Tag Chinese

1 Year in China!

1 YEAR IN CHINA!

It’s a few days before the Chinese New Year and I have lived in China for just over 1 year. The time seems to have past so quickly!I thought I would post some general comments about my life in China along with a few pics thrown in for good measure. Just when you think you’ve seen it all…BAM!, something else comes along you see here. In a nutshell, living in China is always full of surprises. It must be that the culture here is so different from Western culture. Chinese people just process information totally different from what we Westerners would consider logical.

I was just reading a news article about an incident that happened in Beijing. This is a good example of Chinese logic. A man called the ambulance service after becoming very ill. The hospital dispatched the ambulance to the man’s house. En route to the man’s house, this ambulance struck and killed 3 people in two different locations. I guess he was a new driver. Anyway, he continued to the man’s house and finally got him to the hospital. It wasn’t long before the families of the accident victims contacted the hospital and demanded the hospital compensate them for the deaths of these victims. The hospital responded that they are not responsible and would not pay. They said that the party responsible is the man who called the ambulance out in the first place! This case is now going to court for review.

I have come to know that China law is a very new concept here. This is all part of the process of China’s development and transformation from a 3^rd world country into a major world player. China is on the right path of change, but like any government, change is slow. More important, billions of people in China have to somehow be made aware of these changes. It will take generations before the social awareness in this country updates itself. Until then, you have to be very careful of getting into situations that can go in very unpredictable directions. Things just don’t play out with what I may conceive as a “logical” conclusion. I personally have not had any major issues to deal with, i.e. car accidents, confrontations, or “misunderatandings with anyone to speak of. Still, I am ever vigilant to keep myself out of trouble as best I can. You cannot rely on being able to have the police intervene on your behalf. Another example is I have seen several fights on the street. My guess is they seem to be about someone caught stealing from a store. The process is always the same. Several people beating the hell out of some guy while the police stand and watch. They allow the store employees to pound away delivering “street justice” while more or less providing crowd control duties. After a short time they whip out their notebooks and take down the appropriate data, usually also arresting the guy in question. I suppose this guy ends up in jail somewhere. A traffic accident (of which there are many) is handled right on the street. The police arrive and make a report. Normal enough process. They check to see if anyone was drunk or who may have broken a traffic law. Other than that it is up to the parties involved to reach an agreement as to who and how much they pay each other for the damage. The police help the parties come to some sort of agreement, money is exchanged and everyone goes their own way. Case closed. In defense of the police, they must be careful how they intervene in a dispute. It is very common that people will attack the police. They have no laws protecting them as police officers. They can arrest you sure enough, if there is enough of them to fight off the people involved first. So usually they take a very passive approach to implementing law. Basically one cannot blame the police for their seemingly lack of action in these cases. I learned to not assume that they will come to my aid should I get into a fracas with some locals. That being said, luckily crime is not pervasive here at all. Petty crime is very common and you need to be careful with your bags and pockets. Other than that, it is rare violent crime occurs here. I certainly feel a lot safer in China than I would feel in the US. People tend to leave you alone and the encounters I do have with people here are always friendly. Chinese society does not permit child abusers, sexual predators and the like. People here are just not wired for such behavior. Talking with my Chinese friends, they cannot even begin to understand that there are people who commit crimes like these. Having “face” is all important to people here. They would be outcast from family, work, or friends for even thinking of such things.

On the other hand, most common people here have little to education. They are naïve about the most basic things. One cannot “assume” that the guy walking on the street will not quickly begin crossing the street right in front of your car. They usually won’t look beforehand. In their mind they want to go across, so they just go! When you slam on your brakes, they look like a deer in your headlights. Completely surprised that they were almost hit by a car!

