first week in china
Pre. / Next 2007-11-26 00:02:52
Blog
nov 20, 2007
well the big news, thus far,the jetlag pills seemed to have worked.
the flight was very tedious and i got so annoyed when i finally fell
to sleep and they woke me up to put on my seatbelt, mind u other
people were sleeping without them an there was no turbulence. not to
self, leave belt on! took me hours to fall back again. when i got 2 or
so hours i was delighted. actually staying up 20 hours might have been
best strategy as i was able to fall asleep at 11pm when i got here
(well i got here at 8 but took 3 hoursto get settled).
\
my room, that the Tawainese woman Chloe arranged, is the most humble
room in which i have ever stayed. there is no window, it is about 3x
the size of a closet, the bed is tiny, but at least my feet don't hang
over the side and the mattress is decent. luckily i am the only person
staying at this guest house since i forgot a towel and the one they
gave me is 5 inches wide, it barely covers me as i go from the shower
to my room! (no jokes please!)
today i woke up at 6 am, and walked around. the guide book isn't fully
of things i wish to do, but i found a park surrounded by awall.as
soon as i entered the park the street sounds, especially moped sounds,
vanishes and it makes for a hidden workd in the middle of this
bustling city. in here nobody wheres the masks and every few feet is
some kind of class of synchronized movement, mostly middle aged women,
many in the same outfit. some people, all older, do odd routines, like
slapping themselves softly on the legs, and i saw one old guy
in pin and black all moving to a disco meat (most were silent) and a
very old man in the foreground, his face open, moving to his own
rhythm.
well i had to pay for an hour on this computer, but it hurts to sit in
this comfy chair with the back suppor so far way and with the keyboard
too high so i think i will go. though it is cool to have your own
little cubicle and phone and they bring you drinks for free. i don't
think i will do much drinking of alcohol here in Taipei, last night
the bars were em[pty, anyway tomorrow i leave for Guangzho!
the flight was very tedious and i got so annoyed when i finally fell
to sleep and they woke me up to put on my seatbelt, mind u other
people were sleeping without them an there was no turbulence. not to
self, leave belt on! took me hours to fall back again. when i got 2 or
so hours i was delighted. actually staying up 20 hours might have been
best strategy as i was able to fall asleep at 11pm when i got here
(well i got here at 8 but took 3 hoursto get settled).
\
my room, that the Tawainese woman Chloe arranged, is the most humble
room in which i have ever stayed. there is no window, it is about 3x
the size of a closet, the bed is tiny, but at least my feet don't hang
over the side and the mattress is decent. luckily i am the only person
staying at this guest house since i forgot a towel and the one they
gave me is 5 inches wide, it barely covers me as i go from the shower
to my room! (no jokes please!)
today i woke up at 6 am, and walked around. the guide book isn't fully
of things i wish to do, but i found a park surrounded by awall.as
soon as i entered the park the street sounds, especially moped sounds,
vanishes and it makes for a hidden workd in the middle of this
bustling city. in here nobody wheres the masks and every few feet is
some kind of class of synchronized movement, mostly middle aged women,
many in the same outfit. some people, all older, do odd routines, like
slapping themselves softly on the legs, and i saw one old guy
in pin and black all moving to a disco meat (most were silent) and a
very old man in the foreground, his face open, moving to his own
rhythm.
well i had to pay for an hour on this computer, but it hurts to sit in
this comfy chair with the back suppor so far way and with the keyboard
too high so i think i will go. though it is cool to have your own
little cubicle and phone and they bring you drinks for free. i don't
think i will do much drinking of alcohol here in Taipei, last night
the bars were em[pty, anyway tomorrow i leave for Guangzho!
nov 21 2007
wow i must really be jetlagged, i said "disco meat" in my last email
it turned out to be an interesting day. went to the zoo and stared at
a gorilla. and... dialgoue i loved at i had at the money exchange
place
guy: why you americans so into the ego?
me: excused me?
guy: the ego, you love the ego!
me: the ego?
guy: (looking at my passport and flapping his arms) you know the ego.
get it?
it turned out to be an interesting day. went to the zoo and stared at
a gorilla. and... dialgoue i loved at i had at the money exchange
place
guy: why you americans so into the ego?
