Oh no! Why I'll be sat on by people? Oh no no no! Please don't sit on me! Oh, be careful of your hip! Don't sit on me! I'm very sorry to be a chair like now. Oh my life! (crying)

WOMAN: This chair is very comfortable, dear.
MAN:      Yes, it's for you, Tina.
WOMAN: Thank you very much.

Oh, I'm so painful!  can't stand this! I'm not the same as other chairs!

BOY:      Can I have a try, mum?
WOMAN: Of course, my darling.

Oh, good. I'm very happy now you are not on me madam. I told you I'm great. Haha. Oh, NO---- Go away! I'm angry! I shouldn't be the service for you!

BOY: It's great mum!
MAN: Really? I want to have a try!
BOY: But dad, you're 80kg!
MAN: It doesn't matter! I'm coming!

Oh, what did he say? He is...? He is 80kg? Oh... goodbye everyone...

BOY: Oh no dad, it's broken.
MAN: But I haven't sat on it!
BOY: It's quite strange...

-Emma, level 8
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WHEN I RETIRE

When I retire, I will go to Iceland with my family and my pets. I will build a big houewith a glass roof. I will lie on the floor and see the shining staff through the glass roof at night. When it rains I will also stay at home and have a cup of hot coffee. I'll lie on the floor quietly and listen to a piece of light music. When the rain drops on the roof I will see and feel the rain. I'll go to the hot springs every day. I'll play games with the little children.  Maybe I will keep a cafe. Then I will make it the most comfortable cafe in the world. I will ask some people to play some soft music all the day and let the room be warm and full of the smell of coffee. My life will be different and I will have the most beautiful memories there.

-Teresa, level 7

One looks at the grimy buildings, the forlorn broken windows, old plastic bags clinging to bars on windows, dirty streets.  If this were England, there would be men and women on ladders scrubbing their patch, making their walls and windows glisten and gleam, and not touching a brick beyond their own.  A metaphor for 'keeping up with the Joneses' style capitalism: we can only evaluate our own worth by comapring it (favourably) to others'.

Here, even if the apartments do belong to individual property owners, so many years of living with the knowledge that your home could be confiscated at any moment has induced a lack of regard for aethetics.  What's the point in allowing yourself to be proud of your possessions when tomorrow they may be snatched from your hands?  Communism explains more than just a lack of individual pride in ownership; it extends to a lack of respect for the environment, which belongs to 'the people', aka the goverment, aka no-one, and no-one cares for it, so 'why should I?'.

'Right now, political instability and crime occurs because too many people in China have nothing to lose.  In a way, the party's agenda has come full circle.  Remember, it was Mao Zedong himself who once said, 'The land should be given to those who work on it.'  Finally, that is about to happen.' -  Lawrence Brahm, Sth China Post, 08.03.04

But how do you reverse a social trend that has become so ingrined that it is now part of the national mentality ('It is in my nature to destroy nature')?  It's not that I personally would get a kick out of seeing the locals out on ladders scrubbing the front of their buildings (although that would indeed be a bizarre sight to see). But how does one instill environmental pride in people who see environmental pride as pointless?

After climbing The Mountain That Flew Here in Hangzhou, and exploring a few different areas of China, it has become evident to me that there is some sort of 'Keep China Beautiful' campaign that is getting through.  One has to presume that there is a fairly heavy north-south divide scorched across the land (and, dare I say it, that north-south divide can only be the Great Wall, built to defend the 'civilised' south from marauding northern barbarians).  If you picture the area north-east of Beijing as one big polluted smoggy industrial cess-pit, you are on the way to understanding why people up here don't seem to give a damn about their physical environment.  What's the point, when the Big Men are already doing their best to kill the place, a slow death for every northern citizen via heavy, cancer-inducing air. 

Looking out of my window though now, I see that it's beginning to clear up.  It's already difficult to remember the disgustingness, the air thick with gluggy coal smoke, that was winter.  Blue skies, green trees, grass and flowers, a glimpse of pretty green hillsides between the glistening pink buildings of Shi Ji Hua Yuan.  It's truly a glorious day.

Have I just contradicted everything I've just said?

Yours,
David.

Dear Dora's mum,
My name is Ben, I am Dora's student. When you come to China, you should go to Jiu Zhai Gou. There has a lot of primeval forests. In there, you could see many beautiful view. There has a lot of animal, for example, elephant, tiger, ape-man are surprise for you. After, you could go Shanghai, there has so many English men, or other country. You will feel very happy. Maybe you can come to Tian mountain. very beautiful.
Have fun playing,
Ben

Dear Dora's mum,
My name is Hao Tian. I am Dora's worst student. When you go to China, You'd better go to Mao mountain. Because it is your future home. Mao mountain is Dora's future too. Dora drink coca cola every day. He will die because he drink too many coca cola. And you will die because your drink so many 7-Up. Forever goodbye
Your's.
Hao Tian