6 LESSONS LEARNED FROM 3 MONTHS IN CHINA

　　在中國3個月的6個經驗教訓

　　China is a fascinating and rapidly changing country. Old customs and habits hang on as modern skyscrapers go up every second, the country becomes more of a global powerhouse, and people from around the world move there. Last year, my friend, Scott Young, best known as a learning hacker who learned MIT’s entire computer science program in one year, said to me “I’m going to travel the world for a year and learn languages.” I was thrilled with the idea! Today, he shares what he learned while living in China for three months and how the media portrays countries is often very wrong.

　　中國是個迷人且發展迅速的國家。隨着國家的強大，古時的風俗和習慣也如同平底而起的摩天大樓一樣逐漸回歸，吸引了世界各地的人們。去年，我的朋友Scott Young，一個在麻省理工計算機科學系已經學習一年的學生，他是著名的黑客。他跟我說，“我要花一年時間週遊世界，學習語言。”我被他的計劃嚇了一跳!今天，在中國已經生活了三個月的他將分享給我們他所學到東西，以及媒體對這個國家的一些錯誤報道。

　　Recently my friend, Vat, and I finished a three-month stay in China. The plan was, with minimal preparation, to arrive in China and speak as little English as possible, in order to learn Mandarin Chinese.

　　最近，我的朋友瓦特和我在中國居住三個月。我們計劃不做太多準備，到中國後儘可能少的使用英語，盡最大努力學習漢語普通話。

　　We shot a mini documentary about the experience here:

　　我們把這裡的生活合拍了一部小記錄片

　　The trip transformed my perception of China, and the unfair image it sometimes has in the West. In this article, I want to share the biggest lessons I learned about China, life and travel from that experience.

　　這次旅行改變我對中國的看法，西方也不總是公正的形象。在這篇文章中，我將分享我在中國生活和旅行中學到的重要幾課。

　　Once you’re interested in the local culture, people open up more

　　一旦你對當地文化感興趣，人們會很歡迎

　　Originally Vat and I hadn’t planned on going to China at all. We were warned that China might not be the best place to go to meet friends because people were unfriendly to Westerners. Instead, we were told to go to Taiwan.

　　原本我和瓦特沒打算去中國的。我們收到警告說那裡不是個好地方，因為人們敵視西方人。我們被告知要想去最好去台灣。

　　Some visa complications made it impossible to stay the full three months in Taiwan, so we switched to a three-month stay in China last minute.

　　因為簽證的原因我們沒法在台灣呆三個月，所以最後我改變主意在中國呆了三個月。

　　However, from the first day I arrived in Kunming, I had my perceptions flipped. Far from being insular and hostile to foreigners, people came up to talk to me the first time I went out on the street. It happened to be all in Chinese, so I didn’t understand much, but it did cause me to rethink my assumptions.

　　然而，從我到昆明的第一天起，我的看法就發生了轉變。根本沒有什麼狹隘的敵視外國人的偏見。我走在路上就有人跟我打招呼交談。鑑於周圍都是中國人，這事我也沒想太多，但是這確實讓我開始轉變想法。

　　As my Chinese improved, this continued throughout my stay. From my landlord introducing me to people who could help us learn Chinese, to getting to know the couple who ran a noodle restaurant nearby.

　　隨着我中文的進步，我可以去更廣泛的地方接觸人群。從我房東夫婦介紹給我教授英語的中國人，到他們常去的附近一家麵館。

　　If you’re interested in other people, their culture and their language, they’ll be friendly to you. China isn’t an exception.

　　如果你對其他人、他們的文化、他們的語言感興趣，他們會很友好。中國也不例外

　　Don’t judge a country by its media coverage

　　不要通過媒體報道來評判一個國家

　　Hating China is a popular pastime of Western media. Some of the accusations are at least partially true: parts of China are quite polluted, political freedom isn’t the same as in the West, the Internet is firewalled and some parts of China are quite poor.

