China’s pastimes: #1 Ping Pong
June 10, 2008
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When China isn’t polluting or putting torches on buses, they like to get down and dirty on some athletic competitions. Ping Pong’s name likely comes from the Chinese name, ping pang qiu, which is ping pong ball in english. This continues the trend of sports having qiu in the name of sports (lanqiu is basket ball, etc). Here it is played like it is much more than the family sport I have come to see it as.
When I was a child, we had a ping pong table that we barely used, which may have saved my hand-eye coordination (see baseball, tennis, badminton failures). I grew up thinking that it was just a simple parlor game, but here in China, I couldn’t be any wronger. It is the real deal with kids practicing during their nap time with the P.E. teacher as their coach.
At my gym, they recently installed an impressive ping pong room that I briefly embarassed myself in before returning to the bench forever.
So if you’re interested in becoming a ping pong pro, let me know and I can get you a one on one lesson with a 2nd grader.
These pictures were borrowed. Thank you.
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Posted in Found in china, entertainment
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June 10th, 2008 at 9:24 pm
ohhhh man, i can’t wait for the return of liyi!
June 10th, 2008 at 9:46 pm
I have no hand-eye coordinator for anything BUT ping pong. I’m sorta semi-decent, meaning I don’t completely suck at it like I do at video games.
June 11th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
A parlor game! What are you, 80? I bet you chose that old lady pic cause you think she’s hot. You two could play parlor games together.
June 12th, 2008 at 12:05 am
Ping pong rhymes with ding dong, and i dont know how I feel about that.
June 12th, 2008 at 12:49 am
I like that 80 year old talk. its cool.
June 16th, 2008 at 7:33 am
[...] China’s pastimes: #1 Ping PongPing Pong’s name likely comes from the Chinese name, ping pang qiu, which is ping pong ball in english. This continues the trend of sports having qiu in the name of sports (lanqiu is basket ball, etc). Here it is played like it is much … [...]