I spend a lot of time observing people here and I think I can sum it all up this way; Each person here truly believes that they are in their own world, with everything around them only there for their own use. They make no consideration for anyone else around them. From the outside one could see this as acting in a very rude way. But really, it is only that they have never been taught to consider other people. This explains why if you are standing in line, at say a bank, they will walk up and stand in front of you. Hey, they want to get serviced, why wait behind you? Or you are talking to the teller and someone will lean over in front of you and start talking to the teller. Better yet, in the doctor’s office, someone will walk in and start a discussion with the doctor like you are not there. I’ve even stopped them and motioned them to wait, where them they politely smile and remain right there not only listening to me talking to the doctor, but also reading my medical papers while they wait!

China is slowly recognizing this as bad social behavior and trying to educate people. Most banks have lines drawn on the floor where people must stand behind while another customer is being helped. Also’ many now have a number machine and you sit in the lobby to wait for your number. In Beijing the government is working hard to educate people on proper conduct before the start of the Olympic games.

The Chinese have a world wide reputation for “being rude”. The travel agencies now give classes to customers traveling out of the country on how to act. Things like spitting and clearing your nose, talking loudly, waiting in line, and table manners are all addressed in these classes. As frustrating as this behavior is to me, I do my best to remember that it is not rudeness on their part, rather it is simply not being educated about what is acceptable to most other countries in the world. The Chinese are really nice people that are being pulled into a new modern world for which they have little experience. Things are changing all the time in China on every level.

I encounter many things here that just don’t make any sense. But I say to myself that the Chinese have been around longer than anybody, and they are still going strong. That says a lot about the way things are here. Maybe we have a lot to learn from them as well. Patience is really the key to enjoying your experience in China. Do not use your Western ideals as a benchmark to comparing China. It is, after all, what makes China unique to anyplace in the world.

Beijing

BEIJING

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I arrived in Beijing and the first thing that comes to mind is……B I G! This is one large city. 6500 sq. miles with 12 million people packed inside. It took an hour to go by taxi from the airport. The fare was 120Y ($15). By the way a word of advice if you travel here. Do not EVER use any services unless it is the “official” service. If someone approaches you for taxi service, tour service, tour guide, etc. do not even consider it. Do not believe anything they tell you. It is not true. You will be ripped off for sure. There are a lot of people here who have that special deal just for you. It will cost you at least twice the price than going a legit way before it’s over. That said, it is on to my Beijing experience.

The central city area is made up of “Las Vegas” blocks. They are big. Be prepared to do a lot of walking here. They are building everywhere. Maybe in preparation for the 2008 Olympics. Traffic is also quite congested. I suggest you use the subway system to get around. It is easy and cheap like Shanghai. Taxi travel will take a long time to get anywhere. Speaking of subways, the Beijing system in a word; old. It works, but it is definitely quite used. The trains move slower, the stations are run down, but the key thing is that it works. Remember Shanghai’s metro in my previous blog? Well get ready for your first surprise here in Beijing. Much more crowded that Shanghai. It is not uncommon to wait 2 trains before you can get in. So here you are in a sea of people waiting for this train. Then it arrives and stops. First you will notice that as it sits there the cars are still rocking, and you can hear the air suspension system cycling on and off. Kind if weird, but apparently normal. Now the doors begin to open. You brace for the wild onslaught of pushing and shoving. I take a deep breath and get into rushing position. Then it happens……….NOTHING! What the hell is going on here? Everyone is calmly waiting while people unload! Then they start moving forward and entering the cars in an orderly fashion. I can’t believe what I am seeing! These people are so different than Shanghai. It’s like another world here. The cars are packed, but people are organized and polite. Crowded, but orderly. Later we are sitting in McDonalds looking at the map trying to figure out how to get to the hutong area. We know it will take a bus ride to get there, but we have no idea where to go. I ask this lady eating lunch at our table. She is telling us while looking at our map. Then she says it would be better if she showed us. So we finish and go out together and follow her to the correct bus stop. When the bus comes, she actually gets on with us and travels along until we get to the correct stop. How helpful can you get! I found that everywhere we went people here are eager to help you . They are polite and make you fee welcome in their city. This is very different from Shanghai.

