Sorry everyone to keep you anxiously waiting and wondering about me! You see, in China they like to block the internet so I wasn't able to access my blog until I purchased a VPN. Social media websites and any kind of website that might give the Chinese people a chance to see what is going on outside their country is blocked by the government and with using Chinese google, you have to be very careful what you type in because certain "sensitive" topics make the server mysteriously crash. But here I am now writing my very first post...oh so much to tell about already it's crazy. In preparing myself for China, I was ready for pretty much the extremes and to be shocked by something new around every corner but strangely I have seen and experienced things so different from home but it doesn't really disturb me the way everyone said it would. The culture here is insane compared to Canada, but it's so neat to witness the people. It's true what they say about white people in China. The people will stop and stare at you like you are some sort of exotic animal at the zoo. It's pretty humorous actually. A friend of mine and I just went to a coffee shop this afternoon and ordered some drinks and the young Chinese man working behind the counter handed us some pastries, smiled and said for free. One thing about Beijing that is interesting is the health and safety standards. It is a beautiful place but the pollution is insane. For instance, the Global Health Organization states that air quality at 50 is considered to be very bad for a person. Beijing at the moment is at 200 and at night (this is when factories are permitted to emit smoke and large trucks are allowed to enter the city) it is worse. Walking around the city, you will see tons of people spitting and just the other day I saw a young girl who literally just squatted and went pee in the middle of the sidewalk. There are construction zones everywhere (Beijing has 1 sky scraper built every week) and the workers are wearing sandals and shorts. All of this just seems absurd to the western eye, but here in Beijing it is considered normal and just the way it is. It's interesting to experience because it really makes you see a different perspective on the world. Despite all these things, Beijing and it's people are absolutely amazing and so fascinating. Their way of life is so intriguing to me and I am so excited that I will get to be a part of it. Going for a walk is crazy. Around every city block there is a new skyscraper to admire, another street peddler selling food or the paper, and more fascinating people. Everything that I have seen and done in China thus far has been so different from home and so beautiful in it's own way. Well, I've got things to do and places to see...as they say in Mandarin,
zài jiàn
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