Chinese Whispers: Letters from the Orient

[Skykid]

68k rimshot warning: dis thread got pics

Hot on the heels of South Korea.

Picture Post Index

Letter One: Stuff in the city

Letter Two: Food and Christmas!

Letter Three: Leisure Activities

Letter Four: In Da Club

Letter Five: Old City Limits

Letter Six: Hong Kong Shuffle ~ Gaijinpunch Omake

Currently in Nanning, capital of Guangxi province, China. Took a while (about a month) to acclimatise. At first it's such a culture shock, I took daily refuge in McDonalds/McCafe because it was the only place I could find a decent coffee. Used to the pace and flow now and had a really great Christmas.

Location: Nanning is just northwest of Hong Kong. Local languages are Cantonese and Mandarin, ethnicity is Han and most Han Chinese speak both here. It's a city that benefits from a largely tropical climate, and is blessed with a sea of trees, hence its dub, 'The Green City.' Someone in the CCP has pegged it for tourism, probably because the abundant plant life contributes to clear skies and better air, and decided to install an underground system, estimated completion time 2 years; and a ban on fuel powered bikes has cut down on pollution and noise - it's all electric now.

For those with any political or economic interests, (skip this paragraph otherwise) there are fascinating things happening. A wall of poverty smashes into a wall of new rich and burgeoning opportunism. It was tough at first to enter the old city and see so many peddlers and beggars, but now they're just part of the social wallpaper, occupying certain streets, while Starbucks and KFC seem to be rampaging to take over everything else. There's been some clashing regarding mountain people flooding the city, especially on weekends (Xinjian specifically) who aggravate Han residents because they're peasants, essentially, who do a great line in pickpocketing. No iPhone is safe.
The population issue here is still prominent, although apparently the one child policy will become two in 2015, so something must have eased.
It's cheap by my standards, but far more expensive than five years ago. Starbucks is extortionate: on opening day for the new outlet in the old city center (there are several down the road) there was a queue outside the door. 22 Yuan for a freaking small Americano - that's £2.20; about 50pence more than the UK.
People have money to burn suddenly. Everywhere folks are dropping big cash on clothing, Apple products and fancy restaurants; it's a bewilderingly fast economic boom. Decrepit streets are being demolished (which is a little sad, as they have Kung Fu hustle character) making way for busy Louis Vuitton and Gucci outlets, footnoting the capitalist surge. The kids are industrious, too, responsible for cars flooding the roads as opposed to the before predominant bikes.
5 years ago, the new sector of the city previously ended at a point just past the main bridge, and from there was all flat land and construction. 5 years later, it stretches as far as the eye can see: insanely fast development, business, entertainment and residential. A beautiful clubbing district lit up with neon occupies an island in the middle of an enormous lake, typical of a seriously elaborate commitment to partying, of which I thoroughly approve.
People were getting tired of me asking, befuddled, "was any of this here three years ago?".
A class division is brewing, although it's still a tepid affair, with no 'them and us' attitude as of yet. It will be interesting to see what happens if a certain demographic decide they want more opportunity in a system with no democratic means to an end.


LETTER ONE 28/12/12

Bikes are still all over the place, and behave like pedestrians. Took me a while to learn to traffic dodge.


Someone thought it wise to build an homage to the Nakatomi Plaza.










For serious.




Pussy magnet. This dude was just chilling on the shopping street surrounded by women.








Weather has been chilly at times, although weirdly warm at others.


Bruce is back with the Char Sui.


This was December weather, around 26 degrees.






The corporate evil. Unlike other western chains (McD's, KFC etc) Starbucks refuse to reduce their prices for the Chinese market.




Found this outside a building site. This sort of Communist oriented stuff is fading nowadays, so I snapped it.


One of several hidden parks in the city:












We had dinner in this enormous glass building. Next up: food stuff!

[Jonathan Ingram]

A wall of poverty smashes into a wall of new rich and burgeoning opportunism. It was tough at first to enter the old city and see so many peddlers and beggars, but now they're just part of the social wallpaper, occupying certain streets, while Starbucks and KFC seem to be rampaging to take over everything else.

I`ve been told on many occasions that you won`t truly see the scale of poverty in China and the horrendous social inequality until you`ve hit Manchuria. "Socialism with Chinese specifics" and all that. You planning on visiting China`s northern provinces by any chance?


