Back In China

[Joanne]

I thought you would be too drunk to tell your China stories by now.

[david_dawei]

One Flush or Two

 

The luxury of a toilet should not be unappreciated in china. Whether it has any water running to it or whether you have to manual 'flush' is of little consequence to me. I prefer it over the sewage smelling, gag reflex shacks I have seen too many times.

 

I still can recall by smell when in Yunnan going to the public bathrooms in the secluded areas, you could find it by smell... by the time you got there, it was like being gassed during marine boot camp. Usually the road was lined with people going to the bathroom as they realized it wasn't worth going inside the gas chamber when nature has offered open fields for millions of years. But at this one time in Yunnan, I decided I wanted the memory of getting gassed at Parris Island. I repeated the drill which I had used then; Take in a good deep breath, hold it, squint the eyes and stay calm.

 

Anyways, I'll spare the graphic details of that experience.

 

Upon my arrival here, I was used to the toilet with no running water. Just fill a bucket up and dump it down and your done. On this trip, I noticed the large plastic bowls filled with water around the bathroom and kitchen. Later I realized what was going on; water was limited to certain times of day and so the bowls were used to have water handy. if you take a shower or wash some clothes or brush your teeth, there is water you can 'recycle' for use.

 

Once I realized the need for 'two bowls' to flush, I started the ritual of saving water any time of day possible. It seems there is only water early in the morning and late at night. Once I realized that the country is in an almost flood condition it seems all the more ironic to be rationing water.

[david_dawei]

I thought you would be too drunk to tell your China stories by now.

I am happy to report much less drinking on this trip than most. It has been 8 months since my last trip, longer than I wanted and I had purposely cut back on beer and drinking in the US since the older you get the easier to gain weight. So I showed up in Dong Bei without much practice but it seemed the main drinking guy, Xiao Hu (little tiger, but who is just slighly younger) has been waiting for me. I think he has not forgotten the two times I left him being half carried out of our night drinking.

 

Arriving in BJ, I meet up with my younger friends and we ate and drank for 3 days; I felt like I had gained about 7 pounds and arrived in Dong Bei area swelling from the inside out... I just didn't have the stomach to drink after that 3 day fest.

 

So I disappointed Xiao Hu the first night out by stopping after the third bottle of beer. I said I just can't go on. The next night I declined any 'jiu' as I felt my body was not pushing enough out; I also declined any meat for two days to let some veggies do their magic. Two days later i was reborn.

 

Back with Xiao Hu, he outpaced me through 2 bottles but then I saw his mistake of drinking too fast; his face went flush, up went the shirt to expose his santa clause stomach and off he went to the bathroom twice in 5 minutes. At that point I realized he 'hit the wall' in the last lap. Two beers later he had to quit before he was done. Earlier in the night I tried to pour some of my drink into another persons but he joking said that was my bottle... at the end of the night he tried to pour his remaining beer into another and I reminded him that was his bottle. We left laughing on that note.

 

Next night I wasn't up for beer but by this time had adjusted to the 'bai jiu' enough that I was ready to spend a night drinking that. I also knew that this is Xiao Hu's weakness; he can't handle bai jiu but always is eager to try. our other friend, Da Cui also cannot really handle it but tends to drink it up like he likes it. But the grimace on his face tells otherwise. At the first drink I realize I would have no problem tonight; it went down smooth and comfortable for 42%. Long story short, I think I had half the bottle and they shared the other half. Then we had some beers and called it a night. After getting back, we called Da Cui to come over to drink some more and we drank for about a hour plus finishing off some bai jiu and beer. He rode his bike home which seems a good idea to hasten some sobering up. I just flopped in the bed and woke up feeling as drunk as when I went down...

 

But breakfast in china is not a typical western breakfast. I like something very simple like eggs and coffee. Usually I am served jiao zi, fish, pork, rice, and veggies. After such a big meal I do feel better but just want to sleep again. I guess when your going to head off to work on a bike or bus or find a taxi, you need that extra energy in the morning. I said yesterday that just a banana will do.

