Thoughts On China

I grew up in CornCob USA (AKA; Yale, IL). Although I've lived in/near major metro areas for the last 10 years I've found China be a different world altogether. So, I thought I'd summarize some of my thoughts about China and perhaps you can experience it at least a little bit the way I have the last several days.

 

Regarding our time in Northern China (Beijing, Zhengzhou, Hebi):

• People from the U.S. should never try to drive a car in China. The traffic lights and the lines on the road are really just there as a suggestion and drivers frequently ignore them. Pedestrians are everywhere, there's a constant river of electric bikes (see more on this below), people drive in 4 lanes at once, stop where they want, go when they want and use their horns and bright lights constantly. It's like chaos. The right-of-way is there for anyone willing to take it. Everybody here knows how it works so it all flows together like a fairly smooth operation. I've rode in taxis in NY City and I can still say with certainty that if an American tried to drive here it would be instant disaster.
• When you need some space, you just take it. We parked on the sidewalk numerous times, as did everyone else. We saw several tire shops and mechanics that turned the sidewalk in front of their shop into a ramp and were doing serious auto repair in the street in front of the shop, they just took it over. Saw several makeshift markets that just engulfed a particular street. People that used a few pieces of tin to make a lean-to shop that has become permanently parked on the sidewalk. It's weird to me. Like I said, if you need some space, you just take it.
• Electric bikes (electric mopeds) are everywhere. There's about 3 for every 1 car on the road. They ride on the sidewalk, in special side lanes on the road, down the main lanes of the road, basically everywhere. So many people live is such a small place that it's the perfect way for people to get around quickly and park anywhere. Some of them are two-seaters, some have small truck-beds, some have specialty cargo racks, some have enclosed cabins. Basically there's every kind of electric bike concoction you can imagine. I think they're awesome. I told Heather we should live here just so we can have an electric bike. I'll start an electric bike gang.
• People in China eat everything that can possibly be eaten. Deer antlers, beef tendon, chicken feet, fish heads, etc... Same for plants, there's not a plant on the planet they won't eat. The flavors are a little strange to me but I think their frugal spirit is something to be envied. Americans should be less up-tight about what part of what animal/plant they're eating and just be glad they have food on the table.
• People in China never give up on something because it's old, wore out, dirty, or otherwise in disrepair. I've seen more things that were wired together, taped together, or otherwise cobbled together. Bikes, motorcycles, cars, stores, homes, you name it. These people believe in making do with what you've got. Again, I think we Americans should consider the impact of our throw-away mentality.
• Split pants for kids. In case you don't know what this is, the kiddos wear pants that have no crotch in them, and they don't wear diapers. When nature calls, they squat, the pants open up, and they do their business. This is clearly a hold-over from a time when diapers didn't exist but think about how much money they save every years on diapers, wipes, diaper pails, etc... It's function over form for sure.
• As a follow-up to the previous bullet, it's acceptable for kids to pee or poop anywhere they want. On the floor in the jade shop, on a tree along the road in the middle of town, we saw two boys sharing a bathroom moments outside a tire shop, saw a kid poop on the ground at the zoo (the mother at least picked it up with a paper towel and threw it away).
• Squatty potties (it's a porcelain hole in the floor. You squat over it and do your business). If you grow up in split pants it makes perfect sense to move on to a squatty potty. I think it's brilliant too for a couple of reasons. First, it doesn't matter how dirty the "toilet" is because you won't be sitting on it. Second, add a shower head and your bathroom stall can double as a shower because there's already a drain in the floor (would be great for campers and RV's. Think about it). Third, anyone with eyes can see that Chinese people are more limber and flexible than us overweight westerners. Getting your daily "stretching" in helps with this I'm sure. Fourth, if you ever go camping, hiking, or have to do your business outdoors for some reason, you already have the right skill-set to make it work.
• Dust. Everywhere we went, it was dusty. Everything was covered in dust. Maybe there's been a bit of drought lately but I just felt like China needed a day-long rain to wash everything off.
• Construction. China is building, everywhere. On the drive to Joshua's hometown we went through a lot of rural areas and they were building 50-story apartment complexes out in the middle of nowhere. You can't look anywhere around here without seeing major construction going on.
• History. China has a history that goes back beyond recorded history, literally. I'm a sucker for nostalgia and China has tons of feedstock for it.
• Cigarettes. Many smokers in China. The taxis, our hotels, our vans, the restaurants, pretty much everything in northern China smelled like cigarette smoke. We're just not used to it...
• People. I've never been somewhere where I felt like there were so many people stacked into a particular geographical area. In general terms, Beijing and Zhengzhou have about 10 times the population density of Houston (Beijing is only 3% bigger than Houston in terms of square km, however it has 10x the population, Zhengzhou is less than half the size of Houston but has over 4x as many people). I thought I moved to "the city" when I went to college...this is something else entirely.
• I haven't yet found General Tso or his chicken...

Regarding our time in Southern China (Guangzhou):

• Much more westernized. Less cigarette smoke, hardly any electric bikes, less split-pants and less public peeing, traffic is more civilized. Still a lot of history and people.
• Cantonese food. Yum.
• Cantonese people. I don't know enough to really describe the difference, but the people in southern China are just different than the people in the north. I suppose it's kinda like putting someone from Mississippi alongside someone from Seattle, they're just different.
• Everything costs a little more here than it did in the north. Things in China are cheaper than they are in the US but it's especially cheaper in the north.

 

One thing China seems to be missing is Christ. Most of our hotels have decorated for Christmas and are preparing Christmas events. Most of them also seem to be completely devoid of the "Christ" part of Christmas. We discussed the status of the Christian church with one of the locals in Beijing and she explained that there are plenty of Christians but they have to meet in "underground" churches (she is such a person). There is an official state-sanctioned church in China but she said they don't necessarily preach the truth of the gospel. If you want the truth of Christ's gospel you must find one of these underground churches. It's also hard to miss the ever-presence of mystical religions (Taoism and Buddhism among other forms of idol worship) and most of the chinese people we spoke to about such things clearly come from a background of these ism's (the topic came up naturally since there are so many temples and holy spots around here). If you want to do something for China you should pray for the gospel to get more traction here and/or support existing efforts to achieve the same goal.

Overall I think China is awesome and would like to see more of it in the future. The people are friendly and hospitable, the country is beautiful and has a rich history, and it's just a neat place.