me: excused me?
guy: the ego, you love the ego!
me: the ego?
guy: (looking at my passport and flapping his arms) you know the ego.
get it?
nov 22
some of the reasons i like to travel
1. See the world from a new perspective
2. get to be a kid again where everything is new and you have to
figure everything out from guessing
3. lack of control
4. become less spoiled
I travelled all day to get from TAipei to Guangzhou. I felt great
pride ringing the buzzer to Michelle's door. I had made it there
without any help and without a word of Chinese. A few odd moments on
the way, like being handed pamphlets about Avian Flu from two Chinese
people in masks. The other day my meal was delivered bysomeone in a
mask too. So I was worried Guangzhou would be polluted as I'd heard.
It is not. At least the air has been clear so far. There are no mopeds
so the city is quieter than Taipei and the streets are wider, more
open, it really looks like an American city. The stores and
this morning i saw a guy dressed in military fatigues an arm band and
a large club, but he looked kind of sloppy... was he official? was he
a crazy person? so much i see here i have no idea what i am seeing.
very interesting!
I love the room Michelle has generously given me. great view of the
street and the building feels like a "Real" place, not a phony hotel.
it is so exciting to get a glimpse of what it's like to live here, the
changes in the society, here like elsewhere people are leaving the
small towns for the cities
well i gotta run, people here are smoking like crazy and sneezing, and
I am still a spoiled american so i don't like it!
that said after two attempts to get a class of cold water and they
kept bringing hot water, i drank it without complaint (so I am making
progress in being less spoiled!)
the food last night was awesome!
1. See the world from a new perspective
2. get to be a kid again where everything is new and you have to
figure everything out from guessing
3. lack of control
4. become less spoiled
I travelled all day to get from TAipei to Guangzhou. I felt great
pride ringing the buzzer to Michelle's door. I had made it there
without any help and without a word of Chinese. A few odd moments on
the way, like being handed pamphlets about Avian Flu from two Chinese
people in masks. The other day my meal was delivered bysomeone in a
mask too. So I was worried Guangzhou would be polluted as I'd heard.
It is not. At least the air has been clear so far. There are no mopeds
so the city is quieter than Taipei and the streets are wider, more
open, it really looks like an American city. The stores and
this morning i saw a guy dressed in military fatigues an arm band and
a large club, but he looked kind of sloppy... was he official? was he
a crazy person? so much i see here i have no idea what i am seeing.
very interesting!
I love the room Michelle has generously given me. great view of the
street and the building feels like a "Real" place, not a phony hotel.
it is so exciting to get a glimpse of what it's like to live here, the
changes in the society, here like elsewhere people are leaving the
small towns for the cities
well i gotta run, people here are smoking like crazy and sneezing, and
I am still a spoiled american so i don't like it!
that said after two attempts to get a class of cold water and they
kept bringing hot water, i drank it without complaint (so I am making
progress in being less spoiled!)
the food last night was awesome!
nov 23
yesterday i was supposed to meet a female reporter and she told me
she would be wearing purple so i waited in front of the hotel and
after seeing many women in purple, she arrived. (i wuold say it ws
more in the pink family myself).
anyway, her car was brand new and i felt very important as she drove
me around. we spoke for 4 hours and saw many parts ofthe city. then
that night i treated her, her husband andmichelle to an outdoor dinner
outside the city where we ate chicken with our hands (wearing plastic
gloves)
i learned so many fascinating things. some of which i am too paranoid
about being monitored to tell you now, but can relate when i am back
in the so called land of the free, but to remind me
1. The test given to become a reporter
2.she reports on poverty and i was amazed they are so free
3. why crimeis high in Guangzho
4. everyone in her office has been robbed at some point
6. nobody here has heard of the"electric car" - why china isn't making
them i am baffled, "Who killed the electric car" claims it is more
logical and american business killed it, but here, hungry fro gasoline
it'd be the perfect solution.
