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07/29/11--03:34: Hakka Culture Museum in Longgang District :: (chan 2514700)

Event Date: Jul 27 Place Name: Crane Lake Fortified Hakka Village & Hakka Culture Museum var OutbrainPermaLink = 'http://www.shenzhenparty.com/art-exhibition/photos/crane-lake-fortified-hakka-villa/118002-hakka-culture-museum-longgang-di';var OB_raterMode = 'none';var OB_recMode = 'strip';var OBITm = '1306491987';var OB_langJS = 'http://widgets.outbrain.com/lang_en.js'; var OB_showRec = false; if ( typeof(OB_Script)!='undefined' )OutbrainStart();else {var OB_Script = true; var str = ""; document.write(str);}


07/29/11--05:00: Come Out for Jing Pride: Grace Su Dishes on the Closing Party :: (chan 2514700)

We already got a taste of the growing Pride movement back in May, when Beijing celebrated International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO) for the third year in a row. Now we're nearing the end of the biggest Jing Pride we've had to date. We spoke to one of the organizers, Grace Su, about Beijing's LGBT community, sex toys and what to expect from tomorrow's closing party. What's your story? Where are you from and how'd you get involved? Iwas born in Beijing and grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area until now. I've always loved the vibe of Pride – people are just crazy and happy to be themselves. The Jing has some of the craziest people, so let's get that crazy out of them. read more


07/29/11--06:38: 天橋 :: (chan 2514700)

天橋= tin kiu:overhead walkway (sky bridge) Things I have seen people doing on this bridge:1.Taking a photo2.Having a cigarette break3. Practicing Tai Chi4. Taking a nap5. Eating rice from a lunch box6. Carrying out a land survey7. Flying a remote-controlled model helicopterLike lists? All content © 2011 Emilie Pavey


07/29/11--19:00: One Month of High-Speed Travel :: (chan 2514700)

One month ago Beijingers, China, and the global media were held captive by the long-awaited start of the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed train. Since then, the news has shifted from high expectations to underwhelming reality as trains broke down, stations crumbled and smiles turned to tears. read more


07/30/11--02:43: EU vox populi on rights, China and Ai Weiwei :: (chan 2514700)




07/30/11--03:48: China Polluting the Yangtze River-Water Pollution in China :: (chan 2514700)

These photos from this site show the Chinese doing what they do best. Killing something so they can earn a pennie. This body of water is a tributary of the Yangtze in Wuhan and the Chinese are helping to suck out all that nasty 02 and fill it with essential nutrients like human waste, tin and old computers. This is all part of the peaceful rise of China.Damn I miss Mao….


07/30/11--04:00: Easy Izakaya: Sanma No Aji :: (chan 2514700)

New Japanese restaurants are a trending topic in Gulou lately. Suzuki is cool and cheap, but the food is hit-and-miss. Kiko needs customers like a whale needs Greenpeace. And as for Yoshi Izakaya, that was an insult to sticky rice grains everywhere. This place is the first Gulou Japanese that feels right as soon as you walk in. read more


07/30/11--05:29: Peaceful China Cajoles Toddlers into Athletes for the Olympics :: (chan 2514700)

China likes to win medals in the Olympics, it makes people forget how badly this place sucks. In order to win medals, however, there must be rules. Strict rules, and who cares if the toddlers to not understand them, after all, its all about the glory of the motherland.photos from mop.com here


07/30/11--09:47: Shanghai's Pairs sign with Beijing label make album :: (chan 2514700)

This is a weird one to report and I'll reproduce the e-mail from Pairs' Xiao Zhong giving the exact situation. ... anyway, I'm going to annoy him by reporting it a certain way first, it's a point of pride for me as a Shanghai scene person. So, after a dynamite first year that saw Shanghai band Pairs explode onto the scene, tour the country and even end up onstage at Modern Sky's festival in Beijing ... they were signed by Beijing label Maybe Mars's offshoot Maybe Noise following a show at Raying Temple. This follows the footsteps of Eight Eye Spy and Shanghai's own Muscle Snog. Yes! ... well sort of ... You see, Pairs are committed to the DIY approach and brokered a more low key deal with producer Yang Haisong that didn't involve being attached to a label name. Also, to be honest, that is pretty much what Maybe Noise do anyway and it's not really being 'signed' so to speak. Also ... props to the DIY ethic. The recording is done, and the album will be out late September. Here's what Xiao Zhong had to say: We played a show at Raying Temple in Beijing and Yang Haisong came along and saw us, then he said he produces records for Modern Sky and Maybe Mars and if we wanted to go that route, we could work it out. We said we'd rather do it with you freelance stlyle. So that's how it came about. We booked two days in the studio, but did everything in 4.5 hours. Everything from setting up mics, testing levels, doing 14 songs an taking some breaks to creep around.F and I are doing it all ourselves. Each CD has been hand folded, hand numbered, hand stickered, hand stamped and there is a DVD. No labels. Maybe Noise offered but we didn't think it would work out for a few different reasons. But anyway, Pairs and Duck Fight Goose full albums on the way. Duh, winning!


07/30/11--11:12: Chinese Enslaved the Africans in the 7th Century :: (chan 2514700)

I knew that China is re-enslaving Africans, but didn’t know they had done it in the past as well.excerpt from here:“Yes, it seems Chinese indeed used black slaves probably from 7th century. See below. “Beginning in the Tang dynasty, Arab traders brought a number of East African slaves to China. Although historians have studied the African slave trade extensively, particularly the export of West African slaves to the Americas after 1500, a much smaller body of research focuses on the premodern East African slave trade, and fewer sources still mention black slaves in China. From the eighth to the fourteenth centuries; the Arabs controlled this vast slave trade, which stretched not only along the entire coast of East Africa and throughout the Arab world but as far east as China. Black slaves were just one of many commodities in the Arabs’ large-scale maritime trade with China, which peaked during the Tang and Song dynasty (960-1275). The Jiu Tang shu 舊唐書 (Former Tang history) mentions that the Arabs sent delegates to the Chinese court in 651, marking the first recorded official contact between the Chinese government and the Arab caliphate. By the ninth century, a sizable community of Arabs lived in Guangzhou, and the local residents could have seen African slaves on trading ships and in Arab homes. Some wealthy Chinese people even owned African slaves, whom they used as doorkeepers.”quote via this link The Magical Kunlun and “Devil Slaves”: Chinese Perceptions of Dark-skinned People and Africa before 1500


07/30/11--19:52: FUD Factor and aluminium :: (chan 2514700)

Decades ago, IBM sales people used to sell mainframe computers (I am talking back in the days when computers filled entire rooms), based on the FUD factor.   “Of course, you could choose not to buy IBM…” they would say with raised eyebrow. The FUD factor is Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt, and if you were a buyer of mainframe computers, that’s exactly what you had to face in the buying decision. Were you brave enough to step away from the safety of IBM? Today, the FUD factor is at work again in China’s aluminium market.   Shanghai spot aluminium prices have risen 5% in the last week, largely due to the market fearing that shortages of the light metal were imminent.   Power shortages, delays to start-ups of new smelting capacity, government actions to eliminate old inefficient capacity, and an expectation that the economy was still on track in all the key consumption sectors, all combined to create fear in the market. In fact, the fear has been rising progressively in the last few weeks.   The market has been in backwardation since June, a reflection that longer term, the sector is likely to be in balance. The question is, has the market really got something to worry about?   We think there is a certain amount of over-reaction in the price.   There have been some delays to new smelters, thanks to a shortage of building materials in Xinjiang.   But the electricity shortage has so far not seriously affected supply to the market, and with the price so high, smelters across China are gearing up to extract every tonne of metal they can, and maximise their profitability. AZ China will be examining the situation in more detail in our next monthly report, due out the week after next.  


