Observations in China part 1

Ok, so I've been basically been giving you a run-down of my days, things I've been up to, etc. but I've never actually spent time talking about my observations and things I've found interesting so far.

Side-saddle biking is a huge phenomenon. Everyone here rides bikes, but on the back of every bike is a square metal slab where another person can sit and drape their legs over the side. We always see women sitting side-saddle on bikes, texting or holding umbrellas, perfectly balanced and not holding on. However, Calvin and Kevin Lee have tried on Chicken's bike to attempt to peddle with someone on side-saddle...they swerved like crazy and almost crashed. Eventually I will ride on the side of a bike in China...I can't have the full China experience otherwise, hahaha.

At home, I often see people with tattoos or clothing that have Chinese characters on them, and many times I wonder if people have any clue what the characters say. The same goes here with English. Very fashionable clothes here often have English words printed on them...sometimes with random words, and other times with hilariously awkward phrases. The funniest one's I've seen so far are "Little Miss Jail Bait" and "Get Booty", though there have been several less memorable ones.

The 28 Chinese roomates who moved into our dorms this past Sunday are quite a bunch of characters. Many of them like to be called by their English names, and several girls have names that we might consider stripper names in the states. "Venus" and "Cherry" are just a few. Some guys have funny names too...take for example "Chicken", one of the funniest kids of all. Aside from having funny names, they're also pretty hilarious (albeit sometimes perverted) kids. They've picked up some English terms like "Oh Shit" and "Off the Chain" and use them often. In return, we've picked up some funny Chinese phrases...like the term for masturbation which is "da feiji". You might only find that funny if you knew Chinese, but literally it means to shoot down airplanes.

When I had my first Chinese class here, I thought it was strange that one of our words to study was "Playboy" (hua hua gong zi), but now its a phrase I hear used commonly in a variety of situations.

We have noticed quite a bit of a cultural difference though in terms of how guys and girls act (both with eachother and seperately). The Chinese boys often talk about porn and other things regarding sex extremely openly...even moreso than guys in America talk. Sometimes I find the way they talk mildly annoying, if not even a little bit offensive. However, talking to my roomate Sally, she couldn't understand what was wrong with how the boys were acting. She said to me, "Boys always talk about girls. They appreciate our beauty." Instead of feeling like they were being degrading towards women, the girls here seem to feel comfortable and embrace it as a kind of compliment.

Also on the same line as male-female relationships, I've also noticed that while conversationally the Chinese seem very open, their actions say different things. For example, a hug between a male and a female is almost a sure sign of a relationship. I've been bombarded with questions about whether or not I'm dating this person or that based on the kind of friendship I have with that person. I've explained how things are typically in America, that male and female friends can be close without anything underlying. They seem to still be a bit skeptical, however.

I'll try to keep posting interesting observations as they come along, until then, bye...I can't wait to see you all when I get home!