Okay, so before I move on, I think I should take this time to
talk about the differences between Kunming and Xiangyang. I know I talked about
it a little before, but I’d like to make it a little clearer now and add some
details I left out.
The foreigner community:
Kunming has a prominent foreign community that is absolutely
here to stay. There are permanent residents of the area, those who have started
businesses here and are trying to watch them grow. There are temporary
residents here, mostly teachers that just want to spend some time in China and/or
practice their Chinese. There are A TON of students that are studying here, for
extended time or for simply a term or a year. There are students that are here
with programs from their school that have established joint programs with the
colleges of Kunming, there are those here on the China Government Scholarship
completely on their own, and there are those who are also completely on their
own but they’re trying to obtain their Master’s in Chinese language or Chinese
Studies in general. The foreign community here is several hundred people, which
is a lot, but they’re all scattered around the city, and so the effect is such
that you get a real experience of China all around you, but if you want to
associate with foreigners, there are places you can go…it’s not so in your face
that you start questioning whether you’re in New York or China. But as Kunming
gets bigger, the foreign population will also get bigger…so that’s something to
keep in mind. As for Xiangyang, well, I’m pretty sure the population of
foreigners is less than a hundred…it may even be less than 50, and almost every
one of them is some kind of foreign teacher or school administrator of some
sort…they’re just all in education. Because of this limited number, you’ll find
that the type of people here are also limited…so the growth that you may gain
from friendships will be much more stagnant (especially if you don’t speak
Chinese).
The cleanliness:
Kunming is cleaner. Xiangyang is not as clean. Even though
in both cities, people sweep the streets every day and the roads are washed by
these trucks that play “It’s a Small World”, people use the bathroom in many
places other than the bathrooms in Xiangyang. In Kunming, it’s not as much so.
People spit all the time in Xiangyang. And strangely, they used to do it in
Kunming too…just as much, I used to have to walk down the street with my eyes
on the ground to keep from stepping on the spit…but the spitting has greatly
diminished in Kunming. And I’m shocked because it’s all happened in one year.
Xiangyang in many places smells like trash and pee. I really haven’t smelled
this smell in Kunming since I’ve been back, only the delightful smell of good
food.
More English:
Not saying this is a good thing, but there is much more
English in Kunming than there is in Xiangyang, and even more now than there was
when I studied in 2012. Before, there used to be so many signs that attempted
English, but generally failed the grammar in amusing ways. Now, I haven’t seen
as much of that anymore. It’s an interesting thing to see the improvement…Kunming
isn’t as representing of China as it used to be because it’s becoming more
modernized, but I can’t help but be impressed at how much has happened so fast.
What scares me though is that probably within the next ten years, shoot
probably within the next five years, Kunming will no longer be the city I was
familiar with. But hey, that’s life…it’s full of changes, I just have to deal.
Anyway, in comparison with Xiangyang, Xiangyang is more like what Kunming was
to me when I first arrived there in 2012…it’s just more so. There are English
speakers here, mainly students of English, teachers of English, and
businesspeople. But there are a lot more people that don’t speak English…if you
want to be forced to practice your Chinese, simply walk out your door. I really
like this about Xiangyang. I suppose as dirty and semi-rural as it is, I love
the fact that it shows me the truth…it’s showing me a more accurate display of
most of China. (Hint: it’s not like what you see in the movies.)
More rules and regulations:
Kunming is on top of its game for a lot of things. There is
a lot more encouraging of recycling, litter is being cracked down on, and so
much more. You don’t see as much chaos as you do in Xiangyang, there is so much
more order. And beyond the rules and regulations, Kunming people are much more
used to foreigners and so they’ll be a little more “respectful” to them…and
once more, this is something that has improved since last I was here. By
respectful I mean that many of them know not to stare at foreigners two feet
away from their faces (I had a lot of that last time I was here, this time not
at all), I’ve hardly heard them say the ever-popular term “Lao Wai” when we go
by, etc. In Xiangyang, things turned out to be worse than when I was in Kunming.