07/30/11--20:26: How many flashcards does it take to change a lightbulb? :: (chan 2514700)

Some people do it daily (some people wish they did it daily!), and others only do it infrequently, or even never. For me, spending time on flashcards has become an (almost) daily routine. I have recently already written that you should just do it, about how effective it has been for me, and to tell you how to test whether you should be using flashcards - so take a look if you haven't seen those articles. In this next in the series, I wanted to go personal (yes, even more personal than writing about my love affair - In fact, I'm going to let you look into my actual set of flashcards, through sample sentences, numbers & dates. Deck StatisticsAnki has a feature which gives you a whole bunch of facts about your specific deck. Here are some of mine, covering the deck itself, as well as how I've used it. total numbers deck created 2.1 years ago total number of 'facts' is 1530 (a fact contains english, pinyin, simplified hanzi and (sometimes) traditional hanzi too) total number of cards is 3680 (in the early days, a fact only generated two cards: english-to-pinyin & pinyin-to-english; but after a while I extended it to three: english-to-pinyin/simplified/traditional, simplified-to-english/pinyin/traditional, pinyin-to-english/simplified/traditional) according to Anki, 76% of my cards are 'mature' (I've basically seen these often enough that they're 'known', 6% are 'young' (I'm currently actively working through them), and 18% are unseen. activity In the last week I did 500 cards, averaging about 70 a day. According to Anki, I missed one day in the last week. My average over the last 3 months is 45 cards a day, and over the last year is 52 cards a day. Since the deck was created, I have averaged 53 cards a day, and used Anki just under 5 days a week. Since the beginning, I have added less than 5 cards a day, but this has only been around 2 a day in the last year. (Remember that by entering a single 'fact' Anki automatically generates a number of 'cards' - so I would say this averages about 2 new physical entries a day, that's all.) sample entries From humble beginnings ... The first six entries in my deck are: (know / zhīdào / 知道), (formal / zhèngshì / 正式), (about / guānyú / 关于), (accept,approve / tóngyì / 同意), (after / zhīhòu / 之后), (agree / shuōhǎo / 说好). To a long way down the line ... The six latest entries are: profit commission adjustment request / 盈佣调整询问函 There were a lot of groupies at the Michael Jackson concert in Japan / 迈克尔·杰克逊在日本的演唱会招来了许多追星族 to accumulate over a long period of time / 日积月累 Unless you say it so that your word becomes another, then it's no problem / 除非你说的词变成另外一个词，否则没问题 tomorrow;daybreak / 明天;天明 You have to tighten up the handle, it has become loose / 柄松动了，你得把螺丝拧紧 I think you'll agree that I've improved my skill level over the last two years! And don't let this mislead you ... I don't know all the latest ones. For example, I recently needed to know the word 'loose' while talking to someone and realised I didn't know how to say that. So I looked it up in the dictionary, found a good sentence, and entered it into my deck. A few weeks will pass before this sentence comes up to the top of the pack, and then I will 'learn' it through spaced-repetition. So that's me If you'd like to share some of your desk statistics, I'd love to see them - whether you're a beginner or really advanced. Most interestingly, I would love it if you could leave a comment below to say what your first few words were, what your most recent entries are, and what the time period is in between. And if you've just started a deck of your own, perhaps since reading this series on flashcards, let us know what your first few entries have been.


07/31/11--16:00: The Consequences of a Story :: (chan 2514700)

Life's being a bit hectic on this side of the internet, so this is a post I wrote a while ago but never put up here. It pretty much still stands, though :) While you guys read this, I'll be working on the round 2 edits for WHAT'S LEFT OF ME I just got from my editor! Yay! Also, recovering from the Jacksonville trip with the other LTWF girls. Harry Potter World was very cool, though the butterbeer


12/06/11--10:59: Tang Jun: Chinese Enterprises Better Avoid Cloud Computing :: chinadecoder (chan 2514700)

Tang Jun, former president of Microsoft China, said at an annual CEO conference held by IT Time Weekly on December 6 that "cloud computing" is a form of commercial hype. Tang elaborated that as cloud computing is still in an early standards-setting stage, Chinese enterprises had best avoid the concept ...


12/10/11--18:26: ‘The’ Sichuan Hotpot Restaurant :: (chan 2514700)

In 2008 there was a catastrophic earthquake in Sichuan. The death toll was in the thousands. This tragedy was my first taste of the unity of a people . I was in Shenzhen at the time and when the government … Continue reading →


12/11/11--01:28: China Organ Harvesting: Some Perspective :: China Letter (chan 2514700)

A recent article “The Xinjiang Procedure” revisits a perennial topic of organ harvesting from executed prisoners in China. In this lengthy look at organ harvesting the author Ethan Gutmann in The Weekly Standard  focuses on organs being harvested from executed  prisoners in China particularly Uyghur prisoners in Xinjiang. It undoubtedly is written to paint an invocative and horrendous


12/13/11--14:59: Meagan is the AMAZING Community Manager for Tomb Raider at... :: Geek & Chin (chan 2514700)

