We arrived in HK on Thursday, after that glorious 20 hour train ride I mentioned. Usually I leave the logistical rundown to Ed, but in this instance I'm going to broadcast. And, since we're out of mainland China and not re-upping our visas, I'm going to be perfectly candid. Perhaps the internet monitors will pass my feedback along to the appropriate infrastructure division. Heh.
Traveling between places in China is a pain in the arse. Even when we'd done our research and knew with certainty what we were trying to achieve it was a shit show. Purchasing train tickets to HK required 2 trips to the main train station and 2 trips to satellite offices. Probably 5-6 hours were wasted following directions from hotel staff and China Railway counter people who had not one shred of a clue between them what they were talking about. I mean, I could have used that time to further my study of Confucianism. Or to have more acupressure foot massage.
Eventually, I scored the super deluxe tickets and was assured (believe me, I asked for confirmation more times than was polite) that we would be in a car with only 2 bunks and a private bathroom. And each of us was, just in adjacent different cars, shared with strangers.
This isn't the first or the third time this has happened to us in China. Fortunately, the sweet old man in my lower bunk swapped tickets with Ed, and all was resolved. The rest of the evening, as we shelled peanuts and played cards and watched Modern Family on the laptop, we joked about my doing those things with the 88 year old from Shanghai instead of Ed. About he and I hitting the dining car to share some mapu tofu, lying in our bunks talking about our hopes and dreams, or watching the passing scenery. We were happy it didn't shake out that way, but the montage was hilar.
Overall, we had a blast on the trip here and like the idea of traveling by long distance train again. It went by so fast and was far less stressful and more comfortable than air travel. The one major malfunction was the smoke. Seemingly all men over age 12 in China are chain smokers. I read that 27% of Chinese people don't believe that smoking and lung disease are related. They're chimneys and there is no escaping. Unfortunately on a train without open windows, this means that the ventilation system cycles smoke from the hallway through the cabin vents, where it lands on your pillow. I woke up completely congested and lost my voice the next day.
10 points train travel, 0 points HVAC.
Showing posts with label Shanghai. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Shanghai. Show all posts
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Old stuff
We really enjoyed our time in Shanghai, but I remarked to both our friends and to Ed that it was surprising to me that no trace of old Shanghai glamor was to be found. The deco architecture is preserved and the European influence remains, but everywhere you look is modernity. Facsimiles of legendary 1930s Shanghai abound; clearly I'm not the only mo who wants to see this. Renovations across the Bund and beyond promise restoration to Shanghai's storied past. The reality, though, is that Shanghai is a thoroughly modern city and these renovations are just copies of copies of copies...
No where was this more in evidence than the evening that Allison, Ed and I visited a club/bar called Chinatown. A 3 story bar with a stage in a converted 1930s Buddhist temple brought to us by the dream team behind the Slipper Room and the Box in NYC, Chinatown promises an evening variety show, tawdry burlesque, old fashioned cocktails, etc. And as it turned out, the cocktails were fantastic, and the space was beautiful renovated. The evening, overall, was pretty fun but that was largely due to our amusing ourselves with running commentary. The experience is supposed to be 1934, but this is 2010 and even with vodka and imagination, that couldn't be ignored.
The performers weren't drunk or high on opium or for hire; they were expats, failed actresses most likely, who clearly take vitamins and get plenty of sleep and keep head shots behind the bar. We wondered aloud what one of the male performers, a Frank Sinatra type, had done or not done to land himself a regular gig here. We concluded work release program. The juggling clown, when offered a shot by a drunken bachelorette, declined saying "oh, I can't, I have to perform again later." The Chinatown girls had clearly been instructed to wander about the club between acts, wearing flapperish dresses and smoking out of long handled cigarette holders. The crowd was mainly expats in chinos, many on business trips; there wasn't even an illusion to be ruined.
The whole conceit, from the Cabaret-imitating emcee to the awkward burlesque felt contrived and controlled. But I should have known better. China is a nation obsessed with progress, happily leveling historic buildings and converting temples into night clubs.
Did I really expect the glamor and recklessness of the 1930s to remain in Shanghai, where the government doesn't allow access to Facebook?
No where was this more in evidence than the evening that Allison, Ed and I visited a club/bar called Chinatown. A 3 story bar with a stage in a converted 1930s Buddhist temple brought to us by the dream team behind the Slipper Room and the Box in NYC, Chinatown promises an evening variety show, tawdry burlesque, old fashioned cocktails, etc. And as it turned out, the cocktails were fantastic, and the space was beautiful renovated. The evening, overall, was pretty fun but that was largely due to our amusing ourselves with running commentary. The experience is supposed to be 1934, but this is 2010 and even with vodka and imagination, that couldn't be ignored.
