Monday, March 28, 2011

[Day 26]: Tourist Hate!

So far so good. Again, apologies with the lack of updates. But hey! WHO THE HELL CARES. I got this urge to do blog today since I also have to WRITE my journal comprehensibly. I think I kinda owe like 2 weeks of work. Uhoh. Let me get on with that but anyway, maybe I can share with you what I felt really harsh.

China is treating me quite well. I guess we should ask ourselves how WE are treating China. Roll back to the time we went to Dafu Lane, China’s equivalent of Sim Lim Square but much more organised. And nicer looking too! Imagine streams of salesmen beckoning us into their shop. One even tried to grab me over! It might look like an ‘aggressive’ marketing strategy and sure enough, it did scare some of the girls in our group.

But what surprises me more is how we chose to react to this. We actually just totally ignored them, without even a glance. Back in Singapore, during the monstrous electronic shows at Expo or Suntec, we also have salesmen who lined up at the entrance to give out flyers. Though not as aggressive, my response seems much more humane. I would simply smile at them and gestured my hand away to signify I do not need to kill more trees! See, at the very least, I would just acknowledge them but not in China. We turn away from them as though they are cancer to our lives.

It just makes me wonder how we are having this infectious understanding of China being a pit of evil. In fact, I think we always develop this understanding whenever we go overseas. We start being cautious, reserved, think that every guy at the side of the alley is about to rob you. Exaggerated huh? It seems like our brain's defense or retaliation when we start to leave our comfort zones.

It’s definitely not wrong for sure to be on the safe side. But it’s also not definitely wrong to be nice to our border-bounded neighbours. I just get the feeling that every tourist is like a huge walking target. All we need are darts. Partly true since there are WAY too many scary accounts of theft. But for me, I don’t see this as an excuse to be an ass. And I do see some of my friends’ solution to remove this target by being one. My solution is to, well, don’t be a target! Or rather, don’t be a tourist! I would like to speak with them, sit down and observe their day. Maybe grab some dumplings and then bargain like mad! Haha. Besides, being as ass kinda rules out the "Let's have fun here and be culturally immersed in this place!". An ass just wrecks havoc! In fact, this way helps me to gain a focused understanding of China. A real way to fully understand and appreciate these aspects is to experience them 1-on-1.

So people, let’s be nice to China shall we?

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