Meagan is the AMAZING Community Manager for Tomb Raider at Crystal Dynamics, and it appears she’s also a great cosplayer. She’s a lot of fun to read, and loves what she’s doing, definitely worth the following. She’s the one who told me to start reading the Gears novels, as they help you better understand the inner motivations for each characters ; and I bought a copy of Madame Mirage right after seeing her costume (and the comics is sooooo cool). If anyone is like me, she’s helping the comic books and novels market facing the crisis :) meagan-marie: If you have a moment check out this very interesting article on the portrayal and treatment of females in nerd culture. I agree with the general sentiment, and understand the practice of placing nerd girls on a pedestal firsthand. The author even mentions “sexy cosplay girls” as the top targets for such behavior.  While I don’t have time to properly jot down all my thoughts on such a complex topic (especially since I enjoy both sexy and realistic interpretations of women in mass media), I am keenly aware that I could be perceived as an offender to the interest of gaining equal gender portrayal in comics and games. The preferential treatment of nerdy females is a particular point I’d like to address, using a familiar subject (myself) as an example.  My hope is that the larger picture redeems my occasional desire to take on a sexy cosplay project. The truth is that while I enjoy garnering attention for my hard work on a costume (be it sexy or badass) I much prefer accolades for my professional work or other artistic endeavors. At Game Informer I was routinely disappointed when my long-lead editorial pieces flew under the radar, but a single snap of myself in costume circulated the Internet. Nowadays I’m ecstatic to spy a magazine feature for one of my SDCC ensembles, but thrive off feedback from the Tomb Raider community stating they appreciate my efforts. I know much of the above has to do with the Internet culture being visually driven and its reductive nature. It seems I can be an attractive cosplayer or competent industry professional, but not both. This reality is one reason I’ve worked hard to showcase that I am multifaceted. I love games, comics, and cosplay, but also indulge in photography, sculpture, creative writing, graphic design, toy customization, and so on. The attention attracted from my most recent bout of costumes has placed me firmly on a pedestal with a number of followers. This is a tricky subject to tackle, as I absolutely appreciate those who enjoy my work. I get the enthusiasm. I’ve fangirled out over artists I personally admire. I even started crying when I met Michael Turner back in 2007. I understand the mentality of perceiving someone as larger-than-life. However to some degree this treatment makes me uncomfortable, and even insecure. Especially when I feel like it’s lavished on me because of my gender or my looks rather than my achievements.   This is especially true when terms like “goddess,” “dream girl,” and “perfection” are thrown around, which seem absolutely ludicrous from my point of view. Sometimes I don’t know how to respond to such comments. Take my Facebook wall for example. Do I “Like” such a comment so to at minimum acknowledge the misguided (but good-intentioned) compliment? Do I ignore it in order to avoid seeming conceded? The tradeoff is then coming across as aloof and inaccessible, which as a Community Manager is a perception I can’t afford to foster. In this capacity it’s always a breath of fresh air when someone compliments my craftsmanship rather than my cleavage, because it’s easy to respond with genuine appreciation. Funny enough, this pedestal placement has increased my insecurities rather than bolstered my confidence. I honestly fear meeting fans in person and being greeted with disappointment when they realize I’m not perfect. I’m not a fabled and rare creature – a unicorn. I’m just me. This is why I’ve recently made a point to post photos of myself without makeup, or working on a giant sword in comfortable clothing and dorky looking socks. I’m not perfect, and I don’t want to misrepresent myself as so. Just ask my boyfriend, who was previously one of my only male friends to treat me as me. He didn’t sugarcoat advice or fall over himself with the grand gestures others thought I required. He treated me like an equal and a person rather than a caricature created by the Internet. Bottom line: If you do find me sexy, thank you. I won’t be necessarily be offended or uncomfortable if you tell me so. I genuinely hope some of the less superficial aspects of my personality contribute to that attraction, however, and that perhaps you call attention to them as well. What I’m getting at is that not all nerd girls want to be treated special for simply sharing common interests. Perhaps we’d rather be given accolades for the sum of our parts, rather than what you can gather at a glace. Thanks for reading! :)


12/14/11--12:05: 2011 Year in Review: China's Electric Vehicles Disappoint :: chinadecoder (chan 2514700)

"I still have to insist on this viewpoint, whether or not you're willing to listen: Anybody who tells you that electric vehicles are going to pull suddenly ahead in China is lying," said Yin Chengliang, deputy director of Shanghai Jiaotong University's Automotive Engineering Institute, speaking at the 2011 ...


12/16/11--02:41: Min Le Cun Street Food :: (chan 2514700)

About ten years ago Min Le (民乐) was a checkpoint. Anyone entering or leaving Shenzhen would have to have their ID checked by the army. My friend told me stories of how sometimes he would forget to bring his ID … Continue reading →


12/18/11--10:16: When identifying yourself as a White, helps… :: The ugly Chinese Canadian (chan 2514700)

Having grown up in Vancouver, many of my contemporaries saw our ethnicity as a liability.During the 60’s and 70’s, it just wasn’t cool being labelled as a “new Canadian”, or a “FOB (Fresh of the Boat)”. The stigma of being associated with being from what was then considered a third world country – China, Hong ...


12/19/11--02:56: Bull shifts: Modo in Beijing switches to all-Spain wine lineup :: Grape Wall of China (chan 2514700)

~ By Jim Boyce Beijing restaurant Modo has taken the bull by the horns and stuck an all-Spanish lineup into its two enomatic machines. Modo will rotate about 50 wines through the 16 slots over the next few months. To the best of my knowledge, this Sanlitun-based restaurant was the first to use cash card-based [...]


12/20/11--08:00: China’s movie news :: Time Out Beijing (chan 2514700)

Five and a half years ago, the Government banned director Lou Ye (Suzhou River, Spring Fever) from making films after he submitted Summer Palace to the 2006 Cannes Film Festival without the approval of the State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television. The ban ended in September, and now Ye has set to work on his next film, which stars Hao Lei (the female lead from Summer Palace) as a troubled wife who has to deal with her husband and his three mistresses. Read more


12/21/11--11:18: Get screwed by Social Media :: The ugly Chinese Canadian (chan 2514700)

The following item below had been originally posted on Yahoo news, a couple of years back.Yes, our blog has a page on Facebook, but we hadn’t really promoted it. We’re not sure of how and what to make of our “friends” on Facebook. Here’s the link to our “banana Asian” Facebook site: https://www.facebook.com/banana.asianAnd here is ...


12/21/11--13:38: Supermarket Sweep :: (chan 2514700)

Canthy loves shopping in the UK especially for food. The supermarkets here have so much fresh produce and things you cant get in China. She especially likes the organic vegetables and all the meats, hams and other food she can buy at the delicatessen counter. We took Leila with us this afternoon as she knows where all the food is and she wnted to make sure we got what she wanted too. Everytime we go Canthy sweeps the shelves so we end up with a trolley full of stuff. Her only regret is that we cant take it back to China with us.


12/22/11--07:05: Breathing room: China’s 1421 ‘traceable’ wine at Great Hall of The People :: Grape Wall of China (chan 2514700)

~ By Jim Boyce When Randy Lee Svendsen recently asked me to join a group of 12 at the Great Hall of The People to talk about the wine brand 1421, I figured I would be at one of dozens of tables. I wasn’t. There was only that one table in that huge hall — [...]


12/22/11--08:00: NLGX branches out to Beijing International Airport :: Time Out Beijing (chan 2514700)

NLGX, the much-loved hipster store that flanking Nanluoguxiang, has been selling its original-design fashion items to thick-rimmed glasses-wearing fashionistas since 2008. Now they will be opening two new stores in the Beijing Capital International Airport, as the brand breaks into a more international crowd and takes its place as one that can represent an aspect of China’s growing fashion culture. Read more


12/22/11--13:44: Christmas Shopping A Million Pounds Per Minute :: (chan 2514700)

We went into central London as Canthy wanted to do some last minute Christmas shopping and to go around all the designer stores. It was quite busy out and despite the so-called recession in the UK, people seemed to be spending money. We went to all her favourite places including Burberry, Louis Vuitton, and Chanel. I also took her to Selfridges where she fell in love with a pair of Jimmy Choo shoes. Canthy always complains that our wedding anniversary (31st December) is too close to Christmas and New Year so it doesn’t feel like it’s so special. So this year I promised her I would buy her a few big presents to make up for this. Also since having Tanya she hasn’t bought anything for herself in almost a year and a half. She had already given me a wish list so I knew what she wanted so it made things easier. Designer presents are not for everyone but they would be double the price in China. And as I can claim back the VAT it makes them very reasonable, according to Canthy When we got home the TV news reported that today had broken all records for shopping and that customers had spent a million pounds a minute!


12/23/11--01:35: Performing Final Inspection at less than 100% Packed :: Quality Wars - The Fight for Quality Export Product from China (chan 2514700)

I often get asked by my clients: “at what point should we have an inspection of the goods in the factory?”.  This is a good question.  In this post I am referring only to what we call a “Final Inspection”.  This generally indicates that the majority of goods have been produced in the factory (in [...]