[david_dawei]

Same-Old

 

what else can I report but we spent a fifth day returning to Shenyang marriage bureau to try and get the translations we need since Fushun refuses... I told the worker there that this is our honeymoon, to spend five days with them. All the girls laughed and for a split second I forget all the pain of five days

 

Xiao Hu wanted to drink again tonight... big surprise. I said 'bai jiu'. I drank 2/3 he drank 1/3. After I asked if he wanted beer (pi jiu) but he said this is not good on the stomach [after having sheep soup--yang tong). So I just ordered a bottle myself. Westerners are not so constricted by drinking and eating habits like chinese. But one must understand this is a 'body habit'. The body likes routine and a change to routine needs time. If the mind is a part of the routine this needs more time. CHinese cannot change a habit easily and are easily over-heated by drinking strong jiu. So we all take off our shirts.

 

Something New

With our shirts off, the chinese like to look at an american body... maybe that is just my experience but the fact is tonight they wanted to look.

 

The problem is that I had a very unusual mark on my shoulder which for some reason caught everyone's eye in the restaurant; it was faded but had some distinguishing marks like maybe, possibly, just reasonably could be upper jaw and lower jaw marks... I found a lot of concentration was going on.... and then discussion.

 

Then it hit me... what they saw...

 

Maybe you get it; maybe you don't. I won't speak more about what they saw but if you get it, don't post it... but they all realized what was there and turned away...

[Joanne]

It seems this Xiao Hu friend of yours is a very bright bed lamp.

[david_dawei]

It seems this Xiao Hu friend of yours is a very bright bed lamp.

Yes... the bed lamp was waiting for me last night. We drank bai jiu with Sheep soup (Yang Tong) which was quite good. The waiter kept coming by to fill up the soup with more liquid and extra soup fillings.

 

I have turned my attention to consuming more soup. In the afternoon we had Ma La Tong; a very spicy Sichuan soup you may know, with ma jiao tingly balls and hot peppers. It was so spicy lulu could not eat it. I said I was in 'heaven' and of course I got that chinese lady look of 'don't say such a thing'. Topped it with a very cold bottle of Qingdao pijiu and it was truly bliss.

[david_dawei]

Took this from another thread to just add it here:

 

 

Lil' rabbit walks up to me all giggly, and the beautiful young girl walks up to me too. She is blushing red and as she looks me in the eyes and in her soft little voice she tells me..."I want to tell you, you are very beautiful and pretty man"...Lord God, I look around to see if she is talking to someone else and think she is maybe talking to lil' rabbit....but no, she is still looking me straight in the eyes and she did say "man".

Yes, the pinball wizardry still exists and is oiled to a fine rhythm now !

 

When we went out to eat with the ex-Don... my sense is everyone still considers him a 'Don'... and his wife is quite striking but can't stop looking at me... but many chinese do this as they are just cat-fascinated to see a 'whitey'.

 

Finally she says as the night wears on and too many drinks have been had: "I like american men".

 

I suddenly wondered if this was my last meal.

 

So I asked for some more alcohol to try and help to wash away that comment or at least make my last meal one I can just forget... it seems nobody would let go of that. The 'Don' told her he would help her find an american man. Is that a great chinese husband or what B)

 

I know this lady can drink. I was told prior to meeting her she was one of those who can out drink most men. I have meet a few and she was no exception. At the dinner party I drank many 'gan bei' with her. I drank a few times with the 'Don' but he doesn't drink alcohol.

 

We still joke about her comment but when the joke is over I remember who her husband is and I think he gets the last laugh

[david_dawei]

Cat Nap

Tappy made the comment how a girl at the marriage bureau was sleeping [on the job] but I think this is a past time event for chinese. Of course the bus is the one place you pay to have your nap and it seems well deserved by the snoozing I see going on. But it is quite a sight to see people sleeping at work no matter where you go.

 

It seems as frequent that when awake, they might be playing some QQ game on the computer. I always hate to interrupt them in case they are about to hit the high score.

 

Last night we ate quite late with two others. I couldn't help but notice the waitresses sitting slumped in chairs chatting and laughing like a some sort of sorority.

 

It also seems there is at times no dress code necessary for some jobs. Sloppy attire knows no bounds at times.

[Joanne]

Since it is a trip for marriage, we expect to read some romance. You think you can get away with your drinking stories?

[michaln]

"we expect to read some romance" and see some pictures

[warpedbored]

Yeah, what they said.

[david_dawei]

As I said in another thread.... I don't kiss and tell, but she would like to have a baby together... which should normally be a good sign since she has no desire to work for the sake of getting money. I still debate why I even go back to the US but I need to stop some of that dilemma thinking and just work out what to do.

