Looking back... first impressions

Well,  it’s pretty much the end of July and I can’t believe that we are a third of the way through our time here already. It seems that we have become accustomed to life here and that some changes have happened so gradually that I didn’t even notice. There are things that used to really stand out that now just blend in. Looking back at some scribblings of mine from the first few days here in China, I wanted to write about some of my first impressions of this country.

Leaving the airport, I felt relieved as I was efficiently packaged into a taxi and the English speaking airport official instructed the driver where to take me. One of the first things that struck me was that very suddenly, I became completely illiterate. The second thing I noticed was that apart from the happy but jet lagged face of my boyfriend, I didn’t see another non-Chinese face all day. 

I had expected Beijing to be a thriving multicultural metropolis, but it turns out that’s Shanghai. What was really noticeable was the weirdly high number of Western faces in adverts pasted all over the city. A white family, grinning and looking insanely healthy advertised a Chinese dental surgery. Emma Watson demonstrated the youthful effects of L’Oreal’s latest product all over the Beijing subway. A pretty but timid looking white woman recommended the local gynecological hospital. For a city that’s almost 100% Chinese, where are the happy, glowing Chinese faces?

Coupled with the prevalence of skin whitening products and apparent general fear of tanning, I started to wonder how the Chinese feel about being Chinese, or at least how the advertisers want them to feel about it. Starting my new job, one of my students spies my olive skin, tanned by the strong Beijing sunshine and wearing the kind of expression you might reserve for a bereaved friend, she says “You look tanned. I’m sorry.”

Getting fruity

As the days tick by here in Beijing, their passing is marked by the changing colours of fruit on the street sellers' carts. When we first arrived, they were a bright strawberry red, the fruits painstakingly laid out in regimented rows. Later, cherries became king, heaped in crimson mountains, dusty and leafy. The cherries have been overtaken now by increasingly cheap watermelon. Mini-vans park up on the road side, boots open and jammed with a tumble of large green striped fruits. Every week, the price drops further and their delicious flesh gets sweeter. 

More recently, the mounds of furry peaches have been growing, complimented by gentle pink lychees. Now the grapes are beginning their take over; green, dark red, juicy and full-bodied.

These tasty, fruity delights add a splash of colour and vibrancy to this oft’ grey city. What a delicious way to mark the passing of time.

Patriotic? Me?

I watched some of the 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony today, not as I had expected, in a bar surrounded by tearful and cheering expats, but in IKEA. Having stopped off for a spot of lunch en route to Cao Chang Di (a fab little art district beyond the 5^th ring road), we found it being played on a big screen in the canteen. There was no sound on though and surprisingly little interest from the scores of Chinese people eating meatballs and lingonberry gravy around us. How strange it felt to be in a Swedish cafeteria in Beijing, watching the London Olympics!

I think that we Brits are a humble nation and we tend to be very self-critical. In the UK, patriotism and national pride are all too often associated with the racist bigotry of the BNP and anyway, we wouldn’t want to come across as arrogant or too proud. Danny Boyle’s magnificent and inclusive efforts were a joyous celebration of so many wonderfully British home-grown things. I don’t know what the diners around me thought of it all, but I'm not sure that it matters one little bit. I don't care if the children weren’t as tightly choreographed and as in-time as the highly trained Chinese ones in 2008.  I was just so proud to see all the performers so clearly having the time of their lives and basking in the glory of all things GB. It was the images of dear old Freddie Mercury that first got my eyes filling up as I was so glad to see him remembered and included. Moving too was the splendid multiculturalism on display, which is so valuable and such a contrast to the virtual monoculture here in China.

I nipped off for a free refill and a break from all the high emotion. I came back to replayed scenes of the old chap with Parkinson’s disease who, whilst carrying the Olympic torch, got out of his wheelchair and aided by two friendly coppers, rose to his feet and walked the last few yards. I could see that even my boyfriend’s eyes were moist and combined with the images of smiling police and cheering onlookers, the lump in my throat got bigger. There followed HM the Queen in a parachute, James Bond, Dizzee Rascal, a fleet of good old NHS nurses, a surge of Mary Poppinses,  David Beckham on a neon pink speedboat and a magical glowing butterflies on bicycles. What more could you possibly want?!!

