Highs and Lows

Some things about China are fantastic. Consider the food, for example. It’s absolutely delicious. They do such wonderful things with eggplant and tofu here. And the baked yams you can get on the street. Delectable! Another great thing about China is how cheap everything is. I got a beautiful scarf the other day for less than $3. I went on a week long vacation and spent less than $150 (including food, lodging, city-to-city transportation, sites and tours, and souvenirs). Also, a little traveling will reveal that the different cultures here are incredibly varied and amazing. That said, there are some things that are really disturbing about China. Like watching an eight-year-old girl begging for small change on the sidewalk by bending her spine in a way that should not be physically possible, holding on to a bar with her teeth, lifting herself off the ground, and spinning around (supporting her entire body weight by her teeth). Or seeing some man emaciated beyond belief, clearly incapable of moving, lying on the street in order to get a kuai or two from passers-by. Or being asked for five yuan repeatedly from a small child. That was just too much for one day.