birds & old men

This morning one of the other American teachers here, Lisa, and I woke up early on a Sunday morning to go on a bit of an adventure. In past years Lisa had discovered that early in the morning old men would gather in a park in Qufu. The group gathers to talk--about what I do not know--but seems to use the excuse of "airing" their birds. Each man will carry his little pet bird(s) in beautiful old cages on the back of a bike or cart. 

So out we went at 7am to the park about a 15 minute bike ride away from my apartment. We wandered about taking pictures and endeavoring to interact; Lisa better than me--smiles and nods seem still seem to be my strongest method of communication. Across a small waterway or mote of sorts, the rest of the park was filled with men and women doing their morning exercises. Most have past their mid-forties, but each seems to have an incredible about of

 energy. As we walked our bikes through the w

inding paths, old women shuffled by, our presence giving them fresh gossip. We stopped for a bit to look at a plaza where couples ballroom-danced to music that blared from two speakers beneath a willow-like tree. 

As I walked through the park, I couldn't help but notice the vast difference between a Sunday morning in China, more specifically Qufu, and New York City. In New York, Sunday morning before 10 is my favorite time. The city is quiet, still sleeping in, and so becomes my own. To match the quiet, a haze blankets the city as light reflects off the morning air.

 If you head to 

Central Park you will see people running and biking, 

but almost everyone is young.  The setting, the haze, light, cool air, all match New York City, but the atmosphere is completely different. The exercising crowd is older, the day has already begun, hours ago in fact, and exercise is not so much a chore to keep up appearances but an yet another opportunity to socialize.