Aube Rey Lescure recounts a journey back to China after years of absence, the return to a homeland that feels both familiar and foreign in unexpected ways.
It’s here that I begin to sense that things have in fact changed. The future has arrived already, insidiously: amid the bustle of a provincial capital known for mountains, meadows, and an emergent hippie culture, markers of dystopian technology and global capitalism are everywhere, as omnipresent as they are in Shanghai. The barbecue and foldout chairs, along with tarps and rugs, are the product of a ‘camping glam’ trend surging this year on Chinese social media. The restaurant menus rely on QR codes to order and pay without interacting with any staff. Live-streamers amble around with high-end equipment, responding to comments surging on their phone screens. Even the tiniest convenience stores have Oatly.