Chapter Eight – East, West, the end of the world
(1) Hainan Island
The sky in Hainan is blue, the sea is blue, beautiful coconut trees, beautiful beaches, and endless shells. Tianya Haijiao is truly a breathtakingly beautiful tourist destination. That was Hainan, Wenchang, Sanya, and Haikou in 1991. There are not many tourists. Watching women working in the fields, working as porters in the harbor, doing jobs that should be done by men. When I woke up in the morning, I saw women in twos and threes buying fresh vegetables and seafood, fish, shrimps and crabs at the morning market. There is enough food for the day. No one uses refrigerators to store food. The teahouse opens early to welcome guests. Men wearing shorts, slippers and holding big cattail fans come to drink tea and chat. They sit there all morning. Hainan still has a lifestyle of fishermen. Men basically do nothing on land because they have to go out to sea to fish. Just rest after landing. This habit has been followed to this day. Even if you don’t go to sea, you won’t do anything. Women do all the work on land, plowing the land and doing housework. Men only do business if they don’t go to sea. Drink tea.
Wenchang is located in the west of Hainan, where the beaches are beautiful and there are few tourists. At the seaside restaurant, you can choose live fish, green and red grouper, shrimp, and crab directly on the seaside. They are freshly selected and cooked, and the taste is extremely delicious. Squeeze water from small oranges and use it as vinegar. Children climb to the tall coconut trees to pick fresh coconuts. They can cut a hole and insert a straw to drink the cool and sweet coconut juice. Everything is so natural and wonderful.
(2) Twenty-fifth birthday
I spent my 25th birthday in Belgium, a small mountain town with a population of several hundred people. I remember it was the first time I went abroad to inspect a tennis racket manufacturing factory. The boss and his wife of IBC, the agent of Donny’s company in Brussels, took us to Waterloo. Driving along the quiet European continent, castles and colorful hillsides appeared from time to time, with deep autumn colors. In the evening, we arrived at a mountain town and had dinner in a restaurant. There were only a few people eating there, so we sat down at a long table. Suddenly the lights dimmed, and a waiter pushed a cart full of candles and stopped in front of me. Madam sang happy birthday and blew out the candles with me. I was moved. It was an unforgettable night. At that time, there was a huge gap between Europe and China. This quiet life is what I have dreamed of for a long time. There is no fighting, no poverty, equal competition and democratic freedom. I’m a little drunk.
(3) Going abroad
It was the second year of working as a foreign company, and it was a great time for China’s reform and opening up. The company was located on the 17th floor of the New Century Hotel in the western suburbs of Beijing. Every day, we were busy receiving customers, preparing quotations and contracts, organizing exhibitions and banquets. Life became fulfilling and full of challenge. The rapid development of the company has brought new opportunities to everyone. Traveling between the company, restaurants, clients, business trips and banquets all day long, it seems that we have forgotten what normal life should be like. Sometimes I feel bored as soon as I stop, and my life seems to have completely lost its direction. I lay in bed at night and looked at the stars in the sky outside the window. Autumn in Beijing is always crisp and clear. I couldn’t help but get up and go to the balcony. I forgot that today is the 15th and the moon was surprisingly round. There was not a trace of cloud in the night sky. I breathed in the cool air. It felt like it was time to go out and check it out. People always have to try different lives in this life. Is the moon in foreign countries really rounder than that in China? Once you’ve made up your mind, start preparing. After getting the invitation letter, we went to the familiar Embassy District of Xiushui Street. Queuing up for the interview went surprisingly smoothly. Get a multiple-entry visa in one go. I didn’t feel excited when I came out of the embassy. I think of the time I went to the Canadian Consulate for an interview and was refused a visa a few years ago. It was also autumn, but the wind was very windy and there were dark clouds. I came out of the consulate feeling hopeless, and I went home in a daze and fell asleep. After waking up, think about why bother, take a step back and the sky will be brighter. Then I had another experience. Life is spent in countless surprises and shocks. I like a future that I can’t see clearly.
One day in February, I flew to the United States, a country that is both familiar and unfamiliar. When I arrived in Los Angeles, I felt that the airport was huge. From landing an international flight to boarding a domestic flight, I had to take out my luggage and push it to another gate. I actually walked onto the street. I remember that the sky in Los Angeles was very blue that day, and the streets were busy with people and vehicles. I walked alone on the street pushing my luggage as if in a dream. The Southwest Airlines plane slowly rose and flew towards Houston. At one stop, many strong men wearing cowboy hats and leather boots got on. I think this is the Western Cowboy. It was dusk when the plane landed in Houston. Lu Jun picked me up at the airport and drove his little red car all the way to Chinatown in the Southwest District. I felt emotional when I saw the neon lights in Chinese from a distance. After arriving at the apartment, I fell asleep deeply. It was already two o’clock in the afternoon when I woke up. I was woken up by the music from the ice cream truck outside. I went out to the balcony and saw several children buying ice cream in front of the car. It feels both novel and intimate. Drunk again, this is how life should be. Isn’t it?