The performers weren't drunk or high on opium or for hire; they were expats, failed actresses most likely, who clearly take vitamins and get plenty of sleep and keep head shots behind the bar. We wondered aloud what one of the male performers, a Frank Sinatra type, had done or not done to land himself a regular gig here. We concluded work release program. The juggling clown, when offered a shot by a drunken bachelorette, declined saying "oh, I can't, I have to perform again later." The Chinatown girls had clearly been instructed to wander about the club between acts, wearing flapperish dresses and smoking out of long handled cigarette holders. The crowd was mainly expats in chinos, many on business trips; there wasn't even an illusion to be ruined.
The whole conceit, from the Cabaret-imitating emcee to the awkward burlesque felt contrived and controlled. But I should have known better. China is a nation obsessed with progress, happily leveling historic buildings and converting temples into night clubs.
Did I really expect the glamor and recklessness of the 1930s to remain in Shanghai, where the government doesn't allow access to Facebook?
Thursday, September 16, 2010
America, brought to you by Corporate America
There were a couple of aspects of the World Expo that were super strange to us. The American pavilion and the Chinese pavilion are about as far away from one another as possible within the grounds. Also, the American pavilion is in the back corner of the area, making it a bit remote. We're pretty sure this wasn't accidental.
The magic begins when we step inside and the introduction room is plastered with logos of Corporate sponsors. An introductory film is played in which folks on the street in DC are filmed trying to say "Welcome to China" in Mandarin. It doesn't go that well.
As we pass into the next giant movie theater, Pfizer thanks us for not smoking. Then we watch a film where kids teach us how to save the earth (make a cloud plane that doesn't use gasoline!) and CMOs from the sponsoring firms (Chevron, GE, PepsiCo) emote; the children are our future, the environment is a critical issue. Then cameos by such American celebrities as Tony Hawk and Marlee Matlin (she's deaf! we're diverse!), interspersed with academic interviews from professors at the University of Washington (sponsor).
We're herded into a third theater where we watch a film about a kid who dreams of turning a cement lot in her ghetto neighborhood into an urban garden and paints a picture of her vision. She shops this around and makes some progress. Her luck turns. At one point it seems that a thunderstorm, flaky neighbors, and bullies will sabotage the whole project. But when our protagonist, in desperation and pouring rain, holds her painting overhead and looks skyward over dramatic guitar music, the garden is saved. She awakes to find it fully planted, vandals spray-painting a rainbow mural on the wall. I think we're to assume that a higher power is responsible...
Now, imagine you're Chinese. You don't speak English and your government isn't letting you pop over to the USA for a visit anytime soon. Your internet access is highly censored and western TV & movies aren't broadcast. What you see at the world expo might inform your opinion of the US disproportionately. And what you might take away from your visit is that Americans really like sitting in dark theaters, can't and won't try to speak Chinese, and don't flush a toilet that isn't paid for by a major corporation.
Also, the building looks like an airport terminal. Citibank thanks you for visiting. That is all.
The magic begins when we step inside and the introduction room is plastered with logos of Corporate sponsors. An introductory film is played in which folks on the street in DC are filmed trying to say "Welcome to China" in Mandarin. It doesn't go that well.
As we pass into the next giant movie theater, Pfizer thanks us for not smoking. Then we watch a film where kids teach us how to save the earth (make a cloud plane that doesn't use gasoline!) and CMOs from the sponsoring firms (Chevron, GE, PepsiCo) emote; the children are our future, the environment is a critical issue. Then cameos by such American celebrities as Tony Hawk and Marlee Matlin (she's deaf! we're diverse!), interspersed with academic interviews from professors at the University of Washington (sponsor).
We're herded into a third theater where we watch a film about a kid who dreams of turning a cement lot in her ghetto neighborhood into an urban garden and paints a picture of her vision. She shops this around and makes some progress. Her luck turns. At one point it seems that a thunderstorm, flaky neighbors, and bullies will sabotage the whole project. But when our protagonist, in desperation and pouring rain, holds her painting overhead and looks skyward over dramatic guitar music, the garden is saved. She awakes to find it fully planted, vandals spray-painting a rainbow mural on the wall. I think we're to assume that a higher power is responsible...
Now, imagine you're Chinese. You don't speak English and your government isn't letting you pop over to the USA for a visit anytime soon. Your internet access is highly censored and western TV & movies aren't broadcast. What you see at the world expo might inform your opinion of the US disproportionately. And what you might take away from your visit is that Americans really like sitting in dark theaters, can't and won't try to speak Chinese, and don't flush a toilet that isn't paid for by a major corporation.
