Shut Your Mouth and Move Your Feet:

Lessons Learned In Our Study Abroad Program at Fudan University

The wisdom of elders has been a constant positive force in my life, ALL OF MY LIFE. Fortunately I was a person who recognized the value of lessons learned from the elders in my life. That doesn’t mean I was always wise enough to heed their advice, but I recognized early on that I was blessed to have a lot of wisdom around me. During our trip here to Shanghai, I had the opportunity to participate in an interview with five women from the Songjang Community and quickly saw that wisdom was in the room. We were interviewing them about health attitudes, practices and beliefs in their community and when asked about how they take care of themselves and live healthy lives one of the women, Tu Qwu Me, a spry delightful women with a constant smile and infectious laugh, shared with us that she tells her family to live healthy you must “Shut Your Mouth and Move Your Feet.” That adage rang true for so many things we learned and did on this trip.

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Public Health perspective– “Shut your mouth and move your feet” is good advice when you think about diet and exercise. This is the context in which Mrs. Me used the saying. She explained that her family complains about the healthier diet that she has adopted. In the way that only a mom can do I can imagine her dismissing her children’s complaints and telling them to get away from her as she continues to prepare the meal. However it also reinforces the fact that if we eat less and exercise more we can live healthier lives.

Shanghai Metro Perspective – In a city that moves what feels like tens of millions of people on their subway system, you have to “Shut up and Move Your Feet” to get on and off a subway train. As the subway was our primary mode of transportation for the last two weeks, we discovered early on that embarking and disembarking the train required us to throw all social etiquette out the window.

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The pushing and shoving that results in the transition on and off the train leaves no room for casual conversation or a slow steady pace. If you are in the middle of a conversation with someone when the train arrives, you cut the discussion off mid-stream, ready yourself in your best linebacker stance and keep your feet moving until you get on the train.

Today was our final full day in Shanghai and we closed the program out with group presentations, a celebratory lunch and an evening of fellowship with friends and colleagues. I can honestly say that I am exceptionally proud of the seven Georgia State Students who participated in this inaugural educational and cultural exchange with 14 equally amazing students from Fudan University.

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Of Rice and Men

Who doesn’t like Chinese food? American Chinese food is mouthfuls of steaming rice and noodles with sides of delectable meats and veggies and to cap it all off, a fortune cookie. Most American Chinese food places I have gone to served their food with fried rice or lo mein by a woman who works the front of the house. Since China has such a long historical and storied past, I have often wondered about their food cultures around food service especially in the country of China. Is what we eat at American Chinese restaurants representative of what traditional Chinese families eat in China? Coming to Shanghai, rice is oddly not present as much as I am used to.

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Growing up in a Nigerian household, I am not only the first of five siblings but the oldest male. I will be first to carry my father’s name and to represent my family in whatever I do. I am a physical representation of my family’s heritage and family line. In Nigerian culture the oldest child represents the family on many fronts, but the oldest male is a strong representation of the father and the family. Fathers are very important in Nigerian culture and its food culture. In traditional Nigerian food culture, males eat first serviced by wives, sisters, and daughters. Rice is always present when you take part in a Nigerian meal, especially large scale meals.

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In American Chinese food, rice always accompanies your choice of meat and your choice of a side dish. Rice is in abundance with American Chinese dishes for all family members partaking in the meal. Recently the question came up, why is rice never a part of the meals we order and must be ordered separately. We were told by a student that in her family men are seen as having a larger appetite and eat more, so men usually order rice as a part of their meal and the women eat the other food ordered and most times never touch the rice. This was interesting because something else about meal times made sense all of a sudden. The fact that every time we went out as a group to eat, all 10 of us, any and every restaurant would leave us one drink menu an one food item menu for us to order from. China is traditionally a patriarchal society, and the men make the decisions for the family. The man is supposed to order the food and drink for all the family members at the table. Men are seen at dinner as the voice of decision. They are the head of their households and they are the decision makers at the dining table.

Before coming to Shanghai, my experience in family dynamics as a first generation Nigerian-American was twofold. American culture when it comes to ordering food is that everyone orders what they want and the sequence of when people order varies. I have seen it a plethora of mixed up ways in which families order from parents first to children first. So in general, my impression is America does not necessarily care who orders when.

