Yesterday, I toured The Forbidden City, with bird dung on my head (see prior post). Then I went to Tian'an Men Square.
There are quite a few tourists on Tian'an Men. I wasn't the only Westerner; it's a touristy spot these days.
As soon as I got on Tian'an Men, I took a picture of the BIG MONSTROUS CHAIRMAN image. Why I took that picture, I don't know. It's not like I respect him, he's no Lincoln Memorial that's for dern sure. So I was just standing there looking around aimlessly, wondering why we gather to take pictures of that man. Then all of a sudden this woman gets all excited and comes running up to me, stands next to me, all excited, asks for a picture. Her husband takes the picture of her with me and she runs back to him all excited.
Now, in Spain or Italy, someone scooting up to you is a sign you're about to get scammed for something bad. She was so excited to take her picture with me, put her arm around me, and while her husband was taking a picture, she's treating me like a movie star and I'm thinking to myself, "What scam am I falling for here? Is there any one with their hand in my purse? Did I remember to zip it, yea I did. Is she really just taking a picture??...etc." I looked around the square wondering, "Am I the only Westerner here?" No. "Are the other Westerners taking pictures with strangers?" No. Her husband took the picture, and she thanked me profusely, and ran off excited. So I took a picture of she and her husband, at which point they looked at me like I was crazy for wanting their picture. But who the heck are they? And who was I to them? Lord knows I don't look like Paris, nor Angelina, I wasn't accompanied by Kobe, nor Brad Pitt, and although one person on this planet thinks I look like Tina Fey, no one else will.
I dismissed it as encounter with quirky Chinese woman but then. . .
The wind was absolutely whipping that day. When I say strong, I mean insanely strong. You could hardly get through the tunnel archways in the Forbidden City -- I'm not kidding when I say, the wind pushed us all forward. It was so strong, this Chinese woman and I just had to stop in the middle, hoping it would abate, covering our eyes, she cowered against the wall. But it didn't abate, with our backs to the wind, our weight leaning backward, she and I just started laughing. Other people were staying in the tunnels and playing against the wind, getting launched forward, etc.
So on Tian'an Men, the big RED China flags were absolutely whipping, straight out, so hard it felt as though they'd fly off like kites. There was a pack of teenage girls in their orange uniforms, under the red flags. The color contrast was quite cool, so I snapped an image. Then one of the girls saw me, and I took a picture of a few of them facing me. Then all of a sudden, they all went squirrelly. I'm not kidding when I say they went crazy about me. They ran over from every direction, crowded around me, squealing. They wanted their picture with me. A few screamed, and then all twenty or so of them came running. They squished against me for a picture. Their teacher took a picture, and they were yelping in excitement. Again, in Italy, packs of kids that squish up against you usually results in you having absolutely no worldly possessions after except your underwear. These girls were so excited, so sweet really.
I managed to get their teacher to take a picture with my camera -- as I figured no one is going to believe me that I got mobbed by teenage girls on Tian'an Men. In rural Thailand years ago when I was there, the students would get similarly excited, but I was the only Westerner they'd ever seen. But Tian'an Men isn't short of dazed white woman tourists with cameras.
Who the heck am I when I'm on Tian'an Men square?
But as my little notebook reminds me, Love will follow you wherever you go, To the sky, to the universe...
These girls had so much sweetness, excitement, anticipation...I don't think it was me per se, but their love for opportunity, for something new. They were a pack of smiles and hope, something China didn't have for a long time. To see hope and the extended hand of friendship beautifully alive on Tian'an Men was amazingly sweet, hopeful. It makes me have prayers that no one boycotts the Olympics -- there is a generation ready to Spring forward in China. . .