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| Living in China | ||
| There are some good things about China, but I wouldn't like to live here. The good things include the history and the people. For history, see also walking on/in/around buildings or artefacts that are upto 3500 years old. It shows in the shape: both the effects of natural erosion and the evidence of many centuries of quarrying. Regarding the people, they are friendly and helpful, and will really go out of their way to render assistance despite the language barrier (practically no one on the streets of China is capable of holding a conversation in English). But see also #4, below. The bad things are practically all cultural: #1/ environmental consciousness: almost non-existent. The level of pollution is unbelievable. On a good day, you have about 1km of visibility. Roads and waterways are lined with household rubbish. People litter the streets, and even walk out of shops, then unwrap icecreams and drop the wrappers on the street instead of using either the bin in the shop or the one they are standing next to on the street. #2/ toilets: execrable. Old men step behind bushes, but little children (and drunks) just squat and relieve themselves on the streets. We came across a mother with a small child on the stairs inside one of the college buildings. Rather than taking the child to the toilet, which was about 30m down the hall, she simply let him piss on the landing between floors. The toilets in many schools and eateries are unbelievably filthy because of people's poor aim/lack of concern. The tradition of taking your shoes off when you go into a house possibly stems from the use of such places. Soap is only available in very expensive places. #3/ racism: Japanese are evil. Most of the population of China have been indoctrinated (via movies, TV, books, magazines etc) to hate Japanese, aided by the fact that few have ever actually met a single person from Japan. Japanese are supposed to be violent, ill-mannered, and faithless. #4/ snobbery: you're important or you're worthless. The flipside of China's "guanxi" system, in which friendly relationships are cultivated with strangers, is that it only applies if you think the stranger may be able to be of some help to you in the future. Don't say, "Thank you" to the bus driver or the waiter; it's their job to help you, so you don't owe them any such thing as courtesy. God help you if you're a cleaner. #5/ image: fame is everything. "Why do you want to go to that town?" Chinese students in NZ asked, "It's not famous". If a Chinese person wants to tell you that a hotel or a restaurant or a brand of clothing is good, they will say, "It's famous". And if it's not famous, then obviously it's not good. In a classroom exercise, when I asked one of the students why Michael Schumacher drives better than I do, he replied, "Because he's famous". Conspicuous consumption is the norm; show off your wealth, even if you don't have it. Most consumers would rather buy something pretty than something efficient, effective or durable. A Chinese friend was told, by her neighbours, that she should concrete her garden "because that would cost more". #6/ animals: they exist for your convenience. We saw three teenage girls come skipping out of Pizza Hut in Jinan, one of them swinging, like a handbag, a baby rabbit in a wire mesh cage. Half-inch mesh. We have seen lots of these cages for cats and rabbits and puppies, the only other type being wickerwork bird cages. Dogs are clubbed to death because it is supposed to improve the flavour of the meat. Sometimes they are carried around on racks, hanging by their back legs. When I say I miss my cat, people suggest I get one here. The fact that I would have to abandon it in a few months is never considered. #7/ education: disastrous. Governmental censorship means that much of what is learnt in school is untrue (see also #3). The authorities view with suspicion any books written outside of China. While it is difficult to get into a university, it is stunningly easy to pass your degree. Parents invite teachers out to dinner on the guanxi basis; I.e. now I have done this for you, you can let my child pass. Qualifications matter more than competence. Regardless of your actual field, you must pass papers in economics, philosophy and politics: Marx, Engels and Mao. #8/ cultural history: severed. Apart from what they see on television, most Chinese have little appreciation of their own history, customs and beliefs. The Cultural Revolution destroyed it all. In what used to be the largest Buddhist nation on earth, even I know more about Buddhist belief than most of the people. Confucianism is a memory. In a classroom exercise on employment, students listed "priest" amongst 'jobs no longer performed': this in a city in which I, having been there for six weeks, knew of a mosque, a Catholic church, a Protestant church and a Buddhist temple. End result: by all means come to visit China and see the tourist sites, but it's not a place to stay. We came here with the intention of remaining for at least one year. Before I arrived, I had various ideas of China, gleaned from Chinese students, news services, books etc. Some of these ideas were romanticisations, while others were fears. Unfortunately, only the fears proved true. When we leave, we will have been here for nine months. Greg 17 October 2004 nolonger@hotmail.com Shandong, China |