Culture: The Outdoor Type

I can't think of a culture which doesn't like to stretch its legs occasionally, but chinese seem to like a breath of fresh air even more than my home culture. If that's not true, then exercise in China is at least more visible than in Australia. For example, there are two popular activities which can be played anywhere: jianzi and badminton. No net is required for badminton, because it is usually played cooperatively, like a game of "catch" (I've even heard badminton compared to a harmonious relationship—both players have to hit straight!). You often see both college students and adults playing badminton in the evenings, even under a streetlight once the sun sets. As for jianzi, the fact that they are sold by most stationary shops attests to their ubiquity. This compact entertainment, reportedly easier to kick than hacky-sack (I don't know because I was never brave enough to embarrass myself with the latter), is a great way to fill a short break. I remember seeing some of the staff from an optometrist's playing it on the pavement outside their clinic, still dressed in white lab coats.

Of course, Australians like to throw a ball around sometimes, or kick a football (the oval kind). But how often would you see a teenage girl kicking a deflated soccer ball with her wizened old grandmother, to pass time in the evening? That's what I've seen from my apartment window here. In Australia, these activities are often confined to backyards or parks. Badminton courts are usually indoors, since its impossible to play in windy conditions. The solution practised here is: don't play if its windy! You could go to my university in Australia and never know that any tennis courts existed, they were so well hidden, and most other sweating was carefully sequestered in the recreation centre. But at the college here the facilities are all outdoors (except for ping-pong) and you have to walk past the volleyball courts to get to the dining hall.

Since my classes finished, I've been doing exercise most days, usually basketball or jianzi. The fact that I see sport being played everywhere on campus (there's even some places in the teaching buildings where the hallway is wide enough to play badminton) goes a long way to explaining my sudden enthusiasm. I wouldn't call it societal pressure, it's just that they all seem to be having fun.

The game of choice among many of the younger teachers at my college is volleyball (a stupid and painful sport in my opinion!), and you can find them on the volleyball courts most afternoons. Other popular sports are basketball, soccer, ping-pong, and tennis. Women are as active as men, although certain sports such as basketball and soccer are less popular with girls.

Exercise in college is institutionalised to a notable extent. Physical education classes are compulsory, and in their first year the poor darlings are subjected to daily morning exercise, which is the topic of much grumbling. On one occasion, I actually woke up early enough to see them jogging around campus. As well, there are various sports competitions each year, department vs department, for both teachers and students.

And finally, I must mention a typical chinese pastime: climbing hills. "Baby Cow Hill", not far from the college, has a road winding up it and steps to get to the very top. The way has been beautified with trees and grass and flowers, and there's a lookout tower at the peak which is lit up with coloured lights at night and beams a piercing green laser all around. For its shape, people call it feidie, the flying saucer. It might not be untouched wilderness, but it's a nice walk to the top, with fresh air, trees, and bird calls all around. I've been up several times, most recently with a student on her three-hour release from college (although students are still confined to campus, this weekly privilege has been reintroduced now that SARS is almost under control). I don't know many people who haven't climbed it.

Greetings, I too am an australian teaching in China. However much to my disappointment, there are no hills for about 300 kilometres. Yes, they conned me into doin an english cornert here at school, but these days I refuse as I'm usually drinking beer and eating the deliciouse food at one of the many good restaraunts in this small town with one or more of my chinese friends, or even some of my guanxi. I'm teaching at a school, not a university, but luckily I've got the standard contract, so I'm not subject to the school rules. This is a small town of 500000 people, and would be VERY boring if it wasn't for the fact that I speak 'half-chinese' with a chinese accent. I really should be studying more, if i did i'd be fluent within the year, but I'm too lazy. I am treated to dinner(which as you probably know involves drinking copious ammounts of beer or baijiu) about four times a week, so each day I teach and then I come back to my room and get on the puter, watch some vcd's, after lunch I play basketbnall for an hour or two, blah blah blah. anyways, good to read you, email me sometime.

matt [] 03.07.2003 , 11:30

My friend Anna wrote and said: When I was in Beijing last year I noticed that people would be on the streets all hours of the day. Whether they were playing sport, chatting, smoking, or just watching the world go by, they were out there in force. At first I thought this was because of the lack of space catching up with them - why spend the evening cooped up in your apartment when you could be relaxing outside? Makes sense. But then I began to realise that it was more than just a space issue, it was about the community, where personal space was also group space. This seemed so strange to me as we are so very private, as we shut our doors to the world and pretend as hard as we can that there's nobody around us - just take my parents' enormous red brick fence surrounding their house as an example!

Todd 04.07.2003 , 08:27

Can you tell me how to pronounce jianzi by writing it how it sounds?

V [] 23.01.2004 , 01:16

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