Beihai - Another Company Driver?

[Randy W]

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For three days running, this guy was there in the morning (in Beihai) to take us where we were going, ran in ahead to buy our tickets, and then sell them to us at a 20% - 40% discount from what we could pay ourselves, and then pick us up when we were ready to leave, to take us to our next attraction. Apparently the only money he ever got was commissions from the ticket sales (we never paid him a thing). The same thing had happened in Guilin a few years back.

 

[Randy W]

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People were digging these sandworms out of the sand - Jiaying says they're valuable. Don't ask me what they are (don't know)

 

 

 

A wedding picture in the volcanic rock on Weizhou (the guy is asking me to get out of the way, please)

 

[Randy W]

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A 150 year old Catholic church on Weizhou. "The stone building materials for the construction are particularly unique, for they are Coral sedimentary rocks from the sea and volcano rocks from the islands. These stones are glued with sticky rice, brown sugar and egg white, completely free from reinforced concrete."

 

 

[dan1984]

How did you come across such a helpful driver?!

[Mick]

The interior of the church is especially striking. Interesting how they used that weird mixture to put the stones together. Li and I attended a Chinese Catholic service in Guangzhou at a large and quite old church.

[tsap seui]

Man, when we have drivers like that I tip them handsomely. Yeah, over my wife's objections, but my goodness, the way I clown around with cab drivers, especially ones who clown back and who take such good care of us, I pay them well in gratitude of their being a part of my whole happy and hilarious China experience.

 

Just sayin', and yeah, that's just silly me.

 

NIce pics Randy.

 

tsap seui

[Randy W]

How did you come across such a helpful driver?!

 

After discovering that the hotel's "tour package" to Weizhou amounted to paying a premium price for the same tickets we could have bought ourselves, this guy was in the pool of cab drivers. They spoke Cantonese (I don't hear this very often) the entire time, so I have have no clue what was said.

[dan1984]

 

How did you come across such a helpful driver?!

 

After discovering that the hotel's "tour package" to Weizhou amounted to paying a premium price for the same tickets we could have bought ourselves, this guy was in the pool of cab drivers. They spoke Cantonese (I don't hear this very often) the entire time, so I have have no clue what was said.

 

I guess can just chalk it up to the Chinese tourists gods smiling down upon you!

[tsap seui]

We had a company driver for a cab driver on our first and second days in Beijing. I named him "Beijing Wong" At the Great Wall I tried to pay his way in so he could see it too. He wouldn't go and sat in his car polishing it while we took off.

 

After the Wall I insisted he come in with us to the restaurant he took us to. It was a great and hilarious experience for us all. All the staff came into the room at one point. Everyone is giggling and blushing....I thought they came in to look at this beautiful woman I was with, but they kept asking about America....and for "souvineeers". I handed out yankee dollar bills and all the change I had in my vest pockets. IT was fun and again we all laughed.

 

Beijing Wong had a great sense of humor and I like funny. Sure, he stopped at different places on our way back, but instead of buying stuff I spent the time wandering around watching the jade carvers, etc etc. Yeah, Wong tried to steer me to the counters of stuff to buy, but I got to see things I would have never seen.....like how they carve a hunk of jade into a ball with in a ball within a ball, and how the intricate porclean vases, etc are made (in the backrooms)...soldering the copper filaments into patterns, etc. This was at some old French named place....Clouseau or something (like Inspector Clouseau) LOL I didn't care, it was a cool place to see the craftswomen and men. I'd have tipped them too, if this strange to me Chinese woman who had all my money in her purse would have let me. I love seeing how thangs is made. It wuz priceless to me.

 

It was great stuff to see the artisians. Wong Dong took us to see many things I never even thought about....like the Ming Toombs, etc etc. Hell, I don't know nuthin' about no China. I was on a business trip as far as I was concerned....the business of meeting a Chinese woman I had thought I had been communicating with by e-mail. All this other stuff was a sideshow to me. A damned nice sideshow by the way. And besides the tip and the meal I bought for ol' Beijing Wong...oh yeah, I did buy one jade braclet for Wenyan that she treasures......the cab was 500rmb for the 11 hours we spent with laughing Wong. I was in the car with he and this stranger who met me at the airport and we laughed the whole day away. I couldn't even speak a word of their languange and had no clue where I was going. It was exciting fun adventure, the kind I really get off on.

 

Back then, the exchange rate was 8 to 1. Eleven hours of laughter and fun, seeing things like I got to see????.....for $5.68usd cents an hour???? $62.50 usd for the whole day??? Try THat in NYC.

 

Yeah, Mr. Company driver....TAKE ME and THIS WOMAN FOR A RIDE.....BABY!!!!! Best $5.68 cents an hour I ever spent.

 

Psssst, shhhhh.....and I was sleepin' with the girl too, even screwed this here terlet seat contraption to the ceiling in the hotel room and .......delicate minds lurk. I'll stop here.

 

Hell yeah, I tipped the guy.

 

I don't mind them company drivers. At least I get to decide how much money I'm gonna spend.

 

tsap seui

 

Stranger in a strange land....tourista by any other name

[Mick]

Tsap, I have an abiding interest in exactly what you do with that thar terlet seat, once you got it screwed into the ceiling. Is it an oval terlet seat, or a horseshoe?

Does one sit in it, hang through it, hang from it, or all of the above.??????

