Last Word on China (this time around)

Now just about a week since I've been home, and still battling a bad case of jet lag,  my son found me sprawled out, face down, on my bed yesterday afternoon and shared the comment, "nice look, Mom" as he blew past.  That pretty much sums up how I've been doing most afternoons.  Nonetheless, no regrets.  Travel is amazing, and as long as I can do it, I'm doing it.

As for that last word on China (this time around), it's hard to stop talking about it; I have many more indelible impressions to write about, but I'm back home now - late summer in New York, one of my favorite times of year here, quiet with the exodus of my fellow New Yorkers, the slower, steamy pace of life, and the joy, wonder and confusion at times visible on the faces of international visitors in all pockets of the city.  

The sign above at the Summer Palace in Beijing says a whole lot more (to me, anyway) than it intends.  

Ça suffit.

China Charm

More than anywhere I've traveled, in China I can't take my eyes off the people.  I'm sure it's primarily because I keep wanting to figure it all out, what makes this society and its communities tick, how they really live in this jumbled up environment of old/new, rich/poor, etc., as I described in an earlier post.  

The mix among generations is also appealing because, unlike in the US where we customarily are out only with our peers, I very often saw young and old together in Beijing.  For example, the large Chinese restaurants with the family-size round tables for ten with the "lazy susans" in the center of the table spinning with numerous dishes are a common occurrence.  All generations often dine together, noisy, deep in conversation, and small children sit quietly or move from parent to grandparent to cousin, food being the glue holding it all together but definitely not the center of attention or the main attraction.   Reverence is not paid to the food (as in France, for example) but rather to the people gathered together to share the meal.  All chopsticks dip into all the bowls and plates that pass by, so that even the plate itself is communal and shared.  

I enjoyed watching this aspect of Chinese culture.  The family unit appears to be very important.  In fact, what do the Chinese do on major holidays?  They don't run off to a resort for "holiday," even if they can afford to do so.  Rather, they get on every available train, plane and bus until overflowing, and they go "home."  Paying tribute to dead ancestors is also an important ideal and there's a holiday for that, too.

There are certainly a number of aspects to contemporary Chinese culture that are hard for this Westerner to understand and hard to accept as representing the highest standard of humanity, but one can also say the same, to a certain extent, about most countries.  Love and respect for family (and children) appears to be one of the highest priorities, though, from what I perceived, and I had a super time trying to capture some images on my camera.

Global Consumers Above All

Among the many signs I photographed in China last week (especially those that don't quite master the use and meaning of English words and phrases), this one, though using no English, spoke volumes to me.

This outdoor wall poster in Beijing clearly advertises Pepsi.  Yup, I'm sure that's what the Chinese characters spell out (not really), but we Americans all know the Pepsi logo.  But I was surprised to see one of the largest US brands using the Chinese revolutionary poses so iconic in their propaganda materials of that era.  Well, whatever sells, I suppose.  And I learned, while in Beijing, that there is much nostalgia for that period.  I cannot fathom that, given all that transpired in those years.  But, then again, we love the old movies, songs and fashion styles of the 1940s, '50s, '60s, '70s and apparently even '80s (big hair and shoulder pads?!?), even though we surely don't want to relive those years for a whole lot of other reasons.

So that's China.

Today, though, back in New York, what do I see in Times Square?

As of August 1, 2011, China's government-run news agency, Xinhua, has one of the key LED billboards in Times Square, measuring 60x40 feet (right above Samsung, which is right above Coca Cola - I hope this is not symbolic of anything, but given recent global financial news, who knows?).

The US is in China speaking its language; and China is in Times Square  - ditto.  Both speaking the language of commerce and commercialism.

Jet Lag

I'm home and hoping to return to daily remarks but for now I just can't believe that it's day when my body says it should be night.  And it took me over a week to convince both mind and body the reverse just a few days ago.  Hoping the return trip will take a shorter period, it did help to sleep in my own bed last night.  However, the return to a stack of bills in the mail, an empty refrigerator and a hot August month in which to plan a very active September is a "Welcome Home!" to reality.  

That, and the one hour wait staring at the "Welcome to the USA" sign at Passport Control at Newark Airport as I wound my way back and forth through the maze watching the same tired faces on either side of me as we would wind back to face one another every few disorienting minutes.  (Did we fire all the federal workers while I was away?  I do know we finally got past the debt ceiling issue; that was certainly a fascinating story to follow in China.)

It's impossible to describe Beijing, because it seems to be everything, all at once.  Perhaps it's clearest to call it a city of contrasts, but that just sounds so weak (I mean, New York could be described that way, too, but if that's the base line, then Beijing is New York on an overdose of steroids).  Nothing is moderate; everything appears to be at the most extreme ends of the spectrum - rich and poor, sparkling clean and filthy, crowded and peaceful, communist and capitalist, friendly and threatening, over-the-top luxury and squat toilets, 12-lane highways encircling the city and tiny "hutong" alley mazes. 

 Two consistent features, though, are the air pollution (which only seemed to clean itself to a bright blue sky after a solid day and night of rain) and the scale of everything, which is huge (and coming from a Texan, that means something).  Huge multi-lane highways and streets abound, filled with everything (again, all at once - pedestrians, pedicabs, cars, pull-carts, motorized bikes, scooters and pretty much whatever moves).  Crossing one of these streets is taking your life into your own hands.   

There are so many things to say about Beijing, but maybe after a nap when perhaps day will turn to night and everything will begin to make sense.