It was quite an experience, mostly because I don’t think I’ve ever felt patriotic in my life before! I guess moving abroad will certainly bring out any patriotic tendencies if you have them! Coupled with an emotional celebration of everything that is great about your home country, it’s bound to get the tears flowing.

I can’t wait to watch it again later, with sound this time and a gin and tonic and a box of tissues!

A quick weather report

It still hasn't rained. Nice one BBC.

A worrying forecast...

How's this for a weather forecast?!! I've never seen anything like it!

People are so worried about the weather after last Saturday's unusually massive deluge that lots of people went home early from work yesterday. Hardly any students came to lessons and the streets and subway were eerily quiet for a city of over 20 million people. According to the BBC we have got a fun week ahead of use with rain, rain and more rain. Let's just hope that it's not heavy enough to result in any deaths and/or that the authorities learned something last week about how to deal with a city in flood.

Suicidal

I came back from lunch today and found myself swept along with a crowd of excited people shouting, smiling and running to the back of my office building. Initially concerned about what I might be about to get involved in, I envisaged the British Foreign Office website headlines: ‘riots in Beijing’, ’29 year old woman killed in Beijing stampede’. Before I could further embellish my own death, I emerged from the tunnel into the large open space in which maybe 150 people were standing. I immediately sensed there was no threat; in fact there was more of a carnival atmosphere. Then I noticed everyone was looking up to the 10^th floor, where a pair of skinny legs could be seen dangling from the window, and I could just make out a pair of arms, tightly clutching a baby. I suddenly felt like I’d been badly winded. I looked again behind me to check that people really were laughing. Yep, they were pointing and seemed to be generally being entertained. One woman held her toddler and pointed out the legs, the way a parent might point to an animal in the zoo. And as my eyes focused on the crowd, I could see that many people were taking photos and filming the scene.

I went inside, feeling the need for some quiet space to take in what I had just seen. Back in the office, people gathered at the window to see what was happening. By now, several firemen had appeared. One set up a video camera and the rest milled around. A large inflatable yellow mattress was brought in and pumped up. What with the jolly mood and a large inflatable object, the whole place now resembled a summer fete.

Throughout the incident, I was far more drawn to watching the crowd than the legs in the window.  I’m sure that in the UK a similar event would similarly have drawn a fascinated crowd. I’m also sure that some people would have taken photos. However, I don’t think I’m kidding myself when I say that the mood would more likely be one of somber concern.

After work, I got busy with good old Wikipedia which told me that China is thought to have the highest suicide rate in Asia and one of the highest in the world. Being in a new country which is so very different from my own, I try not to judge. I try to be open-minded and think to myself ‘That’s different’ rather than ‘That’s terrible’. However, it’s hard to do that sometimes. It’s really hard to understand how one person’s tormented battle with life could be seen as a bit of light amusement. In a noodle restaurant near my partner’s office they show ‘suicide TV’- films of similar events. I just hope that the fireman was filming it for professional purposes rather than to make a quick buck.

In the end, the skinny-legged individual didn’t jump. The mattress and the mood were deflated and the crowds dispersed, somewhat disappointed.

Tearing my hair out!

My cell phone decided to completely stop working yesterday. It became clear that I could not fix it myself so a very kind colleague accompanied me to the nearest China Unicom shop. As is the way, we took a ticket: number 138. They were currently serving 104. We went back to work and came back half an hour later to find them only on 113. We returned again half an hour later but alas, in some kind of time warping process we were too late and we had missed our number! Faced with only one option, to take another ticket, half an hour later we were served. Please note that we are now 2 hours into this saga. The shop assistant managed to permanently lock my sim card by attempting to enter the pin incorrectly several times so I was then forced to buy a new one. In order to do this I had to show my passport which was then photocopied. I signed a receipt and was given 3 pieces of paper (I have no idea what any of them say).  After mixing up my sim card with her own, the assistant soon decided that my phone was the problem. So 3 hours after first entering, I left the shop none the wiser and late for a meeting.  Aaaaagh! I had to stand on the quiet stairwell, sipping cool water for 10 minutes before I felt calm enough to resume my position!!

