Chinese culture interests me. I've taught myself to read the Chinese language with the help of a dictionary. People are intimidated by it but in some ways it isn't as hard as you may think. (The grammar is pretty simple.) I especially like its writing system, which matches a picture or two to a whole word. I've also learned some Japanese and in some respects it's more different from English than Chinese is.
About fifteen years ago my sister and I visited China on a three-week tour. We went to places like Beijing and Shanghai (which reminded me of Manhattan) and the place in the northwest with the ceramic warrior statues. You can see the place modernizing somewhat unevenly. (On one road I noticed a road sign with a picture that said "No tractors.")
We also walked on the Great Wall, which is a pretty steep climb: it was made for soldiers, not tourists. They also took us to a really loud silk factory, like in the movie Norma Rae. Those workers will be going deaf!
We were on a cruise ship on the Yangzi River north of the Three Gorges Dam, but some of us got food poisoning. Overall, however, the food was pretty good: they served us the best spinach I've ever eaten. We hardly ever met beggars--I imagine the police keep them away from tourists. But there were a lot of pedlars, not that I blame them for shaking us down.
If I visit China again, it won't be as a first-class tourist. I don't like being a rich man in a poor country.
No comments:
Post a Comment