10.24.07
Impressions of America from Chinese Eyes
This past week I had the pleasure of acting as interpreter and cultural facilitator for a delegation of Chinese businessmen visiting Kansas City. For several of them, it was their first trip to the US, and for all of them it was their first time in Kansas City. For me it was a chance to begin reciprocating the Chinese people for all of the help and assistance I received from them during my time in the Middle Kingdom. Here are some memorable quotes from this week as my Chinese associates described their impressions of Kansas City, and the US as a whole.
When asking how their flight was…
“American airport security is such a pain. We had to wait in line for half an hour, and it seemed like they searched everything. In China, it’s much easier.”
While driving through a suburban office park…
“Nobody is on the streets. The street life here is so boring.”
Also while driving through a suburban office park…
“There are so many trees, and the sky is so clear. It is so beautiful.”
While walking in the front door of the company…
“Did you see that sign on the door which had a gun with a circle and a line through it? You would never see anything like that in China.”
At the steak house…
“These steaks are quite different from the ones we have in China. They aren’t served on a flaming skillet and there’s no egg.”
While discussing China with Americans who had never been…
“The impressions Americans get from reading about China are completely different from the impressions they would get from visiting China in person.”
At a strip center…
“All of these little shops look so unique. In China, the small shops are all the same, and none of them have colorful signs like the ones here.”
While shopping for men’s clothes…
“Man…these are expensive!”
Heard throughout the week…
“Americans are so fat. Everywhere there are fat people. Why are Americans so fat? Is it the food?”
(heard on several occasions, often with “fat” gestures made by arms)
Mark
said,
October 25, 2007 at 12:58 am
Hey Ben. I’m Sam Hopkins’ friend from SME who’s teaching in Xi’an. I randomly saw your blog on chinalyst.com. My blog is also on that. Sam said that I should get in touch with you since you are just finishing up a three year experience in China and are now looking for work.
I’m going on a year and a half plus with teaching and am also planning on coming back in late ‘08 (for a total of about 2.5-3 years).
How does it feel being back in the States knowing you’re not coming back to China any time soon? Are you back in KC for the long haul? I’m curious to hear how things are going.
Take it easy man!
Anqi Dai
said,
October 25, 2007 at 1:21 pm
Hi, Ben!
I used to take Chinese agri-delegation to hog and cattle farms in the region.
I had the similar experiences! Your post is inetresting!
Take care!
Anqi
Chris
said,
October 25, 2007 at 6:49 pm
Good stuff, Ben.
Bright
said,
October 25, 2007 at 7:35 pm
Hello,ben.
I am a chinese student.I love to read your blog a lot,maybe any piece of it.
Come on.
Matt Schiavenza
said,
October 26, 2007 at 10:50 am
Funny….I find myself making the exact same observations when I come home. Everyone’s fat (though I imagine the obesity rate is higher in Kansas City than San Francisco), airport security is a pain in the ass, and there’s nothing going on in the streets.
chriswaugh_bj
said,
October 26, 2007 at 3:41 pm
“Did you see that sign on the door which had a gun with a circle and a line through it? You would never see anything like that in China.”
Um, yeah, except at every Beijing subway entrance. I seem to recall seeing similar signs in most railway stations in China, too.
Jiang
said,
October 26, 2007 at 6:12 pm
I like the suburban office parks where“There are so many trees, and the sky is so clear. It is so beautiful.”
China and I
said,
October 27, 2007 at 2:25 pm
I wish Lou Dobbs (CNN) made such visit to China and change his mind about “Communist China”.
Tiffany
said,
October 28, 2007 at 10:09 am
Hi!Ben,I am Tiffany(My foreign teacher Even gave me this name.I like it very much).I know you from Bilingual World.I like what you wrote very much.Come on!!
danjo
said,
October 29, 2007 at 10:36 am
There are a number of foreign teachers at my school and whenever a Chinese person refers to one of the overweight ones they will, without fail, say “胖胖的那个 (you know, the big fat one!)” while doing the “fat” arm motions. Though I must say when I went back to America everyone looked shockingly overweight. And such big noses.
canrun
said,
October 29, 2007 at 7:58 pm
“The impressions Americans get from reading about China are completely different from the impressions they would get from visiting China in person.”
