It’s Not Very Clear

Two days ago Chris and I were walking one of our normal routes to go home. I noticed at one intersection there were traffic police. I thought it was unusual, because usually people just drive everywhere and anywhere they want. Chris suggested maybe there had just been an accident. So we kept walking.

For about four or five straight blocks I noticed more traffic police all over the street. Also, public security guards. And even actual police officers. It started to make me nervous, because I am an American and I have watched a lot of Law and Order. Men in uniforms with guns make me uneasy. Especially after events like September 11th and Katrina. I don’t think those images are really a big deterrent for terrorists, but they make me want to stay very far away from any young, jumpy men with guns. And their presence makes me feel like something bad has happened or is going to happen.

Finally we got to the corner where 何海大学, Hehai University, is. And there were about eight officers from all different departments there. Now they weren’t the really serious looking officers that China definitely has. There were even a few female police officers, who sport these amazingly cute hats. So, I decided we’d stand there and wait to see what was going to happen. There were a lot of other Chinese people standing around watching too, like they always do at events like this, so I felt safe. I got antsy while waiting and went into the bakery on the corner to ask if they knew what in the world was going on.

The young girl I asked replied, “不太清楚。” It’s not very clear. Truer words were never said. Is anything ever very clear here?

What did it end up being? Well, after about 10 minutes a set of three black Audi’s (the Chinese government’s vehicle of choice) came cruising through at high speeds going through all the lights and were followed by a convoy of three fancy and comfortable looking buses. None of them were marked. No flags. Nothing. And then everything went back to normal.