"Heavenly" through the eyes of the Vologjana

China is an amazing country that, like all of Asia, strives for supremacy: the largest train station, the longest park, the tallest building. By the way, the status of the largest city square in the world was assigned to Tiananmen Square (Heavenly Peace) in Beijing (880 by 500 meters), capable of accommodating about a million people. Here is the largest palace complex - the Winter Imperial Palace Gugun, consisting of a large number of buildings, which previously had 9999 rooms. The number is not random. According to legend, there are 10,000 rooms in the chambers of the heavenly emperor, so the heir, the earthly emperor (hence, China - the "celestial" country), should be more modest and have less.

"Flowers of Life"

The inhabitants of this state (1.3 billion people) make up about 19% of the world's population. Today, Beijing (formerly Ji) is home to about 20 million people, and the closer they get to old age, the more attention they pay to health and peace of mind. Early rise around 6 am, the usual charging in numerous parks. This is especially noticeable during early visits to the excursion program: everywhere you see serene, self-centered Chinese. After 20 hours, they slowly walk or dance in the fresh air, which is doubly striking. Citizens receive a well-deserved pension (at least $ 80), unlike the rural population, which is not entitled to such payments. They must be supported by sons working on the land. Therefore, many husbands treat birthing daughters without much joy: the time will come to fade into another family, and there is no benefit. Even ultrasound in China is officially prohibited so that parents do not know the sex of the unborn child and do not get rid of girls. Today, birth control at the legislative level is more loyal than before. The second child can be born in rural areas, if there is a first girl in the family. In Beijing, it is allowed to think about a second child if each of the parents was the only child in the family. Other categories of couples pay for re-motherhood and paternity tax (fine) in the amount of 4-8 average annual income calculated for a specific region of residence. It is clear that for wealthy people, this amount is not so terrible! Or, for example, in villages, the next offspring that was born is simply not registered. Having an assistant is the most important thing, and the lack of documents is not so important. Naturally, such a Chinese will never receive education, as well as take advantage of other benefits guaranteed to the people.

Are you excited to get married?

I happened to witness a Chinese wedding. As a rule, the celebration is organized in restaurants at hotels, the higher the stars at the hotel, the more prestigious. Our guide said that the ceremony begins very early, the bride gets up about five in the morning to have time to visit the hairdresser and makeup artist. Then the groom picks her up, and the couple goes to inspect the new apartment (if there is no opportunity to buy one, at least one room in the old one is repaired). The dresses of the bride and groom can be both national and sewn according to the latest fashion, bedding is necessarily red. Official registration, and in an hour celebrate in the apartment with the guests. Newly made spouses treat each other with noodles or dumplings (national dishes), according to the ancient tradition, hang curtains, decorate the rooms with nuts, dates, lotus seeds. After that, the company moves to a restaurant, where a special program is shown on the stage. Guests give the newlyweds money, and in return, in gratitude, receive modest gifts. The most interesting thing is that the bride’s mother manages the wedding sums, she decides what is better to spend them (!). The holiday ends before lunch: no later than two hours everyone is free!

Education in schools is conducted from the age of six and is divided into three levels: primary education (6 years), secondary (3 years), higher education (3 years). The first two stages are mandatory and free, the third must be paid, while the best ones are selected based on the results of the exams. Those who have not passed the third stage, even if the technical school after secondary school, are not accepted to universities. Only military institutions train personnel at state expense, in others the concept of “budget places” is absent, the system of scholarships serves as a lifeline for excellent students. Graduates are looking for jobs on their own.

To serve in the army, the Chinese go voluntarily, having passed a series of tests. And the desire of the townspeople arises less often than that of the villagers. A couple of years on a minimum wage, then the transition to a contract basis, which is considered very profitable. A military man has a large number of benefits and a retirement pension. On the streets of major cities, vigilantes catch the eye. At stops, they monitor the competent parking of public transport and the behavior of passengers. In crowded places, their function is to ensure order. Soldiers are often illiterate people who are satisfied with a salary of $ 150 per month.

Lottery in Chinese

Given that there are many people in China, the number of personal transport is also increasing proportionally, which means that there is no escape from traffic jams. Smart Chinese have found an original way out of this situation. In Beijing, car numbers (limited number) are issued according to the results of a lottery held once a month. Bad luck waiting for next month. First you get a number and then you get a car. And that's not all. On Mondays in the city, you can not drive with numbers ending with, for example, the numbers 1 or 3. Tuesday: 2 and 6, etc., throughout the working week. That is, even if you have your own “swallow” one day a week you will not go anywhere, you will use a bus, subway or taxi services (of which there are a great many). Buses in the capital, prevail modern, as in England two-storey, the fare is 5 rubles. Payment in regular buses depends on the distance: the first 12 km - also 5 rubles, for every next 5 km - two and a half rubles. A trip to the subway (9 lines) costs 10 rubles, it is funny that this ticket allows you to carry a child, but not a certain age, and height (!) - less than 1.1 meters. Renting a car for tourists is possible only with a driver, as international rights in this country are considered invalid.

But here you can really see one of the world wonders – the Great Wall of China. Even climb it like a dragon, curling on mountain peaks and passes for more than 6000 km, including lost fragments. The steps are very high, the rise is steep, so the jump up and down, and even through the step definitely does not work. What the Chinese have today was built during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) of brick and stone blocks held together by adhesive rice porridge. Initially, in the III century AD, the length of the Chinese wall with numerous branches reached more than 21 thousand km. How many lives did she take? According to legend, those who escaped from work were walled up alive in a wall.