we saw a small house and shetold me 20 "outsiders" that is
non-Cantonese speaking chinese people probably live there. my first
thought was how in america we don'thave that situation, but then i
recalled that mexican illegals in nyc often live that way... so yes
they are not citizens but non coincidentally doing the same manual
laboras these "outsiders" who have come into the city to earn $1 per
day
at the end of our tour we saw an art gallery, it is the only one we
could find and more of a museum but had some cool modern art., very
hard to get to,in an area where the very rich people live. art and
spirituality is not very important here. i think about the writers in
eastern europe who thrived creatively giventhe repression, but at lest
people were valueing their creation. here i think it'd be hard to tell
you parents, i want to be a painter. that said, i liked the little
work that i saw. i wonder if i stayed here a month whether i'd
discover more artists.
michelle has been so great. she recommended some parks to me today as
i overdo0sed on the city yesterday. i willtry to take yoga too. then
tonight for my last night here, we go to a night club!
happy thanksgiving everyone!
she would be wearing purple so i waited in front of the hotel and
after seeing many women in purple, she arrived. (i wuold say it ws
more in the pink family myself).
anyway, her car was brand new and i felt very important as she drove
me around. we spoke for 4 hours and saw many parts ofthe city. then
that night i treated her, her husband andmichelle to an outdoor dinner
outside the city where we ate chicken with our hands (wearing plastic
gloves)
i learned so many fascinating things. some of which i am too paranoid
about being monitored to tell you now, but can relate when i am back
in the so called land of the free, but to remind me
1. The test given to become a reporter
2.she reports on poverty and i was amazed they are so free
3. why crimeis high in Guangzho
4. everyone in her office has been robbed at some point
6. nobody here has heard of the"electric car" - why china isn't making
them i am baffled, "Who killed the electric car" claims it is more
logical and american business killed it, but here, hungry fro gasoline
it'd be the perfect solution.
we saw a small house and shetold me 20 "outsiders" that is
non-Cantonese speaking chinese people probably live there. my first
thought was how in america we don'thave that situation, but then i
recalled that mexican illegals in nyc often live that way... so yes
they are not citizens but non coincidentally doing the same manual
laboras these "outsiders" who have come into the city to earn $1 per
day
at the end of our tour we saw an art gallery, it is the only one we
could find and more of a museum but had some cool modern art., very
hard to get to,in an area where the very rich people live. art and
spirituality is not very important here. i think about the writers in
eastern europe who thrived creatively giventhe repression, but at lest
people were valueing their creation. here i think it'd be hard to tell
you parents, i want to be a painter. that said, i liked the little
work that i saw. i wonder if i stayed here a month whether i'd
discover more artists.
michelle has been so great. she recommended some parks to me today as
i overdo0sed on the city yesterday. i willtry to take yoga too. then
tonight for my last night here, we go to a night club!
happy thanksgiving everyone!
one interesting observation to add... the reporter/'s personal cell number
is on the internet so poor people call her every hour or so to report
their plight in hopes she will cover it. too overwhelmed,she tells
them to call the tv station, but they say they cannot get through....
this kind of thing fascinates me more than the ancient clan house we
visited... okay off to (maybe) yoga and breakfast (hopefully without
is on the internet so poor people call her every hour or so to report
their plight in hopes she will cover it. too overwhelmed,she tells
them to call the tv station, but they say they cannot get through....
this kind of thing fascinates me more than the ancient clan house we
visited... okay off to (maybe) yoga and breakfast (hopefully without
11/25
this trip is going so well!
my last night in Guangzhou was really cool. dancing at a club, the
night life there is intense... i arrived in shanghai and somehow
despite confusion and language barrier made it to my next host's door,
Jing. it is a modern doorman building, wireless internet, everything
feels like i am back home. Jing is writing a tv series so cannot hang
out and we are living in a small rooom - astudio which is right out of
the upper east side of manhattan, the sofa i sleep on is right next to
her bed... less communal feeling than i had hanging out with
Michelle, but to find someone willing to put me up in a tiny place
like this is so amazing.