In Kunming, people used to try to say hello to me…but in Xiangyang, this “culture”
of saying hello is a completely different thing. When they say hello to me (or
any of the other foreign teachers), they’re not actually trying to communicate
with me and they’re not intending to start a friendly conversation…but rather,
they’re saying hello as if their friend just bet them fifty bucks to say it to
me…in the sense that they’re doing it because it makes them feel braver, like
they just did something really cool. How do I know this? Well, on a regular
basis, I’ll be walking down the street and then some group of guys (mainly
guys, it’s rarer with girls) will be walking in the opposite direction. Once
our paths cross to pass each other, they’ll snap, “HALLO” in my face right as I'm
passing so that there’s no time for me even to respond in any way. So I
continue on, and then you can hear the laughter of the guys as they continue on
their way. Not fun. That never happened in Kunming. I’ve had the occasional
really rude person, but most of the time I just got stares…and they were stares
of curiosity. I know the people in Xiangyang are curious too, but how they deal
with it is much less passive, and in this case quite often passive-aggressive.
Emotion of the City:
In Kunming, the city altogether seems much happier. People
(and I’m referring to Chinese people this time) do not leave Kunming (for the
most part), they come to Kunming for opportunity and the hope of a better life
for themselves and their family. One day this week I went to get a blind
massage…blind massages are very common all over China, even in Xiangyang- and
it’s not that the massages must be done by blind people to be special, but
rather blind people go to massage shops to find jobs because they have no
choice, it’s the only job they can do. So anyway, I went to get a blind massage
and I asked the guy who was giving the massage if he was from Kunming. He said
no, he was from another province. I asked him if his parents were with him in
Kunming, to which he replied, “No, they’re at home.” I had thought that seeing
as this guy (who was quite young, definitely in his 20s) was blind, then he
would need to be with his family so they could take care of him. But it looked
like he was the one that was taking care of his family…he was the one who had
traveled to the big city to earn money for the family. And that’s basically
what most of the Kunming population is, just like the majority of the
population of Shanghai. They are people looking to thrive and increase their
status and lot in life. Because of this, the place seems much happier and
hopeful…full of opportunity and room for growth. In Xiangyang, life is very
stagnant. The people (Chinese once more) that live there aren’t going anywhere,
only a few of them are. They’re going to stay in the small city and not get out
and see more places. When I did final oral English interviews for my students,
I asked them where they had traveled to in China. While some of them had seen a
few big cities around China, many of them had only been to cities within Hubei
province…they hadn’t seen much at all, and they weren’t really expecting to. It’s
okay to live like this, but for me I find that I can’t live the simple life. I
can live amidst it for a time to learn things and gain knowledge, but
ultimately I need to be in a place where growth can happen, be it physical,
spiritual, emotional, or economical.
So those are really the biggest differences between Kunming
and Xiangyang. My personal preference is Kunming, because the city how it is
and was in 2012 is most compatible with me. Others will find Xiangyang a more
interesting city, I’m sure. My ultimate conclusion about Xiangyang is that
though it is a harsher life (for someone who is used to living in America or
any 1st world country), it is an important place to be aware of, an
important place to see and understand because it is probably the truest
reflection of the majority of China and Chinese people that I’ve seen yet,
without going all the way into the Nong Cun, the countryside.
Keep this in mind: Xiangyang and Kunming are in fact strangely connected. In a way, Xiangyang IS Kunming, and Kunming is Xiangyang. Had I traveled to Kunming perhaps five to ten years earlier, I would most likely have seen what I see now in Xiangyang. And what I'm seeing in Kunming now is what I'll see in Xiangyang in five to ten years time. In time, Xiangyang will surely have a massive looming airport like Kunming does. People, Chinese and foreign alike, will be flocking to Xiangyang for the hope of finding a good job or starting a business which will ultimately result in making much money, whether for themselves or for their families in need. And as the city improves and more foreigners flock to Xiangyang, the provincial mindsets of the people will change too. They will be more aware of foreigners and the world, as well as being more aware of the different people of China. The place will become cleaner, and rules will be made to prevent chaos and unnecessary filth. And the city will thrive as the new capital of Hubei province, as Kunming is the capital of Yunnan province. As much as I don't like change, one can't help but be extremely impressed by the swiftness of China's improvement...because you can be sure that Xiangyang and Kunming are simply two of many cities that are going through this very same process.
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