Sleepy Girls On The Subway

I love how the mom is holding her daughter's head up. I wonder if that was comfortable?  Before I took this picture, her brother (on the left) kept trying to pat her face. She pitched a fit and his mom yelled at him to leave her alone. It's funny how kids are the same all over the world.

I also love this pic because it reminds of me when I'd fall asleep next to my dad on the D.C. Metro and he'd carry me home. Sometimes I was just pretending to be asleep so I didn't have to walk. I think he knew.

Sweet Touches, Plus Why The D.C. Metro Is My Favorite Subway

Chinese friends are very affectionate with each other. It's common for two female friends to hold hands while they walk together, or to put their arm around a friend's shoulder while they sit together. (I snapped this picture today with my camera phone when they didn't know I was looking.) And it's common for guys to put their arm around a friend's shoulder while walking, or while sitting together. The concept of personal space is very different here,  it's superclose. I've literally felt people breathing on my neck in line at the grocery store.

I haven't sat so affectionately with someone since I rode the D.C. Metro with a guy I really liked, just prior to coming to China. (I'm usually not one for Subway Snuggling, but with him, I was.) Although I always kiss hello and goodbye with one of the male volunteers here (he started it, because I am half Spanish, I think), I mostly just do the Western hug with friends. But some of my students have started using these little Chinese friendship gestures with me, and I think it's very sweet. I take it as a compliment.