Beijing is also a clean city and people always use the trash cans. I didn’t see people spitting and talking loudly here. Many speak some English so it is not hard to get around.

The air quality here is not so good. There is a lot of dust which may be from all the building going on in the city. There are many cars adding to the poor air quality. I would rate it about the same as LA.

In keeping with my Shanghai comparisons, the women in Beijing are average to below average. Not many lookers in this city. Shanghai way outdoes Beijing in this category.

I also found it interesting that there are no places for you to sit here. City streets, subway, bus stop, and even many parks all do not provide seats to stop and rest. It would be a good idea for you to carry a small towel to use to sit on the curb at times. There is a lot of walking involved in this city let me tell you.

You can find everything to eat here. All of it expensive, as is most everything else here. I think it is a little more pricey than Shanghai. I expect by the time the Olympics start, things will really be expensive. Prepare to spend about 500 RMB for 2 people a day. That will get you mid to upper class living conditions.

The buildings and historical sights are all over this city. It would take a long time to see everything. I want to make mention of the National Military Museum here. It is worth a visit. I found all this US hardware on exhibit there. Tanks, big guns, airplanes with the Chinese Army insignias painted on them. Some of it was given to China by the US. But there were pieces from the Korean War, Vietnam, and Taiwan. The P51 *picP51* was flown to mainland China by a Taiwan pilot who wanted to defect. Look under the wing in the pic and you can see the Chinese Star painted on it. Then there is the U2 *pic U2 spy* that operated out of Taiwan. It flew 112 missions over China before it was shot down. They picked up all the pieces and taped them together to display here. The cool thing about this museum is that the things here were taken out of service and put here without any restoration or even cleaning. The tanks and planes have oil stains on the floor beneath them. *pic Mig* The Mig looks as if it was flown to the museum. Of course the Great Wall was quite an experience. Also the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, Heavenly Temple, the Hutongs, all amazing sites. When you see my pics, try to look closely at the bar *pic Hutong bar* and read the signs. Enough said……

