Dance Monkey, Dance

My school is paying for a section of the local newspaper.  Advertising for the school.  So naturally they are going to have their dancing monkeys displayed all over the newspaper.  Yes,  I do mean the five foreign teachers at my school.  I'm a dancing monkey.  Come here and I'm going to take a picture of you (of course they don't ask permission).  Come,  speak to this child in english.  Come,  right now.  Dance.  Sing.  head,  shoulders,  knees,  and toes.  Now hop around.  eyes,  ears,  mouth,  and nose.  Dance monkey,  dance dance dance dance dance.

They want us to each write a piece titled "ZhuZhou In My Eyes" to be featured in the newspaper.  I'm in desperate need of ranting about ZhuZhou before I can get anything positive down on paper,  virtual or otherwise.  I'm good at BSing when it comes to research papers,  but my own opinion?  So much harder.

*disclamer*  spitting out the negative on purpose.  helps me get perspective.  lots of these things could be seen as both positive and negative.  I just need a bit of help in seeing it.  here goes.........


ZhuZhou:

dirty
loud
buses
smoke
pollution
grey
grey
grey
and more grey
buildings
factories
garbage
littering
spitting
dirt
squat toilets
beer
alone
shoving
pushing
smoking
rushing
yelling
arguing
fighting
haggling
honking
elevators
confusion
"fashion"
lights
confused
people
wet
damp
rice
walking
cold
angry
deafening
disgusting


looking out of my window in the morning is one of the best parts of my day.  I see sights i would never see in utah.  i see people crossing lanes of traffic that would scare any person that liked to preserve their life.  i see vendors on the sidewalk trying to catch the attention of pedestrians and can hear them yelling out their catch phrases,  even from seven floors up.

i see motorcycle taxis zooming this way and that without care of whether they should be on the sidewalk or not...  who cares if whether they should stop at red lights or go the same way as traffic?    They're fun to ride,  don't get me wrong,  but scary.

I see flashing lights that always make zhuzhou seem like there should be club music playing in the background even though its a tuesday night.  i see neon lights and umbrellas,  so many umbrellas.  the weather is so dreary one could get lost in a sea of umbrellas threatening to stab you in the eye if you don't watch out.

i see traffic.

i see scandalous outfits that would make my mother blush,  but are worn by the mothers of my students.  

i see spoiled children getting everything they want.  working in a private school means i get to deal with the richest kids.  so not only are they only children (usually)  but they are such brats.  i can say that,  the whole point of my existence here in china is to teach them english...  sometimes thats a complete and utter fail.

i hear arguments that aren't really arguments because that's just the fourth tone,  it sounds so angry.  I hear a language that is still strange to me.  I hear "waiguoren" and know they are referring to me.  Listening just makes me feel even more alone,  alone with the two languages i am blessed to have yet are completely useless to me.

i see faces that all look alike.  yet not.  i see eyes staring,  once they notice that i'm slightly different then them that is.  didn't your mother teach you its rude to point?  Its rude to stare?  Its rude to take a picture without asking?  Its rude to smoke in the elevator next to someone?  Its rude to spit out your food on the table?  Its rude to be rude.  Its rude to act the way people do on the streets.