I just returned from my trip to China; Beijing and Xi'an, to be exact. Saw all the usual tourist spots: Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Terracotta Warriors. Great Wall. I was a little surprised by Beijing, it was a little less cosmopolitan and a little more dirty than I thought it would be. Some observations:
-Men in China love to roll up their shirts just above their belly. They'll parade their bellies around like it's a source of pride; sometimes they'll be rubbing them or patting them. I thought it was the funniest thing, you would never ever see that in Korea.
-More than once I saw men with hair growing out of a mole on their jawbone, which they apparently never cut. Those things were growing out like 6 inches. I have no idea what cultural significance that has; but it has to have some...
-I have never been gawked at so much in my life than the night I hung out at the Olympic venues (and I live in a small, rural town in Korea). It was unreal- stares, heads turning, pictures taken left and right.. that was my first night in China, so I figured they were just more likely to gawk in China. I realized later that it was because I was using my tripod for my camera and they were all fascinated by it. The only other time I used my tripod, I got the same reaction. The people would love to come up and look at my screen to see what I was taking pictures of.. lol
-You see lots of hard-luck people at subway stations, tourists areas, etc (much like any other place). Homeless people, people missing limbs, etc looking for money. One person at the Forbidden City took the cake, though. A tiny, shriveled up being, with 2 ginormous tumors growing out of their brain. Wow..
-There's the classic image of everyone in China riding bicycles everywhere. I was under the impression that they were all gone, replaced by cars. I was happy to see that there are still lots of bikers everywhere you go, and they have special lanes.
-I think it would be fun to own a hostel. I'll add that to my list of 100 business I want to own at one time..
-I really can't stand people who focus on the negative. If you're climbing the Great Wall, doing something that millions of people wish they could do, don't spend the entire time bitching about how hot it is. Spent the time living in the moment, soaking it in, and realizing you're on the GREAT WALL!!!
-Men in China love to roll up their shirts just above their belly. They'll parade their bellies around like it's a source of pride; sometimes they'll be rubbing them or patting them. I thought it was the funniest thing, you would never ever see that in Korea.
-More than once I saw men with hair growing out of a mole on their jawbone, which they apparently never cut. Those things were growing out like 6 inches. I have no idea what cultural significance that has; but it has to have some...
-I have never been gawked at so much in my life than the night I hung out at the Olympic venues (and I live in a small, rural town in Korea). It was unreal- stares, heads turning, pictures taken left and right.. that was my first night in China, so I figured they were just more likely to gawk in China. I realized later that it was because I was using my tripod for my camera and they were all fascinated by it. The only other time I used my tripod, I got the same reaction. The people would love to come up and look at my screen to see what I was taking pictures of.. lol
-You see lots of hard-luck people at subway stations, tourists areas, etc (much like any other place). Homeless people, people missing limbs, etc looking for money. One person at the Forbidden City took the cake, though. A tiny, shriveled up being, with 2 ginormous tumors growing out of their brain. Wow..
-There's the classic image of everyone in China riding bicycles everywhere. I was under the impression that they were all gone, replaced by cars. I was happy to see that there are still lots of bikers everywhere you go, and they have special lanes.
-I think it would be fun to own a hostel. I'll add that to my list of 100 business I want to own at one time..
-I really can't stand people who focus on the negative. If you're climbing the Great Wall, doing something that millions of people wish they could do, don't spend the entire time bitching about how hot it is. Spent the time living in the moment, soaking it in, and realizing you're on the GREAT WALL!!!
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1 comment:
I can't imagine spending all my time at the Great Wall with someone who was Bitching! Ugh! I mean like you said you're at the Great Wall...how many people can say they have been there, the least you could do is ENJOY it.... people can be so annoying!
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