There are a couple of ways to get more integrated with the local people. One way to understand them better is to visit local markets and buy the stuff they are buying. Food has always been a way to bond with people. However, another way of integrating is by getting into cultural activities.
Concert
In China I went to a concert from Mayday. To be fair, it wasn’t my choice, but my girlfriend loves them so yes, I am willing to join her for a concert visit. However, you need to understand that Mayday is from Taiwan and their main fans are East Asian.
This also brings me in an interesting situation. I will be:
- In a place where I have no idea what is going on because everything will be in Mandarin.
- It is a very high chance that I will be the only Western looking person at this conference.
The concert is held at Chengdu and as always when we arrived I got a lot of stares. The weird thing is, since my trip to Uganda in 2011 I don’t notice those stares anymore. In Africa a lot of people will stare at you and this has made me blind for it. However, of course sometimes you will still see it if it is an obvious stare, but also my girlfriend tells me sometimes when someone is staring at me.
One of the main reasons for my girlfriend to take me there was that she would be maybe brought up on the screen next to the stage because of me. Well I have indeed been shown on the screen twice. However, unlucky for her the girl on my other side was shown in the same capture and not her.
Differences
There are some differences with Western concerts. The main differences are that people not dancing but are sitting down or waving with their stick while they are standing. Another difference is that police agents are watching the concert instead of keeping the parameter secure. There is also a big screen with the lyrics for artists and the interaction isn’t spread out over the whole concert, but there are some talking sessions in between songs that can take up till 30 minutes.
For a more in depth look at my experience here, don’t forget to check out my video. At least it was a brilliant experience and a good way to see how some of the (mainly girls) people are enjoying the music concerts here.
