I didn't know what to expect when I first came to China, but I certainly didn't expect it to be so cute. The level of adorability is astounding. It can come out of nowhere and knock the wind out of you, and make you want to stomp your feet in protest. Here are just some of the cutest things about my life in China, in no particular order:
My tea sets. Have you seen my tea sets? If not, prepare to squeal. It was supposed to be just one tea set, mind you, to have a memento of my China life (drinking tea with friends is a favorite Chinese pastime), and it started as just a gift from Stacy, but it got a little out of control. I mean, who can have just one teeny tiny tea cup when there are so many precious gems around? Then there are the tea pets, the tea tables, even the tea mugs one can take with for travel. There will be a separate post on tea, the tea process, and tea sets elsewhere on my blog, so I won't go into it all again here...but try not to squeeze the glass.
Kitty. My boss has cat ears - and they suit her perfectly. In fact, her English name is Kitty, as in Hello, Kitty. Is it right? Sometimes she introduces herself to new people with a wave of her paw. It's really true. It's not just her face, either, but her mannerisms, the sound of her voice, the stuff that comes out of her mouth - giant leaps of logic and random tidbits deserving of the their own post. Why? Kitty is so cute it can hurt you, and probably will at some point, because you can't actually put her in your pocket and take her home with you. Terrible. Kitty must have fried her retinas in the mirror once and now doesn't understand how cute she is - and that, my friends, is a key point. Can I fully explain it in writing? Maybe no. Wow.
Cindy's Mom. The security guard at my apartment complex wouldn't scare you if she sprouted fangs and ran around with an axe. Cindy's mom (her daughter is an English teacher) is the smallest full-grown woman ever, with an adorable smile and pinchable cheeks. She always greets the foreign teachers and their friends as they go in and out of the apartment complex, often giving us fruit and sweets, and can usually be seen dancing, doing tai chi, or playing badminton with the other grandmas at any given time of day. She stole Lisa's old green chair before Tiffany moved in, and Melody and I didn't even get mad. We'll never get robbed, because who could hurt Cindy's mom's feelings?
Chinglish notebooks. Any trip to the stationary store across from school is much more fun than it should be. The place is a treasure chest of stuffed animals, little erasers and pens, cheap socks, coffee cups with bad English, and notebooks of all shapes, sizes, colors, and lines. Said notebooks come with pretty little covers and misfit slogans ranging from things like, "We must eliminate those with no time or money for travel!" to children's songs to hearts and stars to things that don't even make sense. They're all a good read, though.
Kids in split pants. Two-year-old Chinese kids are really very cute. Prior to potty training, they don't wear diapers so much as pants with ripped seams in the crotch. In the winter, they wear so much padding they can't move, but their rear end still shows through. Though no one would ever let their feet touch the ground, these kids sit on the sidewalk with their bare butts, parents holding them with splayed legs if they think it's time to go. Sometimes they smile amusedly at a foreign face, other times they run away screaming. Sometimes they get stuck in your train car, crying all night and playing with noisemakers and flashing lights...okay, maybe the kids aren't so cute after all.
Dogs with clothes and shoes. Yes, yes, there are certain types of dogs that go in hot pot, and there are certain types of dogs that are toys. There's some little fluffy brown breed that is particularly popular here right now. Not only do the owners prance it around on a leash, but they buy it baby clothes - including its own little split-crotch jeans and tiny little tie-up shoes in various colors. Though the shoes seem hard to walk in, none of these dogs ever seem to mind wearing this outfit. They go around happily in their owner's arms or in a little pouch, content as a kid in a stroller, tagging along on the subway or bus. Some of them even have ear ribbons like the vet used to put on Pidge.
Certain snacks and desserts. Food is an art form in China. Some of it is colorful, some of it is beautiful, some of it is ridiculous, and some of it is, of course, cute. Round things, in particular, can become especially ornamental. Bao zi (little steamed buns) are often just white balls, but sometimes they are made into penguins, ducklings, and other baby animals - once I saw some masquerading as mushrooms. Dumplings can be used as building blocks to create abstract shapes. Crystallized sugar can be molded into designs and put on a stick, so elaborate you don't want to eat it. Cotton candy can be made into flowers. Quail eggs are everywhere here, and even without any human effort, those things are cute - fried, boiled, or otherwise. Dim Sum portions...Whoever first said "Don't play with your food" had never been here.
Women's accessories. At first you think they're just for children, but no - those adorable bags, hair pieces, and shoes (of the non-stripper variety) are actually for grown women. I've seen accessories made to look like rabbit ears, bunches of fruit, cigarette cartons, and just about anything you can think of. Note the cat ears and devil horns that Grace and I found my first Spring Festival, shoes made to look like fish, bags that look like violins, mittens like cartoon characters, crazy sunglasses in the summer and hats and scarves in the winter...Who's to say these aren't toys?
Red pandas. The regular panda is cute, too, but not this cute. This is it, guys. This is THE animal. If I could have any animal in the world for a pet, I would have a red panda. It's like a cross between a fox and a raccoon, only 1000 times cuter. Lisa and I saw them at the Giant Panda Breeding Research Base in Chengdu. They are friendly and curious. They crawled out of their fence and came up to people, and I got to pat one on the head! So huggable...how can I get??? I can't even...I never thought I'd use that phrase. Google these babies. Try not to pass out. They're just so darned cute.
Electric cars in Beijing. When I first traveled to England in 1998, I thought Smart Cars were cute. The still are, but they've been eclipsed. While walking down the street in Beijing in June 2015, I saw something even smaller - with four doors and four wheels. One could almost take them on a flight as an oversized suitcase. They come in red. They have cute little faces. They have the cute little seat covers and car accessories that the Chinese like to decorate their vehicles with. I took pictures with one of them. I was so afraid some burly guy was going to step of a doorway and make me stop hugging his car.
Really, there are so many cute things in China, I could write a book. These are just a few of the examples that popped into my mind in an adorable (of course) little teahouse overlooking a cute (of course) canal in Suzhou. Scour my photos for more...
No comments:
Post a Comment