Shanghai

SHANGHAI

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I have been living in China just short a year now. Most of my travels have been in the Yunnan Province. I just returned from a few weeks on the other side of China. So I think it best to break up my blog into two parts. First Shanghai and then Beijing.
When foreigners travel to the US, they mostly go directly to NYC, then to LA and Las Vegas. When they return home, they have seen “America” and many end up with a bit distorted view of the USA. Well I kind of did the same thing… only in reverse. My experiences in rural China have been my first introduction to China. This contrast to American culture can be quite different to Chinese lifestyle. Kunming is a small city of about 3 million people. But out of the 55 minority cultures found in China, Kunming is very unique in that it has 25 of these minorities living here. Needless to say it makes this city very culturally diverse environment. So whereas Kunming is a small sized city, it is mostly made up of very traditional people with a very old cultural heritage. In short, arriving in Shanghai was a real eye opener for me. You could compare it to growing up in Little Rock, then going to NYC for this first time. *pic Shanghai Day, Nite
Speaking of NYC, you New Yorkers would feel right at home in Shanghai. The pace of the city, people’s attitudes and prices compare to that of NYC. So in a nutshell, Shanghai people possess that “New York state of mind”. People here operate on overdrive 24/7. Always in a hurry even if they aren’t going anywhere specific. They take this pace to the extreme. It is not unusual to see people actually running from place to place. I used the subway quite a lot here. It is a new system, very efficient and clean. It is easy to use and for 3 yuan you can travel and transfer all you like. Shanghai has done a great job building this system. Now enter the Chinese……. Talk about your Chinese fire drill! It is truly as if there is a fire going on. People are operating in panic mode down there. Pushing, running amok, running from car to car is the order of the day. When the train pulls up and the doors open, you literally fight your way into and out of the door. All at the same time. There is no order to the mayhem. As a result while 10 people are trying to get out, 10 are hellbound to get in. So everyone takes longer to transfer because people start a shoving match at the door. This always happens, even if the train is not busy! It is like some kind of a game. You can imagine the confusion when it is real crowded. Also there is no distinction between young and old. You push and block all people. Once you are on this train it’s everyman for himself. Old people will have to stand while a couple of teenagers remain seated. I got looks of confusion when I would let elderly people have my seat on the rare occasion I even had a seat. Once inside you are presented with the cell phone syndrome culture. This is a very curious activity amongst the Chinese. There is not a person in China without a cell phone. Old and young, rich and poor… no matter. This has to be the highest consumer market in the world by far. Hell, after 2 days here I went out and bought a new one! Well actually it was for my wife, her’s was on it’s last legs. Anyway this activity is not exclusive to Shanghai, but here it is very noticeable. First you have the “user”. In this mode people talk on their phone by actually yelling very loudly. At first you think they are just very angry, but quickly you realize this is the normal way you talk on a phone here. It think they believe they are talking through an invisible string phone. Someone 20 feet away can be heard very clearly. Now at any given time maybe 10 people in the train car is on the phone…. Yelling! Then there is the “puncher”. If you are not talking on your phone, you must otherwise be punching it at lightening speeds. The thumb is the preferred digit. It moves easily at 300 punches a minute. Never stopping long enough for the user to actually read whatever information is flying across the screen. I cannot read the Chinese script on the phones, but I carefully observed this up close. The screens were changing so fast I could not focus on the first word. I have no idea what this is all about. I like to believe they are actually executing some function, but I cannot imagine what that could be. I remember reading a news story that in China many people have carpal tunnel syndrome in their thumbs. It is actually a chronic disease in China. I can certainly understand why. I also noticed that there were a fair number of people that had a phone for each hand. These must be the “master punchers”. These people (mostly girls) were able to punch both cells at the same time, shifting their heads as if watching a tennis tournament. I was awestruck to see them at work. And finally there is the “my phone is NOT a phone” person. These people sit quietly, connected by headphones to their cells, watching movies, playing games, or MP3’s, tuning out all the chaos around them. I saw one guy that had a small joystick wired to his phone as he played games. The cell phone is always carried in your hand. Rarely is it in a pocket or purse. It also is adorned with decorations like strings of beads, key chained stuffed animals, jewelry hanging down and jingling as they use their phones.
The Shanghai people are great dressers. They have good fashion sense here. I might add that I found that many Shanghai women were beautiful. I think the highest number than anywhere I have been in China. The city by contrast to many in China was very clean and it’s architecture amazing.*pic The Bund The JinMao tower stands as the tallest building in China. I think also in Asia. *pic Jinmao Tower. This is a real shopping city. Fantastic department stores everywhere. Silks and tailored suits are the real bargins here. Nan Jing Rd *pic Shangahi shopping, Xigahui, Meile, Atlantic Shopping Center are must stops for shopping. The Yuan market is also worth a look. Prices in Shanghai are comparable to travel in the US…….expensive for China standards. Starbucks, western restaurants, American fast food are everywhere. Most Chinese speak English here as well so no problems in this department. The people here are basically not very helpful to you. They almost border on rude which was a surprise to me. The nightlife is quite lively in Shanghai. Many bars and nightclubs of all descriptions can be found here. Acrobatic shows, theater and opera are some of the best in the world.
I broke up my travel to Shanghai by going to Hangzhou for a few days. 1.5 hours by train and you arrive in this small city that sits on a beautiful lake (Westlake). This picturesque city is full of Chinese history. The Leifeng Pagoda is beautiful overlooking Westlake. I think if you go to Shanghai you should plan a few days here. You won’t be disappointed.
Returning to Shanghai I also took a day trip to Shizhou. It is like a small Venice. Very old buildings built of carved wood sit along a central canal. Interesting to see but I would categorize this attraction as strictly optional. It is 1.5 hours by bus from Shanghai.
Shanghai is the financial center of China. In hindsight I wish I planned a few more days than I spent there, but I wanted to move on the Beijing where I earmarked a week’s stay. All in all just remember that visiting Shanghai is unique to China and do not come away thinking you’ve just seen China by your experience in Shanghai.

