a few observations on the Chinese people

--I'll begin with my biggest complaint: the Chinese walk so slow. Slower than Christmas, slower even than those TU football players I used to get stuck behind leaving the caf. They also don't have a concept of 'picking a side', so they take up the whole path, and then stop right in the middle with no warning. They know that other people are around them, but they won't get out of the way; sometimes when walking at you, they actually step in your way. There, that was my big rant for this post.

--They are super-curious about foreigners. If they hear you speak English, they want to practice with you, even if they don't know more than "hello", which can be tough if you've been teaching all day and are just trying to go out with your friends. They STARE like crazy, and if it gets too bad I just stare back and they stop. They point at you and talk to their friends about you right in front of you, just like a zoo creature. The cutest thing happened to me this weekend, though, a group of girls stopped me and Amy and asked for pictures with us because we were "so beautiful". Being a foreigner here will definitely stroke the ego.

--Along with being generally curious, they are also curious about what we buy in particular. In many stores, I am closely followed by salespeople (and other customers) who offer their opinions in Chinese on any items I select. At first it seems like they are suspicious of us, but they really just want to know what we like or if they can help.

--They get pretty tickled if you can speak even a little Chinese. I was leaving the supermarket the other day when an older lady approached me, speaking rapid Chinese, I think asking about directions to someplace. I told her "ting budong", which means "I don't understand", and she actually smiled at me even though I couldn't help her. When I bought my fan at the store, all I had to say was "wo yao zhi ge", "I want this one", and the saleslady was excited to help me get it. She even wrapped string around it so I could carry it home.

--Following the last one: the salespeople are generally very helpful. Cashiers, not so much, but people working specific departments and especially clothes stores, they will bring you more options and sizes and make sure you can carry everything before they let you leave.

--The women must be born in high heels or something, because they can walk everywhere in them. Literally, there were women on the mountain the other day in their heels. It makes me jealous.

--For how many people live here, the Chinese keep the city surprisingly clean. People aren't the best about getting things to a trashcan (i.e. I walked into an empty plastic bag yesterday because they just throw things down when they're done), but there are vast amounts of street cleaners who patrol their sections of road and sidewalk with brooms and dustpans, cleaning trash and leaves. There are trucks that drive around just spraying down the roads here, and play "It's a Small World" as they do so. This being said, their version of clean means plain or dirty water, but at least they're making the effort.

--They are more attached to their cellphones than my teenage cousin. I have honestly never seen people so cellphone-obsessed. They also answer their phones no matter where they are: the bus, a restaurant, class, even the department meeting I just sat through. I have heard some pretty heated conversations, because they don't seem to care how loud they talk.

--They can get behind the wheel of a vehicle and drive, but not well. Every ride here feels like you're in a chase scene from an action movie, at least when you're not stuck in mind-numbing traffic. I read a statistic that the majority of Chinese drivers have only been licensed in the past 10 years, and that they will each be in at least 2 minor accidents per year. I'm very surprised that I've only seen a couple accidents since I've been here.

--I hate to reinforce a stereotype, but the Chinese really do look similar to each other, and with logical historical reason. Whereas Americans are made up of anywhere from two to twenty ethnicities (I am Native American and German, primarily), Chinese have Chinese ancestors. The country's borders have been closed until the last few decades, so their families have stayed here and continued ancient Chinese bloodlines for millenia. I asked two of my students if they were twins, and they laughed because even though they aren't, they come from the same hometown. There are some definite facial characteristics and types that repeat even within just my classes.

--Because there are so many more people, there are infinitely more babies, and they are cuter than any I have ever seen! I mean, these tots are downright adorable, especially now that they are all bundled up for the winter. However, because of the "one child policy"--which is more strictly enforced in the cities than the countryside--these kids are getting uber-spoiled; their parents are probably also only children, so each new baby is the sole recipient of the attention of two parents and four grandparents. I have seen older people on the bus give up their seats for kids, and I have seen some behavior that would get these kids whooped back home, everything from yelling and pouting and backtalking to actual hitting, way past the age when these should have been corrected. They just think everything is going to be the way they want it, like when my banshees just grab the A/C remote because they are hot without asking permission. It's a bit frustrating.

--They live by a 'courtyard' approach to other people: if they know you from home, work, or school, you are in their 'courtyard' and they treat you very kindly, but if you're not in these groups, you're just another stranger. This is one reason that they push their way through lines and onto the bus. On the flipside, my students are beyond nice to me, often sharing their snacks with me and helping me read Chinese text messages, because I am in their 'courtyard'.

--In contrast to the previous point, the basis of Chinese society is the family, or more generally, other people before themselves. It is so interesting to realize how individualistic American society is compared to this, and that's coming from me, having a very strong family background. The Chinese are passionate about their country and their fellow citizen, and not in the kind of Communist sheep way that the rest of the world portrays them. They feel strongly about helping their country, and sharing their culture and customs with others; they are proud of their accomplishments, and at least based on my experience with my students, they want to remedy their problems, which they do acknowledge. They know so much more of their own history than the average American remembers about theirs, and they are ready and willing to share that. Advice and wisdom that has been passed down through the years is highly valued, where at home it might be viewed more as an "old wives' tale". That being said, some of what has been passed down comes across as more superstitious, like when I am encourage to wear a jacket even when it's 70-something degrees outside, just because it's technically 'winter' now. They are very connected to China as a homeland, and yes, I know part of that comes from the government, but it is also genuine.

I should probably stop, it's almost midnight. I still love the United States, my country, but I'm also loving and appreciating China more and more as I learn about it from its people. I'll hopefully be posting new pictures soon at flickr.com/photos/meimei09/ from my recent trip to Yuelu Mountain!