Hechuan: Some things to know.

Some snapshots of Life in Hechuan--

To begin with, walking across the street in Hechuan is like playing a live-action game of Frogger. This is because there are absolutely no traffic laws in this city, or in Chongqing in general. I know I've complained in the past about crazy taxis in Beijing, but honestly they have nothing on the complete anarchy in the streets of Hechuan. Half the time drivers are on the wrong side of the street, or driving three abreast down two-lane roads, or swerving to avoid having to stop behind a bus.

　In fact, there are only two intersections that I have seen that even have traffic lights (according to a sign, it is called the Cultured Traffic Law Intersection, and it admonishes drivers to pay attention to traffic laws. It is ignored). Otherwise, taking a left turn is simply a game of chicken, where the driver swerves at an appropriate time and others honk and yet somehow miraculously slow down in time all the while dodging pedestrians and small animals. The noise pollution of the city is deafening.

Despite all of this, taking a taxi is quite convenient. It is only 3 yuan, quite easily the cheapest taxi I've ever been in in China. I am greeted when I first enter by the driver's garbled Chongqinghua (dialect), and then an automated voice stating, "Hello, passenger. Welcome to take my taxi." The buses are only 1 yuan, and rather easy to use as well -- someone leans out the window and shouts the destinations, and if you happen to be going to those places, you just hop right on.

Secondly, foreigners are non-existent here. Really. Maybe a few people stared at me in Beijing or in Harbin (well, in Harbin they just glared because they thought I was Russian). But here, foreigners are a complete novelty, as is Western life. There is no McDonald's or Starbucks like in pretty much all Chinese cities -- instead they have the Chinese fast-food chain Dico's (rather delicious, actually) and a couple of poor coffee shops where they take a half hour to bring you a cup of coffee and don't know how to make an actual sandwich. There's also a Western restaurant that serves vegetable pizza -- with carrots on top (?). People in Hechuan are incredibly friendly, though sometimes it is quite vexing, as when you are trying to work out at the gym and people keep talking to you non-stop.

Thirdly, there is no heating in any offices or classrooms at the university. Recently it has quite suddenly become winter, and it is surprisingly cold and wet. As a result, my students are huddled at their desks in their coats. I can only clutch my hot water bottle closely and freeze. In fact, people even leave windows wide open for "ventilation" everywhere despite the fact that one's breath frosts indoors; and restaurants and shops don't even have doors, which means that I look like a hobo as I huddle in my coat and gloves and drink bowl after bowl of soup. The city-wide power outages that come and go every once in a while don't help, either, as we are periodically plunged into darkness for hours at a time.