Hangin with the Locals

Today, I finally went to get my health exam. A blood sample, xray, and ultrasound later (ha, please) I am finally on my way to becoming a semi-permanent resident of CHINA. I would like give a shout out to all those who believe bureaucracy or government run health care is "good": I waited 4 hours this morning outside a health clinic, only to be turned away because it was "lunch break time." I came back in the afternoon, waited another three hours, went through a series of checkpoints only to wait in ANOTHER line, allowing me to have about thirty seconds with an overworked doctor and then be unceremoniously shoved out of the way. We think America has crappy systems? Welcome to socialized medicine.

I've developed a sore throat and lethargic demeanor, much like everyone else in the program. Once I finally returned to the Jia, I napped and took a quiet afternoon of research and statistics. I keep reminding myself that I need to get more rest... mostly because i'm exerting energy i'm not even aware during these first weeks of immersion.

Tonight was an experience, to say the least. After crawling out of bed, I grabbed Carl and Saxon to help me find dinner down the street. We stopped in at a local dumpling restaurant i've eaten at before, only to find there was no room inside. The hostess gave skeptical glances to her fellow workers, then gestured to the back of the restaurant, pointing "upstairs." I didn't even realize there was an upstairs, but since we were hungry I followed the boys up the stairs. We arrived in a crowded room of local Chinese, all smoking and laughing over large, more expensive plates of food. The downstairs had resembled a storefront restaurant, but this room was slightly more upper class and much more local. We all sat down, ordered some drinks, and opened a menu of complete characters (not English pinyin, just characters.) After Carl (who speaks great Mandarin!) asked for an English menu, the waitress summoned the "person in charge" who we assumed owned the restaurant. After greeting us, he asked us (Keep in mind, there was NO ENGLISH spoken this entire meal) what we liked to eat. In a brave move, Carl asked the man to bring us what HE liked to eat.
We waited in eager anticipation of whatever was coming our way. First, a plate of pickled cabbage, which is typical of a Chinese starter. Then, a small bucket with tin foil appeared. Inside was some kind of tofu dish with an aromatic chicken broth sauce and chunks of what appeared to be clam. It wasn't like anything i've ever eaten, but very good all the same. Then out came something familiar: Jiao zi, or boiled soup style dumplings. Served like dim sum, these little pouches of heaven were incredible. Shanghai is famous for it's soup dumplings, and this dish certainly proved why. Hot but not scalding, savory yet light, and covered in delicate dumpling dough. ahhhhh.
Finally, we finished with a sizzling plate of beef in a sweet soy sauce. Incredibly tender beef paired with some egg fried rice... just wonderful. After some more conversation with the Manager man (we couldn't really pick up his name... his deep gruff voice slurred almost everything he said) we left, having paid 90 quai for the whole meal (for those at home counting, that's about 15 US dollars, apps 5 dollars a person.)

On the way back, Saxon and I stopped for iced green tea outside the 7/11 style convenience shop outside our gate. The street woman near where we were sitting had taken an old chair and was stripping it for wood. Saxon, who is both wonderful and a complete mystery to me, decided to help the woman. I sat and watched as this odd act of kindness turned into a fantastic scene. John and Patrick drove by the house, saw Saxon, and proceeded to help him in his act of public service. Locals started to appear, confused yet fascinated by the odd Americans helping the street woman. As we later learned, higher class local Chinese do not help the street people with their "work," so watching Saxon was very strange and borderline taboo. We explained to the onlookers that Americans pride themselves in being both friendly and helpful. The locals, to my surprise, were impressed by this and watched in interest and the boys continued to help the woman with her work.

After the wood-stripping had finished, one of the woman who I had been pathetically trying to communicate with decided to walk John and I back to our Jia, which was right down the lane. After walking and chatting, we discovered that she lived next to our Jia in a small apartment across the way. She asked if we both would come up and see her home. Though small, the apartment housed the woman, her husband, and her young daughter. After assessing the the situation was perfectly safe and these people were simply being very hospitable, John and I sat and talked with the girl (Joy) and her mother (Laura.) The immersion was intense, but Joy spoke some English and John helped with the Mandarin translation. Joy, who is twelve and very good in school, was eager to exchange emails to she can practice her English. Both Joy and Laura were polite, kind and very hospitable to John and myself. Though in a normal situation, being invited to a strangers house would have seemed both sketchy and dangerous, but here it is a cultural norm. The home is a source of pride for Laura and her family, and inviting us up to chat and meet her family was incredibly kind of her. After a long series of conversations, I finally got back to the Jia. After a very long day, I feel like I definitely am staring to embrace the cultural transition. I chose China as my study abroad because I felt the transition here would be most difficult, yet also the most rewarding. By making the effort to step out of my comfort zone, I feel I'm getting much more out of this experience than If I were simply staying with the group 24/7. I'm meeting people, eating with the locals, and trying to bridge the cultural gap. I'm (safely) taking the leap into China.
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