Thanks for the photos and impressions.

[neorichieb1971]

Yay, that bike stack is ridiculous. Looks like a great place if you want to raise an eyebrow or two. Good photos!

[Khan]

Goddamn it im so jealous T_T

[emphatic]

Thanks for the pretty pictures, Mr!

[xbl0x180]

But the girls... WHAT ABOUT THE GIRLS?!

[Skykid]

I`ve been told on many occasions that you won`t truly see the scale of poverty in China and the horrendous social inequality until you`ve hit Manchuria. "Socialism with Chinese specifics" and all that. You planning on visiting China`s northern provinces by any chance?

Thanks for the photos and impressions.

NP's, happy to be able to report firsthand experience. We are planning to travel all over, actually, so I'll keep updating. Not everywhere will be littered with Adidas and McDonalds I'm sure (don't want it to be either) but Nanning is actually a good litmus test for economic temperament: a relative small fry in terms of province capitals, yet so enormous in its growth it rivals even London. At first it's hard to discern, but simple observation reveals a huge number of people here who are absolutely rolling in it. The business district is enormous, but a few years ago it didn't even exist. So odd.

Allowing for optimism, it's worth remembering 30yrs ago the entire country was a billion-strong peasant population dying of starvation. There are bound to be remnants of that era such a short while on. More impressive by far is how many people's lives have done an unrecognisable 360 as a result of Deng Xiao Ping's inception. Comparing this to the UK, where unemployment, affordability and standards of living are in visible decline; It's all well and good to finger wag about China's existing poverty and policies, but the revolutionary advances are no less, well, revolutionary. How it will address the natural capitalist inequality stretch is the current hot potato.

Goddamn it im so jealous T_T

Save it for the arcades, you'll need plenty in reserve.

[Ed Oscuro]

I think the dog is a Spitz, aka American Eskimo. Almost the spitting image of my ol' Snowball, except this one has those shifty eyes

Good breed, pretty smart, has a reputation for being snappy sometimes though.

[Ganelon]

Nice gallery. I've never been to Nanning before but it looks comfortable, well, if you're well-to-do. I imagine you won't be seeing such mild, if unpredictable, weather as you head north.

I'm not sure what's special about northeast China (AKA the former Manchuria). From all I've seen and heard, the major cities in that region are pretty similar to those in Skykid's images; I'd assume it's a reference to the rural regions there near Siberia and Mongolia where the land is probably at its worst for farming. If you want to see the difference between affluence and deficiency, just go an hour outside Beijing into Hebei province. Even then, the big difference is only relative to Beijing's advancement.

Also for optimism, it's worth noting that long before 30 years ago, the only reason the Communists were able to take over China and enjoy support was because the Nationalist leadership did such a poor job that many people literally only had bits to eat at times. Quality of living is nowhere near ideal for the poorest families but at least any starvation nowadays is caused by extreme circumstances.

[Randorama]

Well...

It's all well and good to finger wag about China's existing poverty and policies, but the revolutionary advances are no less, well, revolutionary.

Sure, revolution in the worst possible direction. I guess that your vision of a brighter, more communist future is more skyscrapers and Louis Vuitton for everyone. I hope that you know that the mountain people you describe would be targeted by riot police if they stay longer than one week in the city, as they are not resident.

Etc. Etc. Etc.

[GaijinPunch]

I keep forgetting to send you your Senkaku Islands T-Shirt. It's on the way now.. and marked as such on the customs form!

[x91]

Good touring impression, nice pictures, these wake my college memory. Spent 4 years in Nanning, and I don't regret it.

Still remember the days my friend and I set out for the pedestrian street, in hope of finding a good shmup cab there - and we actually found what you're looking at right now. PGM2 DOJ, Varth, Raiden4, and something else, but by that time we're graduating. Sad.

(Ignore this if you find it hard to understand, the user has limited language capabilities) Inequality has always been a hot topic since the revolutionary took place. No, no matter how hard you try, you can't improve the living standard of a whole city to some same certain level simultaneously. And humanity is far complicated when it comes to personal interest.

[CHI]

Bikes are still all over the place, and behave like pedestrians. Took me a while to learn to traffic dodge.

Reminds me of Taiwan...

