People come to China for vastly different reasons.

China is not for everyone as I have quickly discovered. About a week ago, an older, fatter man from the Massachusetts area came to work here after a rather long drawn out Visa application process and from the moment that he arrived here in Chenzhou, he has not been approaching the job or the change in lifestyle in the best way. IE--this dude is having his own episode of the reality show Extreme Cultural Change!!!
I must share a funny story with you. When I first arrived here in Chenzhou, I knew pretty much right off the bat that I needed to take some time to get used to the environment here in Chenzhou as I am not Chinese and do not speak the language. When it comes down to it, I don't even like to use the same toilet as the Chinese, so I knew that the best thing to do was to always try to go into the city with someone--not because I was concerned for my safety, but because if I needed anything--anything at all, I could rely on the safety of a friend to help me get it. Besides, doing things with other people is a lot of fun. It took me about two weeks before I finally decided that I would go into downtown by myself and check out what the city had to offer. It was great. I went to McDonald's, realized I had a meeting that night, caught the bus, got my wallet nicked and showed up late to the meeting.
So I quickly learned that having people with you costs less and is fun.
Phillip, on the other hand, did have time to be told this lesson, so he had to learn it on his own.
Twice.
First, Phillip managed to go downtown by himself in the first couple of days he got here. I am not sure why, but he wanted to. He got back on the bus, in the evening, and got off when he saw what he thought looked like a nice place to get a massage.
Now, for those of you who are not aware, massage is generally code named for erotic massage, or sex parlor. So, when someone says they are looking for a good massage parlor, you have to give them the once over look and if they mean a legitimate massage parlor, they will immediately chime in that they mean a REAL massage parlor. Usually, I am still suspect.
With Phillip, I didn't know which one he meant--as he is weird in the sense that I am pretty sure his last wife was an Asian woman that he met while in Hong Kong--yet at the same time, he has significant health issues, so I am fairly sure that he wants a good massage that also might throw in the occasional handjob. He seems like that kind of guy.
So he finds a place that seems like it will offer what he is looking for. When he makes this statement, I give him the once over look and he quickly responds back that everyone in the establishment had the white lab coats on which makes me laugh internally. Nice save, I think to myself, committing this excuse to memory.. It's legit... They have Lab Coats.
He goes in and one of the women speaks a little English. She understands what he wants and directs him to sit down in the waiting room while they prepare the room for him.
He ends up sitting next to another person who it would later turn out, is the second in command at a cigarette factory in Hunan. Second in command generally means several things. 1. He is in a high position and is more than likely a government official. 2. This place will more than likely give the occasional handjob.
He is overly friendly to Phillip and immediately Phillip is rather frightened by the mans friendly tone. Phillip is from the east coast of the United States, where no one is friendly unless they know you.
Before Phillip can get too bent out of shape, the woman comes in to fetch him and he heads upstairs to a private room and instructed to take a shower, which he does. He says it was a nice shower. When he comes out into the private room, he is only wearing a towel and he lays on the table and waits for the woman to come in.
Instead the tobacco man comes in.
In his broken Chinglish, he attempts to talk to Phillip who is now freaked out because he possessions are all away from him--he is helpless in a towel on a table and a Chinese man has just entered his private room and is talking to him. Phillip begins an immediate protest--as anyone probably would do at this point, and the man hands him his cards and leaves.
Phillip is a nervous man and this freaks him out.
Yet he still decided to have his massage.
He seems to have forgotten about the incident because when she is finished with him, he feels so good that he attempts to ask for another massage. The manager seems to understand what he is asking for and nods his head in approval. As he walks back up to the room, the manager yells at him and again, there is the cigarette man, smiling at him.
The manager seems to have changed his mind and is now telling him no and Phillip accepts this and offers to pay, but his money is declined. The cigarette man has paid for his massage.
Then, confusion begins to happen. The man, who was apparently really drunk, tries to communicate to Phillip that he would like to take him out and that he has a car waiting. Phillip does not understand this method of communication and instead instantly becomes on the defensive. The man, sensing the confusion grabs Phillip by the arm to direct him to what he means.
This is a good point to mention that Americans have personal bubbles and the Chinese do not seem to be aware of these personal bubbles. Phillip, seems to have a large personal bubble.
Phillip then immediately jumps into defensive mode and grabs the mans arm and brushes it away, but the man, eager to just get him to understand, grabs it again and begins pushing him in the direction of the car-- which is parked outside of the establishment. It would seem that at this point Phillip has images of a middle eastern kidnapping of a journalist must go down--a dark Mercedes with a door open, armed gunmen on the inside waiting to whisk him off to a room for a beheading jihad style.
Phillip seems to forget that he is just a teacher at the local University--which is more of a famed figure than that of someone who would be kidnapped.
However, fear takes hold and he sprints his 350+ frame out of the area and keeps running until he can not run any longer--which I would assume would be about three or four blocks.
He eventually discovers a bus and comes home--very frightened as he has almost been abducted and possibly beheaded, all because he just wanted a "massage".
At this point, Phillip has been here all of three days.
Two days after this experience, his goes back into the city, by himself, and comes home and as he is getting off of the bus at the University, someone picks his pocket. Phillip notices this and begins to give chase. He chases the man around the bus several times and the man has finally had enough and jumps on the back of a motorbike and heads off--Phillip does not give chase.
For obvious reasons, Phillip does not feel safe in China.
For even more obvious reasons, it is just a good idea to make friends in a foreign country and take time to go shopping with them whenever possible.
After all, this is China.