Tiananmen Square
One of the colleagues I worked with while in Beijing is a PT from Los Angeles named Clare who lived in Beijing for a year nearly 30 years ago. During that time, she witnessed the huge protests in and around Tiananmen Square. “There were tents all over the Square inhabited by students from across China.” There are still some who claim it didn’t happen and many still refuse to discuss it (a guide told me he couldn’t talk about it during my last visit). I am certainly familiar with the protests, but hearing from Clare gives a whole new view of the Square.
Cycling
Bikes in China still amaze me. It’s how parents take their child (not children, only one child is “allowed”) to school. I saw riders in suits, others pulling huge carts full of discarded objects to re-sell (think plastic bottles, cardboard boxes, pallets). When leaving their bikes, many aren’t locked and most are single speed, rusted models. There are parking lots dedicated to bikes…some of them even offer covered bike parking! Bike rental stations are very common. And cyclists have no problem riding the wrong way on the street nor do they seem to mind disobeying traffic rules and large groups of pedestrians. Given this, I wonder why more Chinese cyclists aren’t involved in high level bicycling-related sports.
Yogurt
Drinkable yogurt…did others know this was a thing? It was all over the place: Beijing Sports University, shopping malls, street stands. Some was made onsite, others were made from companies. It was delicious and I would like someone to start this in the U.S.! 🙂
See you again
The Fast and Furious theme song is VERY popular in Beijing. I heard it almost everywhere I went (in a car, shopping mall, while running, training centers).
Pricing
Another colleague from the U.S. Bought several things (e.g., selfie stick, camera tripod, TRX exercise straps) all for about 10-20% of the price in the U.S. Not 10-20% off, 10-20% of the price. Crazy.
Driving
For my trip home, I was driven to the airport by a college-age male…that was fun! We cut people off, drove on the shoulder (several times), and broke several other laws I’m sure. Nice!
Language
Thank You
I do not speak much Chinese–fewer than 20 words–and I can read even less. (Both of which I would like to “fix” for next time.) I was never made to feel bad for this. So, it is curious to me why those in the US are ostracized for not speaking English. Learning another language is hard. Be nice, there’s much more to worry about in life besides that.