12/23/11--01:35: Andrew Reich, InTouch CEO and Quality Wars author, Speaks at AmCham Shanghai and Shanghai CHAINA Conference :: Quality Wars - The Fight for Quality Export Product from China (chan 2514700)

InTouch CEO, Andrew Reich, has been busy this month, participating in several events in the Shanghai area. On November 2nd, Andrew spoke at the 3rd annual CHaINA conference at the Intercontinental Hotel in Shanghai. Andrew led the workshop entitled Quality Control in the Supply Chain – The Long-term Play through 2020 which was attended by [...]


12/23/11--13:44: Santa’s Little Helper :: (chan 2514700)

I love going out on Christmas Eve and doing a last minute shop. We went to Brent Cross, which is a big shopping centre near my sister. Although we had already bought all the presents, I like going out to buy some small impulse stocking fillers. Despite the news report warning of travel chaos the roads were empty and the shops weren’t full. I think most people are waiting for the big Christmas sales, which start on Boxing day. We arrived at my parents in the afternoon and then I wrapped the last of the presents including Canthy’s in a Chanel inspired black and silver paper. Tanya was excited by all the presents, but is still too young to understand what Christmas is all about. She enjoyed just playing with all the boxes, making stacks of presents and then messing all the things up. Christmas is always a stressful time, so it always feels good to have everything done and all the presents under the tree. Now I can finally relax, have a glass of wine and wish all my readers – seasons greetings and a happy Christmas wherever you are.


12/24/11--01:34: Congee Amos :: (chan 2514700)

Today I accomplished a lot. I got married and became a werewolf. Then I got a phone called which forced me to stop playing video games. My friends had gone to a restaurant which had run out of tables and … Continue reading →


12/25/11--15:30: Google - Android activations hit 700K per day! :: MOBIZ (chan 2514700)

The number of activations of Android devices has hit 700,000 per day, though some commentators believe that the latest milestone is evidence that the explosive growth in the Google OS. Google VP Andy Rubin, the firm’s most senior Android exec, tweeted the 700,000 figure recently and also gave some detail on how the firm defines an ‘activation’ via the Google+ social network.‘Activations’ for Google means you go into a store, buy a device, put it on the network by subscribing to a wireless service. In June 2011, Rubin tweeted that there were 500,000 Android activations happening per day, and that the figure was increasing by 4.4 percent a week. A month later (July), in an earnings call, Google said that the daily figure had increased to 550,000. However, while Rubin gave no indication of the weekly growth figure this time round, it is thought that growth has slowed.Either way, the new 700,000 figure equates to 21 million a month, or 250 million a year. This stacks up against estimates which suggest iPhone will sell around 105m and iPad 40m this year. But then that's just two devices against dozens of Androids - and iOS users are far more active and spend more on their devices.


12/27/11--08:00: Masked girl comes to the rescue for Beijing beggars :: Time Out Beijing (chan 2514700)

A young lady wearing tight clothes, a black silk cloak and a blue mask appeared on Christmas Eve in Beijing to distribute food and clothing to homeless people on the streets. Read more


12/27/11--13:05: A Christmas Carol, my Ass :: The ugly Chinese Canadian (chan 2514700)

The BBC produced a 3 part series on Racism a few years back.It was part of the season of programmes broadcasted on the BBC marking the 200th anniversary of the Slave Trade Act 1807, a landmark piece of legislation which abolished the slave trade in the British Empire. The series explores the impact of racism ...


12/27/11--19:45: Holiday phobia :: (chan 2514700)

Read this article on the community site



12/27/11--22:17: Web Comic :: Stupid Pig's China Blog (chan 2514700)

Well, I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb so I no longer have any opinions about politics. However, I am working on a web comic. If you’re interested, here it is: http://fasttallgrowup.blogspot.com/


12/28/11--08:08: Beijing Lists 17 Industries Most in Need of Talent :: (chan 2514700)

Beijing issued its "12th Five Year Plan Human Resource Development Plan" on Wednesday, marking 17 industries most in need of qualified personnel over the next five years. The plan identified more than 280 specific categories of professionals needed across fields including new generation information technology, new energy vehicles, and aeronautics ...


12/29/11--03:32: Double up: China Wine & Spirits acquires DT Asia :: (chan 2514700)

By Jim Boyce China Wines & Spirits (CWS) acquired fellow distributor DT Asia last month and while the news is a bit dated I thought I would post it anyway. From the press release: “[The move] reinforces CWS position on the market, with a larger and stronger portfolio of Icon brands such as Champagne Deutz, [...]


12/29/11--06:47: Pishan Incident: Hotan Re-visited? :: (chan 2514700)

It has been reported that as a result of a "kidnapping" by an Uyghur "terror gang" Chinese police in Pishan, Xinjiang have been involved in a rescue operation that resulted in the death of seven Uyghurs, one policeman and injuries to four others.The incident in Pishan, which is a rural cotton farming town in the Hotan Prefecture and near the major city of Hotan, occurred on Wednesday night


12/29/11--12:35: ChinaBlogTweets Twitter Updates for 2011-12-25 :: China Business Blog (chan 2514700)

The china-business-tweeps Daily is out! http://t.co/xkyWjQ4I ▸ Top stories today via @chinacontact @managingdragon @zhongnanhai # The china-business-tweeps Daily is out! http://t.co/xkyWjQ4I ▸ Top stories today via @chinahush @chinasmack @maxhenry # Merry Christmas everyone! # Stats RT @ChinaDailyEU: Drive…for transparent data: The National Bureau of Statistics will collect data directly… http://t.co/bBMCZACz # ODI power RT @BullishChina: [...]


01/01/12--20:14: Breaking your ESL contract in China :: The China Teaching Web (chan 2514700)

Obtaining a work visa in China has become considerably more difficult during the past few years. It is no longer possible in most places in China to have a tourist visa (L-visa) converted into a working permit. And while it used to be possible to have this processed in Hong Kong, the Chinese government is [...]


01/02/12--22:50: Going Back to Shanghai :: Style Shanghai (chan 2514700)

I spent the holidays in the Philippines which meant I got two weeks free of cold windy temperature. And as I have a few hours left before my flight, I thought of doing some articles on my Hubpages. I wrote an article on how to buy stuff from Taobao. It's not really detailed but more of a summary. Don't worry you'll get it easily. My friend taught me how to do them on Yahoo Messenger, and I didn't


01/03/12--04:02: China and Kim Jong Il :: BeijingReview (chan 2514700)

Upon receiving the news of North Korean strongman Kim Jong-Il's death, China's leading internet video site, Youku.com, carried a black banner at the top of its home page. It's a mark usually reserved for disasters in China. It showed up during the recovery from the devastating Sichuan earthquake in 2008, and again earlier this year after the Wenzhou high-speed train crash. But Kim Jong-Il? His departure from the world stage was hardly a disaster. I could not believe that China actually wanted its people to join in the mourning for this knucklehead. China shares a weird kinship with North Korea, or the DPRK, as we're told to call it. There's a common political and social ideology, but really, that's about it. Yet, a lot of Chinese are envious of the impoverished Hermit Kingdom. Either secretly or overtly, they wish China was more like North Korea, closed to public scrutiny, locked-down from foreign influence, belligerent to its neighbors. When the North Koreans told the foreigners in Pyongyang to take a hike during the mourning period for Kim Jong-Il, you could almost hear Chinese hands applauding the move. The whole big-brother / little-brother relationship between China and the DPRK would probably be OK, except for the fact that Kim Jong-Il had a few flaws. He starved his people, closed-off all international access, rejected technology that would have helped economic development, backed the kidnapping of foreign nationals, shelled and killed islanders in rival South Korea, exploded nuclear weapons, and launched short-range missiles over Japan. This guy was a wrongheaded deadbeat from start to finish, and the Chinese should have been happy to see him go. If China wants to be all buddy-buddy with the region's most destabilizing nation, fine. But it's hardly the mark of world leadership, even third world leadership.


