From Brooklyn to Beijing

Alright folks. Some great updates here. I just returned to the freezing cold metropolis that is Beijing from the sunny, mountainous region of Southwest china: Yunnan Province. If you like trekking, beauty, waterfalls, good food, happy people, minorities, Tibetan influence, biking, farmland, then Yunnan is for you. I had an amazing week on my own there and wish I stayed longer. Part 1: Kunming. Kunming is a relaxed, laid back, spring all year type of city.  I arrived late Sunday night and was determined to climb the talked about XiShan (western hills) the following day.  Monday morning, I woke up and decided it was time for me to take a bus in China. I know, i know, how have I not done this? It's just easy in Beijing, to take Uber or the subway. But there I was in Kunming, starting a trip on my own, ready to try new things. So  I found the bus and paid a whopping sum of... 1 rmb (roughtly 16 cents)  Now from this bus I had to transfer to another bus. Success! I f...

Full Title: The Chinese at the Beach: an Ethnographical Study into the Rituals, Attitudes, and Behaviors of Chinese People on the beach in Sanya, Hainan Disclaimer: this is very biased and quite generalized. Bear with me. This was my first Chinese tourist beach experience and I learned a lot. Chapter 1: Clothing. When one typically thinks of “beach”, that person may envision blue skies, light breeze, the sound of waves against the white sand, bikinis, tanning lotion, sunscreen mixing with the salt water, sarongs, beach hats and more. A beach: My observations at the Chinese beach of Dadonghai in Sanya, China, have shown me another side to this word “beach.” It is culturally understood that whiteness is beautiful in China. There are whitening lotions, whitening dyes and so on. Therefore, tanning at the beach is a big no- no. What’s more, the beach is a holiday and therefore holiday clothes are a must. I observed everything from even...