Back to Chengdu, the City of your Dreams

I went back to China. I did it right after family camp. Just 3 days back in Montreal with Laura, sandwiched between the Maine woods and a road trip 7 hours down to JFK airport in NYC.

And now I'm here. Back in Chengdu, alone again (naturally). And I'm not blogging about it because it's amazing. China's not more amazing than Montreal. Or less. I'm blogging about it because I have more time to write here, and because you jokers (and I do love you) tend to read about what I'm doing with more interest if it's "abroad". So here you are; I'm about as abroad as it gets without lipstick (and that could be arranged).

Chengdu is still spicy and lovely, the way I left it. It's cloudy too, as usual, and it's a testimony to its pleasures that that doesn't really bother me all that much. There are more skyscrapers, more cars and more foreigners than (oh so far back) in 2005. But most importantly, everyone still speaks Chinese, which is overwhelmingly the most important reason I'm here. You'll hear here about what I'm up to, and you'll hear new songs and see new pictures, but you won't get much musing about modern China, Beijing 2008, human rights or the intersection of Confucian and Daoist values with waning levels of political indoctrination, rising numbers of middle class citizens, etc, etc, barf. Barf. Barf. At least, I hope you won't. I'm here to learn about China by learning Chinese, not to pretend I know anything about things about which I know nothing.

That said, I don't want to come off like I think politics aren't (a) interesting or (b) essential to keep abreast of. I'm just not going to talk about them. Sadly, working, eating and sitting on the couch in China doesn't make most people less racist, or more politically or culturally savvy than working, eating and sitting on the couch in Montreal. Me included. So really, wouldn't you rather just hear about what I'm doing this weekend? Well you're in luck! That's what you're getting.

Love, love, blog readers and news needers. I'll try to write a lot. Not a lot, actually, just a little, often.

Here's Nate Frederick, a good friend and a bearded rainbow, riffing about Chengdu down at family camp.