Uh…really? That it’s the Enchanted land of milk and honey?? Me guesses that you hosted a fair number of Communist Party brethren on this here excursion…
canrun
said,
October 29, 2007 at 8:00 pm
“At a strip center…”
…And you can bet your last LV man-bag this was NOT the kind they had been anticipating!
Benjamin Ross
said,
October 29, 2007 at 11:11 pm
Canrun-
Good to see you back here after what seems like a bit of a hiatus. As for his comment about reading about China and seeing it in person, I would have to say that I agree with the original statement. Without going into specifics I would say that the China I had envisioned before I went there was quite different than the one I discovered once I actually got there. Coming back to the US, I find that a great deal of the information about China coming from both the media, and people who have only been there for short periods of time is grossly misrepresented. Although, I could also say the exact thing for information about the US in China. As for your comment about the LV man-bags, I think you’re right on the money.
canrun
said,
October 30, 2007 at 3:40 pm
Ben,
Thanks for the kind “welcome.” Actually, I’ve been lurking all along. My wife got her green card in August and we just got back to China after six weeks of scouting out places to live in the US when we move back next year. (No, Kansas City did not make the short list, but ya’ll have some DAMN fine Barbecue! Hope the LV bags were full of pork rinds. But…I digress!)
I, too, found China to be WAYYY different than I had imagined (also without getting into specifics). But, after six years here I am just worn out. It’s a young man’s place (or a tried and true Panda Hugger.) I’m ready to head back to Florida, teach my wife how to sail, get a boat and dip my toes daily into the fine, blue, unpolluted Gulf of Mexico. Keep up the good work and I’ll keep stopping by…
-Canrun
Heike717
said,
October 31, 2007 at 10:32 am
Heard many of the same conversations myself. One of favorites was, “how many guns do you own?” I guess we are neighbors, live in Kansas City too.
Flora
said,
October 31, 2007 at 1:05 pm
Interesting blog, good luck
owshawng
said,
October 31, 2007 at 6:35 pm
When I moved back to New Jersey from Sydney I was shocked at how fat Americans are. Gross. There are tons of fatties in Australia too but you tend not to see too many in Sydney’s business district. The further away from the heart of the city, the bigger people get.
When I was growing up there was 1 fat kid in each class, now 1/3 or more of the kids in Jersey are fat. But I thought there’s a wave of obesity in China too for the under 30 crowd. Something to do with living in a city and being spoiled due to being an only child.
coljac
said,
November 1, 2007 at 3:07 pm
At a strip center…
“All of these little shops look so unique. In China, the small shops are all the same, and none of them have colorful signs like the ones here.”
One thing that struck me when I moved back to Australia was the larger number of independent little shops – video stores, pizza shops, newsagents, milk bars(*), fish and chip shops, and so on. In the USA, nearly everywhere is the same as nearly everywhere else – the same franchises. After a while I found this a little depressing, though of course wherever you are you can find a store you know.
(*)Like a convenience store.
canrun
said,
November 1, 2007 at 7:08 pm
I find it VERY depressing: Michaels-Kohl’s-Borders-nails-tanning-Hong Kong buffet #3…everywhere…(in the South, at least…) Bloody awful. Atlanta sucks.
Jet So
said,
November 22, 2007 at 11:45 pm
“Americans are so fat. Everywhere there are fat people. Why are Americans so fat? Is it the food?”
Hmmm, I’m not sure where your LV men-bags came from in the Motherland but where I am, there’s not a few 大小胖子们 around as compared to their 江南 brethren and/or Asian counterparts in Japan & Korea.
But again, they’re not built for the Ponderosa!