Some of Stick’s students will be receiving their red scarves in a Children’s Day ceremony next week. I believe they’re called honglinjin (or is it honglinjian? Not entirely sure). You see them on Chinese schoolchildren all the time. These red scarves are a mark of distinction for high-achieving students of good moral character, and receiving one is a prerequisite for joining the Party as an adult. Although my colleagues tell me that the best students get the first honglinjin, but virtually every student in the class gets one eventually.
“You know what that means?” Stick asked.
“Um, some of your kids are right on track to join the communist party?”
“No! It’s almost Children’s Day! We have to get on WarCraft to run the Children’s Day seasonal quests!”
Hi Meg, I work with your mother at the Stickley Museum. I travelled in China for work about ten years ago, so she thought I’d appreciate your blog, especially about your experiences with all the ‘modernizing’ going on. I’m sure its a VERY different place from when I was there, but you could see the change happening fast. My travels were in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Taiwan, visiting furniture factories. All told, less than a month of visits, but enough to get a fair sense of country. I look forward to learning more about your life there. Thanks! Pete
By: Pete on May 29, 2008
at 11:32 pm