Walking In Wuhan

At least as of right now, I haven't synthesized any great meaning of life or figured out how the world REALLY works from the last nine months in China. I haven't converted to Buddhism and, as far as I know, I'm not communist. I have a feeling that the most difficult part of this year will come July 4 -- Oh sweet irony! -- when wheels meet tarmac in Chicago. Things are going to be different. I know this.

But everyday, we gain insight into American culture. When you live in another culture, the little things that you do at home become magnified. So, we've noticed that some Chinese will stop and basically rubberneck at about anything. You know if there's a car accident because there will be two parked cars and about 40 people gathered around just talking and waiting to see what will happen. If a few of us are standing on a sidewalk talking, somebody might poke their head in before continuing down the sidewalk. If there's a street performer, it's standing room only on the sidewalk. In America, at least in my experience, as long as you're not waving a gun, involved in a horrific car crash or physically impeding someone, you're probably not getting noticed.

I found this great story/link for a piece from the Washington Post. Basically they took the best violinist in the US right now, put him in a DC Metro Station and watched to see whether people would stop. They videotaped it too. What resulted is an interesting case study on American culture and how driven/self absorbed -- depends on how you look at it -- we've become. If you get 20 free minutes, it's definitely worth a read.

Pearls Before Breakfast