 

I am generally against showing pictures of an SO online. I did that once before for a few days but then never did again. Also, she is quite self-conscious over the fact that last year she went on a trip to Thailand and her face was burnt quite a bit from the sun during a swim. I had only seen this on one other chinese before and it leaves dark brown marks around the face. She often wants to look at pictures before this time to say how nice her skin used to be. So, I feel it's better not to post anything anyways. Maybe after the process is completely done I would consider it.

 

Playing Pool

Tonight I went to 'meimei' home to see what her boyfriend does for work. I was already told what he does, play internet games for money, but I said I have to see this. We have eaten out the last two days together and played pool, which he is quite good at. But I learned some time back that if your told your going to play pool with someone really good, it is best to take them out drinking first and get them a little drunk to weaken their game My strategy was good as I won the first game which means it doesn't matter if I win another; I have his respect. I think we split the games 50/50 in the end.

 

For whatever reason, I am quite good at pool despite I only play it in china. I simply understand the table, angles and trick shots which seem apparent at anytime. I played a few days ago with Xiao Hu and I setup on one shot and he quickly came over to correct my position; I was shooting at 'nothing'. I showed him that I planned to shoot off the side rail and then bank into the ball which was blocked by his balls and put it in the pocket; He stepped back and watched as I did just that. He never corrected me again.

 

Wang Ba

So I went to Meimei's home and walked into the computer room and exclaimed 'Wang ba !' (internet cafe). He had 2 computers with XP and 5 computers setup with Windows Server 2003. The 2 computers are used for manual game playing which he is incredibly fast and efficent with. The 5 servers are setup to play games on auto-pilot; he just monitors them. He says he can make 10,000-20,000 RMB on a good month.

 

Fushun

Fushun is east of the province capital, Shenyang, by an hour bus ride. It is a city of 2.3 million which seems to be more beautiful at night than day. It is a city which could of grown up more but almost chose to stop half way there. It is fairly dirty by my experience in China, but after Lulu visited Baoding with me she said she was suddenly feeling Fushun was not so dirty B)

 

The 'muddy river' (hun he) runs a long way through the city and adds to the nightly ambiance where the highrises display colored lights. With the lighted bridges and the cool air in the evening, one would never guess you would wake up to a city with a completely differently feeling. But they are very rich in resources and have a few historical mementos. There is the Qing Dynasty family origin which I visted last week. And there is the communist poster child, Lei Feng, who was stationed at Fushun when he died. Despite the somewhat apocryphal life he may of lived, his death occurred here (I think a traffic accident).

 

I can honestly say, I can almost not think of a single reason to visit this city. While 6 yuan gets you around in a taxi to most places close by, it can be as much as 30 yuan if you tried to cross the city. But you can get to Shenyang in an hour with a 10 yuan bus ride. The highly regarded jiu (alcohol) certainly lives up to it's reputation; the gou rou (dog meat) does not, IMO. The fish dishes are incredibly and more so as you go into the country.

 

A tale of two cities:

If I compare this to the only other city I know very well (Baoding, 6 hours by train just SW of Beijing), it is not much more than a big brother of that city; both dirty and poor but difference in natural resources and color. Baoding is a city which seems to have refused to grow up; their closeness and history to Beijing gives them an ethical stamp I don't see very often. The contrast of the two people is a bit surprising and each mentions how the others accent is a bit funny. If I get any dirt on my shirt or shoes, Lulu will call me "baoding er" (baoding person). While Baoding has a stronger ethic, its more formal than necessary and yet they have less concern about the dirt which surrounds them; it's a part of life. Fushun folks seem more concerned if your 'comfortable' or 'hot'. You should change your pants to shorts or shoes to sandals. Despite being more north, they are more attuned to climate changes and want to ensure one's comfort level. Baoding, while being very formal in some regards, just takes a 'mei shi' attitude to many things (it's nothing, of no concern). Baoding is more festive and likes to drink more but they cannot handle the strong alcohol; they just want a fun time amidst the dirt they live in. Outdoor eating is a must, where as in Fushun that is looked down on a little. Fushun people seem to want to enjoy their food by finding a 'good' restaurant; inside and clean.

