Add Memory | Add To Friends
jburt1 (profile) wrote,
on 12-10-2003 at 9:40am
Current mood: contemplative
Subject: China Babble
Okay, so sitting here in the "business center" of the hotel feels a little awkard. I'm at the only computer they have for guests to use and the attendent is sitting right across from me! lol. I have to say, Beijing is quite interesting. I didn't know what to expect, but I was surprised more than I thought I'd be. First of all, the downtown is kinda of scattered. It's not all clumped together like other big cities. There's a lot of old, dingy buildings admist a lot of new construction (they're trying to spark up the city for the 2008 olympics). Yesterday my uncle and I hired a driver and went into the city to check out the HomeTown/Pearl Market and Jiang Nan Silk museum/store. We went back today with my aunt and more adopting couples, and my aunt spent big bucks getting a lot of silk and jewelry. A lot of that stuff were gifts for her adopting daughter, Rachel, for when she gets older. The biggest problem so far has been the language barrier. No matter what you say they simply nod their head and say "yes, yes" or "no problem" or "for youuu." I guess they know more english than we know chinese, but still it's hard to communicate. Another challenge of sorts has been all the salespeople. It's hard to say no to them because they are actually nice (for the most part, and unlike the vendors in Paris). Last night at dinner was strange because we had a waitress and waiter, and then we had 3 different people bring out our dinners to each one of us. Talk about service! lol. You'd never see that in America. I guess the ratio here is 5:1, that is 5 attendants for every 1 customer. Tonight we saw an acrobatic show. It's was neat how they rode on bikes while twirling dishes and how they climbed on top of each other and balanced things. One kid even did a balancing act will flipping bowls from the board he was ridding to the top of his head. Well, it's about 10:30 pm here and I have to get up early for touring. I guess it won't be as bad as the 17 hours we spent up in the air! Word of Advice: DON'T DRINK THE WATER!
Post A Comment

ALskokinMyMouth

12-10-03 10:30am

Hey jburt
so China sounds like a lot of fun. Anyway i hope the weather is better in China then in Muskegon right now.. How long are u going to be down there? Anyway the time are completely diff. u said that you typed that journal at 10:30 pm well here in Muskegon is was 9:40 am. That is kind of cool! Well anyway is the H20 gross or something.....Since when does a freaking train come through here..... OMG another blonde moment.... We are on a half day schedule duh......it is about 10:15am but i have to go make copies i have to go now....!~

(reply to this)

Fatman

12-11-03 11:44am

Don't forget my panda!

(reply to this)