My 2 weeks in China

[Patrick & Li]

I went to China to marry Li in April of this year. Was there for 2 weeks! I went right in the middle of the SARS epidemic. All of Li's friends said i was Brave!! Hahaha, NO, I was lonely for the woman i loved!

 

I know China is considered a 3rd world country by our Gov't. But i didnt see it while i was there. I was in Nanning and Liuzhou. Cell phones, running water, Electricity, Computers with DSL hook ups, Food was abundant. No doubt ya see some wierd things there, and lets face it. China is like a different world compared to the US. But 3rd world, Not in my opinion!

 

My observations while in China are....

 

#1- I never could get myself to truly trust the food, especially the meat. I ate lots of fish and duck, a little Pork, and very little of anything that resembled beef. Feared food poisoning the most, but also had that concern about eating Dog and Cat....LOL!

 

#2- The Toilets. Prime example...I walked into a bathroom in Guangzhou airport. I go into a stall, i realize that that hole in the floor is my destination point. Luckily, i realized there was no toilet paper. So i moved over to the next stall, no toilet paper there either. Checked them all and no toilet paper or dispensers. Hmmmm, whats the deal! So i walk back around to the sink areas looking for some paper towels. Nope, all airdryers. Then i notice it. 1 Toilet paper dispenser on the wall with 1 roll of toilet paper. So i tear off a wad and rush to that original toilet and i get my pants down and i realize something. I havent ever had to aim my butt at a hole in the floor. LMAO!! I missed on the 1st load, Sorry i know this is a bit gross but i find it so freaking funny! Moved my ass back a bit more and finally was able to find the hole, then i ran into the #2 problem. I have never had to wipe my butt in a squatting position. I mean when ya in US, ya get ur magazine, sit on the toilet, spread ur cheeks apart and relax. How do ya manage to relax when ur squatting? And how do ya get ur cheeks apart when wiping. Needless to say, after a week in China, My bowels decided to just Lock up!!

 

#3- Taxis. Geeeeshus Christ! 2 lane road and 3 cars and 1 huge truck abreast passing all at the same time around a curve. I about lost my lunch on that occasion. Right at the last second, everybody just casually moves back into place like it was nothing. I spent my 2 weeks there just shaking my head. I stayed off of buses due to the SARS thing.

 

#4- Traffic intersections. LMFAO everytime we came to an intersection. Is there any rhyme or reason to this? Theres gotta be, i mean zillions of cars, bycycles and busses and pedestrians all trying to turn at the same time. I never saw a single mishap but i swear i dont see how. I swaer my Taxicab driver made a wrong turn at the intersection and realized it about 1/2 way through it and did a Full circle in the middle of the intersection. I swear, approx 50 cars, 987 bycycles, 7 busses and Boukou pedestrians at this interesection and he changes his mind at the last second. Yes, i wished i had a camcorder at that moment!

 

#5- My wife is an accountant in China. She would be considered middle class by Chinese standards. In other words she feeds herself and her son, lives in a decent BOX as i called it. And is able to put back a little money, not much but a little. Anyways, here we are walking the streets in Nanning and we run across a street vendor selling something that looked like a strawberry/grape type fruit. I stopped and looked at it because i had never seen it before. My wife told me what it was and asked me if i wanted to try it. Yea, i say! So she buys a cluster, but not before she stands there for 5 minutes arguing with the man about the price. I had been there long enough to know that we was only talking about maybe a nickel at best. They finally agree on the price and of course my wife is real happy with herself. As we trun and walk away, i slipped the man a Yuan and smiled to myself about being gratuitous. I ask my wife as we are walking how much this cluster costs and she says 1/2 yuan, She said the man wanted .60 cents for it and she had gotten him down to .50, I did the math and realized we were talking about saving a little more than 1 cent in our money and just shook my head. I still felt good about giving the man the Yuan and never told my wife. Haha!

 

#6- While in Liuzhou, I got hit pretty hard by Panhandlers. Constantly begging me for money. My wife said because foreigners have a reputation of being rich. They were having a festival the week-end i was there. Now i dont really like the panhandlers in the US because i always feel like they probably making more money than me begging than i am working.

But in China, Wow to say the least. They are very persistent. One old lady just about knocked me down after i ignored her (to my wifes insistence. She didnt like me handing out Yuans) The old woman kept banging me in the side with her cup. Finally my wife actually stopped and gave the old woman some money. Haha, I was amazed that she would do so. Chinese women are tight!!

 

Cant think of anything else, but if i do, i will post some more.

 

Patrick

[TimD]

I just can't say enough about the Taxis here in China, I can sure relate to what you wrote. For me it's a thrill ride and always fun.

 

Yea, the public restrooms aren't what they are back home either, I've learned to hold it. Funny story, kind of off topic but I'll share it anyway

 

When I was here for our wedding we went to an Irish bar for drinks and some music. I walked in picked my stall and was taking care of business when this Russian guy two stalls down started talking tome in Russian...just to be a smart as I kept replying to him in Chinese, even when he asked me if I spoke English...wo ting bu dong...shen ma? dui bu qi!! He just looked at me as if I were some kind of yankee smart ass.....hmmmm

 

We don't really barter here for food, but for game boy games and PC software we do. Also when we are in Beijing and Shanghai.

