Our first place of lodging was the only place where we actually experienced the local customs and traditional experience of the Chinese. Much gratitude to USM L/A College faculty member Dr. Deb Como-Kepler for making these arrangements.

It felt like a Floridian morning with the humid warm air and summer breeze. The people spilled out into the sidewalks and alleyways early in the morning on foot, bicycle, or on exercise equipment erected in a communal court of sorts beside the apartment buildings.

We visited Tian’anmen Square where the People’s Liberation Army fired on pro-democracy demonstrators on June 4, 1989.

The people moved about at a leisurely pace, perhaps due to it being the weekend. Families of several generations could be seen throughout the parks with mama nursing the baby, while grandparent or daddy played with the older sibling.

It was uncommon to see benches or strollers here. Children were held and doted upon. People squatted or sat on paper to eat a snack, feed a child, play a game, talk, or just people watch. My impression was that families are very close to one another.

There were a lot of young people here in Beijing. Many couples walked arm-in-arm, which lent to the feeling of romance. There was innocence about their affection toward each other. Unlike Western culture, outward sexual expression is more private. Mothers walk arm-in-arm, or hold hands with their grown daughters under umbrellas that block the sun’s rays.

Then there were the venders, like pesky flies buzzing around insisting on purchasing their goods. A simple shake of the head for “no” is a universal language. Unlike venders selling goods, the handicapped sometimes gently touched my arm to get my attention and say “money, money.” That brief, personal contact was powerful.

As foreign students, we were advised to guard ourselves from disabled peddlers since it could be the result of exploitation. By saying “no,” I was protecting myself from feeling their helplessness. Their need is too great and is incomprehensible to me. Saying “no” is safe.