On Hygiene and Safety...

Ok, so China isn't the cleanest place on earth. Apart from its abissmal record for air quality, liter and other varieties of pollution, China's people do a pretty good job of making the place gross.

Before leaving for China, I was advised by most Americans to stay away from the street food. Despite this advice, however, street food has become my main source for dinner. This is for a number of reasons. The vendors are generally kinder than waitresses (that don't receive tips) and reward loyal customers with speedy and quality service. Also, the mystery of the cleanliness is removed. I see them dig their dirty hands into the food that has been sitting out all day, but at the same time I SEE this dirt going into it. Restaurants likely have the same practices going on here (which I witnessed through a window into a kitchen) but what I don't know is what animals, including rats and cats, are living in the kitchen and feasting on my food. A certain couple on the street that makes my fried rice and noodles have memorized my order and start making it for me as soon as they seem me approaching. Another advantage of the food from the street vendors is that about every other night I get to see a fight or altercation of some variety. (the other day I saw a fight between a rickshaw driver and a fat nerdy guy- after a series of shoves and girly kicks, they went at it hockey style and pulled each others shirts up their backs. it was hilarious how the street vendors didn't try to intervene, they just blocked their food from the scuffle).

Sorry, I digress. Food isn't the only hygiene issue of course. A public place would not be complete here without the sound of snot rockets being launched and powerful hocking of loogies. I mean freaking EVERYWHERE. Haha it is hilarious to me. I laugh every time- so I'm pretty much laughing all the time.

I've described before the smell of crap and stale Chinese food that permeates the streets. I've discovered that this is primarily eminating from the man holes. The sewars smell awful. A couple times Ben and I have seen street workers sticking giant long laddles into the man holes, pulling out a steaming soup of nasty water and what looks like spaghetti, and pouring it into a giant paint bucket. Don't ask me what they are doing, but it is weird.

Speaking of manholes- when they are open, or construction is being done, they use a few small orange barriors and that is all. Giant gaping holes litter the city. It would be really easy to fall in and die if you aren't paying attention. Bulldozers operate with no guard or protection. Today when I was running my head was about 6 inches from a bulldozer's shovel as it swung around suddenly...which was...cool...

Traffic. Makes. No. Sense.

Personal hygiene is probably the worst though. Fortunately I have been able to keep up my own American standard of personal hygiene, but the Chinese are different. Nearly everyone has teeth that look like yellow crayolas and fuzzy stumps. Showering is optional, particularly because dorms here are not equip with shower rooms. Showers for local students can be found in a separate building. Therefore students choose to only shower when they "need" to. Hair is greasy, skin is wrought with acne, and BO is rampant. Also, shaving isn't particularly common. For anyone. I have chosen to not shave while in China (and it looks quite awful) but most Chinese students try their best to grow something. Chinese people fail miserably at doing so (even worse than me) so all they get are nasty little mustaches and some random realllly long hairs out of their chin. Girls all have small faint moustaches (which is GROSS). They rarely shave their legs or armpits either, so some of them are growing some thick forests. I was told my my stalker (who has finally stopped stalking) that I, along with all the Americans she has met, have a good smell. I was weirded out by the fact that she sniffed me, but at the same time I was thinking "Well...that would be because I shower every day."

One side note- today while running I saw 3 different brides posing for pictures. 2 of them were in the park where I run and one was on Fudan's campus in front of the history building. It seems like the Chinese love having weddings at places that have a few trees. By American standards, the park is an urban garden. By Chinese standards, it is the wonderful world of nature.