01/03/12--04:22: CCTV Chinese New Year's Gala :: BeijingReview (chan 2514700)

This month will mark the start of the Year of the Dragon, and the renewal of a traditional rite of the Chinese family New Year celebration. Hundreds of millions of television viewers will watch the state-run TV network's annual variety show. The CCTV Chinese New Year's Eve gala is an entertainment marathon, produced live at the China Central Television main studio in Beijing. It is a broadcast that has, over the years, been designed to unite the country in much the same way that old American TV shows like "Sabado Gigante" and "The Ed Sullivan Show" did in the 1960s and 1970s. While the American TV universe has exploded to include a thousand channels of entertainment, Chinese viewers still basically receive around 3 dozen channels, virtually all government-controlled. In the end, people in China watch what their government wants them to watch. On the night before the Chinese New Year, the people are supposed to watch 4 consecutive hours of state-sanctioned music, dancing, comedy, and speechmaking. For Americans and other foreigners who wax nostalgic for such programs of their youth, the CCTV show isn't so bad. The content recalls Sunday evenings watching mop-topped British pop singers, wise-cracking puppet mice, and acrobats spinning plates on sticks. I happen to spend a lot of time at CCTV and get to see the Chinese performers rehearsing for this mega-colossal supershow, and can't help but admire their hard work and dedication. Yet each year, the Gala exposes a generational split in modern Chinese society that's impossible to ignore. Young Chinese cannot bear to watch this show. They feel that it's old-fashioned and out-of-sync with their lives, not to mention the expectation that it is required viewing in the family living room next to their parents, grandparents, and cousins. Yuk! Kids who express their preference to play video games or surf the internet until the midnight fireworks start are harshly reprimanded. The youngsters would rather lock themselves in their rooms in silence rather than watch ethnic dances and lame magicians, or hear patriotic songs. It's roughly like forcing a skater punk in the USA to sit down and listen to Pat Boone and Lee Greenwood, amid the occasional sketch comedy of Red Skelton (if he was still alive) and rip-roaring, down-home bluegrass from Dixie. Of course, the truth is that when these kids in China grow up to become adults, it's expected that they sit down in the living room with their children, and watch this very same show 20 years from now. And they probably will. On the other hand, nothing like MTV has ever reached the vast majority of Chinese youth, but music videos on the internet have. One gets the feeling the fireworks have yet to begin.


01/04/12--20:57: For Cough and Cold :: Style Shanghai (chan 2514700)

Just came back from 28 Celsius temp to now 5 C in Shanghai. I often get cough and cold this way and again no voice. These two are recommended by my friends here. They have instructions at the back in English.


01/08/12--19:43: A China Joint-Venture Survival Guide. 22 Facts and 22 Practical Tips. :: Foreign Entrepreneurs in China (chan 2514700)

Joint-Ventures (J-V) in China can go well, and can also go very wrong. When the latter is the case, problems come up from where you less expect them. “Mike Smith” (not his real name) spent two years in rural China supervising his employer’s interest in a Chinese joint venture where they were the majority partner (deal signed before he landed there). His case falls within the second category I’ve mentioned (I would in fact say that all that could go wrong went wrong) but that has given him invaluable lessons on how to ensure things are done right. He has also met on the way a number of joint-ventures facing quite similar challenges to the ones he experienced. We met to talk about his time representing the foreign partner and I’ve drafted a series entitled “A Joint-Venture Survival Guide” composed of three posts based on his experiences, opinions, tips and comments . A Joint-Venture Survival Guide (I).(First 8 Facts and 5 Tips) Some introductory thoughts1. China is a noble and good society… but when it comes to doing business, the value system changes. Ripping off a foreigner may be seen as a clever thing rather than a bad one. 2. Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou are in a universe of their own. Drive just 100 km away into central China and reality changes. It is a hardship environment and corruption is readily encountered. 3. You may have successfully set up joint-ventures and businesses in other countries. Do not assume China is going to be the same. You are lost without an expert if you are going to deal with a local partner.“My company had successfully set up J-Vs across the world, and nowhere did they face the situations they faced here. They assumed they knew it all, and that was a big mistake”. “The Essentials”4. The foundations for your success will be laid before you sign the deal.Preliminary work is essential, and I cannot stress this enough. Once you have signed you are helpless. And later on, once your million dollars are in China, you will not be able to get them out unless you exit the J-V. There is plenty of room for disaster so make sure you dig into every single hole to figure out where the problems may be.! Tip: This is the time to get as much information as you need. You need to be able to access all books, information about operational manual, … You may hear the somewhat overused sentence “What is the problem? Don´t you trust me?”. Well it is not about trust, it is about business, and companies that have nothing to hide will share the information with you. 5.Confidentiality and know-how protection will be difficult in a small cities. All the legal issues about this will be judged in the city in which it happens, which means that if you have a company in Shanghai and someone “copies” your product in Ningxia, the legal procedure will be carried out in Ningxia so you will be dealing with all the difficulties of operating in a place that is not a business hub.! Tip: We are a European SME. If that is also your case you canhave free brief advice from the European Chambers of Commerce. Also a free advice for intellectual property, copy right, etc in China IPR SME Helpdesk. 6. A GOOD consultant/advisor: Priceless.You need real in-depth expertise to pull this one off successfully:! Tip: “J-V conflict resolution and dissolution in China is really complicated compared to other countries. Consultant/Advisor companies have an instinct for knowing the real situation” 7.[On consultants] … But find the one suited to your size“The reality on the ground for SMEs is quite different to that of MNCs. We don’t have their leverage and muscle power and we deal with different issues/situations. It is essential to get on board a very good consultant but I wouldn’t recommend one of the big ones. I think they are better suited for big companies.”! Tip: MNCs are often interested in high tech, setting up R + D centres, the pharmaceutical industry, medical issues and they will find some decent protection from the Local Government. In the case of SMEs that do business outside big business hubs, protection will be very difficult to guarantee and there will be unimaginable issues unless they hire the right consultant/advisor. And believe me, consultant/advisor big names will not help you to find the back door of your J-V. 8. Sign the right “pre-nup”You obviously don’t want your relationship to go wrong, but if things happen you need to have put in place the right “break-up” conditions.! Tip: Always use the Chinese or Hong Kong Arbitration Court. Most companies feel more comfortable with international arbitration, but what do you do when your Chinese partner doesn’t show up or doesn’t comply with the resolution? It needs to be done in China or Hong Kong where the resolution will be mandatory and enforceable. Coming soon “A Joint-Venture Survival Guide (II)” with more interesting and useful tips to help you navigate a J-V negotiation. Do not forget to subscribe Your email:  


