“Yes, I’m in China”

When I was in China in 2010, my roommates and I had a saying, “oh China…” Basically, whenever anything would occur that was very different from the states, this saying would come out. Needless, to say, in the small Chinese village I lived in, it came out quite a bit!

This time around, it’s a little different.  I live in a different location and it is very different than the village.  Quite often I forget that I’m even in China. However, once in a while I am reminded… like recently.

In northern China, the babies and little kids, all wore “split pants.”  This means that their pants are “split” right down the middle so when they have to go they just….. well, squat and go. At first it was a bit disturbing but as time went on, it became normal. We would never think twice seeing kids just “go” on the side of the main street!

In southern China, this is not the case. I have seen a few split pants but not very many at all. One thing I have learned though is that when you want your child to “go,” you teach them to “go on a whistle.” Basically when you whistle…. they pee.

We have had SO MUCH rain lately! As I sit on my bed writing this blog post, it is raining and thundering. A few days ago we had a rare sunny day and so we took advantage of it and took the kids for a walk. As we were taking a break by a fountain so the kids could run around, a mom and her son came along. We exchanged “ni-hao’s” and then she sat down, pulled her son’s pants down (he was about 2 years old) and sat him on her lap with her legs spread apart. She then started whistling!

* Side note: While we were there, he never did go. He must not be trained very well…

Now let me remind you, I live in this GORGEOUS apartment complex with gardens, streams, and pools. When I first arrived, I felt like I was on vacation at a resort. This is not exactly a dirty village and not at all where you would expect people to just go wherever!

The funniest part of the story is our little 3 year old boy. Since our kids are in diapers or potty trained (in a toilet with no whistling involved), this whole idea is a new concept for them. At one point as the woman was whistling, he squatted down and attempted to peer under her…. trying to figure out what was going on. The nannies quickly yelled “no, no, no!” (for fear he might get peed on). We quickly left that area and continued on our walk.

As we walked away, I could still hear the woman whistling…. oh China. : )

Anneli