China
As a person who was born and lived his whole life in the United States, my knowledge of China from an early age was always seen through that lens. The far east, this mysterious place with unusual customs and strange food that they eat with sticks! Later in life it felt more and more like China was viewed as an enemy of the US and a dangerous place to be looked upon with fear and distrust.
I know very little about Chinese history and I don’t really understand why the relationship between our countries is so strained but coming here and seeing the large modern cities, curious and kind people just doesn’t paint a picture that aligns with how I believe China is generally portrayed in the states.
No point in getting political since it’s not my thing at all, but I wanted to share some random observations about China that I think that people from the US would find surprising.
Watermelon
Watermelon is ubiquitous here. I swear that it’s the #1 desert and it’s I’ve had it as a part of breakfast, lunch and dinner here. I’m from the Deep South (New Orleans) and I’d always thought of watermelon as a southern thing so it surprised me to see it more often here in China than in places around the us.
Peanuts
Chinese people love peanuts. They are almost as ubiquitous as watermelon. I’ve had peanuts in Chinese food before but here in China you can just order a bowl of them with your meal.
Cucumbers
Not cut up in a salad or spiced in anyway (which they also have, in the form of cucumber salad which is amazing) but just the raw whole cucumber eaten as a snack. You can buy it from a vendor like street food. I like cucumber but, I get the feeling that folks here *love* it.
Sweet potatoes
Maybe I missed it my first time to China back in 2017 but sweet potato is a huge snack here. (And in Japan too) you’ll see it at snack stands all around. Also, we’ve had it at breakfast most days. My mom loves sweet potatoes and she loves them plain just like they have them here, so she’d definitely be a fan.
A billion people
China is a very large country. Similar in size to the United States and as such it has a variety of landscapes and climates. Unlike the United States China doubled down on transit and has many of its cities connected via high speed rail. It makes travel over long distances quite convenient.
Something that I’ve noticed that I don’t think that I’m understanding is how the population is distributed. The big cities are dense with skyscrapers everywhere. Traffic in Shanghai is pretty bad, especially at rush hour. But when you’re traveling between cities you often see these immaculate multi lane roadways with almost no traffic. Dense clusters of what I believe are high rise residential buildings that don’t really appear to be occupied. It makes me wonder if their style of governance builds infrastructure for the future, in preparation for what will be as opposed to growing organically based on what people do.
Cleanliness
I find China to be almost surprisingly clean for such a large population. They also have nice sidewalks and fantastic roads everywhere we’ve been. I know that India is a y country with an even larger population but I can’t help but think that they could learn a thing or two from the people of China.
Cars
I’m kind of a car guy so I’m always looking around at them and for models that are unfamiliar. China has more car model variety than any other place I’ve seen. You see German cars, Audi, BMW, Mercedes on the roads you also see Japanese cars, Toyota, Honda, Mazda are common. American cars are also here. Ford and especially Buick are common as are Tesla’s. What you have here that you don’t see in the US are BYD (build your dreams). BYD is a Chinese manufacturer and they have exploded since we were here 8 years ago. So many different models and styles from tiny hatchbacks to slick SUV’s. But there are many other makes and models of Chinese cars, especially electric ones all over the country. Feels like China sees the electric revolution as an opportunity to become a major player in the automotive industry. Perhaps to become competitive with the Japanese, Korean and European makes.
The people
As someone from the US my memory as a child was that China was somewhat homogeneous in its people. It was eye opening for me the first time visiting when one of our guides showed me an old piece of currency which had a woman in it whose skin was as dark as mine.
China actually consists of 56 different ethic groups. And if my understanding is correct, each with their own language. That said, the vast, vast majority of people in China today are of Han heritage. Something like 92 percent. So the other 55 ethnicities make up the remaining 8%.
As foreigners traveling here when we arrive in cities that don’t see a lot of western tourists we do draw some attention. But every time it’s felt like warm and curious interest, not of dislike or displeasure to seeing us here. Folks want their photo with you. They want to say “hello” in English.
In the larger cities where you see more western tourists we don’t stand out quiet so much, but since China isn’t the easiest place for folks from the United States to visit, not just being westerners but being from the US seems pretty rare. Our guide from yesterday said that we’re only the second Americans she’s had since Covid!
Language
We completely dropped the ball here. I think that Chrissy is right on in saying that, it’s embarrassing how little Chinese we can speak. The spoken language isn’t *that* hard but we put in almost no effort to even get the basics before coming back. A nice man on the elevator last night wanted to share something with us but couldn’t even say that I don’t speak Chinese, in Chinese. I have a love hate relationship with Duolingo. But its primary failure is becoming abundantly clear to me here. Its main goal isn’t to get you enough language to able to have a fighting chance of expressing yourself in the shortest time, its goal is to keep you coming back. Now I will admit that not all languages in Duolingo have the same progression, but the fact that it doesn’t start you off with yes and no, please and thank you. I’m sorry and you’re welcome is quite a failure.
Our mandarin basics were in much better shape when we came to China last time. We’d taken a class at community college and studied for a couple of weeks. This time since we’re on this insane multinational trip we spent our time on languages that we might need in places where we won’t have a travel agency helping us.
Our situation is totally our fault, but it is embarrassing not to be able to say “you’re welcome” to a little kid who says “xhi xhi” (thank you) for helping him to put away his life preserver at the end of a river cruise.
