love life in China‏

Certainly, 'made in China' is common. All of my shoes were made in China but I can't buy any size 12's here, they are all exported. I have never seen a pair of shoes here that fit me. I have managed to buy 2 pairs of pants because I am too tall. But I found 2. Shirts are no problem. But a winter coat was a challenge. Luckily, because of my size, they are usually on sale. No one buys the odd sizes. My coat is XXXXXXL! It fits well. Not a very nice coat but warm. It think in $Cdn about $6. But I bought a nice cloth coat 2XL for about $20. It feels very comfortable. The cheap stuff is not bad but cheap. If I don't like it then I can throw it away and buy something else. One zipper has already stopped working. But I can get all of the zippers replaced for $4 by the street tailors. There are women who sit by the road and do tailoring. Not made to measure suits but stitching torn clothing or replacing zippers. Chinese do not throw anything away. Last summer I took all of my shirts, which were long sleeved shirts for winter, and I went to a street tailor and told her to cut the sleeves and finish them so I could have short-sleeved shirts for summer. 12 shirts. $6.

You can get what you want here. A shoe shine is less than $1. There are ear cleaners here that will clean your ears of wax, also less than $1. I haven't done that yet but I will before I leave. A massage will cost between $3-10 for an hour depending on where you go. Maybe they will offer extra services for $25. Just hand. It is an amazing country. A country of differences. There are many poor and many rich and a huge middle-class that want to be rich. I talk to every one of my friends. I want to know what their life is like. It is so different than yours and mine. It is not better or worse; just different.

In Canada we are an individualistic society; look out for yourself, make your own decisions. Here it is a collectivist society; I will ask my family, can I marry this person?, can I take this job?. I have friends that are going through this. I give them my opinion but their culture does not allow them to have personal feelings. They have the feelings but their parents and family rule. I hurt for them. One girl told me that she was not allowed to have a boyfriend until she graduated because it would detract from her studies. She is a Masters student..not young. She has had a boyfriend for 3 years and her parents don't know. Lijun, my best friend last year, has a boyfriend and her parents do not approve of him. She lives with him in Changzhou and tells her parents that she is living with girl roommates. She can't marry him. Her parents will match her up with a nice boy sometime. It is such a different life style here. Sometimes I get frustrated. I just want to shake them. Then I realize that it is their culture. It is not mine. I am not right! Am I? Who's to say? It works here. As much as I hate to see that, it is life here. I have no right in saying what is right or wrong. We have our own values and beliefs...they do too. But I hate to see my friends going through that. I am invited to a wedding on Dec 26. Nice girl. But it was a setup marriage. She came here for dinner and told me she was getting married. I didn't ask her any questions but I could tell that she was not excited. I assumed that it was arranged. Later I found out that he is 29, she is 22, and he wants a family. Apparently he has a home. That is the main criterion for marriage here. They have known each other for 6 months. Love is not important...what is good for the family..I will learn to love him...that is how they think. So many beautiful girls who can't marry the one they love...I feel for them...but that's life in China.