　　仇恨中國是西方媒體的一貫方式。這些指控只有少部分是真的：中國一些地區確實污染很嚴重，政治自由度比不上西方，互聯網有防火牆並且中國的一些地方非常窮。

　　I saw a very different kind of China. Kunming, where I lived for most of my stay, wasn’t polluted. I’ve had frank conversations with Chinese people about communism, Tibet and democracy. Some sites are blocked, but China has its own versions of YouTube, Netflix, eBay and Google.

　　我看到的中國是一個完全不同的地方。昆明，我大部分時間住在這裡，沒有污染。我和中國人就共產主義、xz和皿煮進行了很坦率的談話。一些網站被封鎖，但中國有自己版本的油土鱉，Netflix， eBay 和Google。

　　China is still developing, but the economic growth means most people have seen their living standards improve rapidly in the last twenty years. People I spoke with were generally optimistic about the future.

　　中國仍處於發展當中，經濟增長意味着大多數人的生活水平在過去二三十年裡都有顯著的提高。我聊過天的人們普遍對未來感到樂觀。

　　Everything is food here

　　這裡到處是食物

　　The relationship with food in China is fascinating, and I was amazed at the diversity of ingredients and flavors.

　　中國的飲食文化是非常迷人的，我對這裡食物搭配的豐富多樣化如此驚訝。

　　Western countries tend to simplify Chinese food down to chow mien, fried rice and General Tso’s chicken. That’s a bit like saying Western cuisine is just burgers and sandwiches.

　　西方國家傾向於簡單化的中國食物，像是炒麵，炒米和左宗棠雞。這就好比提起西方食物就只有漢堡包和三明治。

　　Chinese food in China, on the other hand, is some of the most varied food on the planet. Not only does regional diversity mean food can change completely from province to province, but nearly every imaginable ingredient finds its way into some kind of Chinese dish. Chicken, pork, beef and vegetarian dishes are all options, of course, but where else can you eat fried insects, try stewed frog or shop at a Walmart selling live turtles?

　　中國飲食在中國，從另外一個角度來說，中國食物是地球上最豐富多樣的飲食文化之一。區域多樣性不僅僅是省和省之間不同，更難以想象的是同樣的魚肉、雞肉、豬肉、牛肉和蔬菜會有很多不同的烹飪方法，當然，這裡也有你吃過的油炸昆蟲，水煮青蛙或者你在沃爾瑪超市可以買到的活烏龜。

　　Food is also an avenue for connection. In the West, each individual has his or her own plate, separate from others. In China, each person has a bowl of rice and eats directly from shared plates in the center. While this style of eating makes it hard to dine individually in some restaurants, it creates a communal feeling, making food more than just nutrition.

　　食物也是一種聯繫途徑。在西方，每個人都有一隻自己的盤子跟其他人分開。在中國每個人會有自己單獨的一碗米飯，然後跟大家共享盤中食物。當然這種方式對單獨進餐來說有點困難，但是它提供了一種群體的感覺，讓食物更加豐富且營養均衡。

　　Chinese is both incredibly interesting and extremely difficult

　　極其有趣和非常難懂，漢語兼而有之

　　I won’t lie to you, learning Mandarin Chinese was a struggle. Thousands of characters, with many almost exactly alike. For example, try and spot the difference between these two characters:

　　我不想撒謊，學習漢語普通話真是一場戰鬥。數千漢字，幾乎長得差不多。比如，試着找出下面這兩個漢字的不同：

　　Chinese is a tonal language, which means that the intonation doesn’t just change emphasis but also what words mean. My friend went to a restaurant and attempted to order “shu? ji?o” (boiled dumplings) but instead ordered “shuì jiào” (go to sleep).

