Tones of Home
And here again...Josh Burt...
Slowly, Autumn is working its way to us in Jinan and beginning to reveal itself bit by bit. A few days ago the temperature started a labored decline from damned hot into the comfortable 60's and 70's. If the locals are to be trusted, the decline will continue unabated straight through the pleasant range and into damned cold with a couple of months' time, but for now we are enjoying life out of the air conditioning a great deal. Today we even enjoyed a pleasant breeze in town and enjoyed a bike ride to the West end. Out and about I thought I detected an odor in the wind other than the familiar peanut oil and garbage. There was a faint hint of Fall in that breeze. For a moment my mind wandered back to October in northeast Ohio: color, the apple harvest, and highschool football on chilly Friday nights. Then someone hocked one onto the sidewalk in front of me and I was in China again.
I've been keeping a keen eye on the trees around town. The leaves haven't turned quite yet, and there aren't any Maples around to lead the charge but I'm expecting the color to begin any day now. It was reassuring to first arrive in Jinan and see the streets lined with a number of familiar faces: willow, ash, sycamore, aspen. I've even noticed a few green plants growing in the margins next to sidewalks that back home are identified as invasives. They look so smug sitting in their comfy little millenium old niche, knowing full well that they're reeking havoc back home. Makes a fellow daydream about filling his pockets with burdock seed or a beech nut or two. Just a pinch here or a pocketful there and this country would start to look a little bit more Midwestern. But then again, the first Starbucks have opened in Beijing. I guess we're even already.
Tomorrow we leave for the sea-side town of Qingdao. We've been told to expect clean air and an attractive little city with visible German influence. I'll be interested to see what sort of animal is the product of such an unlikely pairing. Will Qingdao be a city which is very efficiently chaotic or will the menus include steamed buns with sausage? We have already heard of the great Tsingtao brewery, founded during the German occupation. I would be fascinated to meet the brewmaster there, likely a jolly fat Chinese man with red cheeks. In reality, the local culture there has likely found a way to take every remaining hint of German influence and turned it into something distinctly Chinese. Such is the way with most things foreign here, over time they take more from the locals than the locals take from them. I've heard that the big problem Hong Kong Disney experienced on opening day was that they couldn't find a way to make Chinese queue. Off to dinner.
Slowly, Autumn is working its way to us in Jinan and beginning to reveal itself bit by bit. A few days ago the temperature started a labored decline from damned hot into the comfortable 60's and 70's. If the locals are to be trusted, the decline will continue unabated straight through the pleasant range and into damned cold with a couple of months' time, but for now we are enjoying life out of the air conditioning a great deal. Today we even enjoyed a pleasant breeze in town and enjoyed a bike ride to the West end. Out and about I thought I detected an odor in the wind other than the familiar peanut oil and garbage. There was a faint hint of Fall in that breeze. For a moment my mind wandered back to October in northeast Ohio: color, the apple harvest, and highschool football on chilly Friday nights. Then someone hocked one onto the sidewalk in front of me and I was in China again.
I've been keeping a keen eye on the trees around town. The leaves haven't turned quite yet, and there aren't any Maples around to lead the charge but I'm expecting the color to begin any day now. It was reassuring to first arrive in Jinan and see the streets lined with a number of familiar faces: willow, ash, sycamore, aspen. I've even noticed a few green plants growing in the margins next to sidewalks that back home are identified as invasives. They look so smug sitting in their comfy little millenium old niche, knowing full well that they're reeking havoc back home. Makes a fellow daydream about filling his pockets with burdock seed or a beech nut or two. Just a pinch here or a pocketful there and this country would start to look a little bit more Midwestern. But then again, the first Starbucks have opened in Beijing. I guess we're even already.
Tomorrow we leave for the sea-side town of Qingdao. We've been told to expect clean air and an attractive little city with visible German influence. I'll be interested to see what sort of animal is the product of such an unlikely pairing. Will Qingdao be a city which is very efficiently chaotic or will the menus include steamed buns with sausage? We have already heard of the great Tsingtao brewery, founded during the German occupation. I would be fascinated to meet the brewmaster there, likely a jolly fat Chinese man with red cheeks. In reality, the local culture there has likely found a way to take every remaining hint of German influence and turned it into something distinctly Chinese. Such is the way with most things foreign here, over time they take more from the locals than the locals take from them. I've heard that the big problem Hong Kong Disney experienced on opening day was that they couldn't find a way to make Chinese queue. Off to dinner.
posted by B | 1:57 AM
1 Comments:
Another great post. Your eye and awareness is getting better. These are wonderful Bestsy.
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