Oh grandpa,

　I arrived in Xian. I write about store streets in China today. I don’t see convenience stores nor super markets as so often as in Japan. Each kind of products is at different kinds of retailer. Vegetable store, mobile phones, snacks, daily consuming goods, and so on…they are retailed in each stores.

The Biggest difference is that no one is so seriously working , and trying to make money during its business time. I assume it’s maybe because China is communism? or the big population makes them lazy while they are doing business because they either can sell enough? I also saw the same phenomena in terms of type of business they run. You would see same pictures in all streets. They have almost same kinds of store in an each street such as mobile phone, vegetables, and so on. “Why don’t they differ from others? It would be so profitable if they stop chatting, and create new ideas instead…” That’s what I was thinking when I was having my lunch at a store in the typical Chinese store street I’m writing about. By the way, I point at a name on their menu on which I was only sure it’s a noodle because they used a same kanji with the one Japanese use meaning noodle. Anyway, I didn’t understand why sleeping, chatting, talking on the phone can be their survivable business.

On the other hand, there were no stressful faces, nor people who are in something hurry like how Japanese people usually are. Store owners are talking and make the other laugh, and they use much louder voice to communicate than a certain volume they need to communicate. They don’t stop talking with their friends unless a customer asks something.

　

Many things about their lives are so unclear yet, and stimulate my curiosity very well. What I’m sure is they have much less stress than Japanese people usually have. They look so joyful, and less stress.　

A guy is cooking meat, and a boy is peeing next to the cooking guy. Across the street from the incredible picture, guys are gambling on a card game… I saw some “usual businesses for me” at a sightseeing district, but even they make no difference from a store right next to them. I’m sure Japanese (Maybe Americans too?) would be gaining so much money if they opened a store in these areas.

What may be good about the Chinese people I saw is they don’t care about others. They don’t change anything due to the environment where they are. (This idea is from my point of view though) I think since I got out of Beijing, and I am traveling rural areas of China, I’m getting some ideas of general Chinese people who are still in the traditional Chinese life style and culture.　





“Oh grandpa, you know how it’s wonderful to meet new worlds. I can’t stop myself to see the something new in the Silk Road. Where I lived in my life was not the whole World. People I know was not only people in the World. That what was saying to my grandpa in the heaven before falling asleep in the last night.

Go for it!! Chuji,