Hilarious and embarrassing incidents in China

As soon as I landed in Shanghai I knew that communication will be difficult because of language barrier. I thought not playing Dumb Charades (DC) during college days and not learning communication through signs or Chinese language was a mistake. But soon I realized even well at DC or sign language is not going to help.

The first experience of it happened at the hotel apartment where I stayed for a month and a half. I am a pure vegetarian (but not vegan) and the apartment had kitchen room but no vessels. Housekeeping provided me with necessary after I selected few out of a list provided to me. I realized later that the gas stove was bigger for the cooking vessel and the plastic handle of the vessel was getting burnt spreading the bad smell. I called up the housekeeping and asked them to send a replacement bigger vessel. To my astonishment, after sometime a service engineer came to the apartment and verified all the Air Conditioners and told that everything is fine. I couldn’t stop my laugh as they had misunderstood my requirement and thought there is a bad smell inside the room!!!. Finally, to one more non-English understanding or speaking housekeeping person (I am not complaining, since the jobs should be given to local people if they are good at it irrespective of their lack of international language) with the practical demonstration of my requirement.

I met few Indians in the hotel and soon we became good friends and one of them had his own story. On the first day he had searched for a microwave oven in the kitchen and found one which when switched on becoming little hot (he somehow tested it since couldn’t understand Chinese characters written on it). He had kept a bowl of rice inside that for cooking. After half an hour he found that nothing had happened with the rice. So, he reported housekeeping about the non-functioning microwave oven. A person came to check it and then only he realized that it was a dish warmer!!!

Now let’s move over to the funny incident happened at office. I was sitting in a cubicle which was used by a person with the last name ‘Hong’. When pronounced it was heard as ‘Whom’. I got a call on my extension and the person at the other end was speaking in Chinese. I said I don’t know Chinese and asked ‘Whom do you want to speak to’. He said ‘Dwei’ (That’s right). I repeated the same question couple times to receive the same reply. I handed over the call to my friend who happened to come to my cubicle. He explained the conversation when it got over and both of were laughing and you know why.

This one is more embarrassing to me and may be laughing stock for you. I had gone for a trip to Beijing and had booked a hotel room. I reached the hotel to find that there are no rooms in that hotel with the price at which I booked. There was a communication problem! But fortunately that hotel had dormitories since it is under HI international youth hostel banner. There was one bed available in 5 bed dormitory and I gleefully took it. I was totally tired and sweating because of my daylong trip to great wall. Hence, decided to take bath and get fresh. I dressed down to my undergarments with a towel around me. I was entering the bath room, there was knock on the door and someone came in. It was a lady!!! She greeted me. I was shocked as it was embarrassing to me. I just said I have to take bath and quickly closed the door of bathroom. After few minutes silence I heard few more persons entering into the room and chatting. I could hear a male voice in them. After getting fresh I came out and greeted others sitting there and got to know that it is a ‘Mixed Hostel’ and rightly adjusted to the conditions. My suggestion for those, who are traveling and want to be economic, to look for a youth hostel. If it is an international hostel then you can meet persons from other countries which is a good experience. One of them in my room that day was a Chinese traveler, three were from England.

(Morning in Beijing, Near Tian'anmen Square)

If you don’t visit the Forbidden City, a group of palaces, (UN designated national heritage center) in Beijing then your trip is not complete. This was the power house of China for more than 500 years from mid-1400s till the new government was formed in 1924. I visited this place and spent around 6 hours in enjoying the beauty of the buildings, the artifacts on exhibition. Tourists around were very cheerful and were eager to take a photograph with me (a VVIP)!!! I don’t the reason for it but let me tell you one thing, there were 2 attractions wherever I went, the second one was the artifacts or the buildings and the first one is –

It's me