[00:00.00]When I started to
[00:01.42]plan this adventure
[00:03.06]I had only a vague idea
[00:04.70]of what the country of
[00:06.56] China would be like.
[00:07.87]I could recognize their flag
[00:10.50]but was not even familiar
[00:12.58]with their national anthem.
[00:14.33] My comprehension of the customs
[00:17.50]of the country was very limited.
[00:19.80]I felt almost ashamed at
[00:23.41]how little I knew.
[00:25.15]I did not know if
[00:27.56]they used the metric or
[00:29.31] the imperial system of measurement.
[00:31.17]Would I buy fluids
[00:33.91]such as milk and soda
[00:35.76]in quarts or litres?
[00:37.30] Would I need to learn the
[00:39.57]Chinese word for gram
[00:41.75]or for inch? Indeed
[00:43.62]I had never heard
[00:45.26]the word ‘jin before.
[00:47.44]I knew little about the food
[00:50.50]I would be eating.
[00:52.04]Would dairy products such as
[00:54.34]skim milk and cheese
[00:55.76]and yoghurt be available?
[00:58.06]Would I eat only rice
[00:59.70]and noodles or would
[01:01.77]the variety of foods be endless?
[01:03.85]Maybe I would be enjoying
[01:06.26]a rack of lean pork ribs
[01:08.23] as a delicious treat.
[01:09.98]I was unaware that
[01:13.48]there were so many dialects
[01:15.78] in the Chinese language.
[01:17.85]I had no idea
[01:19.83]how I would communicate
[01:21.58]but when I arrived in China,
[01:23.33]I soon found myself having
[01:24.97]a limited dialogue with Chinese people.
[01:27.38]They would try to speak
[01:30.65]a few words of English
[01:32.08]and I would attempt
[01:33.50]a few words in Chinese.
[01:34.82]However, I resorted to
[01:37.77]sign language more than words.
[01:40.07]How much I have learned!
[01:43.24] It has been a wonderful,
[01:44.99]rewarding experience and
[01:47.07] the one comment that comes
[01:49.04]to my mind is
[01:50.24]“I wouldn’t have
[01:51.77]missed it for the world!” |