China

by Strittmatter, Kai

• ISBN13: 9781905791316
• ISBN10: 1905791313
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-08-30
• Publisher: Haus Pub

Summary

The writer and journalist Kai Strittmatter lived and worked in China for ten years. With Beijing hosting the Olympics in 2008, this amusing, affectionate and perceptive book provides a fascinating guide to this lively, sociable and friendly people and their complex and often contradictory society. As the author says: 'Be prepared for everything when you come to Beijing. It really is unbelievable what can happen here.' 'Anyone who has spent a night on the same floor of a hotel as a group of Chinese tourists will know that most Chinese love re nao: "heat and noise". They love to go where lots of people are already squeezed together, where all hell has broken loose... Re nao is a state of being that people strive for because it brings them pleasure and joy. The idea is to dive into as large a mass of people as possible and then, through emitting as many decibels as possible, to reassure each other that you aren't alone in the world. Today re nao is more popular than ever in China, thanks to the increase in happy occasions, which historically have been all too rare for this long-suffering people... The mother of all re nao's was the day when it was announced that Beijing would host theOlympic Games. All that night you couldn't understand a word the television reporters were saying. Re nao fits the Olympic spirit: the character re once represented a torch-holder. The opposite of re nao is tai ping, "the highest peace". Here's a tip: tai ping can only be found in Beijing in only one way-you'll have to be alone in a swimming pool, with both ears underwater.'