Love the hidden parks... Cool pictures, keep them coming
Never been to China let alone Nanning, now's the chance for a visit

[Skykid]

Food and Christmas!

So the food. God damn heavenly. Whether it's 6 Yuan at the street market for Nanning's speciality noodle soup ('Old Friend Noodle' should you ever need to ask), evening barbeque and beer in an outdoor tent, or the full blown restaurant banquet, it's really as good as it gets.

I'm easy going when it comes to food, so I'll try anything once. Last night during a beer n' BBQ session, I ate bbq pig's cock. It wasn't bad, first cock I can ever say I've eaten (willingly... I'll never forgive you GP.)
Still don't like chicken's feet though, fuck that stuff.

LETTER TWO 30/12/12

So this is the day we did hot pot at the gf's friend's place with a bunch of cool guys and gals.
Half spicy, half regular, cook it yourself food, for those who don't know the process. It's amazing!











Good view from the balcony.


Afterwards, watching The Dictator, which I found more amusing than expected.


Dinner at the Dome
Or whatever the hell it's called. That big ball shaped building I posted last time. This was a family do with eleven people. I was wondering when the king and queen were arriving, such was the feast, but apparently it was all in our honour. Oh the joys of being a foreigner!














Fast Food Break
So, I quite like fried chicken, and judging by the huge number of outlets, Asia seems to have a fondness for it too. However, after being thoroughly disappointed at the lack of quality in Korean fried chicken, despite its abundance, I'm happy to say I found the golden battered motherlode: Dico's.
Seriously, fuck KFC. And not because it's KFC and deserves to be fucked, but because Dico's is the tastiest taste explosion ever. So much so I googled that shit to find out its origins: Taiwan chain that started out after discovering a Texan fried chicken recipe that was too good not to mass market. Bless them.









Speaking of KFC, they know how to cater to local tastes, and are very popular here:


Lots of these about, which are tasty and cool simultaneously, although not as cool as the Initial D auto shop I passed, but couldn't get a pic of because I was on the bus.




Ajisen Ramen is too good. There a second time today trying to take paparrazi shots of girls for xbl0x180, which isn't easy, especially when Samsung have disabled the function to mute shutter sound on the Galaxy S3 for 'legal reasons' (or, so chicks can know when you're trying to take pictures of them.)
Anyway, food wise, it's good enough to eat twice:








Coffee here is better than in S.Korea, which pains me to say as I feel kinda sorry for the Koreans not being able to make it right, even though it's all they drink.
This is a chilled latte I grabbed at a cool little midnight bar I found tucked away in a backstreet:


There's a popular chain called Honeymoon Dessert, which I believe originates from Hong Kong. No coffee, just beverage concoctions and lots of delicious sweets.


No matter how unappetising it might look, this mango tofu thingy is "one more please!" worthy.


Malt shake with style.


A Tropical Christmas
So the weather wasn't very Christmassy, although it's getting chilly now, but I was still impressed/surprised/maybe a little dismayed to see so much effort going into a Christian holiday in a country that isn't really Christian. That said, Christianity is popular in China, and growing, although the more obvious reason for the adoption is, of course, moneymoneymoney.
It's no-way near as obviously Christian as S.Korea where there's a giant church and a beaming cross on every street corner (I shit you not, they do it Jesus style.)

This popped up in the middle of the city centre:


...And the trees are all snowing neon.


Haagen Dazs is utterly extortionate, xmas trees or not.


But the Tiramasu is almost worth it.


Xmas day dinner.
















NEXT: More pictures of things, no doubt. I'll get to the arcades, I know I'm cockteasing - but there's quite a lot of resizing/compiling to be done with this stuff. Taken me about 2 hours to do this update (!) so anyone who doesn't like the thread can go skin their knees with a cheese grater. Merry Christmas!

Never been to China let alone Nanning, now's the chance for a visit

I promise you an awesome time. Let me know when the ticket's booked.

Inequality has always been a hot topic since the revolutionary took place. No, no matter how hard you try, you can't improve the living standard of a whole city to some same certain level simultaneously. And humanity is far complicated when it comes to personal interest.

In its simplicity, this really nails the point I've been driving at for a long time. Change takes time. Change for billions even longer. There's no point in staunch negativity when there's progress being made. Also, cool that you were here for 4 years, this thread will no doubt bring back memories, and perhaps surprise you to see how much has changed. Stick around for the shmups!

