2007 trip to china - highlights
where do i begin? after over a week of rest and adjustment, I am finally sitting at my computer typing. Allow me begin with some highlights of this trip perhaps. Aside from being treated like a crap or looked down as a peasant girl or feeling compressed like a canned sardin riding in the subway, perhaps one of the most unexpected is seeing an ad for Hooters' openings in three cities on the back of the front passenger seat of a cab. five girls posed for the ad, wearing the same Hooters' outfits except underneath the owl is the word China. I wondered if buffalo chicken wings will be a big hit.
honestly, I don't know how I am suppose to dress so my fellow chineses won't think I just came from rural areas. The general comments from my relatives are such that I haven't changed much the way I dress, plain that is, and that I am not dressed like those westerners. I was confused, tried hard to figure out what it is that I am missing. In my mother's hometown, pretty much every woman wore a pair of high heels, whether the shoes matched with the outfit or not. I don't see how comfortable it is wearing high heels while in sporty pants, but apparently it is the trend.
As a result of my dressing down, I was dragged and pulled by a fellow woman on the train. She tried to push her cart through the narrow corridoor, while I pulled my big suitcase behind me waiting to get off the train. For a few seconds I hesitated how I should move in this tiny area to let her pass. As I turned, lifted my suitcase, the woman grabbed my shoulder, pushed me to the side, then dragged my suitcase. I was in a state of shock, stared at her in disbelief. the funny thing there was a piece of paper stating how to be a good citizen framed and hung on the wall of the train.
to sum it up, service is still horrifying in china. I don't think hanging a few slogans to teach people how to behave is going to change all that by 2008 in time for the olympics.
The best thing I did was a trip to 庐山. I have been there a few times when i was quite young. although this trip took only a day, its beauty will be engraved in my memory. 庐山 is known for its dense fog, however, we didn't encounter much during our trip. I kind of missed the fog, but then I got to see a clear panoramic view of the mountains.
one interesting encounter was meeting a Michigan graduate who happened to be a British at a Shanghai train station. He complained about the out of control traffic system and was shocked by the crazy pedestrians trying to cross the streets. actually this was nothing compared to my experience in jiujiang. vehicles were traveling in the middle of the road, ignoring all the dividing lines. when traffic lights signaled for pedstrian crossing, there were also lights signaling vehicles to make left, right turns everywhere. my heart beat still raises whenever i think about it.
coming back to the us, i noticed a lot stricker checking for pirated stuff at the customes. bringing back pirated chinese dvds is allowed but not if you have american movies. i heard it's 10,000 fine per dvd. just heard on the news tonight that a white man who bought 8 fake Rolex watches for 15 bucks from china as toys for his family was caught by the us customes, and he is fined for 55,000 dollars. That's just way too funny.
honestly, I don't know how I am suppose to dress so my fellow chineses won't think I just came from rural areas. The general comments from my relatives are such that I haven't changed much the way I dress, plain that is, and that I am not dressed like those westerners. I was confused, tried hard to figure out what it is that I am missing. In my mother's hometown, pretty much every woman wore a pair of high heels, whether the shoes matched with the outfit or not. I don't see how comfortable it is wearing high heels while in sporty pants, but apparently it is the trend.
As a result of my dressing down, I was dragged and pulled by a fellow woman on the train. She tried to push her cart through the narrow corridoor, while I pulled my big suitcase behind me waiting to get off the train. For a few seconds I hesitated how I should move in this tiny area to let her pass. As I turned, lifted my suitcase, the woman grabbed my shoulder, pushed me to the side, then dragged my suitcase. I was in a state of shock, stared at her in disbelief. the funny thing there was a piece of paper stating how to be a good citizen framed and hung on the wall of the train.
to sum it up, service is still horrifying in china. I don't think hanging a few slogans to teach people how to behave is going to change all that by 2008 in time for the olympics.
The best thing I did was a trip to 庐山. I have been there a few times when i was quite young. although this trip took only a day, its beauty will be engraved in my memory. 庐山 is known for its dense fog, however, we didn't encounter much during our trip. I kind of missed the fog, but then I got to see a clear panoramic view of the mountains.
one interesting encounter was meeting a Michigan graduate who happened to be a British at a Shanghai train station. He complained about the out of control traffic system and was shocked by the crazy pedestrians trying to cross the streets. actually this was nothing compared to my experience in jiujiang. vehicles were traveling in the middle of the road, ignoring all the dividing lines. when traffic lights signaled for pedstrian crossing, there were also lights signaling vehicles to make left, right turns everywhere. my heart beat still raises whenever i think about it.
coming back to the us, i noticed a lot stricker checking for pirated stuff at the customes. bringing back pirated chinese dvds is allowed but not if you have american movies. i heard it's 10,000 fine per dvd. just heard on the news tonight that a white man who bought 8 fake Rolex watches for 15 bucks from china as toys for his family was caught by the us customes, and he is fined for 55,000 dollars. That's just way too funny.