Bicycle repair, Beijing style
Posted December 29th, 2005 in Culture, The Desk
Nice little story in The Globalist on life and the Beijing bicycle.
While I was waiting for him to replace the tire, a small crowd started to form, as so often happens when I am outside interacting with a Chinese person for any period of time.
Unfortunately for this young man, the Chinese phrase for “let’s just be friends” sounds an awful lot like “why don’t you marry me.”
People just stop and stare. They come over and start reading the letter I have in my hand, or watching me dial a phone number in my cell phone.
Among the questions I got as I stood there today were: “Are you French?” “How much do you pay per month in rent?” “What do you do?” “Do you live alone?” “Do you speak German?” “Are you married?” “How much do you make per month?” “Have you eaten?” “How many years have you lived in China?” These are all very typical questions here that every foreigner is repeatedly asked.
There were quite a few similar but different experiences for me when I lurked around the bicycle shops I could find in India in 2004. It was great fun, and I reckon bike shop repair guys are the same everywhere.
Via Bikingbis
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