That’s the supremely interesting thing about traveling: even when things look the same upon first glance, just look closer. 

China now is a vastly different place than it was even 15 years ago. It’s far more open, cosmopolitan, even influenced by Western ideas. However, it is still a completely unique place all its own. 

My first dinner here four days back was at a French-Chinese restaurant which made me a bowl of pesto penne with spinach (very good, by the way). Since then, I’ve eaten five times at this Chinese vegetarian place where I currently sit, but also at a Greek restaurant and a Tex-Mex place called Mamacita’s. 

But it’s the little things that I find most interesting. The stores looking American-like on the outside, but with not quite American names…

Cheerios, but the smallest box ever. >>See my thumb below for relative size (and with samples nearby for the majority here who’ve not tried it). 

The Wal Mart, which we do not even have in NYC, with an entrance like this…

…and a view like this once you walk in:

A giant Disney ad like this in the train station:

And t-shirts with English words, arranged in fascinating ways. Today, I saw a guy wearing a red shirt with black letters reading: FORTUNED FREAK