September 29, 2010
Amanda and I spent a good amount of time today again at the bookstore right off campus, but today they were very adamant about us needing to buy a drink if we wanted to work there. The girl literally told us to get out unless we bought something. Thankfully though they knew how to brew a decent cup of coffee so it wasn’t a complete waste of money (one cup of coffee cost 30 kuai! About 5 dollars). It was really loud for some reason in there today though, just when I was really trying to finish everything and make corrections and what not, of course. I think today is the first day that I’ve felt homesick. While I was drinking my coffee and working on my paper it made me miss my mom’s coffee and our good conversations that went with coffee every morning. Another thing I seriously miss is walking down the street to the botanical gardens at USF just to read a book, or have a chat with my friends. I realize that there are botanical gardens here in Xiamen, but somehow it seems different, and unfamiliar. Plus! I am an idiot and did not bring a single book to read to keep me sane. I need some Kurt Vonnegut in my life. I want someone to satirize life in China, I believe that would possibly be the best remedy for my homesickness.
Anyways! Panhandlers here really bother me on a level that I think the Chinese like to ignore. Today was really really hot and for some reason one of the panhandlers brought his baby, with burn scars all over his body out on the streets. The boy looked like he was over heating and honestly didn’t even look like he was breathing. Was this man really his father? Who could bring their child out in such immense heat with such a condition? Is there someone behind all these panhandlers that basically pimps them out to get money from them? Is the situation here similar the one in Slumdog Millionaire? I didn’t really know what else to do but buy the little boy some water. Is giving them money making the problem worse? Or would it actually help them? It seems in the United States that people with disabilities like that have people to take care of them, you don’t see too many of them on the streets unless they are veterans. Why is deformity looked down on so much here? Did these things happen to these people simply because they were homeless? I really wish China had more proactive charity groups to help these people. I would definitely like to volunteer for one. But where can I find the Chinese that are actually concerned for these people? Most of them just walk by without even a glance in their direction.