 

I can also relate to the beggers, my god they just never let up and they come at you. When we went to Shanghai we had to take a train and as soon aso our cab pulled up to the station we were swarmed with beggers and people trying to sell us stuff.

 

 

-Tim

[warpedbored]

I didn't have much trouble with beggars when I was in Nanning. My fiance is very adept at navigating through the crowds. There was one in Guilin that was pretty persistant but after one verbal blast from Bing he slinked away. (her tongue is a lethal weapon) She only frowned at me if I gave any of them any money but didn't tell me I I shouldnt. Driving in China is a sight to behold. Bing has this tiny little minivan and I would just sit there in the passenger seat mumbling to myself "amazing". I told her many times that when she gets to Portland, Oregon she is going to have to learn to drive inside the lines. All in all it was a wonderful experience. As for 3rd world status I'm not too sure. Although I saw a lot of smartly dressed people talking on cell phones walking down the street when I would look out my hotel window I could see that a lot of people still live in squallor. Women still using wash boards to do laundry, farmers plowing with water buffalo, etc. Electrical codes seem to be a joke. Wires strung in stair wells without conduit. One of the things there that I noticed again and again is how they use a mixture of old and new. For instance I couldn't imagine american construction workers using bamboo scaffolding on a modern highrise like they do in China.

Carl

[Bobby]

Heh.. I was in China last November.. the taxis were harrowing to say the least.. I was visiting my fiancee in ShenZhen.. For the most part the panhandlers weren't that bad.. the only "scrape" I got into was when one of them grabbed me..

 

As far as the public toilets went, I avoided them whenever possible.. The train station in LoWu (between HK and SZ) was crazy.. It reminded me of Disney on a really really really bad day..

 

It also amazed me that nothing was "handicap-friendly".. I was also impressed by how nice the people were to me.. Whenever I walked into a restaurant, someone would run around looking for someone who worked there that knew even a small amount of english to wait by our table in case we wanted for anything..

 

All-in-all, I'd say that SZ was a wonderful city.. I hope to return again soon. I hope to visit Shanghai and BJ sometime as well..

[Mick]

Once, while living in Shantou, I was tackled and thrown to the pavement by six children beggars. They proceeded to try to steal the wallet from my pocket. I managed to get to my feet and push them away. I hailed a taxi and climbed into the back seat. One of the kids dove in after me. The taxi driver came around, pulled him out, and tossed him into a bush. This was not the only encounter I had with beggars in my five years in China, but it was by far the worst.

[Kaige]

Well I know what you have to say about the toilets, O Well ask Eric, just have to accept this, after a few days there you get used to it, aim and fire Toilet paper is an issue, save the little packets of napkins from dinner and carry these with you, your prepaired always for both ends I always say now NO PROBLEM. I am happy to say I did check out the Electrical wireing there in China guess there is no N.E.C. Code what works , works, scarry do you think, I could wire there condo to N.E.C. Specs no problem, I am on one now, what kind of building materials are available there, anyone have a clew, the wife and I may try and find a

(FIXER UPPER) there home, any thoughts on this?Any modern building materials need to be imported? I could build a killer house there and energy efficient, did it here in S.W. Fla $80. for elec, with A/C on per month

[TimD]

I have to agree about China being a mix of old and new. It's one of the things I love about being here. You can goto Shanghai, for instance, and see some of the most beautiful modern architecture in the world, then drive 3 blocks and see the older parts of the city with all the laundry, poultry and fish hanging out the windows. It's a contrast to say the least and one of the appealing aspects of China's personality.

 

Kaige, did I understand your post correctly, your thinking of buying a home here and fixing it up? We've been thinking of doing the same, not a home really but an apartment in Beijing to retire in. I believe you can find modern building materials, I think it just depends on which city you are in. There are a number of large Home Depot like stores here that, I believe, sell what you are looking for.

 

When we were on the train from Nanjing to Shanghai I was thinking about this, about how nice it would be to "buy" a plot of land and build a home on it in the Chinese country side, which is beautiful. I think it would be much cheaper than buying land in the states, especially during our retirement years.

 

-Tim

[Kaige]

Tim any idea what the name of the store is so I can see if there may be one in ChongQing

[owenkrout]

Sorry, but I don't remember the name of the stores, but the modern hardware stores are a new concept in China that seem to be catching on with the upper class.

 

One of the biggest problems will be that even if you can find the materials, getting someone to do the job right will be next to impossible. I have been in brand new Western style housing that was intended for the very wealthy and it would fail an occupancy permit inspection in an instant. The materials themselves will be very expensive.

 

About 70% of the people in China still live in the rural villages. People just don't live out by themselves in the country like they do in the US. Those living in those villages often live in conditions much poorer than what are found in the cities. That is where you see the third world conditions.

[Kaige]

The wife is thinking we could buy an apartment west of Chongqing about 1 hour drive away, maybe little longer, what kind of building materials are available there, I can build a house or do remodeling without a problem, maybe we need to start a Building Trades School there.

[Kaige]

The wife is thinking we could buy an apartment west of Chongqing about 1 hour drive away, maybe little longer, what kind of building materials are available there, I can build a house or do remodeling without a problem, maybe we need to start a Building Trades School there.

[TimD]

A building trade school, you may have something there.