Also, the building looks like an airport terminal. Citibank thanks you for visiting. That is all.
If you like lines...
A line for the bus, then for ticket pickup, security, food, country pavilions (these stretched up to 6 hours), and, of course, bathrooms. I'm not an amusement park goer but I think our experience at the Expo must have been similar, line-wise. But, when you get to the front of an Expo line you don't get to go on a roller coaster or meet Mickey. Instead, you're herded into a giant building to watch a movie presentation that is most akin to a Fortune 500 company's brand video. I felt like I was at new hire orientation for Australia. I'm not sure what my job is supposed to be, but I think it has to do with surfing, earth movers and kangaroos.
During our overpriced and barely edible lunch in the "gourmet pavilion," Ed and I tried to remember how we had decided to come to the Expo in the first place. We blame advertising, incidentally. But, for all the heat and the lines and the unbelievable crap inside the pavilions, it was maybe worth going. Here are my hot tips if anyone out there decides to:
- Go late in the day. Around 5 pm there is a parade (more on this later) and a seeming lull in the frenzy. Its before the night ticket holders arrive, and the folks who got in line for tickets to the China pavilion at 3 am (seriously) have called it quits.
- Don't wait in line for any pavilion. The architecture is the most impressive aspect, indoor is lamezone. That said, going into the pavilions of the countries that are broke (Iraq, Nigeria, Laos) can be interesting in a sad way. Nigeria had straw sandals on display. Laos gave away dixie cups of coffee. Single tear.
- The terrace at the Spain pavilion sells $2 beers and has no line. We joked that if we were in New York, the 5 hour wait would be to get into the bar instead of Spain's exhibition. Fortunately for us, it was the reverse.
- Maybe skip Asia. The lines for South Korea and Japan are the longest and the whole area is hard to get around and really spread out. Since China's pavilion is nine times the size of any of the others and smack in the center, it serves as a major obstacle to get around if you want to see anything else in the Asia zone.
- Europe is pretty, especially at night. We thought the Netherlands had the best pavilion of all. Somebody's highdea, perhaps.
- About 95% of the visitors to the Expo are Chinese. They do not give a shit about Africa or most of South America. So if you do and want to get inside a building, go to those regions.
- People say you can skip the line of your home country if you have your passport. We were told at the USA pavilion that this isn't their "policy" but then were let under the rope anyway, so its worth a shot.
Seemingly the hocking of merch was China's primary motivation for hosting the Expo. So, if you really want T-shirts with the little blue guy that I'm CERTAIN is a trademark infringement (um, hi, gumby?) you'll score easy. Lines and T-shirts, T-shirst and lines.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Shanghai: I see White people
We've been in Shanghai for a bunch of days seeing the sites and hanging with our visitors! My good buddy Allison and her friend Kristy met us here and its been a blast. The four of us did the heavy tourism lifting fast and early. After checking off the Lonely Planet Top 10, we were able to get down to the good stuff: beer & acrobats, soup dumplings & massage.
Here's the rundown:
Yuyuan Gardens & Old Town - Yes, the architecture is fantastic. Yes, the temples are huge and insane and amazing and more beautiful even than the Forbidden City. But. Its way overly touristy in a horrible Chinatown way, hawkers are pretty sure that you will buy a bagwatchrolexgucciprada if they follow you down the street repeating themselves (the word "no" is merely an invitation). At street level of the restored buildings you can find DQ, KFC, and Starbucks. I mean, I'm not saying we didn't get blizzards and iced coffee. I'm just saying.
The Bund - As recently as this morning we were trying to decide what, exactly, the Bund encompasses. Its an area along the Huangpu river with imposing, gorgeous deco architecture and windy streets. Its lovely and impressive and like olden times except for all the people with SLR cameras. There are huge shopping streets and a million restaurants drawing tourists and locals alike. Funnily, we felt like we could easily have been strolling the Thames or the Seine, save for the fact that one looks across the river at this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Shanghaiviewpic1.jpg
French Concession & Xintiandi - I know it couldn't be more cliched than if I told you about Paris in the springtime, but we loved wandering the tree-lined streets of the French Concession. There is just a whiff of old time Shanghai expat glamor once you're off the main drag, particularly in the far west of the neighborhood. The streets get dark and leafy and sparkly restaurants are tucked into courtyards. Its French, but exoticer, and the better for it.
Oh, also, we got a little drunk and saw an acrobat show. This was enthralling and worthwhile. Had the show taken place in the US, a not insignificant number of child labor laws would have been broken. But since we're in China, the land of tiny circus freaks, good times for us.
