“In 1923, National Geographic Magazine claimed that the Great Wall is visible to the human eye from the moon. (In truth, nobody on the moon could see it in 1923, and they sill can't.) For a while, Chinese intellectuals tried… — Peter Hessler Copy Share Image
I began to see motorcyclists who had attached computer discs to their back mudflaps, because they made good reflectors. In a place called Xingwuying, locals climbed the Great Wall whenever they wanted to receive a cell phone signal. — Peter Hessler Copy Share Image
“The Chinese people had invented the compass, paper, the printing press, gunpowder, the seismograph, the crossbow, and the umbrella; they had sailed to Africa… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“I realized that as a thinking person his advantage lay precisely in his lack of formal education. Nobody told him what to think, and… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“People with good memories are liable to be crushed by the weight of their suffering. Only those with bad memories, the fittest to survive,… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“The decorating scheme of Big World is simple in theme but complicated in execution. The theme is: things that shine and things that make… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“When Chen Meizi had chosen her specialty, she didn't expect to find a job that matched her abilities; she expected to find new abilities… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“In China, the transition has been to abrupt that many traffic patterns come directly from pedestrian life - people drive the way they walk.… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“Whenever somebody turned his head, he shouted, "Stop looking behind you!: There was a strict rule against head turns. When reversing, you were supposed… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
Sometimes I thought of the Peace Corps as a reverse refugee organization, displacing all of us lost Midwesterners, and it was probably the only… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“In 1923, National Geographic Magazine claimed that the Great Wall is visible to the human eye from the moon. (In truth, nobody on the… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“Sometimes they seemed to grasp instinctively at the worst of both worlds: the worst modern habits, the worst traditional beliefs.” — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“When you live in China as a foreigner, there are two critical moments of recognition. The first comes immediately upon arrival, when you are… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“I like to play chess. I moved to a small town, and nobody played chess there, but one guy challenged me to checkers. I… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“Beijing maps featured cloverleaf exchanges that could have been designed by M. C. Escher.” — Peter Hessler Copy Share
In China, much of life involves skirting regulations, and one of the basic truths is that forgiveness comes easier than permission. — Peter Hessler Copy Share
“I looked at the terraced hills and noticed how the people had changed the earth, taming it into dizzying staircases of rice paddies; but… — Peter Hessler Copy Share
