ZHANGJIAJIE, HUNAN — If there is one tie that can bind Chinese and Americans together, it’s our innate friendliness, although I think the Chinese might even outdo us Americans sometimes.
This weekend was the May Day holiday, which I and a friend spent in Zhangjiajie at the home of our mutual friend. The three of us had a good time touring some beautiful country, but the scenery was not the only thing impressive about the trip. It was the people we met.
Weeks ago, Nora had invited Ailsa and me to spent the weekend at Nora’s home. With no classes on Friday, we decided to leave campus on the 9 pm train on Thursday. The train was predictably crowded with northbound holiday travelers, and we had no seats. [The Chinese rail system will sell you tickets even after all seats have been booked. China Railways figures you'll either make do standing or whangle a way to sit down.]
We walked toward the rear of the train until we could go no further. There were no seats, but by chance we ended up next to a group traveling together to Zhengzhou. They were feeling pretty mellow after downing some baijiu (aka “white wine”), so when two of them left to smoke on the end of the carriage, they gave their seats up and everyone scrunched together to make room. [It also helps that one of us was a white-haired Westerner; I get preferential treatment because of both age and exotic-ness.]
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