 

Honestly, I prefer the dirtiness of Baoding. It's smaller and easy to navigate. The eating places are plentiful and cheap. The atmosphere at night is festive and inviting to outdoor eating. hey are well known for various sports (and quite skilled) which fit my liking. Hardly a westerner can be found there, so there are plenty of stares but you will often be treated to whatever they have. Despite the formality, which I understand, there is just something about it which draws me. That aside, and with no natural resources to the area, there is not a single reason to visit.... well execpt one: lulu said she wanted to eat donkey meat when we go there. I said that the breakfast 'pita' bread is to die for, which you get from the street vendors; the restaurants don't seem to know how to cook this properly. She just calls me a 'baoding er ben di ren' (baoding local man).

Edited September 1, 2010 by DavidZixuan (see edit history)

[david_dawei]

The Great Firewall hits a HotSpot

Those in china know there are certain websites (ie: youtube) they cannot get to... Just download Hotspot Shield and the great firewall will come tumbling down.

 

Other software

I can think of quite a few other softwares that are great to have which I learned from chinese contacts over the years:

- Thunder (I think from xunlei kankan; download music and watch movies to boot)

- Youdao translator

- Flashget (fastest downloader possible... run multiple streams)

 

Sites I know for movies include:

- Baidu.com

- Gougou.com

- Douban.com

- Tudou.com

- kankan.xulei.com

 

Other software I have used in the past for chinese TV:

- ppstream.com

- pplive.com

 

most of these are from memory... don't shoot the messenger

[Randy W]

The Great Firewall hits a HotSpot

Those in china know there are certain websites (ie: youtube) they cannot get to... Just download Hotspot Shield and the great firewall will come tumbling down.

 

Other software

I can think of quite a few other softwares that are great to have which I learned from chinese contacts over the years:

- Thunder (I think from xunlei kankan; download music and watch movies to boot)

- Youdao translator

- Flashget (fastest downloader possible... run multiple streams)

 

Sites I know for movies include:

- Baidu.com

- Gougou.com

- Douban.com

- Tudou.com

- kankan.xulei.com

 

Other software I have used in the past for chinese TV:

- ppstream.com

- pplive.com

 

most of these are from memory... don't shoot the messenger

 

 

My two favorites at the moment are funshion.com and verycd.com. VeryCD has the true blu-ray decoded movies, with 4 and 8gb (and uo) files that can take a week or more to download, but are true HD quality (including the soundtrack)

 

Funshion has street quality videos for the most part, but also has what they call an "HD" section. These movies are DVD quality, but have a low quality (48kbps and lower) soundtrack. They have the advantage, however, that you can download them in real-time.

 

Most movies can be found through baidu.com simply by typing in the name of the movie (one of the first tricks I learned here through my students). This includes some fairly rare movies that you may not be able to find at Blockbuster.

[david_dawei]

Chinese Students and Studying

 

I think many are aware of the obsession in studying in china; children studying at break-neck lengths of time over years, and as Mick has pointed out studying for 'exams' is paramount; Your brain dump mileage may vary afterwards.

 

Here is what I have gathered in Fushun, but just one experience of course:

 

Lulu's daughter, Meng is 16, and during the 'school year' she gets up at 5:30 and returns between 6-8pm for 6 days a week. Sunday, she is free to catch up on the work she didn't complete

 

Summer vacation she gets a break: She gets up at 7:30 and goes to school and returns at 4:30 for 6 days a week. This appears to be such a welcomed respite from the normal rountine

 

Studying is not so much in her blood as it is developed like muscle memory. She hits a study rhythm and achieves a Zen-like ONEness with studying... ala energizer bunny.

 

The summer appears to be mostly 'exam' preparation. As well, 12th grade appears to be an entire year of essentially 'exam' preparation. She has surprised the family by moving to '12th' position in the class ranking. She is at the #2 school and it is in the top class of that school. Everyone seems quite happy on the outside. Of course I worry about the burn out factor but there is no sign of that. Most expect her to study at least another 6 years. Meng seems to think that this is simply normal. I think that may be a good mindset to have.

 

There is a cost savings to being a good student; the better your grades, the less you pay for school throughout your school life. Her grandmother was a doctor all her life and is the force behind the need to study; Get an education and get a better life. I know I have seen this as a chinese saying or idiom somewhere, but can't find it... but it is the mantra true for some today.

 

There seems to be six subjects she tests for, which I may not get correct:

1. English

2. Chemistry

3. Chinese [History]

4. Math

5. Physics

6. ??