Jing introduced me to her pal Helen who had a birthday party at a
chinese restuanrant and her firnds are largleyt the expat community -
jing went home early and so i hung out with all of them. they were
very welcoming but of coruse i was abit of an outsider
had a great conversation with Helan and her friend at a bar called
Logo, which was right out of williamsburg, then to a rave type party
in a warehouse with a DJ and projections of old communist propoganda
films to the house beat... i felt like the cops were gonna storm in
and arrest us all... not sure why they allow this, but maybe they are
unaware.
the expats were really nice and i felt like i should move here (though
i'd want to hang out more with chinese rather than expats I think, i
they felt a bit loud and garish at times -which they admit) anyway
and i spoke to several chinese who hang out with expats who are fluent
in english and world travellers. i learned so much. they prfer the
post modern (my word) bars which are dirty and like dive bars to the
more "Modern" flashy, superficial clubs that many native Chinese
frequent.
also one woman i spoke with craves the freedom of the west, not
political, nobody seems to care abou that, but social freedom, not to
feel like they have to make a certain salary. this woman said her
parents lie to the nieghbors and say she is still living at home, or
on business trips, the shame of a single daughter living on her own is
too great.
much more to say, but gotta explore more.
my last night in Guangzhou was really cool. dancing at a club, the
night life there is intense... i arrived in shanghai and somehow
despite confusion and language barrier made it to my next host's door,
Jing. it is a modern doorman building, wireless internet, everything
feels like i am back home. Jing is writing a tv series so cannot hang
out and we are living in a small rooom - astudio which is right out of
the upper east side of manhattan, the sofa i sleep on is right next to
her bed... less communal feeling than i had hanging out with
Michelle, but to find someone willing to put me up in a tiny place
like this is so amazing.
Jing introduced me to her pal Helen who had a birthday party at a
chinese restuanrant and her firnds are largleyt the expat community -
jing went home early and so i hung out with all of them. they were
very welcoming but of coruse i was abit of an outsider
had a great conversation with Helan and her friend at a bar called
Logo, which was right out of williamsburg, then to a rave type party
in a warehouse with a DJ and projections of old communist propoganda
films to the house beat... i felt like the cops were gonna storm in
and arrest us all... not sure why they allow this, but maybe they are
unaware.
the expats were really nice and i felt like i should move here (though
i'd want to hang out more with chinese rather than expats I think, i
they felt a bit loud and garish at times -which they admit) anyway
and i spoke to several chinese who hang out with expats who are fluent
in english and world travellers. i learned so much. they prfer the
post modern (my word) bars which are dirty and like dive bars to the
more "Modern" flashy, superficial clubs that many native Chinese
frequent.
also one woman i spoke with craves the freedom of the west, not
political, nobody seems to care abou that, but social freedom, not to
feel like they have to make a certain salary. this woman said her
parents lie to the nieghbors and say she is still living at home, or
on business trips, the shame of a single daughter living on her own is
too great.
much more to say, but gotta explore more.
11/25 part 2
knew that i was tempting fate when I wrote this morning: "this trip
is going so well!"
today did not go so well. I read about this scam in Shanghai where you
meet a girl and she says "let's have lunch and split the bill" then
she takes you to an expensive place and hits you with the tab. you
don't realize it until later.. the girl works for the place.
that is not what happened to me.
what happend to me is that I was lost, so i took out my map, knowing
it might make me look like a tourist, but i had no choice. and i
thought what good luck as this group of studnets offered to help me
and we got to chatting and they seemed very nice and they asked me if
i wanted to come wtih them to a "tea ceremony" so i said yes and then
we walk 10 minutes and enter this small room with a woman in a fancy
uniform. and the woman shows me the prices, it was pricey, a fortune
here.
After we said goodbye i became convicned this was a scam and my host
told me this happened to her last guest (why didn't she tell me abou
this?!!)
I feel like such an idiot.
