We’ve been here two weeks. We are finding our way around quickly and move confidently out into the world knowing that we will proudly make it to our destination 85% of the time. The signs are in Chinese so we peruse our objectives by a vague sense of North and by asking for directions from people on the street. We have invented and are perfecting a communication technique that is a mixed art of animated hand gestures, loud one syllable words and interpretive dance. It usually starts something like this, I tap someone on the shoulder and ask if they speak English, to which they reply “little”, then I say “TRAIN” and they give me a questioning look, I say it again, this time slower and louder, T-R-A-I-N. Now the person I stopped is stopping someone else to see if they can help. “TRAIN”, I say again. Both look at me and say something to each other, soon a crowd appears. “TRAIN” I say, now addressing the masses. “TRAIN” I say again and pull an imaginary engineers horn and say “TOOT-TOOT”. Ohhh, the crowd mumbles together and the word for train in Chinese rumbles from person to person. “Where” (I lift my shoulders and eyebrows in a questioning way) “is TOOT-TOOT” (I again make horn gesture). The group forms a huddle, discusses the quickest route and appoints a leader. The leader steps forward and draws a ruff map on a napkin. When I take the map and make hand gestures in the direction of the train the group mumbles in excitement. I bow again and again and thank them profusely both in Chinese and English. As I walk away I can hear the crowd chatting with excitement, I even hear several people clap like they just won a game of charades. As I turn the corner to walk out of site I hear one of them say “TOOT-TOOT”.
