This past weekend we went and saw the
site of the massive 2008 earthquake in Beichuan, China which killed
tens of thousands of people, an unimaginable death toll. Going
to the site of the earthquake made it far more than a statistic. I
saw collapsed buildings and motorbikes under buildings, perfectly
preserved as if it had happened yesterday. I think that it's very
interesting that China chose to commemorate the site in that way.
Beichuan is primarily made up of the Chang minority group, and
residents were all relocated permanently after the earthquake. I'm
interested in learning more about China's minority groups, but my
general impression is that the minority groups remain fairly
segregated in society. For example, I passed by a university
especially for minority students today in Chengdu.
The
commemorative museum, which we saw after the earthquake site, was
that it was full of propaganda. The plaque at the front of the
museum made sure to credit the government for saving the people of
Beichuan rather than the heroic acts of the peoples themselves.
One thing that I've been thinking about
is the stereotype that Chinese people are extremely hard working.
I've always believed that hard work is an inherent part of Chinese
culture and that college students must be really stressed out here,
probably because of my hard-working and brilliant Chinese-American friends. But when I asked a professor here about the main
differences that she observed between Sichuan University and the U.S.
university where she did her master's, she said: “I think that what
I noticed is that American students work really hard in college.
Probably harder than they do here at Sichuan University.” I found
that really surprising. That isn't to say that I haven't found
ridiculously hard working people here. I met a student here who, in
order to do a double major, took courses in law (his second major) on
the weekends. In China high school seems to be more stressful than college as well, since preparation for the Gaokao (college entrance exam) is so intense. And of course in any country, there will be people who
work hard and people who aren't. So I think that's my conclusion, is that I should quit making generalizations.
I'm also in a famously “chill”
city. It's like, the California of China or something. Around
mid-day, everyone breaks and takes a nap, either going home or
sleeping at the nearest convenient location. Even bankers take such
“siestas”... a friend told me that everyone goes to their office
after lunch and naps on the couch! (American financial sector:
please take note.) I've seen people napping in Renmin gongyuan
("People's park"), on parked motorbikes (!), in their cars, and in
restaurants. We also have a siesta built into our class schedule,
since we have a loong 2.5 hour break between morning and afternoon
classes.
Local Chengduren (Chengdu residents)
like to say that people prioritize happiness over ambition here.
There are parks with teahouses in them, where one can sit for hours
playing mahjong. Mahjong, teahouses, and food. The emphasis on
food (see blog post 2) is great. Not only is the food delicious,
but people take time to eat it too, rather than grabbing food on the
go. My latest obsession is something called “mao cai,” which is
a dish where you can choose your own assortment of tofu, vegetables,
and meat, and then they cook it up for you in a really spicy soup.
This weekend I'm off to an archeological museum, an opening ceremony for the international
students, and the panda reserve! I can't believe that somehow
between chatting with my awesome Chinese friends and
eating food, I'm already more than halfway done with my program...
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