I keep forgetting to send you your Senkaku Islands T-Shirt. It's on the way now.. and marked as such on the customs form!

Hey thanks GP! I picked up that shirt you wanted too. I do agree it's kinda your fashion taste, should look good on you. On the way buddy.



Political waffling, skip as required

I hope that you know that the mountain people you describe would be targeted by riot police if they stay longer than one week in the city, as they are not resident.

Well firstly, they're everywhere, I can't imagine how anyone would enforce such an act with any ubiquity. Secondly, they've been around unmolested for a lot longer than a week. Thirdly, I wish they would be run out of town, the thieving bastards. There's not a great deal of law enforcement here, the most I've seen are council officers on patrol and a bunch of unauthorised road blocking street sellers making a 30 second getaway. It's quite fun when that happens actually, it's in good spirits and amazing to see how fast they disappear... and then reappear shortly thereafter.

The credit for bailing China from complete misery goes to Mao first and foremost... Deng made inroads into integrating China into the global economy by turning it into the main supplier of cheap labor to top capitalist countries.

But then I still like to see people living at a higher standard. I don't consider Deng's reforms to be anything short of revolutionary in their speed and efficiency in changing the fortunes of the destitute and dying. Cheap labor is a masterstroke that may have asked a lot, but has served to create much in its wake. Mao's methods and policies are indefensible for the most part, what with the disastrous results of the cultural revolution, the deaths of countless millions, and the destruction of any quantifiable education through re-education.

Perhaps I do consider skyscrapers, Starbucks and Louis Vuitton to be a kind of advancement, which, upon examining the point, I realise is rather saddening. To identify materialism, such that I detest generally while living in the west, as being a mark of improvement in a foreign culture begs I redefine my thinking. The truth is, the connection to the old culture has great allure: night markets bustling with food vendors, mahjong games, hole in the wall kitchens, chickens running all over the place, and beautiful natural countryside are certainly more inimitable than KFC and Nike.

[Randorama]

Well firstly, they're everywhere, I can't imagine how anyone would enforce such an act with any ubiquity. Secondly, they've been around unmolested for a lot longer than a week. Thirdly, I wish they would be run out of town, the thieving bastards. There's not a great deal of law enforcement here, the most I've seen are council officers on patrol and a bunch of unauthorised road blocking street sellers making a 30 second getaway. It's quite fun when that happens actually, it's in good spirits and amazing to see how fast they disappear... and then reappear shortly thereafter.

Not a bad thing. But I was aiming at the fact that, in China, citizens are only those that come frome the city, the rest is cheap labour, in their own countries, and tend to do what they can to get by: say, steal luxury items. If in Nanning they do not endorse an atrocious law, that's good news, isn't it? Etc. Etc.

Luckily, you're getting some facts straight:

The truth is, the connection to the old culture has great allure: night markets bustling with food vendors, mahjong games, hole in the wall kitchens, chickens running all over the place, and beautiful natural countryside are certainly more inimitable than KFC and Nike.

I have no fucking clue on how you can like Ajisen ramen, though. But then again, I enjoy eating scorpions and larvae, when I am in Beijing.

[shmuppyLove]

We have Ajisen Ramen here in Toronto (well, Markham/Richmond Hill), and I've never been disappointed by a meal there.

I didn't know they were so international!

[GaijinPunch]

Hey thanks GP! I picked up that shirt you wanted too. I do agree it's kinda your fashion taste, should look good on you. On the way buddy.

I'll take two!

[Skykid]

I'll take two!

How about the Alt. Limited Edition, only 20pcs available?

Quoting Mao: The Unknown Story now... Could you stoop any lower than that?

Dunno if it's a low stoop as such (it's touted as legitimate historical reading material rather than the sensationalised propaganda it turned out to be) but yeah, I like my factual evidence a but less diluted with raw fiction, so I get your point.

I have no fucking clue on how you can like Ajisen ramen, though.

Ajisen is exceptionally good! I can swear by that after being spoiled daily on amazing foodstuffs (and ramen in Japan.) No idea why anyone wouldn't love it, unless they make it differently (better?) here?
Better than barbequed pig dick, even.

