There are several excerpts from Lonely Planet's guide to China that reference "the real China." For instance, there is a quote in the section on Yangshuo that mentions how the mountain-town-cum-tourist-mecca is a far-stretch from "the real China." Being a cynical traveler, I heeded these words and mentally prepared for lots of schmaltzy tourist swag and fake touts; but being a cynical traveler, I also am skeptical of what Lonely Planet means by "the real China." (For more on cynicism, I recommend viewing 06/09/2011's episode of South Park: "Your Getting Old.")
One of my fellow tai ji students named Simon is seriously considering staying in China for a long period of time now that his holiday has been such a personal success. He recently passed his TEFL exam and is job hunting in Yangshuo. He also asked me whether I though that Yangshuo was an example of "the real China."
I have been puzzling the enigma of "the real China" all year as people ask me questions about Chinese people, culture, politics, and other miscellaneous features of society. I have an ongoing bad habit of generalizing about all things Chinese. This is a bad habit because generalizations are, of course, risky in how they can quickly become labeling, cornering, or even offending. But, I continue to generalize because of my experiences and because of how I view so many people acting a certain way--after all, there are a lot of people in China, and an impression created by a subset of one million tempts the generalization.
I often wonder how "really Chinese" my experiences in Shenzhen were; after all, Shenzhen is a Special Economic Zone and so new that it lacks in any traditional Chinese history. What little traditional Chinese culture I was exposed to this year was mostly kitsch and novelty--even for my Chinese friends. Buddhist temple(s) were tempered by the shopping malls with H&M's just a block away. Pagodas were more nouveau than emblematic of a dynasty.
But Shenzhen seems to be the thriving and bustling future of China. With many people moving to the city to find jobs, the city has become very cosmopolitan. Foreign language instruction is of paramount importance there, and there is an enormous expat community. As China's economy continues to expand (and may soon be the most dominant one in the world), I am inclined to believe that Shenzhen (as well as any other SEZ) is more indicative of the direction in which Chinese cities are moving.
Then I get out of Shenzhen and see tourist hubs. There is a veneer of polish for visitors, but the tchotchkes and low quality souvenirs are just meters away from filthy alleyways where one can still see parents holding children with crotchless pants over gutters so that their children can defecate. The bartender who will serve a Captain Myer's and Coke will also hawk a loogie into a garbage can while on the job. A man will pick his nose with his uncut pinky-finger-nail (to show he does not work in the dirt) while he rides the brand new and pristine metro. There is something about this dichotomy of harmony and grit that rings very true to my concept of "the real China": It is as if the country has modernized, but one billion people didn't get the memo.
So is the filth of Beijing "the real China" any more or less than Shanghai's The Bund or emei shan's macaque-ridden monasteries?
With an old friend, I recently had a conversation that was tangentially relevant. I observed that pin-pointing "the real China" is difficult while they both adhere to "the nail that pokes-up gets hit by the hammer" but also love Lady Gaga. How could Chinese people who value conformity and harmony also be jazz enthusiasts?
I am coincidentally watching The Wire (finally), and the concurrent thoughts about the show's "thorough" depiction of one corner of America and the thoughts about "the real China" make me realize that generalizations about "the real China" are totally bunk. Asking about "the real China" or saying Yangshuo is far from "the real China" is like asking about "the real America" or saying that Park City, Utah is far from "the real America."
My "real China" is as much the karst peaks in Yangshuo as it is the innovative architecture in Shenzhen, the Peking duck in Beijing, the jazz clubs in Shanghai, the Giant Buddha in Leshan, or the child pooping in any given Chinese street's gutter (except, maybe, The Bund). And my "real America" is anything from Pluto costumes in conflated theme parks to poetry read by incarcerated youth in Detroit to my mom's quiche recipe.
After ten months in China, I may have an even more confused view of the society than I did ten-months-ago. And yet, I am compelled to delve deeper.
Music, Movies, Books, T.V.: "Katie" by Paper Bear, "Mindscape" by VEKTROID, "No Love" by Hooray for Earth, "Noche Nada" by Givers, "Real is a Feeling" by Pictureplane, Rome by Dangermouse and Daniele Luppi, Tokimonsta, "Last Night at the Jetty" by Panda Bear, "Whitey on the Moon" by Gil Scott-Heron, 1980 by Gil Scott-Heron, X-Men: First Class, A Woman, A Gun, and A Noodle Shop, Rango, A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce, The Wire (season 2).
