Cultural Gold

All over China, people see the necessity of learning the international language, English.  They realize Chinese is very difficult for outsiders and recognize the practical value of our language in business and commerce.

The native speaker of English is treated like a celebrity.   At the train station, mothers pushed their children forward so they could practice saying “Hello” to me. One woman on the train brought me a dinner of instant noodles so she could spend a few minutes talking with me.  Middle class parents purchase English lessons at mini English academies hoping to give their kids an advantage in school and work.