Rickshaws. Pollution. Seas of people. Communist oppression. Toys with lead. Grandmas hocking loogies on the side of the street. These are likely to be just a few things that come to mind when you think "China." But are they true? Or are they just the imprinted result of watching CNN from afar?

That's what I moved to China to find out. Consider these articles records of the surprises, validations and ironies of the Middle Kingdom as I am experiencing them firsthand. I hope they provide you some insight into what China's really like, from the inside, through the eyes of an undercover Chinese American working and living here.

And yes, I have seen a rickshaw in Shanghai. It was parked next to a Ferrari.

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The first thing I want to talk about is Google leaving China.

You've probably noticed. The Western media have been making a big deal about it and for good reason. For what feels like the first time, a global (and popular) corporation seems to be taking a stand against Communism for the good of the people. They're fighting for the freedom of speech and ideas and basic human rights.

But the truth is that most Chinese don't care. Nobody at the ground-level is making a fuss about it and I happen to work with ambitious, creative-minded people. Over here, it is the news-value equivalent of Lindsay Lohan suing the E-Trade baby-- if that. Here are two reasons why:

1. Freedom of speech is a largely Western concept, not a global one. I think this is one of the reasons the Chinese are cautious with the West - the West projects its beliefs onto them under the flag of basic human rights. It would be like another country telling the States to be more "free" and legalize marijuana. I'm not saying that freedom of speech isn't very important (it is), but I am saying that for most Chinese, it may not be the most important thing on their minds right now. Stability, harmony and social order (things you could say free speech doesn't help) are far more valued.

2. Most searches in China are not Google searches. They're Baidu searches. For every "free" American site, there's an equivalent (and often better) Chinese version. We have YouTube, they have Youku. We have Facebook, they have Kaixinwang. So, as much as the Chinese may miss Google as a symbol, they won't miss it as a search engine. The Chinese don't complain about not having Facebook simply because they have their own version that allows them to do most of what they want to do (post, pictures, socialize, chat).

A Chinese American in China quickly realizes that many of the assumptions about what China is and should be have a heavy tint of Western ideals. Ideals that are assumed to be universal but in reality are...Western. Google leaving China may make Americans feel righteous and proud, but for most Chinese, it's mostly a shrug and move on.

Have a think. Until next time.

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Ed Tsue is a Chinese American New Yorker (though not necessarily in that order) working for a British advertising company in China developing brand strategies.