One of my fellow tai ji students named Simon is seriously considering staying in China for a long period of time now that his holiday has been such a personal success. He recently passed his TEFL exam and is job hunting in Yangshuo. He also asked me whether I though that Yangshuo was an example of "the real China."
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| Real Chinese cow cooling off |
I have been puzzling the enigma of "the real China" all year as people ask me questions about Chinese people, culture, politics, and other miscellaneous features of society. I have an ongoing bad habit of generalizing about all things Chinese. This is a bad habit because generalizations are, of course, risky in how they can quickly become labeling, cornering, or even offending. But, I continue to generalize because of my experiences and because of how I view so many people acting a certain way--after all, there are a lot of people in China, and an impression created by a subset of one million tempts the generalization.
I often wonder how "really Chinese" my experiences in Shenzhen were; after all, Shenzhen is a Special Economic Zone and so new that it lacks in any traditional Chinese history. What little traditional Chinese culture I was exposed to this year was mostly kitsch and novelty--even for my Chinese friends. Buddhist temple(s) were tempered by the shopping malls with H&M's just a block away. Pagodas were more nouveau than emblematic of a dynasty.
But Shenzhen seems to be the thriving and bustling future of China. With many people moving to the city to find jobs, the city has become very cosmopolitan. Foreign language instruction is of paramount importance there, and there is an enormous expat community. As China's economy continues to expand (and may soon be the most dominant one in the world), I am inclined to believe that Shenzhen (as well as any other SEZ) is more indicative of the direction in which Chinese cities are moving.
Then I get out of Shenzhen and see tourist hubs. There is a veneer of polish for visitors, but the tchotchkes and low quality souvenirs are just meters away from filthy alleyways where one can still see parents holding children with crotchless pants over gutters so that their children can defecate. The bartender who will serve a Captain Myer's and Coke will also hawk a loogie into a garbage can while on the job. A man will pick his nose with his uncut pinky-finger-nail (to show he does not work in the dirt) while he rides the brand new and pristine metro. There is something about this dichotomy of harmony and grit that rings very true to my concept of "the real China": It is as if the country has modernized, but one billion people didn't get the memo.
 | |
| Generalization: Chinese people on holiday |
So is the filth of Beijing "the real China" any more or less than Shanghai's The Bund or emei shan's macaque-ridden monasteries?
With an old friend, I recently had a conversation that was tangentially relevant. I observed that pin-pointing "the real China" is difficult while they both adhere to "the nail that pokes-up gets hit by the hammer" but also love Lady Gaga. How could Chinese people who value conformity and harmony also be jazz enthusiasts?
I am coincidentally watching The Wire (finally), and the concurrent thoughts about the show's "thorough" depiction of one corner of America and the thoughts about "the real China" make me realize that generalizations about "the real China" are totally bunk. Asking about "the real China" or saying Yangshuo is far from "the real China" is like asking about "the real America" or saying that Park City, Utah is far from "the real America."
My "real China" is as much the karst peaks in Yangshuo as it is the innovative architecture in Shenzhen, the Peking duck in Beijing, the jazz clubs in Shanghai, the Giant Buddha in Leshan, or the child pooping in any given Chinese street's gutter (except, maybe, The Bund). And my "real America" is anything from Pluto costumes in conflated theme parks to poetry read by incarcerated youth in Detroit to my mom's quiche recipe.
After ten months in China, I may have an even more confused view of the society than I did ten-months-ago. And yet, I am compelled to delve deeper.
 |
| Really in China |
Music, Movies, Books, T.V.: "Katie" by Paper Bear, "Mindscape" by VEKTROID, "No Love" by Hooray for Earth, "Noche Nada" by Givers, "Real is a Feeling" by Pictureplane, Rome by Dangermouse and Daniele Luppi, Tokimonsta, "Last Night at the Jetty" by Panda Bear, "Whitey on the Moon" by Gil Scott-Heron, 1980 by Gil Scott-Heron, X-Men: First Class, A Woman, A Gun, and A Noodle Shop, Rango, A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce, The Wire (season 2).
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