My 20th birthday was on Friday. I'm so glad that I spent it in Lanzhou.
I woke up with a hug and an Islamic blessing from my roommate. Before I left for class, a couple from Kazakhstan stopped by my room to wish me a happy birthday. As is custom in their country on birthdays, the men give the women a kiss on the cheek. This is obviously not something I'm used to, and it was a little awkward that the guy came with his girlfriend and then gave me a kiss. I encountered several more Kazakh guys throughout the day, so I was a little less caught-off-guard.
On my way to class, I was wished a happy birthday in Chinese, Russian, English, Spanish, and Korean.
Appropriately enough, my Chinese speaking lesson dealt with ages and birthdays.
I went out to eat dumplings after classes with my western friends, and then I bought birthday cake for my party that evening.
All of my friends gathered together in Zhuan Jia Lou where I live for an evening of celebration. It was quite the multicultural event. I was sung to in five different languages. As everyone laughed and talked together, those same languages mixed into a beautiful cacophony.
The gifts I received also represented different cultures. Several gifts were from China, such as tea, but I also received Korean gifts, Tibetan jewelry, potato vodka from Norway, and western music (thankfully no pop music: Mae, Escape the Fate, Enter Shikari, Comeback Kid, etc.). Everyone was also excited about an "American" treat: Skittles. On the more humorous side, I was given a Chinese-comedy DVD and an air soft gun. My friends know me well!