Guilin

GUILIN

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I just returned from my travels to the Guangxi Province in central China. I flew into Guilin and took a bus to Yangshuo, 1.5 hours south. This small town sits on the Li river and surrounded by these amazing karsts. These
strangely shaped hills covered with verdant vegetation ranging from bamboo to conifers and most have wonderful caves to explore. These is no place like this on earth. You feel so humbled by nature’s power to create such
dramatic beauty.These karsts go on for hundreds of km in all directions. I stayed at the perfect hotel (Overseas Hotel) at the end of Westerner street which looks out to the Li river. Pics 0559 and 0573 are shot from my
balcony. My room was on the top floor (6). Hotel price was $17.50 per night. Yangshuo is a tourist town with many shops and restaurants. Not really interesting, but you are based in a perfect location to explore
natures creation. I rented a mountain bike ($1.25 a day) and headed out of town towards the butterfly garden park. Along the way I decided to go to the “water cave” which was interesting for about 30 minutes, not really
worth the price($21). But hey, it was cool inside! I spent the rest of the day riding through the country and into small villages. See pic 0625 which is a local minority girl. I had beer fish for lunch, the local specialty. Damn
fish drank more beer that I could! I didn’t care for it so much, but it looked nice on the plate. Anyway a must see is the river by boat. See pic 0584. I did this the next day. Pic 0610 shows a fisherman and his boat on the neighboring Yatong river. The birds are used for fishing. He ties a string around the bird’s neck so he cannot swallow the fish, and the bird dives underwater to catch the fish. These Chinese are clever people.I also took a fishing boat trip on one of these boats. This is a “must do” here. 3 hours floating through this amazing scenery. It cost $8.75. After several days I headed back to Guilin to see this town. Guilin is a small city, and frankly there is no need to waste time here. Expensive and nothing special to see. Biggest attraction was the Waterfall Hotel that turns into a 45 meter high waterfall at 8:30 pm. See pic 0634. This was cool. But the people here are not to be trusted. Also they are not friendly unless you throw money at them. I was told to be very careful here as there are many pickpockets and thieves around. But China continues to amaze me at every turn. Just when you think you’ve seen something amazing……BAM!!…… another place blows you away.

In all my travels, China is proving to be the top attraction.

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Yuan Yang

YAN YANG

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I traveled about 350 km SW of Kunming to Yuan Yang. Located next to the border of Viet Nam, this mountain city is over 1000 years old. The surrounding mountains have been terra formed into “terrace farming” fields where you can see the “8th wonder of the world” before your eyes. These terraces are about 6′ high and rise thousands of feet straight up the sheer faces of the mountains here. See “Terrra 7” pic to get an idea of the size of these terraces. Now you can see the other pics and realize just how extensive these fields are. They go on for hundreds of km where everything is farmed by hand (and buffalo). The villages dot the countryside where for over 1000 years, farmers grow mainly rice and corn. The local minority people, Hani and the Yie, are interesting and quite colorful in their native clothes.The city of Yan Ying is built clinging to the mountainside several thousand feet in altitude. Many villages are spread throughout the mountains here to service the farming fields. Pics “Terra 8,9,10″ I shot at sunrise which reflects the water filled fields. Terra 6 shows a field ready for planting the rice. I hope these pics give some idea of the immense undertaking of these people to create this amazing landscape. It goes on for as far as the eye can see. And everything is farmed by hand. The walls are about 12” wide and allow the buffalo to navigate to the different fields for plowing. China continues to be a land of amazing sights and experiences.
Stay tuned……… I’m planning my next outing as you read this.