American Culture for All Chinese!

As I found out today, technologically capable Chinese have full access to American culture. With the help of a website called baidu.com and the lack of copyright enforcement, I have learned how to instantly access everything. Yes, everything. Every American movie, TV show, song, MP3, etc. Over here, a single website can instantly give you access to movies as yet unreleased in the U.S.A.

This phenomenon confused me a bit. On the one hand my computer gets blocked if I search "Falungong Practioner", and on the other I can have access to every vice or virtue of American society within five seconds. Edward's roommate, officially known as Leo Claudius Nimbus (see Edward's Blog - sericus.blogspot.com - for the full story) introduced me to these wonders on his laptop with gleeful joy. He asked me if I knew what "Bit Torrent" meant. Edward and I began explaining about the etymology bits of data and torrents of rain, but he interrupted us excitedly saying: "No, no, no, it means --- unlimited access to American culture!!!" Apparently he back to his parents' home every weekend, as does every normal Chinese college student, and watches American movies on his laptop. And yet the government only officially allows twenty American movies to be introduced to China every year.

Yesterday Leo Claudius Nimbus explained why we have always received free watermelon after every meal. Apparently the unsaid arrangment is that the restaurant gives you fruit instead of giving you a receipt. This way, the restaurant avoids paying taxes and customers get fruit.

I'll share another interesting Chinese oddity. On the bus ride to Hangzhou last weekend we asked our tourguide why every farmhouse had one of two types of towers rising above the second floor. Well, it's rather obvious. If the family's child (remember, China's one child policy) is male, the tower gets to be pointed. If the family's child is female, the tower's roof is flat. Just like the earth.