Game

« game: (adj) Informal. having the required spirit or will (often followed by for or an infinitive): Who's game for a hike through the woods? »

If I could offer one piece of advice to those considering traveling to or living in China, it would be to take a moment and seriously evaluate your level of game. Let me preface my explaination by saying that this suggestion is mainly directed at people who want to get off the beaten track. You can always do what some like to call “China-light” and not need a terrible amount of game. Although I’ve never been, I know that Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Xi’an are amazing cities and I can’t wait to visit them myself. But for those of you wanting to travel to the heart of China, to visit cities that the Chinese themselves visit, and to get a glimpse into real Chinese life, genuine game is an absolute necessity.

Take for example my recent trip to the Sichuan province during what the Chinese call Golden Week. Just the process of getting tickets required game. Because the Chinese are not familiar with the concepts of pre-planning and roundtrip tickets, just making it to Chengdu and back was not certain for some time. The headmaster at one of my friend’s school purchased outbound tickets for the both of us, ensuring our safe and rested arrival. As we setout on a 25 hour train ride that Sunday, however, we had absolutely no guarantee that we wouldn’t be hitchhiking our way back to Hunan. Golden Week is the most traveled of all Chinese holidays, thus not making it home was actually a valid fear. Luckily we got tickets with the help of another friend and things worked out beautifully. Without game, however, I don’t think I would have ever gotten on the train.

Only two days later my travel companion, Caroline, and I found ourselves in another situation that required us either to be totally game or die. Ok, so die is an exaggeration, but game was essential to our sanity. We arrived at Mount Emei, one of the four holiest mountains to Chinese Buddhists, around 6:00 pm with the hope of spending the night in one of the mountain’s many monasteries. We very quickly discovered that there were far more people than there were beds and that night was falling quickly. Due to the fact that the monasteries close at dark, we were in a race against time, as well as thousands of fellow travelers. We proceeded to run around, asking everyone we could where the nearest monastery was located. We finally found the Baoguo Monastery and practically sprinted to the “Accommodations” desk. My heart sank when I heard the monk say those famous two Chinese words, “mei yo” or “don’t have.” It looked like we would be sleeping in the forest. I told him that we were willing to sleep on the floor, but still the answer was “no.” Luckily for us, a monk who spoke a bit of English happened to be walking past and was called over by the monks behind the desk. The second monk told us that there was another option. He proceeded to describe what sounded an awful lot like a Buddhist homeless shelter. I said, perhaps too hastily, that we would take it, while Caroline was less sure. The monk offered to take us to look at the room. It turned out to be just fine and we decided to take it. In the end it was more than fine. We met some really interesting travelers who were in the same situation that we were. One, a Tibetan man, shared with us what it is like to live in modern China as a member of the Tibetan minority. And I can’t help but think that I never would have had the opportunity to talk with him had Caroline and I not been game. Game was incredibly important that night and the following days. I’m honestly not sure what we would have done without it. I’m so glad that I was able to spend my Golden Week traveling with someone who is not only super game, but also a wonderful friend. I’m quite confident we’ll need our game as we travel around Southeast Asia during Spring Festival in a few months, but more on that later.

I have plenty more examples of how important game is in China: sitting on the floor of a bus for over 4 hours, being pushed around by Chinese tourists in a line to see a giant Buddha for another 4 hours, and almost having to sleep in tents on the roof of a hostel after making a reservation for a bed. Rather than go into all of that, I need to highlight that Caroline and I don’t have a monopoly on game. Many of you are game too. You just need to find situations to act on it. Come to China and such situations will throw themselves at your feet.