Not a bad thing. But I was aiming at the fact that, in China, citizens are only those that come frome the city, the rest is cheap labour, in their own countries, and tend to do what they can to get by: say, steal luxury items. If in Nanning they do not endorse an atrocious law, that's good news, isn't it?

Well, there certainly aren't jobs for everyone. There are a lot of jobless Han Chinese who hang around watching bad street Karaoke, dudes painting calligraphy with their toes, and playing Chinese chess. The Xinjian people are far more enterprising: many have their own food vendor carts. You can spot them because they look different ethnically, similar to Turks. 5 years ago I didn't see any, but the changing economic profile just draws them to the nearest capital.

Non-Han ethnicities are fairly well respected here, or tolerated at least: they won't be getting a job in investment banking any time soon, but no-one bothers them. I appreciate it's difficult to come from rural dwellings with no education and find equal opportunities, but then they're partially to blame, since they've given themselves a bad name. I think a crackdown is actually in order, such is the pickpocketing issue.

[nZero]

Man I want that shirt for my next jaunt to Japan. I'll have to go see if they have anything like that next time I'm browsing the fake market. Need to get some DIAOYU merchandise too, but there's plenty of that around.

(Ignore this if you find it hard to understand, the user has limited language capabilities) Inequality has always been a hot topic since the revolutionary took place. No, no matter how hard you try, you can't improve the living standard of a whole city to some same certain level simultaneously. And humanity is far complicated when it comes to personal interest.

Well said.

And I still need to stop in at Lie Huo during peak hours. If you see a foreigner in a panda hat playing SDOJ or Raiden IV feel free to say hi.

[x91]

If you see a foreigner in a panda hat playing SDOJ or Raiden IV feel free to say hi.

I'll keep that in mind. See you then

[Randorama]

Ajisen is exceptionally good! I can swear by that after being spoiled daily on amazing foodstuffs (and ramen in Japan.) No idea why anyone wouldn't love it, unless they make it differently (better?) here?

Mind you, I grew up in a culture in which even mid-sized restaurants are despised, let alone generic big chains. Mass food is for the Yankees. So, my allergy to Aijsen (and: KFC, Starbucks, Wagamama, etc.) is also based on them being a big chain. But then again, you're from a fastfoodland and went to McDonald's, didn't you? *raises accusing index finger*

Still, considering where you are, I think that any traditional noodle shop (the Kung-Fu Hustler variety) is much better. I am presupposing that you're visiting the in-laws.The best you can do is go and order by yourself, with no family to help you, and get a conversation going with the locals. I did this several times in Beijing, and it always worked a charm. Of course I don't speak Mandarin enough to chat, but the awesome power of Italian gestures and body language got me going well enough.

The best you can find is a type of shop that prepares noodles on the fly, by amassing the dough as clients come in. In that case, you are certain that what you eat is freshly made, which beats any big-chain, mass-produced garbage. You should also be able to see how noodles are prepared, which is something you may have not seen, yet.

Ok, enough posting, I am hungry.

Non-Han ethnicities are fairly well respected here, or tolerated at least: they won't be getting a job in investment banking any time soon, but no-one bothers them. I appreciate it's difficult to come from rural dwellings with no education and find equal opportunities, but....

...the Chinese system treats them as foreigners in their own country, especially because non-Han. You should know this, too.

[Skykid]

...the Chinese system treats them as foreigners in their own country, especially because non-Han. You should know this, too.

I'm not totally familiar with ethnic divisions or prejudices, although 'tension' I'm aware of. However, I put forth your note regarding riot police ejecting non-residents from Chinese cities after a week to an editor of the Guanxi newspaper (an arm of the CCP, of course) and he had no idea what you were talking about. He said anyone with an ID card has freedom to enter and exit a city at will. We spent dinner decrying Mao's political history, so he's not an individual with a patriotic defense mechanism, but I'm sure they'll be interested in the evidence if you can give me a synopsis.

Mind you, I grew up in a culture in which even mid-sized restaurants are despised, let alone generic big chains. Mass food is for the Yankees. So, my allergy to Aijsen (and: KFC, Starbucks, Wagamama, etc.) is also based on them being a big chain. But then again, you're from a fastfoodland and went to McDonald's, didn't you? *raises accusing index finger*

Eh, I've never ordered anything in McDonalds except the coffee. I totally understand an allergy to chains, although Ajisen is simply very tasty. Most of our meals are home cooked or street market culture food at around 6 Yuan a bowl. Great eating.

