The eyes have had it
My eyes were filled with tears over the weekend — and no, it had nothing at all to do with a dead president (or the fact that Cecil and I lost to Rick and Luis in beer pong). No, my eyes were watery because I decided to go for a walk.
The pollution is particularly potent right now in Shanghai. And a simple 10-minute stroll from my new apartment to Huaihai Lu had my eyes burning. I imagine it has something to due with the humidity, which has the city in a stranglehold it won’t release until sometime in November. The humidity has Shanghai — and its pollution — trapped. And it’s early June. This is just the beginning.
That Shanghai is polluted obviously is no surprise. It’s the biggest city in the country with the world’s worst environmental record. But Shanghai’s pollution had never made my eyes burn before. Perhaps this is because I used to live 20 minutes from downtown. Perhaps it’s because I’ve never lived in Shanghai during the summer. I don’t know.
At my new apartment, which is on the 13th floor of a building surrounded by construction sites (but, really, name me a building in Shanghai that isn’t), I learned quickly that I couldn’t leave the windows open. If l do, everything gets dirty … fast. And, not one to do the dusting, I haven’t hired an ayi yet. (By the way, any tips on how I can get a good one?) But that’s not it. There’s the sneezing, the sniffling, the red eyes. And this is indoors. Does this happen to city dwellers in America? I’ve never lived in another major city, always right outside of them.
Shanghai’s air quality is not going to get better anytime soon. More cars. More construction. I don’t see an end to it. This is what will likely drive me out of China. If I miss anything about America, it’s fresh air, it’s wide open spaces, it’s being able to go hike on a mountain without traveling four hours to get there … and not running into busloads of tour groups once I do. (Well, I also miss good live music, but that’s for another blog entry.) Sometimes I feel as though Shanghai has me under house arrest.
Thanks to the trip, I’m going to miss the Shanghai summer again this year. But don’t worry, China has plenty more polluted parts for me to visit. I’ll be sure to pack some eye drops. In fact, I’m going to go put some in right now.
I knew the East was red, but this is ridiculous.
06.14.2004, 4:25 AM · Observations
3 Comments
Pack some of those nifty packeted disposable wet-wipes too. Maybe not quite as enviro-conscious as you’d prefer, but sure to feel fantastic when you need to clear the grime from your face and neck after a hot hike or a sooty city stroll.
Last sentence is great, don’t know why, it just seems funnier in English than in Chinese.
A better time to venture a walk in Shanghai is after sunset, a large amount dust settles and at least becomes less visible.
I like the same stuff about America, but sometimes after a while, you tend to ignore the good air quality and huge green space, thanks for your article, it makes me complain less about the junk Chinese food here.
Sooooo sorry. But that’s strange. When I last visited Shanghai during the summer, I had a better time than during the winter (and my eyes weren’t red). You shouldn’t go in the winter….. icicles freeze on the roof. Your eyes become too dry and …you know what happens.