Laowai

I took this picture from our hotel window on the first morning after we arrived. I was thinking that Beijing didn’t seem any different than other big cities I’ve seen. We were in a business area and we went to Starbucks to meet some of B’s co-workers. I felt like I could have been in Chicago – if Chicago had a ton of construction going on.

Of course as our days continued I did notice differences. There are lots of people in China. And many of them ride bikes. And crossing the road is a lot more dangerous than in the US. Annie (our wonderful guide) told me to hold Brian’s hand when we crosssed the street. Annie and Songjun kept saying that the weather was very unusual for Beijing. We had two lovely blue-sky days. They said there are only about 20 days a year when it’s sunny and you can see blue sky. On our third or fourth day we experienced more typical Beijing weather – the sky was white with clouds but it was very bright.

This is a photo of me trying on a hat at the famous Silk Market in Beijing. The market sells cheap knock-off stuff and is housed in a big building with each floor dedicated to a different type of merchandise. We went to the jewelry floor first. I was kind of interested in buying something but I was totally overwhelmed by all the people calling out to me. They would say things like “Hello, lady. You like watch?”. One girl even grabbed B’s arm and tried to drag him into her store. All the sensory overload paralysed me and we ended up just getting a teapot for my sister. Annie did the negotiating. It’s a requirement that you do this negotiating dance whenever you buy something at a place like this. It was fun to look at the merchandise and take in the scene. There were lots of Mao trinkets like Mao watches, alarm clocks, posters and t-shirts.

This photo is of a little girl writing with a sponge thingy dipped in water. It was taken at the Summer Palace in Beijing. The Summer Palace is a big area that includes many beautiful old buildings, gardens and a lake – it was where the royalty spent summers. The poem was about looking out the window on a spring morning (I think). In Beijing we saw the big cultural sights – The Great Wall, The Summer Palace, Tiananmen Square and The Forbidden City. The architecture is very interesting, every little detail of the buildings means something and the colors were so vivid. The Chinese have such a long and rich history and in Beijing you got the feeling that the Chinese are very interersted in preserving it. The little girl writing on the path was magical. The water would dry up and the poem would disappear after a little while. Annie said she was very good at writting for her age. Twice while we were in the Summer Palace we heard men singing traditional folk songs. We recorded one of them – I’ll have to get it from B’s computer and post it.

This photo is of the Nanjing Road in Shanghai. It was best at night. It’s a pedestrian street with lots of shopping and eating places and lots of neon. On Nanjing Road the shopping malls were pretty much like in the US with all the same brands. Then we would get away from the touristy areas and the streets would be lined with little grungy stores like the next picture. This store was in an area that sold all sorts of fabric and sewing notions. Everywhere we went I noticed the huge contrast between the new built up areas and the poor areas for locals.

I’m gettin a bit long winded but I’ll post one more photo. This photo is of a little kid in his fancy stroller. The little kids and babies we saw were very cute. They wear what I dubbed “drafty pants”, pants with an open crotch and no diaper. Apparently that’s how they potty train their kids but it was a source of puzzlement to B and I. It seems like a bit of a mess – I can’t figure out exactly how it works when the kid has an accident. We lauged whenever we glimpsed a cute little Chinese kid with his private parts in full view.

As I read over my post I seem to have written about completely random stuff. There is so much to see in China and overall I had a great impression. The Chinese were very hospitable and friendly. B and I decided we could handle living in China. I think it would be really exciting and a great time to look back on when we’re old. We still don’t know if we are moving because there are still lots of decisions that need to be made regarding the team and the office. Even if we don’t end up moving – I’m so glad I got to take this trip and see China for myself.