Are there any accessory items that come in handy, like whips, chains, handcuffs, inflatable critters, or thaings of that thar nature???

 

If'n you think the details might be too graphic fer this here family board, you could always send me a PM with the instructions as to how to propery use such a device. I would assume you need a power drill to make the holes necessary to put in a thingie to hang it on. And again, horseshoe or oval? I'd hate to buy the wrong kind.

[Randy W]

You guys are going to find yourselves in your own room here in just a minute.

 

I'd be interested in finding out what the "company" was. It's obviously some kind of a promotional deal, but who's promoting what? Is it the drivers' own company who has arrangements with all the attractions and restaurants? Does the guy work for a company that makes the arrangements? Why don't the tourist agencies have similar arrangements? Is it a governmental promotion? They always seem so good natured and incredibly LOYAL - like you're their only mission in life for a few days, until you decide to head off in another direction.

 

None of this makes any difference, of course, whether you pay $62.50 or FREE (like in our case) - it's still a dang good deal, and seems MUCH more personal than signing up for a tour group - he takes you EVERYWHERE you want to go, and not just the endless Jade factories, knife salesmen, tea ceremonies, etc., etc. Some of the tour groups rely on kickbacks from purchases at these things - the "company drivers" seem like they could care less what (or if) you buy.

[tsap seui]

All this was is just a cab driver Wenyan found on the street smokin' and jokin' with his other mates in front of our hotel (Walfunging or some such name) that was in some high fallutin' shopping district or road by the same name. Idave wound up staying there later. She must of told him about going to the Great Wall or something.

 

I always looked at it like he was just a good business man. Nothing more. He'd been around the block a few times before and seemed to be taking us to places like the Summer Palace and MIng Tombs, and places like that old well known French porcelean factory that he had taken other tourists. Wenyan had never been to Beijing before that time in 2006.

 

He didn't take us to an endless array of businesses by any means and only took us to a nearby restaurant when I said I wanted to eat. He had to look for a restaurant. No one was waiting for us there, and they were quite suprised when I walked into their small establisment in some out of the city area. Treated us like we were some kinda dadgummed royalty. I was sorta embarrassed at the fuss, and I highly doubt he had any arraingements with them. We ate our meal, Wong took photos of us, and I got one with my arm around him and we had a merry ol' time. I had to practically demand he came in to eat with us. Literally took him by the hand and dragged him towards the restaurant. "Come on son, you ain't driving me all over this place and not eatin' with me."

 

Beijing Wong was da bomb...lol Once I got him to laughing and showed him I wasn't just another stuffy tourist, he really flourished, hell I was singing to him at some points, and it became like we were family that had come to town and he was showing his city to. Not just another fare.

 

For me, the two happy days we spent with ol' laughing Wong Dong at the wheel were simply priceless. Beyond what I had seen on TV about T-man Square and the tanks, I knew absolutely nothing at all about China, Beijing, and what to go see. NOTHING. Well, I did know that some of the weapons that shot me down came from China. But that's nothing. LOL

 

I'll always have those memories of laughing and riding around with Beijing Wong.

 

Now, on the other hand, on the third and final day in Beijing, before we flew up to Shenyang and to head ovedr to Fushun, we got another cabbie who we had seen out there with ol' WOng, and he took us to do some shopping. He told Wenyan....."Let's get the laowei to buy lots of stuff and split up some of his money."

Wenyan says she told him....."What do I need you for to do that?" I had a good time with him too. Heck, aren't they supposed to do stuff like that? I didn't care, it was my credit card, he couldn't use it for me.

 

I have no doubt Wong had a deal with a couple of the factory shops he took us to, 3 I think, but like I said, I only bought the one jade bracelet with the splash of red in it that Wenyan seemed to really like.

 

tsap seui

[Randy W]

Yeah - a great find, and MUCH more pleasant than the arranged tours. These guys always seem very personable, and no pressure.

[tsap seui]

Yep, I can only hope Beijing Wong truly understands how what he did for us is the perfect way for a guy in his industry to make himself a step ahead of just being a cab driver. Maybe, maybe not, it took some joking around with him to coax him out of his shell but he did great after that.

 

I worked in a service industry and our success really came down to how we talked and treated people in their homes. Gain their trust, develope a relationship wiht them for those few hours we were in their home, and the sky literally became the limit. My crews got tips all the time. Once Sarah Brady, wife of Jim Brady who took a bullet in the head when Regan got shot, tipped us $300 over the bill I handed her....for the "service" she felt she got.

 

I look pretty closely at service industry people I come into contact with and if they treat me well, I pay them well...and make sure they understand exactly why I paid (tip) them well. Of course with Wong I couldn't speak his language to make that point.

 

If these onsite tourist agencys could understand the concept of "unique selling point", and train their employees accordingly they could set their companys over and above the competition. Better for them, better for the employees, and better for the tourists.

 

tsap seui

[Randy W]

can't believe I never posted more from this trip to Beihai Weizhoudao in 2013. There is a little town build INSIDE the volcano crater, which now forms a little harbor.

from China Daily on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/chinadaily/posts/10157207702091291

China Daily

1 hr ·

Quote

Check out the amazing natural landscape of Weizhou Island, China's youngest volcanic island, in SW China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.

 

You can tell where the crater was

Edited January 2, 2021 by Randy W (see edit history)