China was very poor and backward at the time. Everyday life and sanitary conditions were a far cry from anything he had seen before. He slept on a hard bed and ate unappetizing fare at the school cafeteria. Many cultural artifacts and old temples had been badly damaged in the Cultural Revolution, but rural areas were left relatively unscathed.
當時中國又窮又落後，生活習慣與衛生條件更奇差無比；他睡著硬床，吃著學校食堂裡難吃的大鍋飯，所幸文化大革命雖然大肆破壞傳統文物和廟宇，但多數鄉鎮地區卻未遭到損壞，泉州地區的偶戲團就保留得相當不錯。