Do you know what the wonderful thing about China is? Every maddening, hair pulling experience like this one is countered by something wonderfully positive. I had great fun teaching some students about various illnesses and after the lesson I was told I am a very ‘wisdom lady’- how lovely! Then on the bus on my way home, I struck up a conversation with a Chinese guy who initially asked me if I spoke French. I replied “Un petite peu.” and there followed a challenging but highly engaging conversation in what I’d like to call “Frenglese”. It might just be the most rewarding conversation I’ve ever had in my life.

What was I saying the other day about the ups and downs of life? Crazy!

When it rains, it pours.

Myself and the other 20 million Beijingers awoke on Saturday to grey skies and heavy rain. Deciding it would soon clear ("Surely it can't keep this up for long!"), my boyfriend and I enjoyed some downloaded TV and discussed where to go on our hard earned day off. The Museum of China won our vote and bags were packed. Two cups of coffee and two episodes and of "The Restaurant Inspector" later, the downpour continued and the puddled street had developed a distinct flow. Still hopeful, we opted for a quick lunch at home and threw some frozen jaozi in the steamer. Amazingly, it just didn't relent, not even a little. We marvelled at the scene from our 6th floor window and were glued to the window whenever a pedestrian went by and allowed us to use their legs as measuring sticks to assess the depth of the water. Soon a car crashed and blocked the main road and as the lightning got brighter, the thunder louder and the sky turning a sickening yellowy grey, the mood turned apocalyptic. Searches of China Daily’s website and general googling revealed nothing and we could only imagine what might be happening on the streets out of our view.

It wasn't until the following day, when the skies were innocently blue and barely any puddles remained, that I became aware of the seriousness of the situation. Colleagues told of 5 hour long journeys home, of wading through thigh deep water to reach the subway and of badly leaking ceilings. Photos soon emerged of cars floating around like soap suds and manholes that were transformed into deadly, swirling plug holes for the city’s excess water. The current death toll stands at 37. People were crushed in collapsing buildings, drowned in underpasses and some were electrocuted as live cables fell into the flood waters. Absolutely terrifying. My thoughts are with the families of those whose lives were so suddenly lost to the storm.

Perhaps its the enormity of Beijing, but despite the fact that I live here,  it stills just feels like something on the news. Something happening in a faraway place. There was so little sign of any damage around this part of the city and life continues as normal. More heavy rain and storms are forecast over the coming week, as Beijing hits its very own rainy season. So its time to go and buy some cheap welly boots, keep a brolly on one's person at all times and it seems the safest thing to do if possible is just stay indoors and batten down the hatches.

A Birthday in Beijing

One year ago today, on my 28^th birthday, I hadn’t dreamt that I’d be spending my 29^th under the beautiful Beijing stars. And that’s not just because it’s so rare get get a clear sky here! On July 22^nd 2011, there were no set plans in place to move out here; life and work just continued as normal. And suddenly there I was last night- surrounded by new friends, sipping a cold Tsing Tao on a hutong rooftop, attempting to hug a Chinese guy* and star-gazing in the comfortable warmth of a July evening. Unbelievable.

I moved here almost 4 months ago, perhaps like a lot of people who move abroad, in search of something. I’m not entirely sure what that something is yet, but I’ve decided that I’d like to share it with you. I want to write an honest account of my life here; my first impressions of Beijing, the rocky road that is culture shock, the high days, the low days and the in-between days and any other interesting things that happen along the way.  I’m starting to figure out that wherever you are in the world, life is still a series of ups and downs and the best tactic is to embrace it. Here goes! Are you coming?

*After a few beers,  I misinterpreted his move towards the door as as gesture towards a goodbye hug. It resulted in gymnastic attempts to get out of my way and a very swift exit. Ooops!