Ladies and gentlemen we have a unicorn

Or so I was called by a few foreigners I met. I finally met a group of foreigners in Qinhunagdao at my very first party in China and one called me a unicorn. His girl friend finally explained that it's a word they use for young white blond haired girls like me. She explained the comment to me when I was complaining about how everybody in Qinhuangdao stares at me and makes a big deal over my looks. The way she put it was. "If you saw a unicorn would you ever be the same?" I guess this is a fair comparison, it's just strange to think of your self as a unicorn. Of course to me I'm really not that special   but in general I don't see being blond as a big deal because it's pretty common in America. But of course here it's very different from the typical sea of black heads.

I guess when I thought about coming to China I was thinking about how global our world is. I was thinking about how I hate how American culture has overrun other smaller and local cultures in the world. I felt that I wouldn't be that interesting because they saw plenty of white people in magazines, on ads, on TV, and in the movies. But I seriously underestimated China's ability to keep their own unique culture in a global world. Sure in places like Shanghai you might as well be in a city like New York or London; they're not very Chinese. But as I keep saying, Qinhuangdao is a small town. There are very conservative people here and also most people don't make much money. Not only is Americana not as popular in China as I would have assumed, it's in someways untouchable to the people here. Picture a hick from a small farm town in America (like most of New Hampshire), that's where I'm living. My town in New Hampshire has a hell of a lot more culture than this place does. These people are sheltered. To them I am a unicorn. 

I guess I just have to take it as a compliment... But it's hard to when you can't go out with out every person in the bar trying to talk to you, when you can't walk down the street with out being stared at, when you can't sit down and eat without ending up giving somebody the reader's digest version of your life, and when you can't go to the grocery store without being asked your advice on a product. I do know that if I ever see a unicorn I'll just leave it alone; the poor thing deserves it.

Want to learn more about Qinhuangdao? Checkout this website my friends made. (There are even some pictures of me on there!) http://qhdconnect.spruz.com/