Cute things
Maybe cute isn’t the right word, maybe kitschy is more appropriate. But it wouldn’t surprise many westerners to see cartoon characters and cute animated things in Japan, but in China it’s not something that I would have expected. But you see it everywhere. Maybe not as frequently as in Tokyo, but in big cities and small towns and even here on my flight to Kunming. Cute cartoon characters are a part of the culture here too.
Toilets
Yes, squatting toilets are a thing here. They’re not the only option most of the time but don’t be surprised if they are. Thankfully as a guy, I’m usually at the urinal when needing public lavatories. But women have different needs.
Toilet paper. Don’t expect it to be there in public restrooms. If you need it, plan ahead. Also, there aren’t always bidets either.
A quirky thing that I noticed about the layout of restrooms here is the proximity of men’s and women’s restrooms. They’re are often quiet close together. Unusually so. So much that you’ll often feel like you’ve stepped into the wrong one.
Paper towels and hand soap
Again, don’t assume that you’ll have either. Sometimes yes, sometimes no. Ironically since we were in Japan before coming onto China, one of the things that I acquired there is a hand towel. (Japan doesn’t like waste, so paper towels aren’t that common in restrooms there either) but carrying your own hand towel is a thing and I’ve been making great use of my Japanese towel here in China.
Air travel vs High-speed rail
Rail is easier. Full stop. Security is simpler, the wait times are shorter. Boarding and disembarking are super fast relative to flying. On the train you still have cell service so you can doom-scroll to your hearts content.
Air travel on the other hand is faster if the distance is great. Chinas high-speed trains as far as I’ve seen usually top out a little over 300kph. Planes cruise at twice that. Trains make stops. In our rides so far we’ve had stops as close together as 20 minutes and as far apart as an hour. Also, the trains don’t always run at all out speeds. I assume that this is based on the segment of track but sometimes they may cruise at less than 200kph for long stretches.
Another kind of important difference, there is no checked baggage on trains. The downside is if you want to carry items that are prohibited, you can’t just check them like on an airplane. You just have to go without.
Final note, I’m on an Eastern China airlines flight as I type this and something that China does that I haven’t seen elsewhere is that you are not allowed to use headphones during takeoff or on approach for landing. So the last 20 minutes of your flight will be headphone free. Plan your movie and podcast durations accordingly!
Not without the right VPN. No email, no maps. We gave our private data to corporate America, but China is not having it. The most common solution to accessing your communication tools is to just use a foreign eSIM, but if you want to use WIFI to access services that are not allowed you’ll need a VPN that actually works here. I’d go to Reddit to learn more about this to see what the current situation is if you’re planning to go.
Alipay
In 2017 when we visited China for the first time, as westerners with US bank accounts and credit cards our credit cards were not accepted anywhere. Everything we purchased was with cash, which thankfully we were able to withdraw from ATMs.
Now in 2025 things have completely changed. It seems that post covid cash is very, very rare. Everyone, and i mean everyone… from convenience stores to restaurants to street vendors to the woman selling umbrellas in the parking lot… everyone uses an app to pay. As a traveling foreigner I was always anxious about not having a good data connection when needing to pay for something but it turns out that that was never an issue. What was an issue once or twice were systems that didn’t like my Alipay to be funded by only a credit card. (twice at vending machines, once with a street food vendor). I assume that this is vendor specific because you can use Alipay ( and WeChat pay ) like a debit card, as in tied directly to cash, but for that you need to either have a Chinese bank account, or have someone with a Chinese bank account transfer cash to you.
One last note about this. If you’re traveling in China be aware that not all QR codes are for Alipay. Some are for Weixin / WeChat Pay. The codes are different. Make sure that the vendor knows which one you’re using. Sometimes they have one on the front and the other on the back of their placards.
Smokers
Smoking is everywhere in China. They have no smoking signs posted everywhere but they are almost universally ignored. Restaurants, hotels, elevators, national parks… you’re going to be exposed to 2nd hand smoke. I hope that this changes but… for now, that’s how it is.
Refrigerator? You better double check.
The first hotel we checked into had a small refrigerator which made me smile because I’d be able to keep water cold. But after opening it I realized that it was room temperature inside. I didn’t make a fuss and just decided that it was bad luck. Then, it happened at the next place. Which was a clue. Later I began to notice the large convenience store sized coolers which usually have ice cold beverages but more often than not, they were room temperature too! It was very hit and miss to find cold drinks or beer in China. Be aware, and don’t be surprised like I was.
Napkins vs Gloves
Having napkins at the table isn’t a given in China. I saw that many places had an additional charge for them and when they did you’d get a little box of them. If I got those I’d usually try to remember to take them with me so that I’d have them at the next place.
Fast food restaurants on the other hand would usually give you plastic gloves to eat with. I found this really odd at first but I decided to try them out and… they may be on to something. Why wipe your hands after if you can just not get them dirty in the first place. The biggest downside is that you’re consuming single use plastic, as opposed to a paper napkin… so maybe not.
Why China?
China is a vast country similar in size to the United States. It has huge cities, small towns, mountains unlike any I’ve seen elsewhere in the world. Its people are friendly and very kind to visitors and are generally excited to see you visiting their home country. Visiting China generally requires a visa but at the moment they are offering options for short stays to citizens of many countries without one. Just do your research. Don’t trust old information because things change! I definitely think that China is worth the effort to see because it is amazing.
