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Posts: 226

Shifu

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Q: Do you still remember your first day in China?

The smells, the yelling, the pure moments of "WTF was that"?

11 years 29 weeks ago in  General  - China

 
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The first thing that hit me was the humidity.  Then it was the sheer number of people.  When I got to my first apartment that was on the 7th floor and there was no elevator, I knew that I had arrived in China.

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11 years 29 weeks ago
 
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4th of August 2006, around 1:30pm.

The pollution, the humidity, the horrible ambient smell, the language, the loud talking, the spitting and farting...

Those were simple times.... Ah....

brisguy:

Remember hopping on those plane buses that take you out to the plane or the terminal. One guy let out a fart and nothing is worse being at Guangzhou airport in summer with the humidity and a guy lets one rip. Always a good welcome to China.

11 years 29 weeks ago
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Posts: 747

Shifu

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First thing I remember was having all my pre-conceptions of China wiped out the door. Was expecting to see no cars, people living in absolute sqaulor, and everything communist. 

 

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11 years 29 weeks ago
 
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Shifu

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sorry,i have to ask my mother

Createach:

LOL.........damn man....you breaking the rules here.......................God Bless and Thumbs up

11 years 29 weeks ago
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icnif77:

Where do you come from, Chenhan?

11 years 29 weeks ago
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chenhan:

I come from a place in Latitude 30° 26 N,Longitude 114° 05 E.

11 years 29 weeks ago
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icnif77:

No, you don't!

 

Everybody comes from his own mother! You didn't know that?

11 years 29 weeks ago
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11 years 29 weeks ago
 
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  Clearly, it was ten years ago, I flew into Hong Kong from India exhausted, match-sticks holding my eyes open, The Road to Perdition had just finished playing on the plane, a quick stop in the station then a bus to Guilin from which I watched until I saw someone in one of those big round hats and a roof with the little, upturned corners and I was satisfied that I was in the right place. Was surprised by the amount of mobile phones and relative affluence as I was expecting things to be less so, I checked in to my hotel, found a restaurant, ate a tuna sandwich, drank a glass of water and spent the next three days throwing up and shitting. It was a magical day.

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11 years 29 weeks ago
 
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Shifu

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Yes i still do remember that day......Felt like am in a zoo {Nothing personal Zootown}.......also did have the impression that everyone was running that extra mile to cheat me for a buck or two........was fine though cause i had an assistant at that time

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Only had one pervading thought in my mind....."Wow, that's a shit-load of people!" 

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After the long flight, I was exhausted and didn't feel hungry at all. Then I spent several hours in a car, because people from the school were nice enough to pick me up at the airport. We also picked up an important man from the school, so we went to a hot pot restaurant for dinner. They ordered all kinds of seafood and nice stuff, but let me tell you, I was NOT HUNGRY. At all. I tried to eat some, but I barely at any, and they kept telling me to eat. I kept saying that I was sorry but not hungry. All I wanted to do was sleep, but we didn't get to my apartment until 11pm. I was so tired it didn't even matter that the mattress was hard.

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11 years 29 weeks ago
 
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I landed in a big, grey city that looked to me like a dystopian hell. Buying food at restaurants proved impossible, so my first meal was pot noodles.

Rin:

Luckily for me there was a McD's at the airport!

10 years 17 weeks ago
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11 years 29 weeks ago
 
Posts: 81

Governor

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I arrived with other students in Beijing and we immediately went to Tiananmen Square where I bought the little red book of Mao from a random Chinese guy.

Paid 80 RMB for that, "pretty cheap" I thought, I was so happy!

 

Yeah well, I'm never gonna forget that.

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11 years 29 weeks ago
 
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I recount it to my therapist forenightly

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11 years 29 weeks ago
 
Posts: 497

Shifu

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2006, August
landing in Shanghai

hot and humidity from first second, smell of... everything at once, magnified by hot
loud crowd around me

then waiting to connecting flight to Ningbo, plane was few hours late
first meal... some chicken, rice and vegetables - provided by airline
first snack - hell nuts hot like (in wasabi coating)

then shortest flight in my life - about 20 minutes over building of Cixi bridge

just before landing - green hills and small villages around Ningbo
then another landing, and finding the girl from our Chinese office.
 

almost sleeping - drive to the hotel
but according to avoid jet-lag ... no sleeping until night. so - afternoon walking around, first time in China, and impression of absolute mixture (old and modern, beauty and awfulness). People on the street spitting under own feet, wearing new Armani and Boss suits. Smell of delicious food, and garbage. Contrasts.

And You know what? I'm in love since then.

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11 years 29 weeks ago
 
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Yep. Friday, Feb. 26, 2010 at 10:47a.m., I got off the plane at Changsha Airport. I remember descending out of the real clouds only to be enveloped by the white cloud that lay over the landscape. I thought to myself, "Damn. Forgot my gas mask."

 

It's been a roller coaster ride ever since, but well worth the experience.

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I remember every thing,Thursday September 1/ 2011 early morning. Landed in Beijing, every country has a smell, Thailand smells like a spice, Beijing smelled like someone was deep frying trash.Went to catch my connecting flight and found no plane at the end of the entrance ramp, WTF?? thought I missed it, then saw some stairs and a bus near by, didn't have a phone translator, took a chance, got on the bus then plane, ended up in Guilin, WTF , hey thats where I wanted to go.

The girl I bought on Ebay met me, I ditched her and relisted her later.Checked into my hotel and went out and then it hit me, everyone in China is Chinese, yeah right dumass, well it really was different to see for the first time. Then I walked 2 blocks to the town center, stood on the corner and I'm sure I had to be standing there with my mouth open. The amount of people looked like a river flowing. I have never seen so many beautiful women in mini skirts in my poor country bumpkin life. I had a chub on for 2 weeks, had to walk with a limp.I went into a store bought a beer and walked around, hey that was great, cops didn't even look at me. I met my first Chinese friend, he took me to get a phone and around to get cards and long distance. Then showed me around. We're still friends even tho I thought he was gay, didn't believe he was married, he is. I met my girl friend on day 3, she asked why I wasn't married and I told her there aren't many women I like at home not like China, I took my finger and pointed at all the women going by on scooters or walking and was saying ' pretty girl, pretty girl, pretty girl" It became my standing joke for awhile. I travelled and had to go back to Beijing for sight seeing, wish I planned that better, then Xian and to Yangshou, but couldn't wait to get back to Guilin. I always get home sick on vacation, after 2 weeks I did not want to go home, tried to change my ticket but too expensive. I stayed up all night on my last night in China, I didn't want to waste it. I had the best vacation of my life, was in a really great mood, did all sorts things I never even thought of doing, spent a ton.

TedDBayer:

sorry I told you my first time.

11 years 29 weeks ago
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