When most people think of China, the first thing that comes to mind are mega-cities with congested roads, massive crowds of people, factories churning out cheap goods, and a thick gray sky full of smog floating overhead.
1. The Nature
When most people think of China, the first thing that comes to mind are mega-cities with congested roads, massive crowds of people, factories churning out cheap goods, and a thick gray sky full of smog floating overhead. If the only images of China you get are from Western media, it makes sense that this is your perception. After living and traveling here for a few years, though, that’s not what springs up in my mind when I think of the Middle Kingdom. Rather, I see the grasslands of Inner Mongolia, the bewildering karst mountains of Guangxi, the sheer beauty of Jiuzhaigou national park in Sichuan, and the rolling rice fields of southern Yunnan. Even around Beijing and Shanghai, you don’t have to go far to be near a towering mountain or a majestic river. Get out of the concrete jungle and explore some of China’s natural beauty, because it’s all over the place.
2. The Food
Food is at the center of Chinese life and culture in so many ways. It’s ingrained in everything from the way the Chinese greet one another (“Have you eaten yet?”) to the way they do business and celebrate momentous occasions (i.e. dumplings on New Year’s Eve, longevity noodles on your birthday, etc.) and there are so many reasons to enjoy the food in China.
3. Low Cost Of Traveling
What could be better than not having to spend much money (as long as you don’t stay in expensive hotels and eat only the best of food) to see the sights of China, learn from China, and meet the people of China? Not everyone can afford long trips in Europe – but many can in China. Life-changing, perspective-shattering (perspective on your life, values, and own country as much as on your former perceptions of China), adventure-filled trips.
4. The People
In spite of my recent run-in with a couple of rather unpleasant individuals, my overall experience with Chinese people has been very positive. They are by and large a warm, happy, and fun-loving people. If you have the privilege to be invited to their home as a guest, you will likely be rendered extremely uncomfortable by the lengths to which your host will go to provide for you.
5. The History
China has a history of 5,000 years, as most any Chinese person will happily remind you (particularly if you get it wrong), and they’re proud of that fact. With such a long history, it should come as no surprise that by studying some of their history you stand to gain incredible insight into why China is the way it is today.If you really want to understand China then you must look back into its deep and complex history and I encourage you to do so. It’s impossible to know where China’s going without knowing where it’s been.
6. Ethnic Minority Cultures
Did you know that there are actually 55 ethnic minority (少数民族 – shǎo shù mín zú) groups in China? While Han Chinese people make up about 92% of the population of mainland China, there are ethnic minority groups all over the country. We covered them in a post a few months back, so check it out to learn the name’s of all 56 ethnic groups in China. Each group has its own unique architecture, clothing, food, holidays, music, and more, making China quite a culturally diverse country – something I didn’t expect before coming here. Perhaps the best place to learn about the ethnic minorities of China is my new home – Yunnan province (云南省 – yún nán shěng) – as it home to 26 of the 55 groups. I’m thoroughly looking forward to exploring this amazing part of China and diving into the local cultures here in the coming years.
7. Traditional Architecture / Style
Together with European and Arabian architecture, ancient Chinese architecture is an important component of the world architectural system. During its long development, it gradually formed into a style which featured timberwork combining stone carving, rammed earth construction, bucket arch buildings and many other techniques. Industrious Chinese laboring people created many architectural miracles such as the Great Wall, Forbidden City and the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor.
8. The Language
Chinese is a very efficient language. You can express almost anything in 4 syllables. I swear. Chinese idioms, or Chengyu. There are thousands, if not tens of thousands, of them. Really complicated messages might required 6 syllables for the whole message. The Chinese language is sophisticated and beautiful with thousands of unique characters each with their very own meaning that is distinctly different from the rest. There are 3,000+ ‘common’ Chinese characters that all Chinese must know to be considered educated.To give the non-Chinese/Asian an idea of how to wrap one’s head around the Chinese language, consider this small, fun example. What you call a family member requires you to identify their exact relationship to you in your family tree. There’s no ‘uncle’ in Chinese. There’s a word for Mom’s-eldest/younger-brother that is different from Dad’s-older-sister’s-husband.
9. Public Transportation
In the Middle Kingdom, you can travel to all corners of this massive country by bus or train. It’s astonishing what China has done in the past decade in terms of train travel – it now has the biggest high-speed rail network in the world, with nearly 7,000 miles of track. There are plans to double this by 2020, and lofty talks of building lines to connect China with London, Singapore, and even the United States. The high-speed trains are great and all, but I also love taking the older, slower trains when traveling. Hard-sleeper bunks are affordable and actually quite comfortable, and a long train journey in China is a great way to see the country and mingle with locals. I’ve had tons of fun on train trips in my years in China, including a ridiculous, drunken, shirtless photo shoot with some guys on the way to Changbai Mountain. The massive train and bus network in China allows you to travel more for less, and it assures you can go just about anywhere you want without a car.
10. Traditional Chinese Arts
Art is an important part of Chinese heritage and culture. China has excelled in all forms of art for several centuries and shows the Chinese people’s love of it. The Chinese art includes performing arts, sculpture, paintings, calligraphy and even cave drawings.