What do we gain from sweeping this terrible man's terrible utterances under the rug? A justification of a revolution? Hooray! The revolution could have happened without these excesses.

On the back of my earlier response, I agree with this: there was no 'revolution' under Mao, just degeneration. It's not really possible to drag positivity out of the man's reign: his methodology was utterly backward and wholeheartedly disastrous. [/Redacted for great incorrect phrasing/]

Man I want that shirt for my next jaunt to Japan. I'll have to go see if they have anything like that next time I'm browsing the fake market.

I can grab it for you if you want. Funny, having been to Shanghai, there isn't really a 'fake' market in Nanning as such. These shirts, incidentally, are in a pretty neat clothing shop with some nice styles. I haven't seen anything like them anywhere else.

Also, if one were to take the message just mildly out of context, it reads like an extremely concise yet exceptionally productive gaijin tourist recommendation.




And you lucky so and so, SDOJ in Shanghai!? Highest Cave we have here is DFK 1.5. Might have to start making requests.

[Ed Oscuro]

Well, if Mao was a Soviet puppet he certainly rebelled against it...again in a rather disastrous fashion. Radar bases? I don't want to hear about it again!

[Randorama]

He said anyone with an ID card has freedom to enter and exit a city at will. We spent dinner decrying Mao's political history, so he's not an individual with a patriotic defense mechanism, but I'm sure they'll be interested in the evidence if you can give me a synopsis.

Ask him how easy is to get an ID card in Guanxi for the non-citizens, or a residence permit in the city. Good chances are that it is not that easy, not in the least, although not impossible. I do not know anyone who was born in a big city, so each of my friends and ex-girlfriends had to apply for permits, to reside and/or study. There is more than one paper that touches this topic, in the collections of essays I gave you.

Eh, I've never ordered anything in McDonalds except the coffee. I totally understand an allergy to chains, although Ajisen is simply very tasty. Most of our meals are home cooked or street market culture food at around 6 Yuan a bowl. Great eating.

How easy is to get fish and crab? If crab is accessible, then you need to binge-eat it for great justice.

...And btw: aside pig's cock, what other "delicacies" have you eaten? Southern Chinese provinces should have their fair share of exotic food, too.

[Skykid]

Well, if Mao was a Soviet puppet he certainly rebelled against it...again in a rather disastrous fashion. Radar bases? I don't want to hear about it again!

Apologies, I redacted that statement for the stupidity of its rushed phrasing. I meant he sought and utilised the favour of the Soviets to get into power, where he continued to anger them no end by exercising his own political machinations/tyranny. So yep, I'm with you.

Ask him how easy is to get an ID card in Guanxi for the non-citizens, or a residence permit in the city. Good chances are that it is not that easy, not in the least, although not impossible.

Okay, I'll mention it next time we meet, although this sounds a little more like permanent resettlement stonewalling than riot police rounding up rural dwellers in barbed wire trucks and driving them off a cliff somewhere. Maintaining an equilibrium in a city is another facet contributing to inequality, sadly, but hardly dissimilar to a world where aborigines can keep the desert for themselves and black people end up in the worst public housing districts money doesn't want to buy. As much as it would be nice to welcome all the mountain herders to move to China's big cities and sell their goats on the street corner, it's not conducive to growing economic sectors or tourism, so I can understand regulation for obtaining residence from one location to the next (how ever grossly unfair the rabbit hole may go) when there are so many complex factors to balance.

How easy is to get fish and crab? If crab is accessible, then you need to binge-eat it for great justice.

...And btw: aside pig's cock, what other "delicacies" have you eaten? Southern Chinese provinces should have their fair share of exotic food, too.

Well I haven't eaten any other animal's 'delicates', lol... except the calf testicle I was tricked into eating many moons ago (do not recommend.)
Otherwise, all sorts of stuff. A history of famine has made Chinese people rather resourceful where food is concerned. Cow throat, chicken lung, sheep skin (tough, that one), oysters, squid, all varieties of fish, pigeon, etc etc. Crab is better in different regions, so we had that in Guilin. Was better than the Hokkaido Hakodate crab, impressively, said city's Izakaya speciality.

