We've been hiking before in Hangzhou and this time it was apparent to us that the guidelines that we normally follow when using trails in America do not exist here in China. I shall list a few:
1. Giving way to people climbing uphill. Chinese people just move at their own pace, stand in the middle of the trail and have conversations with no consideration for others. Chase and I repeatedly brushed by people who made no apologies or didn't move over as they saw us coming. And we would always have to move around them or make way for them. They are so used to not having personal space that it doesn't phase them.
2. The addiction to their phones. The purpose of getting out into nature is to get away from city sounds and enjoy fresh air. However, the number of people staring into their phones, texting while they hike was absurd. If they weren't on their phones, they were using their phones as boomboxes to blast their favorite tunes totally drowning out the few birds that were in the trees. Sorry, I just don't want to be forced to listen to someone else's music while I'm trying to get away from people. I just don't understand why they can't give up technology and media even for a few minutes a day. The addiction to video games is also growing in this country of recent economic surge. The other night, we went to dinner with friends and a full grown man with his wife and several other couples had brought along his laptop and while the meal was going on, he was engaged in computer games. Absurd!
3. A funny thing happens when people reach the top of the hill or a vantage point on one of the trails. They begin to yell. And I mean George of the Jungle style. Young Chinese men like to yell and yodel as if they have conquered a large mountain and want everyone below to know it. It's almost as if they have never had the opportunity to show their might and the trek up the hill has been a personal test. They might be just a few hundred feet up. All I could do every time I heard this was bawk and shake my head.
There are many things about the Chinese culture that annoy me after being 18 months into this adventure. And Chase and I have become less tolerant and patient with understanding their culture. This is the opposite, complete opposite of what I expected to happen. I thought I was an open-minded person and accepting of all people around the world. I suppose this is the case as an outsider just observing, but when you have to live with their customs day in day out, it's a totally different perspective.
We did come across some really nice experiences on our hike as well. For example, there was a man who stood out in a field and belted out some beautiful Chinese opera for passersby. He was really great. We also met a cute dog that didn't even come when I called it because the sounds and tone of voice that I use as a Westerner weren't recognizable to the dog. When a Chinese person called it, the dog came wagging its tail. Interesting. We also got to walk through an old village where people still don't have hot water and barely have electricity and cooking is done by fire. This all in the middle of a large metropolis, bigger than Houston. The disparity of life is so great just a few miles from where I live.
I do want to say that we do enjoy our lives in China. It's just that we have to deal with daily reminders of how we are so different. I thought that coming to China and experiencing a different culture would make me more tolerant and patient. It has done the opposite. I am more frustrated and annoyed with our differences, especially when it comes to hygiene, personal courtesy, and care for the Earth. Chase and I have a saying when there's nothing we can do about the situation we are in so that we can keep perspective: "It's China."
1 comment:
What an interesting experience. It's a pleasure to read your reflections on it, Sveth. You're a gifted writer.
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