Today is a holiday in China. Based on the Chinese lunar calendar, we are midway through autumn! The appropriate way to celebrate mid-autumn festival is by eating mooncakes while looking at the moon. Mooncakes are little round pastries, filled with dried fruit or some other kind of sweet filling. They are really heavy and not necessarily my favorite snack, but recently some friends gave me one that was not very heavy or sweet and it tasted pretty good.
I find it hard to believe we are mid-way through autumn already. I continue to wear sandals and a T-shirt everyday. However, over the past week, I have had three different people tell me that it is too late to wear sandals because its fall now and I will get sick if I wear sandals without socks. The wardrobes of people here have changed within a week. Even though the days are still sunny and warm, everyone wears a jacket or sweatshirt. The Chinese tend to consider the season, not necessarily the weather itself as an indicator of what to wear. I, however, am determined to continue to wear sandals and T-shirts as long as they are comfortable. I guess I can't adapt too well to these customs.
On the weekends, I like to go shopping (which sounds funny because really I hate shopping). But part of my research is to consider the rise of supermarkets and consumerism in China. So I try to visit different supermarkets throughout the city. Supermarkets in China, as they have grown substantially over the past decade, generally refer to large stores where one can buy just about any household item. Like a Super Wal-Mart in the US, they include food and clothes and everything in between, usually separated by 2-3 different floors. As I strolled through supermarkets in town yesterday, I was greeted with winter jackets and long underwear. The long underwear here is thick and bulky, meant to protect against the cold Siberian winds that winter in Harbin faces.
I have been warned by more than enough people that winters in Harbin are long, dark, and cold. The only goal when one goes outside is to get as fast as they can to the next building. Ah! I am just trying to get used to the idea that it is fall here, I can't even think about winter in Harbin. Its only September, but happy mid-autumn festival!
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2 comments:
i heard about the importance of keeping your feet warm to avoid catching colds from my parents and grandparents. i wonder where this asian thought comes from, perhaps it's not asian at all, who knows?
i say keep rocking the sandals til you can't, that's what i do. i also try to go sockless as long as possible as well if i'm wearing shoes. :)
best of luck and continue blogging, i enjoy reading about your experiences in china
You better buy some of that super thick long underwear now, because it sells out really quick, and then your SOL. My mom had to mail me long underwear from the states my first winter, and it still wasn't as effective as that horribly thick ugly chinese stuff. Manchuria is crazy windy. And western products aren't designed to deal with that.
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