The last snow day of Beijing

7-11, sanitation crew, delivery driver

Beijing's spring has finally arrived. The government-supplied heat has been switched off. My cat no longer curls up next to the now-cold radiator. Social media feeds are starting to fill with people posing next to new blossoms. Yet, the memory of a chilly Beijing snow day was still fresh.

It was just over a month ago. Nobody expected heavy snow that late into February, not even the city weather forecaster, apparently. Snowflakes were already falling as evening rush hour approached. It came as a sweet surprise for me to see snow again. I snapped a few short videos and shared them in the family chat. By 7:41 pm, the city announced that 63,000 sanitation crew members were on duty.

I was at least free. Determined not to let the snowy evening go to waste, I ventured to the neighbourhood food market. On the way, I saw a young woman walking very slowly with her coat hat on. With both hands in her pockets and not carrying any bags, she seemed to be out for a short walk. It must have been snowing for some time when she stepped out, but she came out anyway. Was she trying to enjoy the snow just like myself, I wondered.

Then I went to 7-11. A well-lit and bountiful convenience store seemed like a necessary stop. It was quiet, dry and tidy as usual. I picked up a pack of spicy chicken feet and a can of Budweiser. As I crossed the street, a delivery driver suddenly fell from his scooter due to the slippery road. Another passerby and I rushed to help him. “I am fine, I am fine,” he reassured us. His phone was blaring a song by the popular band New Pants, “Do you want to dance? Do you want to dance?”

There must be much more I didn’t see. If there's a way, are we able to know how many people, in this city of 20 million, were heartened or disheartened by that snow?

Yet, here we are, starting to get busy with the spring.