I have seen some dog available, which I missed out on in Korea, but I'll be damned if I can convince my significant other to order any.

[nZero]

Only crab I've had so far was the freshwater hairy crab/mitten crab on a University staff trip to Suzhou, and only males (no roe) since it was so late in the season, but it was exceptionally fresh and delicious.

I can grab it for you if you want.

Yes, please!

Party hard tonight, and see you in 2013

[Skykid]

Party hard tonight, and see you in 2013

For sure, have a good one!

I can't imagine you're too serious about the Fuck Japan T-shirt, even though it is pretty damn stylish (and good for getting Chinese students into bed I hear). If for some reason I've completely misunderstood the train of humour, however, PM me.

[Randorama]

Okay, I'll mention it next time we meet, although this sounds a little more like permanent resettlement stonewalling than riot police rounding up rural dwellers in barbed wire trucks and driving them off a cliff somewhere. Maintaining an equilibrium in a city is another facet contributing to inequality, sadly, but hardly dissimilar to a world where aborigines can keep the desert for themselves and black people end up in the worst public housing districts money doesn't want to buy.

Never said the contrary, though. Laws to this effect existed in Europe, too, until the 19th century, the early 20th in our "ancestral" home, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and displayed a deeply conservative, segregationist policy that was swept away by the liberal reforms. China will eventually catch up with Europe on key democratic issues (ask about the proliferation of humanitarian NGOs, since you're there), but for the moment they still a lot to do.

As much as it would be nice to welcome all the mountain herders to move to China's big cities and sell their goats on the street corner, it's not conducive to growing economic sectors or tourism, so I can understand regulation for obtaining residence from one location to the next (how ever grossly unfair the rabbit hole may go) when there are so many complex factors to balance.

Not all citizens from outside a city are herders, though, and nevertheless they get the same kind of treatment. The earlier chinese society gets rid of this problem (see above), the better.

Well I haven't eaten any other animal's 'delicates', lol... except the calf testicle I was tricked into eating many moons ago (do not recommend.)
Otherwise, all sorts of stuff. A history of famine has made Chinese people rather resourceful where food is concerned. Cow throat, chicken lung, sheep skin (tough, that one), oysters, squid, all varieties of fish, pigeon, etc etc. Crab is better in different regions, so we had that in Guilin. Was better than the Hokkaido Hakodate crab, impressively, said city's Izakaya speciality.

Ah, you're mentioning all dishes that are "delicacies" in most of continental Europe, too. I am fairly sure that whenever poverty was a factor in the past (e.g. rotten fish/stuff in Scandinavia, too), then "exotic food" emerged. Surprisingly, when I mentioned that animal brains and cheese with worms are considered a "delicacy", in my hometown, even the most food-hardened people rolled their eyes.

Besides, yes, good chinese and korean crab is better than even the Hakodate one, although a fairly well-kept secret.

[CHI]

Never been to China let alone Nanning, now's the chance for a visit

I promise you an awesome time. Let me know when the ticket's booked.

Ticket's been booked...
Hong Kong 7th-28th March...
As mentioned before, i'm thinking popping over to Nanning on the 18th for a week, still early days, let me know...
PS: i'll sort out the ticket and visa once i'm in HK

[Skykid]

Letter Three: December 30th 2012

So in the UK, leisure activities for people, young and old, mostly tends to revolve around going to the pub. You work, you go to the pub; you go to the cinema, you go to the pub; you go to dinner, you go to the pub.

I always figured the UK's heavy drinking culture was largely to do with climate, which is sucky enough most of the year to encourage indoor rather than outdoor activities.

Chinese people are more imaginative with their leisure time - a lot of which revolves around eating, given - but it was kind of a pleasant excursion to jump in a car and go strawberry picking: something I wouldn't normally ever think to do. Here, strawberries are an unusually expensive fruit, so driving outside of the city to a big field to pick them is considered fun and economical at the same time (you pay by basket weight for your picks, and it works out relatively cheap.)

And yep, this is December 30th weather. Pretty nuts, but the temperature has dived since then.



Somewhere outside of the city limits.


Da gang.














The haul (came to about £4 GBP)


The weigh-in.




Some countryside kids living in a countryside shack.


...And their chickens (loose, but not smart enough to run for their lives.)


And then afterwards, hotpot again.