01/08/12--23:24: Booksigning on Jan 17th with John Hung: Does a man need a stint in jail to complete his life experiences? :: (chan 2514700)




01/09/12--13:10: Great Wall with a Toddler or What Was I Thinking? :: Interactive Expat (chan 2514700)

While our day trip to the Great Wall wasn't really all that terrible, we did have a moment where we thought, "What were we thinking?!" From our December 2011 trip to Mutianyu section of the Great Wall Learn from us, save yourself some grief and have a happier China experience if you consider the following.Our son is 15 months old (who I shall refer to as The Boy in the rest of the post) and was an awesome trooper on our trip to China last month. My fears, mostly about kiddie jet lag, were unfounded and we had an amazing time visiting friends and even staying in our old neighborhood.The one touristy thing we did was go to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall about an hour north of Beijing. I have written about Mutianyu beforebecause I really like going there and took all our visitors there... As far as I'm concerned, it's the best all around experience a tourist can have when visiting the Wall. It's not as touristy as Badaling, or as remote as Simitai.Mutianyu is also a good workout for the most exercise conscious people without "doing in" the less fit.My husband and I came to the conclusion though that it's best not to take small children to the Wall until they are more able to walk on their own. The Wall is perfect for kids ages 5 and up because past toddler hood a child can explore without getting into too much trouble, is more capable and have more endurance than a smaller child. We had forgotten just how many steps there are and how many potential head cracking opportunities were to be discovered since The Boy has no qualms about flinging himself off great heights and running down steps.Why did I think he would walk along enjoying the views like we would? It shall remain one of my greatest lapses of reason so far.While Beijing's weather wasn't as cold as we remembered, it was still pretty cold the day we went. The Boy required insulated pants and a wind-proof jacket over his long johns and he still got cold at the Wall. Cold toddler equals small grouch with a runny nose. It will sound crazy to say, I know, but one thing I don't regret is bringing The Boy's small collapsible stroller. Yes, I know, a stroller at the Wall? Every person who passed us, especially fellow Americans, made a comment, some snide, some not. The funny thing is, some people made comments while passing thinking that maybe I couldn't understand English. Despite the comments, some friendly souls saw the value of bringing the stroller just in case. First, its collapsible and light so it wasn't a problem to fold up and carry along. When The Boy got tired, we stopped at a flat section and rested without breaking or backs. He was contained and strapped in, so no chance of the headline "Small Boy Makes Great Leap Off Wall".Thanks to that nice guy from Maryland who stopped to chat with us while he waited for his family to catch up, The Boy would have fallen asleep if you had continued to chat longer and a fed up mom (me) was distracted, but no matter. The Boy and I had an excellent nap once we got home.So, to go to the Great wall or not with your wee one?Bring your small one in a child carrier or backpack, it's a much better option than the collapsible stroller, bring lots of snacks, and go in the Autumn or Spring when the weather is more temperate. Then you just might have the perfect Great wall trip with your entire family! Like this? Please tell a friend and follow :)


01/10/12--06:05: The use of Gantt Charts in Production Monitoring :: Quality Wars - The Fight for Quality Export Product from China (chan 2514700)

Being involved in a wide range of production monitoring projects in China, it’s important that we’re efficient and use the right tools, in order to manage the projects effectively.  One tool that we use, especially in the fabrication of industrial projects (but with applications for commercial and consumer products as well) is called a Gantt [...]


01/10/12--07:28: Issue 9 Has Arrived :: Terracotta Typewriter (chan 2514700)

After a long delay, we have completed issue #9. Seeing as it is a lucky number, we probably should have gone with a nine dragon theme for the cover, but we elected to use an image of the pagodas of Guilin. Perhaps we’ll save the dragons for the new year and our 10th issue. This issue features prose from Andrea Bangert and Travis Lee; poetry from Rob Schanckne, William Wright Harris, and R. Joseph Capet; and Lucas Klein’s translations of poetry from Xi Chuan 西川. Download your PDF copy today. Related posts: Issue 6 Has Arrived Happy New Issue! First Issue


01/10/12--18:25: "Down: Indie Rock in the PRC" Accepted into Thin Line Film Festival :: Andrew Field's Shanghai Journal (chan 2514700)

I open the 2012 annals of this website with the exciting news that our rock doc has been accepted into the Thin Line Film Festival in Texas.  The screening of the film will take place on Friday evening Feb 11 at 8 pm.  For more details on this film festival, visit the Thin Line Film Festival website.


01/11/12--01:23: Buying Out Your Chinese Supplier? :: (chan 2514700)

China Law Blog has published a post about foreign companies that try to buy out their Chinese suppliers. Dan Harris makes very enjoyable reading out of a very serious topic. You can read his post entitled here: “Buying A Chinese Company. Why China Deals Don´t Get Done” This is what you will learn from his article:Very common practises for Chinese companies are:-to under report employee wages to the government-to underpay taxes-to pay the rent under the table.Which may be easy to get away with as a Chinese company but not as a WFOE. So, if you are considering buying out your Chinese supplier, life will be a bit different for you. As a WFOE, your company will probably be wanting to play by the rules (and you better do it because as a foreign company you will be closely scrutinised) and the profits your supplier was making will be imposible to replicate as you will:-end up paying double the amount your supplier was paying in wages and benefits-pay all your income taxes-have to increase booked rental costs This is the short version. Read the original post here to get really interesting details and some cost estimates. I will only add that it is indeed widely known that these practises are common. Some of these issues I will also mention in the second part of “A China Joint Venture Survival Guide” that is coming soon (Check my first post on the topic here) Do you have any stories about buying out a Chinese company?


01/11/12--06:56: Huntsman and fear of China – ‘the new expat message’? :: Transpacifica (chan 2514700)

Creative Commons photo by saucy_pan Noted, from ChinaSolved (emphasis mine): When Huntsman says, “America First” he means “and not China”. His message is that he’s seen what can happen if the global status quo doesn’t shift – and that this is scary to the US.  Moreover, he’s in a position to do something about it.  He has seen the enemy – or at least the rival – and it’s China. This is the new expat message.  In the 2000s,  China pros said “I can open that China opportunity”.  In the coming decade, their  line will be, “I can help you keep the Chinese at bay.” I don’t have time to evaluate this, but such a shift would be interesting, if unsettling. My initial sense is that there have always been “China experts” who said they would defend the United States and others “against” China. The difference now may be that those people are being drawn from the ranks of individuals who actually speak Chinese and have actually been there. This kind of stance is only possible if you have a very dark strategic view or if you never spent enough time speaking with people to lose the fear narrative. Expat enclaves can only encourage this us–them viewpoint.


