Colorful Thursday afternoon (part II)

Carrie and I in the courtyard

The last part of the trip is the climax of the whole afternoon. We went to Carrie’s house. It’s is the very first time for me to visit an American home, so I am full of questions and curiosities. It is a two-story building with a huge courtyard and several old trees providing shades for family members and those grasslands and vegetables. The first thing comes to my eyes was some odd plants in the front yard. They are green plants with some small purple flowers. But when I touched the leaves, it seems that they felt like rough pleuche, a kind of textile fabrics. How weird they are! Carrie told me its name but I didn’t get the exact word.

weird plants

We were glad to enter Carrie’s house with her permission. There are a neat kitchen, an exquisite dining room, a spacious living room and a guest room on the first floor. I even took a photo when sitting in one of comfortable sofa. The images came into my mind immediately—how exhausted Carrie was after a day’s teaching and how busy she was in reading our blogs and giving comments. Strange imagination, isn’t it?

The vegetable garden in the courtyard attracted me at once. Lettuce, cucumbers, green tomatoes and beautiful squash flowers, what a lovely and harmonious pictures it is! In china it is impossible to plant vegetable beside your house in cities unless you are wealthy enough to purchase a villa. I was shocked when informed about the price of the house. The old house with beautiful views and spacious courtyard only cost Carrie $140,000. What a bargain! Now even in Changsha, it will cost us about &150,000 to buy a three-bedroom apartment, no furniture, no decoration, entirely empty.

beautiful squash flowers

lettuce

Ricky, Amanda and I enjoying snacks in Carrie's courtyard 

When considering the price of the house, I am puzzled by the big difference between Chinese and American concerning buying a house or not. According to a survey, New Yorker was accustomed to a renter culture; even at the peak of the bubble, only one third of New Yorkers owned their homes.  It seems that some Americans have no interest in buying a home.  Instead, they love the freedom of picking up luggages and moving anywhere. There is no need to be responsible for maintenance. On the contrary, Chinese tend to buy houses in spite of the high and incredible prices. Many people who buy property in China do so with their spouse. Only in this way do we feel that we are the permanent residents of a place and our occupation and life can be steady enough. What’s more, the children can be raised in a comfortable and familiar place, which is extremely essential for the next generation to receive better education and grow up more healthily and strongly.  

In my opinion, the issue about whether to purchase a house or not sheds light on a culture difference between America and Chinese. Chinese is characterized for rootedness and the word “place” means both location in space and position in society. To be tied to place is also to be bound to one’s status in life. On the other hand, American sometimes is criticized for rootlessness, which is a result of ideals they admire, namely, social mobility and optimism about future. 
Thank you Carrie for inviting me to your home, which is a really unforgettable moment in Yale.