T.I.C.

The learning really never stops. In talking to my home stay parents these past few days, I've learned some interesting and somewhat surprising facts about China. For instance, the other night we were having dinner and talking about travel in general. I was telling my parents about my latest plans for touring SE Asia over winter break (an aside: starting Dec 14 I am island hopping with a friend from Australia to the Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand. I will make every effort to keep entries regular during that time. Can't wait for the trip! Anyone with travel tips for these parts, drop me a line!), and that started a discussion about where else in the world we'd like to visit. Naturally, I wanted to know if they had been to the U.S. and if not, if they wanted to go. They both emphatically replied that touring the states was something they had always wanted to do. Unfortunately, they have yet to make the trip and the reality is unlikely to change anytime soon. This is because our government back home does not allow for Chinese citizens to enter the country on short leave, unless for business/education purposes. So traveling to the states is out. As a disclaimer, I have yet to read any hard facts to back this claim (though a Google attempt was made), but I trust my home stay family, though there might have been a translation snafu along the way.

I find this restriction placed upon Chinese citizens to be, among other things, interesting and downright unfortunate. Interesting because as far as I know, Chinese can travel nearly anywhere else in the world, including Europe. In fact, my home stay mom is particularly well-traveled (definitely more so than me), and has been to England, France, and Germany. Yet another interesting point to consider is the issue of reciprocity (again, assuming the policy I state here is correct). Now, on the surface, maybe things aren't so bad, if you factor in cases of work or study. Here I am, a strapping young, American student with the opportunity to study overseas in essentially any country of my choosing, including China. Flip the coin, and you get a similar story for Chinese students, who can get over to the good ol' U. S. of A. if their stated purpose is to study there. The story is different for leisurely travel, though. Again, I can still come to China for the sole purpose of seeing the Great Wall and pandas as long as I have my passport and visa, but a Chinese family wanting tour our homeland to get a flavor of the Big Apple, the West Coast, and everything in between is forced to sit on the sidelines until government officials work something out. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if within five years the travel restriction in the U.S. is lifted. The fact that it's there to begin with, though, is hardly fair in my book.

Another did you know (a random one, but nonetheless fascinating to me): funeral preparations are done differently in China. Let me explain. Unlike the U.S., where most people can request to be cremated, buried in a casket, or even have organs donated upon their passing, China has a one-rule-fits-all scenario. Everyone must be cremated, no exceptions. Well, unless you count Chairman Mao. His body still rests in a mausoleum in Tiananmen Square that is on display for the world to see (interesting fact: there are actually two "Mao" figures kept in the vault, one being the genuine Mao, and the other a fake look-alike. When I went to see Mao, I couldn't tell if I saw the real deal or not). But even the story of how Mao's body ended up only further demonstrates how some very private things in China are just simply not left up to the individual. The Great Helmsman himself requested to be cremated, but upon his death, the Politburo made a quick decision to have his body preserved. So even one of the most powerful leaders in China's vast history didn't get his way in the end. As my friends and I so often say when something happens in Beijing that runs contrary to what we're used to back home, "T...I...C... This Is China."

Just a couple facts to mull over as you crunch away on your cereal, fight your way through traffic, or breathe in fresh air as you walk through campus or your neighborhood.