Signs you are in the midst of China's national holiday: - It's on or around the date of October 1 (the official date of the holiday) - You have one to several days off of work (Woohoo!) - You start saying words like "Woohoo!" when this type of word typically embodies more emotion than you feel comfortable expressing - More flags of China are displayed in public places than usual (I'm looking at you, Shanghai metro) - At any given moment you feel you run the risk of being trampled (Chinese holidays are the worst time to do absolutely anything because the number of people all doing the same thing reaches overwhelming heights) | I like to think I had a very Chinese holiday since I spent most of it at the homes of Chinese friends. One of my colleagues invited all the teachers at our school to her house for a home cooked meal. We all looked forward to it but some of us decided to go out the night before as usual, although the reality of waking up after minimal sleep proved challenging for some. I need more sleep than most but a few years of sorority recruitment taught me how to survive a day without much and remain standing. What can I say, not everyone can rally like a Williams (see pictured evidence). |
I was lucky to also be invited to another colleague's hometown of Hai'an in Jiangsu province for a few days over the remainder of the break. Her cousin was kind enough to drive us from Shanghai which made the trip more pleasant than the usual bus journey. When we arrived, we first stopped at their family's shop where her father sells mahjong tables. Upon meeting our friend's father, the other Chinese colleague on the trip immediately noted that he seemed like a mafia boss. I don't know that I got that vibe as this was the same man who picked us up hot breakfast, waited in his car for several hours while we went exploring a park and neighboring carnival (on his birthday no less), and insisted on ordering a special goose for dinner when he heard we were visiting. Mafia boss or not, her family was very welcoming and generous and the trip was a welcome respite from the crowds of Shanghai. | |