In a country of 1,344,130,000 inhabitants it is difficult to feel lonely. China is a collective and this is as comforting as it is suffocating.

Indeed people make the most of every corner, silence is rare and even solitude is strange.

Individuality is frowned upon and people don’t want to stand out from the crowd.

If you happen to be the foreigner in a village, you will be fixated on and to your amusement and frustration, all the fingers will be pointed at you when soon out of nowhere in no time you will be surrounded by a crowd.

In a place where several times in history the person was hidden behind a uniform, eyes are meant to be brown, hair black and dress code simple, dull and discreet.

Group activities are often compulsory; whether it is morning exercise, military training or performing in a play, it is expected to follow the norm.

It Is your duty.