside, Erica and I scampered delightedly around the manicured grounds. Neither of us had seen grass since we had left North America. Mao, believing grass harbored mosquitoes, had mobilized Chinese schoolchildren to uproot every shoot. In Beijing, trees grew out of plain dirt patches. Even the parks were just expanses of dusty earth, punctuated with a few bushes.
--Jan Wong, Red China Blues