Adventures in Guangzhou!

It was great to be back in the states for a couple of weeks though it was exactly what I expected: surreal and hectic. It's tough when you try to fit in a year's worth of activity into 15 days--there's just no easy way. It was even stressful at times, as I had to organize around schedules and compromise between having fun/relaxing and doing as much as possible. And of course the entire time I kept looking around thinking, did I really just spend a year in China? Did I really? I think so, but yet... now I'm back where I grew up. It's a weird feeling.

I had many different thoughts, realizations, and minor epiphanies while I was home and I'll see if I can explicate a few here. First, my initial reaction coming off the plane was true--people in America are grossly overweight. It's really no wonder, given that our portions are double or triple something comparable in China. Furthermore, we drive everywhere. And if we're not driving, we're getting a ride on the subway or bus. I think my generation (at least the population on the coasts) is quite a bit better with exercising, but we are definitely a lazy society. It seems a bit bizarre to say so, but I felt like I could see America in slow-motion decline. We're used to everything being easy and available and I'm not quite sure how we will respond if and when that changes.

Second, there is so much about America that is unique to the rest of the world. 12 hours after touching down in the states, I was at one of the most famous sports buildings of all time: Yankee Stadium. Besides baseball itself being so traditionally American, the entire culture surrounding baseball is completely unique. At the game there were dozens of commonalities: people wearing baseball caps, drinking beers, shouting (the same things in unison) at the umpires, doing the 7th inning stretch, cheering at the appropriate times, clapping in certain patterns, etc. It was amazing. I think to someone Chinese it would appear that we had all gone through training before getting our tickets. And in a way, I suppose the socialization of living in America is a form of training.

I also had a chance to visit some of my good friends from high school and college and we participated in another expressly American event- playing drinking games. I think other countries have a number of different imbibing games, but I think the U.S. takes the cake. There are scores of different drinking games that almost every college kid knows involving various combinations of alcohol, cups, cards, tables, and motions. I really don't think it exists anywhere else in this capacity.

Third, my hometown in beautiful. Having grown up and lived in W. Hartford for 18 years, I didn't have all that much to compare to. Sure, I had traveled to major cities and town around America and even abroad, but I never really stopped to look around my own surroundings. The fields, flowers, and trees in West Hartford are gorgeous. There are a plethora of (free) parks with facilties for baseball, basketball, soccer, tennis, football, and even golf. The architecture of the houses are also gorgeous. They are all different shapes and sizes. They are different colors. They have well maintained lawns. More than anything else, West Hartford is amazingly clean! Put it together and it equals a great town. These things simply do not exist in China.

Fourth, I missed the diversity of the states. Riding the subway in Boston or New York City, I could see approximately a dozen different languages in newspapers. I saw people of all colors. Walking around the cities I heard many different kinds of music played by people on the streets. Once again, these things simply do not exist in China. The government does not allow for very much public perfoming, especially un-supervised. And with a predominantly Han-Chinese society, it's rare to see anything other than your stereotypical Chinese face. In reality, of course, there is an incredibly diverese array of Chinese ethnicities, but for some reason it doesn't seem to compare to the different faces you see in America.

Lastly, I felt an unexpected measure of pride when introducing myself to people while at home. I think I forgot that what I'm doing is relatively unique and somewhat daunting to many people in the states. While I don't think I'm taking this opportunity for granted, I do sometimes forgot just how special it is. People almost always did a double take when I said, "I live in China," or "I work in China." They were very interested and curious to hear my thoughts. That made me even more excited to get back and get going for the second year.

I'm not quite sure how much blogging I'll be able to do over the summer but I am going to try. I head to Bejiing tomorrow morning and upon arrival begin studying Chinese 7 hours a day. I think it's going to be pretty exhausting but ideally worth the effort. Wish me luck...