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Now this does not represent all American families because in my household, traditionally Nigerian men are the leaders and decision makers of the family. Nigeria is a patriarchal society as well. In Nigeria, food preparation equals women, wives and daughters alike taking part in food prep and the serving of the food. Men in Nigeria are served first by their wife and daughters, then the children are served next if they are too young to help cook the food, and then the women who cooked eat. In more affluent families, there may be a maid of some sort who serves the food but the man will still be served first. In my American household some of those ideals still hold true most likely due to my parents’ upbringing in Nigeria, but not all ideals. Everyone cooks in my house; the order in which people eat depends on availability. If my mother cooks and if my father is nearby he will get his food first most times but if not, it’s first come first served. The American mix and match order of service comes into play.

Food and the service of it is like a transfer of power and energy not only in the literal sense but also in the societal sense because the sequence in which people get food appears to equate to gender power roles. Here in Shanghai gender roles come down to what is feminine and what is masculine. Not many women are seen smoking because it is seen as “unladylike.” I have noticed that men, especially smokers, hack up spit everywhere all the time. I haven’t seen any women doing that. Women and girls here walk around holding up umbrellas to block the sun from their skin. This makes me wonder how the dynamics are viewed in single parent households in China or households where the woman makes the “lion’s share” of the income.

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The differences in societies and cultures are the key to what makes each one so great and unique. So is it okay to say one is better than the other or backwards? I don’t think it is that black and white. Each cultural history one can ever take part in is heavily intertwined with its food. A country’s food culture can tell you so much about its customs, history, and ideals. So does that mean rice in traditional Chinese culture equates to much more than we Americans can comprehend in two weeks? Can a simple grain such as rice represent wealth and power? American eat so much of it, can it represent greed and excess? Rice is a staple in Nigerian cuisine, so does rice just represent availability of a resource? Rice is in so many cuisines of many countries and cultures, so does rice represent our connectedness as human beings? These are many of the questions that come up when talking about the subject not only of rice and men, but food and people.

China and the One Child Rule

Is China creating a monster with the one child rule? The one child rule went into effect in china in the 1980s to control population growth in China. Having only one child in many cases can lead to a brat. This week, children were playing in a monumental water fountain without repercussions. Also, in a restaurant two girls who were on a play date were sitting on counters wearing dresses and performing cartwheels. No one said or did anything. In the U.S., this would be quite embarrassing for many parents and would be subject to some type of discipline.

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One day I asked a classmate from China, not knowing her age, if she had any siblings. I was a little embarrassed when she said no because of the one child rule. She expressed that she wished she had a brother or sister.

Not only could this be the root of unruly kids, it could be traumatic to a family. After the one child rule went into effect, couples had to fill out an application to have a child. Family planning clinics popped up everywhere, which led to unwanted birth control methods and forced abortions.

It’s no wonder why this one child is cherished and spoiled rotten by parents as well as grandparents. Recently, there have been revisions to the one child policy that allow a second child. Apparently, if both sets of grandparents were also an only child, a couple can apply to have a second child.

However, having one child does have the advantage of not only more available income, but also more family time and less crowding in restaurants and subways. There were many families of three generations spending time together in parks, restaurants, and museums. This could actually create a stronger family bond with both sets of grandparents.

By Phylliscia Gibson

Researching Public Health Issues In Shanghai

“Mapping Social and Environmental Disparities in Cities: An Integrated Field GIS in Shanghai, China” will provide a cultural immersion educational opportunity for upper-level undergraduate and graduate students interested in the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and mapping to understand urban environment and public health.

Georgia State University students will be paired with Chinese students conducting research projects focusing on people’s perception of
environmental and/or health concerns. Students will have a rich language and cultural exchange experience in addition to scientific collaboration.

The three-week program will include two weeks of field work in Shanghai, China. The field work will include a combination of classroom and lecture experience on the campus of Fudan University as well as field trips for research projects working with local government agencies.

Coursework will focus on learning geospatial technologies in environment and public health, with guest lectures and instruction coming from professors at Georgia State and Fudan University. The program is sponsored by the Georgia State School of Public Health and the College of Arts and Sciences.