5 things that surprised me about China!

As a child I’d tell my parents I was digging holes to China. Little did my five year old self know that I would be flying there 15 years later. Here’s a list of 5 things that I was not expecting from China!

1. China has clubs. Not like little Christchurch ‘clubs’ but proper clubs. And being a foreigner in China means you’re treated to a life of free alcohol and clubbing experience in exchange for you dancing and having fun (just find yourself a promoter). I will mention though that although the alcohol is free it may not always be alcohol so it pays to be mindful! But who would’ve thought in a country with no drinking culture that they would have clubs who host some massive acts.

2. Apart from rush hour on the train it never really felt like the population was that crazy. Before going to China I thought there would be people everywhere and while there are clearly a lot more than in NZ it was no where near to the extent I thought it would be.

3. We got to luge down from the Great Wall of China. Like what?? I was expecting a long walk but the luge down was a whole lot of fun!

4. The food! I was so surprised when I couldn’t find my classic ‘Chinese’ dish that I would order in NZ. Real Chinese food is not like what we think it is. It’s so much more! Chinese cuisine is not given enough credit here in NZ. My favourite dish would have to be a bull frog meal I tried!

5. Online shopping/food orders like Uber eats aren’t delivered to your door in certain areas like the uni we stayed at. My guess is due to the number of people it is just easier to drop things in a specific area and people are so trustworthy there are no issues. So whilst in Hangzhou we would just see packages lining our walk to class each morning.

Thanks for reading,

Peace and Love,

Cait xx

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