Kristy headed back a couple of days ago, so its just been the 3 of us roaming. Having Allison around has reminded me how much I miss her, and all of my Bro Nameths back home. Sharing our trip with Allison has made this portion extra special and given us someone to talk to (besides each other) about everything we've done and seen so far. Also, she's been a real trooper on our robust eating schedule, happily attending second lunch and sucking the soup out of dumplings like a champ.
The only bummer about Shanghai is the sheer number of foreigners. The architecturally and historically interesting neighborhoods are also chock full of tourists and expats. I guess we're only adding to those numbers, and probably all those people are just as unhappy to see our Western mugs as we are theirs. But when we've gotten off the beaten path, gone to random stops on the metro, explored non-guide book neighborhoods, we mostly run into residential areas.
I shouldn't be such a snob, but we want the authentic Shanghai experience. Could the Western folks just step off stage for a few more days and cue the local extras? That'd be terrific.
Here's the rundown:
Yuyuan Gardens & Old Town - Yes, the architecture is fantastic. Yes, the temples are huge and insane and amazing and more beautiful even than the Forbidden City. But. Its way overly touristy in a horrible Chinatown way, hawkers are pretty sure that you will buy a bagwatchrolexgucciprada if they follow you down the street repeating themselves (the word "no" is merely an invitation). At street level of the restored buildings you can find DQ, KFC, and Starbucks. I mean, I'm not saying we didn't get blizzards and iced coffee. I'm just saying.
The Bund - As recently as this morning we were trying to decide what, exactly, the Bund encompasses. Its an area along the Huangpu river with imposing, gorgeous deco architecture and windy streets. Its lovely and impressive and like olden times except for all the people with SLR cameras. There are huge shopping streets and a million restaurants drawing tourists and locals alike. Funnily, we felt like we could easily have been strolling the Thames or the Seine, save for the fact that one looks across the river at this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Shanghaiviewpic1.jpg
French Concession & Xintiandi - I know it couldn't be more cliched than if I told you about Paris in the springtime, but we loved wandering the tree-lined streets of the French Concession. There is just a whiff of old time Shanghai expat glamor once you're off the main drag, particularly in the far west of the neighborhood. The streets get dark and leafy and sparkly restaurants are tucked into courtyards. Its French, but exoticer, and the better for it.
Oh, also, we got a little drunk and saw an acrobat show. This was enthralling and worthwhile. Had the show taken place in the US, a not insignificant number of child labor laws would have been broken. But since we're in China, the land of tiny circus freaks, good times for us.
Kristy headed back a couple of days ago, so its just been the 3 of us roaming. Having Allison around has reminded me how much I miss her, and all of my Bro Nameths back home. Sharing our trip with Allison has made this portion extra special and given us someone to talk to (besides each other) about everything we've done and seen so far. Also, she's been a real trooper on our robust eating schedule, happily attending second lunch and sucking the soup out of dumplings like a champ.
The only bummer about Shanghai is the sheer number of foreigners. The architecturally and historically interesting neighborhoods are also chock full of tourists and expats. I guess we're only adding to those numbers, and probably all those people are just as unhappy to see our Western mugs as we are theirs. But when we've gotten off the beaten path, gone to random stops on the metro, explored non-guide book neighborhoods, we mostly run into residential areas.
I shouldn't be such a snob, but we want the authentic Shanghai experience. Could the Western folks just step off stage for a few more days and cue the local extras? That'd be terrific.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Korea wrap up
I feel I would be remiss if I didn't at least fill you in a little on our last couple of weeks in Korea. In all, we ended up staying in Korea for one month & 2 days, and I really really really think everyone should go there. I saw a T-shirt in a souvenir store that read "Korea: Asia's Best Kept Secret," and I can't say how true that is. I've never known someone to go just to go, but everyone should go, because its gd awesome and, like, the most civilized country on earth.
Our Korea loop, in the end, went like this Seoul -> Sokcho -> Samcheok -> Andong -> Gyeongju -> Busan -> Seoul. Gyeongju was, by far, the historical highlight of the trip. Its often referred to as an "open air museum," which I insisted on saying to Ed in my best wine aficionado voice. Like, it "open air museum, its really earthy but with a nutty finish." I think its funnier when you hear it spoken.