01/13/12--08:10: Sorting out a dubious report on China in Africa :: Transpacifica (chan 2514700)

Well, this doesn’t look good. American University Professor Deborah Brautigam has written a detailed criticism of a think tank commentary about Chinese agricultural investment in Mozambique, and if her conclusions are correct, the Center for Strategic and International Studies and its author have some explaining to do. First a caveat: I am not a specialist in Chinese–African relations, and I have only a passing familiarity with the issues and personalities involved here. Nonetheless, there are a few things I can say based on Brautigam’s report. The original commentary speculated (in the headline) that the Zambezi Valley in Mozambique might be “China’s first agricultural colony,” and Brautigam notes that the report became influential in China–Africa discussions. “The problem,” she writes: “very little of what was written in this sensational commentary appears to be real” (emphasis original). Indeed, she argues that many of the most prominent claims in the commentary either conflict with data or seem to be based on rumors. In some cases, interviews in Mozambique even failed to turn up people familiar with the rumors. The full post is worth a read, but two things jump out at me. The role of peer review. Brautigam notes that the CSIS piece was not subject to peer review, but what caught my attention was the sense that peer review is not necessarily effective in this situation. Indeed, a reviewer told Brautigam to better account for the “research” by Loro Horta that she finds so lacking. This is a reminder that peer review can sustain misguided ideas as well as quash them. Now just who are we talking about? The assumptions of agency built in to the Horta piece, as excerpted by Brautigam, could potentially be their own red flag. “China” is framed as an actor, often a unitary one, in discussing the supposed involvement of Chinese interests in Mozambique: China has been requesting large land leases to establish Chinese-run mega-farms and cattle ranches. … China is committed to transforming Mozambique into one of its main food suppliers …An analysis of China’s activities in the valley in the past two years provides some strong indication of China’s long term intentions. When commentary lacks precision regarding who’s doing what among the roughly one-fifth of the world that lives in China, and instead frames the country as a unitary actor with “intentions” or “activities,” it’s unclear to me how much actual information can be communicated. At best, the reader is supposed to trust the writer to simplify with understanding and integrity. Explaining the specific mechanics is a far more persuasive way to go, and if the specifics are unclear, the honest move is to explain what is left uncertain.


01/13/12--17:35: Han Han’s anti-censorship tactic: publish padding before the point :: Transpacifica (chan 2514700)

Han Han, the influential writer, race-car driver, and now social commentator, tells Southern Metropolis Weekly (English | 中文) that some of his recent commentary was designed to deflect the immediate deletions that come with controversial statements on Chinese web platforms: Q: You once said that the first two essays were padding, while the last essay was the end goal?A: If you only write the last essay (including ), it will surely be deleted.  When something gets deleted, it has no value.  You can boast on the heroes’ honor roll that you wrote another censored essay and that you were victimized once again.  Many rightists rank themselves on the basis of the degree of persecution.  This is a somewhat pathetic ranking.  The ultimate height in sexual intercourse is the climax.  You cannot let someone climax as soon as they read it.   You need your padding. 南都周刊：你曾说前面两篇文章是铺垫，后面一篇才是目的？ 韩寒：你光写后面一篇文章，包括现在的《我的2011》，肯定会被删掉的。当一个东西被删掉了，就没有什么价值了，也只能在英雄谱上把自己说得更牛一点— 老子又写了一篇被删掉的文章，老子是受害者。很多右派是按照被迫害的程度来排资历高低的，他们已经形成了一种比较病态的排序。性爱的最高境界就是高潮，你不能让人家直接看完就到高潮了，你得有你的铺垫。 The interview is a good read, as Han Han takes on the rightists, the leftists, and the intellectuals. The three essays in question: “On Revolution,” “On Democracy,” and “On Freedom“—followed by “My 2011.” Each of these was translated and posted on Roland Soong’s indispensable East South West North.


01/15/12--16:33: China's med-tech market to grow 17% in 2012 | MassDevice.com :: China Wakes (chan 2514700)

January 12, 2012 by MassDevice staff The Chinese medical device market is slated to grow 17% in 2012, survey says. MASSDEVICE ON CALL —China's medical device market is set to grow 17% in 2012, according to a Citigroup hospital survey. Major medical equipment in the Chinese market include medical monitors and life support, diagnostic imaging, in vitro diagnostics and therapeutic systems. GE Healthcare (NYSE:GE) leads the Chinese medical equipment market, but in orthopedics and drug-eluting stents, Medtronic (NYSE:MDT), Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) and Stryker (NYSE:SYK) take the lead, according to the report. Sign up to get our free newsletters delivered straight to your inbox Similar entries White House defends Obamacare insurance mandate in Supreme Court brief | MassDevice.com On Call Supreme Court adds Medicaid challenge to docket | MassDevice.com On Call Raising the Medicare eligibility age would save $148B | MassDevice.com On Call Medtronic ups the ante on Capitol Hill lobbying | MassDevice.com On Call FDA clears Smith & Nephew's Pico pocket NPWT device | Regulatory Roundup Citigroup's survey, which was based on responds from 383 Chinese hospitals across 29 provinces and cities, also named med-tech titans Philips (NYSE:PHG) and Siemens (NYSE:SI) as leaders in China's med-tech market. Domestic manufacturers such as Mindray Medical (NYSE:MR), Wandong and Aeon have tapped into the market with the sale of market of patient monitors, anesthesia machines and radiography machines. The 2012 growth will be largely due to bigger budgets and planned infrastructure upgrades from Chinese hospitals, according to analysts. State lawmakers push Supreme Court to uphold Obamacare More than 480 state lawmakers plan to file a brief urging the Supreme Court to uphold President Obama's health care reform law, according to TheHill.com. The group includes at least 1 lawmaker from every state, including the 26 states whose attorneys general are suing to overturn the law's individual insurance mandate. Read more Device detects cancer cells before they become tumors University of Missouri researchers' photoacoustic device can detect cancer cells before they become tumors, according to a press release. The laser-induced ultrasound system will soon be available to scientists for cancer studies and will be tested in clinical trials for the early diagnosis of metastic melanoma. Read more Stanmore Implants launches personalized knee replacement system Stanmore Implants Worldwide launched the first patient-specific modular knee implant system. Stanmore's system combines robotic bone preparation with a patient specific design gathered during CT scans. Read more Med-tech causes Iowa fire A fire in Waterloo, Iowa was likely caused by a malfunctioning medical device, according to the WCF Courier. The fire, which caused nearly $20,000 in damages at an assisted living facility, started when unattended medical equipment was left on a resident's bed. Read more News Well, Distribution, Exports, Healthcare Reform, Oncology Login to post comments Printer-friendly version Citigroup Johnson & Johnson Medtronic Mindray Medical International Ltd. Philips Healthcare Siemens Stryker Corp. GE Healthcare Permalink via massdevice.com US and EU medical technology companies need to start making plans to take their products to China before the country is able to develop its own medical device national champions. Once the country has the capacity to develop everything themselves, the West should expect their products to be largely shutout of what will be the world's largest market one day.