　　漢語是一種語音語言，這就是說她聲調發生了變化這個詞兒的意思也有了變化。我朋友去飯館打算買些“shuijiao”(煮着吃的餃子)，但是音調變了之後就成了“shuì jiào”(睡覺)

　　Finally, few English words borrowed into the language survive unscathed, often sounding completely different from their original. McDonald’s, which is available throughout China, adopts the Chinese name “Mài d?ng láo”.

　　最後說說極少部分從英語單詞借鑑過來的詞，他們只是用了相似的音調。比如McDonald這個詞兒在漢語的發音就是“maidanglao”

　　While the Chinese language, like China itself, may seem daunting, it hides one of the most interesting linguistic systems on the planet. Chinese words have a tendency to be built up out of simpler pieces, like building a sentence out of Lego:

　　雖然漢語和中國一樣令人生畏，但也包含了地球語言系統中最大的樂趣之一。中國字的最大特點是簡潔，就像用樂高搭建的句子：

　　-panda = “bear cat” (xióngm?o)

　　panda =長得熊樣的貓(熊貓)

　　-chameleon = “color change dragon” (biànsèlóng)

　　chameleon =顏色會變化的龍(變色龍)

　　-pumpkin = “south melon” (nángu?)

　　pumpkin =南邊產的瓜(南瓜)

　　-potato = “soil bean” (t?dòu)

　　potato =土裡長出的豆子(土豆)

　　-university = “big learn” (dàxué)

　　university =很大的一座學院(大學)

　　-movie = “electric shadow” (diàny?ng)

　　movie =有電流的暗影(電影)

　　With great difficulties also come great rewards. Learning Chinese may have been mind-bending at times, but it also allowed Vat and me to interact with completely different people in China than an English-only perspective would allow.

　　巨大的困難會有巨大的回報。學習漢語時也許會混亂心煩，但這使得瓦特和我跟不同的中國人交流時有了個多視角，而非單一的英語式思維。

　　Near the end of our stay, I conversed over tea with a tattooed Buddhist. Together we talked about Tibet, religion and cultural differences. That conversation would never have happened had I refused to learn any Chinese.

　　簽證期臨近，我和一位有紋身的佛教徒喝茶聊天。我們談論的主題是xz，宗教和文化差異。如果我沒有好好學中文這次談話就不可能發生。

　　You can count to ten with one hand

　　你可以用一隻手就數到十

　　The language differences extend even to simple gestures. The Chinese, for example, have a system of gestures for counting all the way up to ten with just one hand.

　　語言的差異甚至可以延伸到手勢。比如，中國人有一套手勢，只用一隻手就可以數到十

　　If you’ve only been counting to five with one hand, you’ve been missing out. The Chinese have a system for counting 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 all with just one hand. Months after leaving China, I caught myself using this method to count things while I held a book with the other hand.

　　假如你以為一隻手只能數到五你可就大錯特錯了。中國人有一套手勢可以表示6、7、8、9和10。離開中國幾個月後，我發現用這種方法我可以一手拿着書一手來算數。

　　The first time I saw this, I was in a store and the shopkeeper was telling me the price was 10 yuan, indicating it with forefinger and middle fingers crossed. I saw this several times before I realized they were telling me the price and not just holding out hopes that I’d come back to buy more.

　　我第一集看到這個是在一家商店，店主用中指和食指交叉告訴我價格是10元，看了幾次後我意識到他是在說價格，而不是希望我回來買更多東西。

　　China has the best places you’ve never heard of

　　中國最好的地方你甚至沒有聽說過

　　Ask people which places they know of in China and most people will raise their hand for Shanghai and Beijing. The more geographically inclined might get Sichuan, Guangdong or Xi’an. But what about the tropical island of Hainan? The impressive winter festivities in Harbin? The bamboo forests in Chengdu?

　　問問那些知道中國的人，大多數人會提到上海和北京。有點地理學概念的人也許會提到四川、廣東和西安。但是海南的熱帶島嶼呢?哈爾濱令人印象深刻的冬季慶典呢?成都的竹林呢?

