The first thing I noticed on our trip to the Beijing Olympics were the smiles on the faces of the Chinese people. In the past, a smile has been pretty hard to come by there. Oh, you could get a smile after awhile, if you worked at it, but it wasn't easy.
Now, you see that "Hello" (or "Ni Hao") and "Welcome" smile everywhere you look. On the faces of Games volunteers greeting the athletes and officials at the airport; taxi drivers and there are hundreds of them; shopkeepers; retail clerks; and even people on the street.
It's amazing what a smile will do for the disposition of a visitor to a new and strange place. I don't know how they got the hint but the Chinese people have the idea and it's working.
The 70,000 Games volunteers in their blue and white shirts are keeping things moving on the downtown streets, in stores, at tourist sites and at the venues. Some of them speak English but many don't. Even so, they do a great job of making you feel comfortable while they are moving you in the right direction. They go to many classes before they are awarded their blue and white shirts in a special ceremony. The volunteers are very proud of their status and they wear those shirts like a badge...and they do it with a smile.
Taxi drivers have to take a rigorous test to get their license and one of the requirements is to be able to say "hello", "goodbye", "thank you" and " this is how much" in English. They certainly get an "A" for effort, although you do hear a lot of "ha", "goobuh" and "fankoo". It's definitely better than trying to dive into the chinese language. They always win that game.
As long as I have been travelling to China, a shopkeeper's main tools are a pad of paper and a pencil. Once you've decided what you want, the price appears on that pad. If bargaining is in order then you cross out that price and write down a new one. This goes on until you get a nod and a smile. You've made your purchase. Although bargaining is diminishing in the big cities with the coming of the western retailers, it's still out there and still a lot of fun, if you're up to it.
The Night Market is another great place to find a smile. It's a three-block-long row of colorfully-lit food booths where you can sample anything from barbequed scorpion to deep-fried starfish-on-a-stick. Whether you dare to eat or just watch, it's a laugh-riot to see hordes of people, mostly Chinese and few brave foreigners, sampling monkey brains and snake-on-a-stick while drinking bubble tea. On this visit I decided to see just how spicy hot they could make a bowl of noodles. When I placed my order, a rather devious smile appeared on the face across the counter. The "chef" gathered his friends around and began to cook. "More spice?" his eyes said to me. When I said "yes", he laughed and kept pouring it on. When he thought he had hit my limit, I said "more". His friends gave me a cheer and he added a huge scoop of a steamy black spice. As he handed me the bowl, the onlookers folded their arms and just looked at me. Man, was it hot! But I ate every bit of it, right in front of them, as they smiled in amazement. I took their handshakes and pats on the back but as I walked on my way, I wondered just what was really going on in my stomach. Smiles all around.
It was in the official Olympic flagship merchandise store that I found my calling as an interpreter. And I received my payment in a smile for services rendered. Most of the clerks there spoke English but for some, that is like saying I speak Chinese...a little goes a long way. I was contemplating my next overpriced "official" trinket purchase when a young Chinese woman rushed up to me and said "Please help me!". "Uh-oh", I thought, "This could be trouble." She told me that there was a shopper on the phone and she couldn't understand the woman's English. Do I look like an American or what!? A bit reluctantly, I took the call. Well, first of all, the woman was Australian. I know that accent, Mate. Secondly, she was looking for a red keyfob with the Games logo. Now I don't know how old you have to be to know what a keyfob is, but I do. Together, we searched the store from one end to the other. At last, near the cellphone wriststraps, we found a keyring with a small leather patch attached and the logo stamped there in gold. I'd made a sale! And a friend. The young woman gave me a big hug and smile and the bag of junk I bought for twice its value, all of a sudden seemed worth it.
Finally, after we had gotten to know several bright, young Chinese people, who helped us get around the city, I thought I would ask them how their parents had chosen their western-sounding first names. They all spoke very good English, so Jessica, Isabella, Candy and Michael were all very happy to oblige. It seems that their parents did not select their first names. They did. When they go to university and begin to speak English, their professors ask them to select a western first name that has some particular meaning to them. Jessica loves pop music, so Jessica Simpson it is. Isabella loves Italy and Italian movies. Candy loves...well, you get the idea. Even I thought of Michael Jordan because Michael had told me he was a basketball nut.
Now, there are so many ways to engage the Chinese people. Most encounters, even passing people on the street or seeing them in restaurant windows, are pleasant and enjoyable. These Olympic Games have made the people of Beijing very proud of their city and the country. But more importantly, they have made Chinese people proud of themselves. And that's such a good thing, it makes me smile.
More later,Dan Mc
Posted by Dan McConnell on August 20, 2008 10:12 AM Permalink
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