Anywho, Gyeongju was the capital of the Shilla dynasty which means there are shitload of rulers buried there. Fun fact: when kings were entombed back in the day, a pre-selected group of virgins would be lead into the tomb at burial time. Lucky for them, they were given knives so that once the final brick was in place and they were, in essence, buried alive they could off themselves. Same rules for the servants and the royal guard. It must have been crowded in there, but we wouldn't want the king getting lonely in the afterlife. So, these tombs are huge, perfect, mounds sprinkled throughout the city. Some are in parks, some in the mountains, some right in the downtown next to a row of ice cream shops. I called them grass boobs and was originally underwhelmed. But then wizened owl Ed made this sterling observation: what is amazing about these grass boobs is that in the time they were built, people weren't creating monuments of stone or brick. They used what they had available, which was dirt. And using their hands and dirt and engineering, they made something perfectly round and really tall in tribute. Which is kind of rad.
Bulguksa Temple is another fascinating and beautiful site to visit in Gyeongju. We've been to a lot of temples. In China we were palace'd out but in Korea, we were temple'd out. That said, this one was probably the most impressive that we visited. Like all beautiful things in Asia, it was burned to the ground by another Asian nation (this time Japan) and they've been working on the restoration ever since. Its also a Unesco World Heritage site which, if you come to Asia, is a huge freaking deal. Everybody is all Unesco this, World Heritage that. Its like they EGOT'd.
The highlight of Gyeongju for me, though, was a hike up Mt. Namsan. Along the trails there are huge stone Buddha carvings, tiny ancient temples, pagodas, religious relics and more grass boobs all the way to the summit. This allowed us to learn and sweat and be spiritual all at once. Just an awesome, perfect day. Incidentally, followed by one of my favorite Korean meals of the trip.
We're now in Shanghai which is totally awesome because my friend Allison is here! But, we haven't yet quite re-acclimated to the honking and spitting and yelling and general chaos. Korea was like the nerdy, tidy Uncle you like to visit at his house in the Catskills. He makes organic Chicken for dinner and reads Proust by the fire and you admire him, but don't really see the resemblance. China is like your sloppy kid brother. You love him, but you know that a weekend with him is going to be noisy and, inevitably, involve vomit.
Our Korea loop, in the end, went like this Seoul -> Sokcho -> Samcheok -> Andong -> Gyeongju -> Busan -> Seoul. Gyeongju was, by far, the historical highlight of the trip. Its often referred to as an "open air museum," which I insisted on saying to Ed in my best wine aficionado voice. Like, it "open air museum, its really earthy but with a nutty finish." I think its funnier when you hear it spoken.
Anywho, Gyeongju was the capital of the Shilla dynasty which means there are shitload of rulers buried there. Fun fact: when kings were entombed back in the day, a pre-selected group of virgins would be lead into the tomb at burial time. Lucky for them, they were given knives so that once the final brick was in place and they were, in essence, buried alive they could off themselves. Same rules for the servants and the royal guard. It must have been crowded in there, but we wouldn't want the king getting lonely in the afterlife. So, these tombs are huge, perfect, mounds sprinkled throughout the city. Some are in parks, some in the mountains, some right in the downtown next to a row of ice cream shops. I called them grass boobs and was originally underwhelmed. But then wizened owl Ed made this sterling observation: what is amazing about these grass boobs is that in the time they were built, people weren't creating monuments of stone or brick. They used what they had available, which was dirt. And using their hands and dirt and engineering, they made something perfectly round and really tall in tribute. Which is kind of rad.
Bulguksa Temple is another fascinating and beautiful site to visit in Gyeongju. We've been to a lot of temples. In China we were palace'd out but in Korea, we were temple'd out. That said, this one was probably the most impressive that we visited. Like all beautiful things in Asia, it was burned to the ground by another Asian nation (this time Japan) and they've been working on the restoration ever since. Its also a Unesco World Heritage site which, if you come to Asia, is a huge freaking deal. Everybody is all Unesco this, World Heritage that. Its like they EGOT'd.
The highlight of Gyeongju for me, though, was a hike up Mt. Namsan. Along the trails there are huge stone Buddha carvings, tiny ancient temples, pagodas, religious relics and more grass boobs all the way to the summit. This allowed us to learn and sweat and be spiritual all at once. Just an awesome, perfect day. Incidentally, followed by one of my favorite Korean meals of the trip.
We're now in Shanghai which is totally awesome because my friend Allison is here! But, we haven't yet quite re-acclimated to the honking and spitting and yelling and general chaos. Korea was like the nerdy, tidy Uncle you like to visit at his house in the Catskills. He makes organic Chicken for dinner and reads Proust by the fire and you admire him, but don't really see the resemblance. China is like your sloppy kid brother. You love him, but you know that a weekend with him is going to be noisy and, inevitably, involve vomit.
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