Discovering a Rock Band
One thing I always loved about China was exploring. Whether in big cities or small towns, I loved to walk around, get lost, discover new places, and then find my way back home. One of my earliest memories of my time in China was on my first full day in my new city. I had barely unpacked my bags when I decided to go for a walk alone. I didn’t think much about it. I just went for a walk. A couple of hours later when I got my back, my much more experienced colleague asked me where I went and why I was gone so long. He then said, “Did you even have the address of the school so you could get back if you got lost??” I don’t think he was very happy with my solo excursion.
A month or two into my time in China, I decided to go for a walk by myself one afternoon after my Chinese language class. I remember it was a narrow unpaved road with street food vendors lining both sides of the street. Somewhere along that road, probably a quarter of a mile from the school, I slipped into a building that must have had a sign on the door that seemed like it was a cafe. I can’t remember why I walked into that particular building. This is where my memory goes foggy. I must have ordered a coffee and was sitting alone, probably reading a book. A few university-aged students approached me and struck up a conversation in broken English. This was a common occurrence because in that particular city, foreigners were a rare sight. We talked for a few minutes and then they invited me upstairs. I went upstairs and discovered they had a whole room built out as a practice room for their rock band. This was my first glimpse into a new side of China I had not yet experienced. These were students in a rural part of China that’s steeped in rich history and culture, but they had a talent and passion for rock music. I thought this was so cool! I started going back there almost everyday. One day, they asked me to play the drums. They must have assumed that because I’m so young, hip, and cool that I must be a rockstar like them. Even all these years later I hesitate to write how much I embarrassed myself trying to play the drums. But, we laughed and now it’s an amazing memory stuck in my brain.
This is one simple story of the amazing twists, turns, and adventures you can have when living in a new country. It seems so small and inconsequential, but stumbling upon that cafe, making a few random friends, and pretending to make music in their makeshift music studio seems like such a cool moment in time.