I walked around really unable to stop thinkinga bout it. a woman came
up to me asking to practice english and whereas yesterday i would have
been open, I said no and odds are she was another scammer. my host
tells me most people who come up to talk to you are usually trouble.
so trying to clear my head i began walking along the river (Bund) and
people bugging me to buy stuff every 3 minutes and aggressive beggars
all over (they often touch you and follow you), my thoughts of
take the next plane back to NYC wher I can tell the scams more
readily.
yesterday i felt so proud of myself for finding an "underground" party
and a group of people to hang out wtih - and of course staying for
free - felt like i was going beyond "The lonely planet guide book" -
now i feel like a sucker.
i know i will get past this and accept that this sort of thing can
happen when you travel, but it leaves a sour taste.
i feel like i can't be as open and trusting as i was before.
i have been analyzing my thoughts and feelings about it - rather than
just feeling bad, I am trying to learn from it... one obvious thing is
that there are ups and downs and you cannot have the good without the
bad, so one good or bad thing is only part of the alrger picture.
secondly, i think most peole would have fallen for this trick. they
seemed so real, so honest, i mean the guy he walked past the place as
if he didn't know it was there! they acted as if they wer hearing
about the ceremony for the first time, joking with me, translating
what the uniformed woman was saying, it was like we were bonding.
these guys are the best actors i have ever met
i wish i had just walked away...
i have to stop beating myself up about it. As my host says "mistakes
make you smarter"
i think i wil email the guy (he gave me an email so we could stay in
touch!), tell him i want to buy tea, and get the address and maybe you
guys can write me a note I can give to them saying give me my money
back or i go to the police. i want to let this go and enjoy my trip,
but not sure how easily i can get past it.
I have to think about you two.... MIchelle - willing to
share your bed with her roommate for 3 nights so i wouldn't have to
sleep on a sofa... Maggie drove me around all afternoon showing me
the fact that i met these con artists only deepens my appreciation
for people like them.
is going so well!"
today did not go so well. I read about this scam in Shanghai where you
meet a girl and she says "let's have lunch and split the bill" then
she takes you to an expensive place and hits you with the tab. you
don't realize it until later.. the girl works for the place.
that is not what happened to me.
what happend to me is that I was lost, so i took out my map, knowing
it might make me look like a tourist, but i had no choice. and i
thought what good luck as this group of studnets offered to help me
and we got to chatting and they seemed very nice and they asked me if
i wanted to come wtih them to a "tea ceremony" so i said yes and then
we walk 10 minutes and enter this small room with a woman in a fancy
uniform. and the woman shows me the prices, it was pricey, a fortune
here.
After we said goodbye i became convicned this was a scam and my host
told me this happened to her last guest (why didn't she tell me abou
this?!!)
I feel like such an idiot.
I walked around really unable to stop thinkinga bout it. a woman came
up to me asking to practice english and whereas yesterday i would have
been open, I said no and odds are she was another scammer. my host
tells me most people who come up to talk to you are usually trouble.
so trying to clear my head i began walking along the river (Bund) and
people bugging me to buy stuff every 3 minutes and aggressive beggars
all over (they often touch you and follow you), my thoughts of
take the next plane back to NYC wher I can tell the scams more
readily.
yesterday i felt so proud of myself for finding an "underground" party
and a group of people to hang out wtih - and of course staying for
free - felt like i was going beyond "The lonely planet guide book" -
now i feel like a sucker.
i know i will get past this and accept that this sort of thing can
happen when you travel, but it leaves a sour taste.
i feel like i can't be as open and trusting as i was before.
i have been analyzing my thoughts and feelings about it - rather than
just feeling bad, I am trying to learn from it... one obvious thing is
that there are ups and downs and you cannot have the good without the
bad, so one good or bad thing is only part of the alrger picture.
secondly, i think most peole would have fallen for this trick. they
seemed so real, so honest, i mean the guy he walked past the place as
if he didn't know it was there! they acted as if they wer hearing
about the ceremony for the first time, joking with me, translating
what the uniformed woman was saying, it was like we were bonding.
these guys are the best actors i have ever met
i wish i had just walked away...
i have to stop beating myself up about it. As my host says "mistakes
make you smarter"
i think i wil email the guy (he gave me an email so we could stay in
touch!), tell him i want to buy tea, and get the address and maybe you
guys can write me a note I can give to them saying give me my money
back or i go to the police. i want to let this go and enjoy my trip,
but not sure how easily i can get past it.
I have to think about you two.... MIchelle - willing to
share your bed with her roommate for 3 nights so i wouldn't have to
sleep on a sofa... Maggie drove me around all afternoon showing me
the fact that i met these con artists only deepens my appreciation
for people like them.
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