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Published: April 13th 2011
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家庭和朋友 (Family & Friends),
Chongqing at a Glance:
While my first few days here have been limited to recovering to from the 30 sum odd hours of travel and tying up loose ends at school, I have been out and about soaking up the Chinese culture. The 13-hour time difference between the U.S. and Chongqing China has finally started to release its grip from my body and I am starting to feel a bit normal.
Chongqing, located in the central Sichuan province of China, is known mainly for its hot pot cuisine and its exploding growth. The theme so far has been pollution and people. While most do not speak English and stare at the white man walking down the street, they seem to be genuine in there sincerity to help you. I have even been stopped so that people can take a picture with me. Can you say “Awkward!”? Still, the shear volume of people packed into this place is staggering. As is much of China, Chongqing is growing at a phenomenal rate. One can observe skyscrapers going up at a rate of one floor a week, while dilapidated building litter the landscape. The city (and country)
seems to be a mixture of contradictions: young vs. old, new vs. traditional, rich vs. poor. All are jockeying for their piece of the pie. I am told that you can get anything you want here, as long as you are willing to pay for it. I won’t go into detail, but through circumstance I have found this to be true already.
The prices here, while not dirt cheap, are rather low compared to western standards. I went out around one in the morn the other night and hit the streets for some street food. Finding the communication barrier rather amusing, I let the little Chinese girl standing next to me pick out my meal. She simply picked out what she liked (which seemed to be one of everything on the menu) and I said “O.k.” and nodded. The cook then masterfully grilled it to perfection on his homemade barbeque stand. You have throw in a couple of liters of Chinese beer and wahla; you have authentic Chinese street food for about US$3.95. How can you beat that? And before you ask, I love the food. I have been eating nonstop. Although what I have been eating nonstop I
cannot say. What I do know is that I have sampled beef, chicken, eel, liver, pork, tofu, noodles, rice, and vegetables (lotus root, bamboo, greens, sprouts, etc.). I think anyway. The rest is a mystery.
I have been able to communicate largely through context clues and perseverance. This coupled with being flexible usually is an indispensible character trait when traveling abroad. The language barrier has not really been a problem so far but I have not really tested it yet. Most have no clue what you are saying, as they may know only two words in English “Hello” and “Goodbye.” This comes in useful when you tell a cabbie that won’t give you a ride because he doesn’t like the route to “kiss your ass.” They usually just wave and walk away saying something that I am sure is mutual.
Speaking of cabbies the pollution here in the city is overbearing. When I first flew in I thought it was just a cloudy day. However, I soon realized that there was a constant haze in the air form the pollution given off from the city. L.A. does not even compare to this. On a sunny day the sky
is not even blue but rather an opaque color. I am told that breathing the air is like smoking a pack of cigarettes a day. Lucky me.
Since my experience has been limited and I will experience many different aspects of the culture soon enough, I am withholding judgment until later. Overall, I am having a great time and love experiencing the unknown. I have attached a few pictures so I hope you enjoy. Talk to you all soon.
Check out other adventures at our new site
Ultra Expeditions and see what we are up to.
The Plan:
I will stay in Chongqing until Thursday when I will fly to Beijing and prepare for some up coming races. Until then I plan on having no plan, only to soak up the sights and sounds of the city, and go with the flow.
最好的 (Best),
Jason
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