01/16/12--18:24: Chinese Food, Snacks and Trains, oh my! :: Interactive Expat (chan 2514700)

Just read your blog and wanted to thank you for all the useful tips!We are Americans who have been living in India for the last 5 years. I have a daughter, 11 and a son, 6, and we will be taking a family trip to China in April.I did have a few questions for you, if you don't mind,First of all, I am concerned about food. My children are fairly picky eaters. My son will eat chicken in any form. My daughter will want to eat mostly vegetarian. Both can be kept full at least with peanut butter and nutella! (I probably sound like a terrible mother...but it is what it is!) So first question - are PB and Nutella available in China? What about other basics like bread, crackers, etc?Also, we plan to do so train trips (Beijing to Xian and Xian to Guilin). What do you think? How comfortable/clean are the trains? Our standards are pretty low (remember..we are in India!)Any other tips you might pass on would be greatfully accepted!!- Cammie, via emailThanks for your email! Glad you like my blog and find it useful and I love getting questions.First I must say, if you and your family are happy in India, then you'll have no problems in China! I always got a kick out of the label pictures on Chinese Skippy.One of the uses shown is eating it with noodles, but no sandwich. Yes, crackers, bread and other basics are available. The big brand for American style sandwich bread is Bimbo. It's no Oroweat, but it's sufficient. I have tried all the varieties except for the white bread and found the whole wheat kind to taste the most similar to home. Peanut butter and jelly is widely available and Nutella can be found at the foreign grocery stores around town. Skippy brand peanut butter is cheap and comes in small and regular size jars. If you can bring Nutella with you from India, that may be a good idea, especially if you will be going to smaller cities within China and may not have time to track it down while in Beijing or Shanghai. But if you want to do a snack run with the kids, go to any BHG (also known as Hualian) in Beijing, especially in the Wudaokou, Dongzhimen, Xizhimen, Wangjing or CBD areas and you will find many Western brand options. Carrefour also has a foreign brands section in their stores. Jenny Wang's (also known as Jenny Lou's) in Beijing is a foreign grocery store that also carries Nutella, popular American cereal brands and other kid's stuff, like Pop-Tarts.Your kids will love the food in China, if you can get them to have a taste of some simple dishes. There are so many chicken dishes that will be sure to please your son and your daughter will love all the veggie choices available. If all else fails, there's KFCs on almost every corner in China for your son. Being a vegetarian in China isn't a problem, just be extra clear when ordering that you do not want meat in a dish or ask to substitute tofu instead. If you have time and haven't done so already, look up some of my other posts about food in China for more detailed info.On trains in China: they can be as comfortable or uncomfortable as you want them to be. I really like this site because it gives very detailed info about train travel for beginners in China. Check it out. :) Seeing as you have lived in India, I don't think you'll be in for any rude surprises when it comes to travel in China.Have a wonderful trip and happy travels! Like this? Please tell a friend and follow :)


01/17/12--20:55: Stop SOPA :: 21CB | Curating Asia, pop culture, and current affairs! (chan 2514700)

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01/23/12--11:24: Costs of Raising Kids in Beijing :: Interactive Expat (chan 2514700)

A few days ago, a friend in Beijing sent me the following article that was written up in The Beijinger. I found it really helpful and maybe you will too.It's expensive to raise kids anywhere, but it takes extra money and consideration when thinking about school options in China.My husband is a teacher and we would most likely choose the home school option after our son was able to experience kindergarten and get better socialized, not to mention better his Chinese skills.If you're raising kids in Beijing or elsewhere in China, please feel free to give your opinion on the article! Is It More Expensive to Raise Kids in Beijing? bypjsheeps| Posted on Jan 17 2012 | See All1Photos One of the things that I feel most guilty about is…well, me. More specifically, all of the wonderful things that my parents had to give up in order to have and raise me: extravagant trips around the world, an ocean-front villa in Thailand, fancy date nights, etc. For those who think that I’m exaggerating, consider this:my four-year stint at the University of California Davis cost my parents approximately US$60,500, and that's just in tuition alone. Factor in the cost of textbooks, rent, groceries and a summer in Spain, and that figure becomes much higher. In addition, current estimates by the U.S. Department of Agriculture place thecost of raising a child from birth to 18 years at US$226,920, the equivalent of about ¥1.5 million. This amount includes housing, child care and the big money drain: school tuition. Thankfully, my parents were spared the duty of footing the bill for much of my lower education thanks to a combination of four years of U.S public schooling, followed by another eight years at a Beijing international school on IBM’s dime. These eight years alone, I calculated, would have cost my family about ¥1.4 million—just ¥100,000 short of what the USDA estimates as the total cost of raising a kid for 18 years. Scary. No wonder then, that my father insists that if my tuition hadn't been covered, “we wouldn’t have moved to China period!” Brian Hutson is the founding partner of financial advisory firm Hutson Associates, and has come across his fair share of expats in his line of work. He says: “Expat parents repeatedly tell me that themost expensive portion of raising children in Beijing is school fees. I think that this is partially because most Western countries offer free public education, making tuition expenses a non-issue.” Beijing international school fees have been known to reach up to approximately ¥200,000 or US$32,000 per year for high school students. This is almost theequivalent of a year’s undergraduate tuition at Harvard. “The cost of some of the schools here is insane,” says father-of-one and entrepreneur Sam Goodman. “I mean, I attended what was possibly one of the best boarding schools in Canada growing up, and it still wasn't nearly as expensive as certain schools here.” Suffice it to say, for those without the elusive expat package, raising a child in Beijing can be a very expensive business. As a result, families in this category are often forced to think long and hard about their children’s schooling. The decision comes down to not just finding a good fit for their children, but also finding the right balance between quality of education and price. “The headache, the headache!” says long-term Beijing resident and mother Astra Holmes. “We are paying out of pocket, so we have to consider the level of education and weigh it against how useful it will be later in life and the cost to us. I’ve found it very difficult to balance my high expectations and big eyes—so much of our decision depends on what we can afford.” Ultimately, Beijing parents have three main choices. “The way I see it, you either go 100 percent local, go 100 percent international, or aim for something somewhere in between, which is what my wife and I did,” says Goodman. “There is a small handful of schools here that offer a decent combination of Eastern and Western education. These not only cost less than big international schools, but also offer a Chinese immersion element—a necessity while living in China, if you ask me.” Tom Miller also feels that a solid foundation in Mandarin is paramount, and for that reason has enrolled his two children in a nursery class at a bilingual school. However, he concedes that eventually he will have to send his children to an international school. “When I realized how much my children’s schooling would cost me, it was like a sudden dawning,” Miller says. Suzi Roberts is a mother and educator whose job allows her children to attend an international school at no extra cost. Even so, school tuition and family expenses remain a primary talking point among her and her peers. Roberts says thathomeschooling has emerged as a popular fourth optionfor many parents, and adds thatfinancial aid packagesare now available at some international schools, though most require parents to lay bare their financial situation. Fortunately, school tuition aside, all other expenses can be significantly lower than in the West. Despite rising prices, groceries, clothing, transportation and food can still be purchased for a mere fraction of Western prices as long as parents are willing to go local. And therein lies the rub. Parents always want the best for their children and for some families in Beijing, that means forking over fistfuls of cash for imported baby formula, organic food, name-brand clothing and vitamins. For many, weekly trips to Jenny Lou’s and April Gourmet are the norm, despite the fact that Sanyuanli and Jingkelong offer the same items for less—albeit a little worse for the wear. “In the end, how much parents spend raising their children in Beijing reallyboils down to lifestyle choices,” says Goodman. “I think that it is extremely easy to live either very cheaply or very expensive here.” Hutson agrees: “Everyone who moves here certainly has the option of a lifestyle that is either more expensive or cheaper than back home. Ultimately, what is most important is that families are living within their means.” Want to calculate about how much you spend on your children each year? Go to www.bankrate.com (amounts are shown in US dollars). Like this? Please tell a friend and follow :)