Homeland of Wushu (kung fu) – Shaolin Buddhist Monastery is more like a commercial center with a must-see show for tourists. Founded in the V century, the monastery for more than half a century (since 1928) lay in the ruins of Monks in the buildings restored to our days no longer live. They moved away from the crowds, choosing a quieter place for themselves. And the numerous martial arts schools opened on Songshan Mountain do not lack those who want to learn the rich experience of Shaolin.

Cured or maimed?

Otherwise, you can not call the grandiose deed of Emperor Qin Shi Huang (246-210 BC) in Xi'an a miracle. It was accidentally discovered by a simple peasant Yang Zhifa, who decided in 1974 to dig a well near the burial place of the first Chinese emperor. The discovery of the villager will be envied by professional archaeologists. On an area of about 15 thousand square meters under the ground were more than eight thousand statues of Chinese soldiers almost two meters tall, plus their horses, as well as military commanders, officials, concubines. It seems that the ruler wanted to take with him to the grave almost all the inhabitants of his own empire. Perhaps he was persuaded not to bury so many people alive with him, but to replace them with handmade clay copies, burned and painted. Qin Shi Huang became emperor at the age of 12, and a year later set about building a tomb and a terracotta army. 1,200 statues have been excavated and restored, alas, in contact with the air they quickly lost their color. Therefore, the rest are waiting for their time, when the latest technologies will be developed to preserve the army in its original form. The tomb of the emperor is in the mound, to open it is not dared to this day.

Other events closer to our time (the Russo-Japanese and Korean Wars) linked Russia to China. The legendary Port Arthur is now called Luishun. In 2010, after restoration, a memorial to Russian and Soviet soldiers was opened here, where 2031 Soviet citizens were buried in 1945-1955, including women who died during the cholera epidemic and their one-year-old and two-year-old children. To the Chinese, the memorial is well maintained. In addition, the Russian-speaking caretaker is ready to tell everyone who comes here everything he knows about those who have become an eternal home.

In the immediate vicinity, surrounded by the Yellow Sea, Dalian, in the XXI century known as the "All-Chinese health resort", formerly the city of Dalniy, founded in 1898 on the territory leased from China. Local medicine believes that the disease is a violation of Yin and Yang, and health is their harmony in the body. Massage, leading its history from the fifth millennium BC, do wonderfully. But with the diagnosis, I did not work. Examined, questioned, scrupulously listened to the pulse on both hands and announced the diagnosis: “You have problems with the prostate (!) gland.” At that moment, I frantically wondered when and, most importantly, where I grew up. The translator did not apologize for his lack of professionalism. The procedure ended (like 90% of people in our group) with a recommendation to pay attention to the stomach and buy herbal infusion at this medical center for a two-week course (the cost, of course, is not small). My request to give me a prescription to order the same at the pharmacy was refused. After that, the desire to continue relations with Chinese doctors disappeared.

Air travel with a guarantee of prosperity

Conquered the whole world feng shui (translated as “wind” and “water”) here is not fashion, but a way of life. The Chinese are in perpetual search for favorable flows of qi energy to use for the benefit of man. Everywhere hanging balls, lanterns, other symbolic jewelry, to the true feng shui, by the way, have nothing to do. Flight numbers for planes landing in or leaving China are not a simple set of numbers. I arrived on flight UN9999 and was returning UN8888. The explanation is simple: 9 is the imperial sign, the number 8 is associated with wealth, let it be for every visitor to China.

Houses are also built taking into account the ancient practice of harmonization of space. Opposite a residential house in any case should not be a bank, otherwise there will be no money, he will “twist” them to himself. But the banking institution on the first floor of the building, where a person lives, is just a sign of the financial well-being of the residents! It is striking that apartment buildings in dilapidated condition in Beijing are absent at all. It takes 15-20 years after the commissioning of the building, and it is demolished. This is done with entire neighborhoods, built-up houses such as the Russian “Khrushchev”. It's cheaper than repairing. With the owners of apartments pre-arrange, either the payment of compensation, or payment of rental housing before the construction of a new residential complex. On average, a 40-storey house is built in three months. Mortgage loans for those who want to buy real estate costs 2-4 percent per annum for 20-30 years.

When you are in China, you feel like you are on another planet. People do not speak English, especially Russian. Everywhere there are characters, even on street names. Comparing with a card is a long matter, and where is the confidence that you did not make a mistake in one icon? From here, maps in English are absolutely useless! It is possible to use the services of the railway only if there is a guide nearby - at the stations the same picture.

It's served!

The most popular drink in China is considered to be tea: green, white, yellow, red, black, “ulun”... They taste very different, but they do not brew a strong drink. At tea ceremonies, boiling water is poured into the kettle through a strainer with a small number of tea leaves and immediately poured into cups. Do this seven times with the same brew. The local cuisine is diverse and varies by province. An abundance of seafood (some names are impressive, corresponding to the image that arises in the head, what is one sea intestine), rice, noodles, meat in sweet and sour sauce, dumplings, whose homeland is not Siberia, as many mistakenly believe, but China. They have more than a hundred fillings. Chinese dumplings are boiled, steamed, fried. They are served on the table for the arrival of guests and on the Lunar New Year, when all relatives gather together, and certainly take part in the molding.

The most popular local form of music is opera. The spectacle is more than peculiar, it is a symbiosis of singing, sometimes turning into screaming, dancing, fine arts and ancient literature. The meaning of the plot is simple, but understandable only after explanation. As an option, it helps to navigate along the course of the action running line in English on the screen installed next to the stage. At the same time, the Chinese idolize our Vitas, whose concerts are often arranged in the building of the State Duma. $250 for the pleasure of listening to the singer is normal, tickets are sold out quickly.

China is different, it is impossible to describe it briefly, you need to see it from the inside, feel its special character and accept it as it is.

Yakunina Olga