　　It’s arguable that China has the same linguistic and cultural diversity as the entirety of Europe, except far fewer tourists. While, until the last few decades, China’s closed borders made travel in the country a daunting experience, China is full of great places you’ve probably never thought to explore.

　　可以肯定的是比起整個歐洲，中國有統一的語言和多樣的文化，除了遊客少點之外。當然，最近的幾十年，中國封鎖邊界使得人們對到此旅遊望而生畏，中國有很多地方是你們可能從未探索過的。

　　I had never heard of Kunming, a “small” city of around seven million in the southwestern province of Yunnan, before researching places to live. It ended up being one of my favorite places I’ve ever lived in, with weather a perpetual spring, mountain temples, and lunch for under a dollar.

　　在探索居住之前我從沒聽說過昆明，一個七百萬人口的“小”城，位於西南地區的雲南省。旅程結束在這裡——我最喜歡居住的地方之一，一個有永恆春天、山寺和一美元午餐的地方。

　　My advice: don’t settle just on Beijing or Shanghai as places to visit. Doing a little research online can turn up dozens of places that will offer the Chinese experience for less money and fewer tourists.

　　我的建議是：不要只瞅着北京和上海逛。在網上做點調查，能找到一大堆中國人推薦的花錢少不擁擠的好地方。

　　Everything you say is right and wrong all at once

　　你說的每一件事情是對的也是錯的

　　I imagine that my American friends from Washington state would probably scoff at the generalization that they’re the same as everyone in Texas (and vice versa). Seattle isn’t the same as Houston. There are enormous variations in culture, food and even language across the United States.

　　可以想象得到我從華盛頓回來的美國朋友很可能會嘲笑我的這些歸納總結，他們就像德克薩斯州的那幫傢伙一樣(反過來也一樣)。西雅圖和休斯頓是不同的。在美國，食物、文化甚至是語言都有巨大的差異。

　　Now imagine that instead of having a history of a few hundred years as a nation, you had a few thousand. Instead of one or two mutually unintelligible languages, you had dozens, possibly hundreds. Now quadruple the population and you have modern China.

　　現在拋開這幾百年歷史來想象一下國家，如果你們有數千年的文化，並且不只一兩種方言而是數十種，甚至可能多達上百種。然後，再把人口翻四倍你就變成了這個個現代化的中國。

　　The biggest lesson to learn about China is just how big it is. China is hard to describe because few generalizations are very accurate. Depending on where you go, China will be impoverished or opulent, polluted or pristine, densely packed or nearly isolated. As such, everything I experienced and have written about will be true of some people who go to visit China and false for others.

　　我在中國學到印象最深的一課是她是如此巨大。你很難去描繪中國因為很少有那個詞兒可以概括她。這得取決你你去過的地方，中國貧困又富裕，污染又天然，擁擠又開闊。因此，我所寫的的經歷只限於我在中國曾經去過的、交談過的那些真實的人和事兒。

　　China began as the backup country when visa complications came up. It ended as a place I can’t wait to go back to.

　　簽證處問題時中國只是我的備選。現在旅程結束了我迫不及待想要回去。

　　I can’t sell China as being a perfect experience, free of worries. English is sparse. You need to watch out for pickpockets and scams in the bigger cities. Pollution can be bad. Internet can be frustrating. But, if you want an adventure and a chance to change your mind about the world’s biggest, oldest and possibly soon-to-be the most powerful nation on Earth, I highly recommend going yourself.

　　我不能說中國是一場無憂無慮的完美體驗。英語基本沒啥用武之地。在大城市你需要提防小偷和騙子。污染確實很糟糕，互聯網令人沮喪。但是，如果你想要在這個地球上最大最古老，也可能很快會是最強大的國家裡冒險或是獲得一次機會來轉換下你的思考方式，我強烈建議你自己親臨體驗一下。