Putuoshan Island 普陀山

Putuoshan Island 普陀山

Jun 30, 2009
By Andrea Hunt, www.eChinacities.com

Right outside of Ningbo and Shanghai is one of China’s isolated treasures, Putuoshan Island. The island is in the East China Sea, technically part of Zhejiang Province, and is home to only 3000 residents, small enough to walk across in only a few hours because it’s only about 12 km wide. It’s easily accessible from Shanghai and is only 5 hours away if you take the ferry to get there. It’s a lovely island with plenty of hiking and places to relax, but there are also temples that you can visit as well; in addition, Putuoshan Island offers some of the best and freshest seafood around. It’s another excellent place to visit when you are fed up with the pollution of the city and the annoyance of car horns blasting into your ears day and night. Your solace here is that you are relatively alone and you can find peace and quiet; and what’s better than hanging out on an island? Next time you have a free weekend head to Putuoshan Island for that much needed retreat and reflection.

Photo: harryalverson

The island’s beaches are frothy with sandy colored water, and while they don’t look as appealing as a Sanya beach, they are relatively unpopulated and are good for taking your shoes off and strolling along the beach or climbing the cliffy shores. The rocky ledges are punctuated with little pagodas and perfect for a picnic or deep thoughts. On the island, there are temples, shrines and monasteries which house around 1000 devout monks on the island. Because of its remote location, Putuoshan’s prices are not as cheap as other places, but its distinct character and charm make it a worthwhile weekend destination. It is one of the Four Sacred Buddhist Mountains, a list that includes Wutaishan, Emeishan, and Jiuhuashan. In 2007, they insitutued a fee of 160 RMB fee for tourists at the point of embarkation but the entrances to the temples are extra.

Photo: harryalverson

There are three Buddhist temples on Putuoshan: Puji, Fayu and Huiji. Fayu Temple is located at the very foot of the Buddhist Summit Mountain called Fodingshan. The temple is famous for its Nine Dragon Screen, which is actually an interwoven carving of dragons made from 60 separate blue pieces of stone depicting dragons swarming in unison after a pearl. Constructed in 1580, the building is the second largest temple on the island with 294 halls and rooms.

The Puji Temple is the most famous on the Putuoshan Island because of its age and design. It is also the largest and was built in the year 1080 AD and remains the main spiritual heart of the island. Curiously, the entrance is on the side of the temple. According to the legend, the Emperor Zhuang disguised himself as a humble peasant and attempted to walk through the main entrance only to be turned away. In a moment of ire, he declared that no one would ever enter through that main middle door again. In front of the Puji Temple is a beautiful lotus lake, called Haiyin Lake — or lotus flower pool in Chinese. The monks release turtles and fish into the blue waters of the pool and they have hence dubbed it the, “setting free pool.” In the mornings, the Haiyin Lake has numerous dedicated Tai Chi enthusiasts down by the early morning waters of the pool. If you are up early enough, from 4:30AM to 7AM, the monks have rituals inside the temple, which the visitors can watch.

Photo: Jim Parkinson

The least crowded of the three Buddhist temples on Putuoshan Island is Huiji, which is only accessible by a cable car ride or by hiking up to the top of the hill. The scenic views from this temple are best on the island and devoid of people. The monks chanting in the temple gives a mystic allure to the area that is truly special.

There are two main beaches on Putuoshan Island, the 100 and 1000 Pace Sand Beaches. In the summertime, you can even camp on the 100 Pace Beach and fall asleep to the sound of the waves crashing on the shore. All around the island you can also find delicious and small eateries where you can get some of the freshest seafood you have tried in China. This island is also a paradise for vegetarians who will enjoy the plentiful selection of vegetarian restaurants, since the island itself is Buddhist.

This is one truly hidden gem for a weekend vacation that will blow you out of the water. Find a bit of relaxation at one of China’s most historically spiritually enlightening of places, Putuoshan.

To get there
By Ferry:
You can only reach Putuoshan by ferry from Shanghai or Ningbo
To Ningbo, you can only buy tickets for the day of travel so make sure and go early!

Ningbo Ferry Ports:
Jiangbei Wharf (Ningbo Port Passenger Transport Center )( Jiangbei Matou / Ningbo Gang Keyun Zhongxin )
Ferries from this terminal mainly take passengers to Putuoshan Island, though visitors should note that if they would like to take their car, they must travel from Zhenhai Wharf. Tickets cost RMB60 for a one-way ticket.
Opening hrs: 5:50 am – 3:50 pm
Add: 200 Zhongma Lu, Ningbo
Tel: 0574- 8735 6332

From Shanghai:
Wusong Passenger Transport Centre in Northeast Shanghai
No. 251, Songbao Rd., Baoshan District
Tel: 021-56575500
12-hour night ferry
3-hour high-speed ferry (leaves mid-day).

By Air:
Zhoushan Putuoshan Airport lies north of Zhujiajian Island and is accessible from most major Chinese cities.

Where To Stay:
* Purple Bamboo Hotel, tel +86 58 0669 8001
* Putuoshan Hotel, tel +86 58 0609 2828

***

Related Links

China Explorer> Buddhist Mountain – Enchanted Wutaishan
China Explorer> Taishan – Mountain of Eternity
China Explorer> Urumqi’s Sapphire – Tianchi Lake 天山天池

Roam about the Classics at National Center for the Performing Arts Beijing July 2009

DATE: Jul 04, 2009 – Jul 11, 2009 19:30

VENUE: National Center for the Performing Arts

[ Ticketing Information ] [ Program Schedule ]

The National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing presents “Roam About the Classics” this July 2009, starting the 4 and 5 starting with Spain’s prized ensemble from the Canary Islands, Orquesta Sinfónica de Tenerife, or Tenerife Symphony Orchestra. Presently, the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra continues to thrive as part of the Asociación Espanola de Orquestas Sinfónicas (Spanish Association of Symphony Orchestras). On July 7 and 8, the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra will perform lead by Conductors Chen Zuohuang and Christian Ehwald. On July 10 and 11, the show continues with Classics & Dreams: Concert by Kunzel & China National Opera House Symphony Orchestra. Remarkably, this concert will be broadcast live at large screens around Beijing such as in Wangfujing, Worker’s Stadium, etc so that all of us may share in this amazing display of classical music.

First Beijing Summer Concert

As a unique segment elaborately planned by the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) for the performance season this summer, “Roam About the Classics” will unavoidably lead one to compare it to the likes of London’s Promenade Concert (Proms) and Berlin’s Waldbühne. London’s Promenade Concert (Proms) has been popular in Britain for 114 years and Waldbühne has been in vogue for 25 years in Germany. However, Beijing has never had a similar music festival in which people can enjoy music without restriction in a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere, “Roam About the Classics” will undoubtedly fill such a space. July is the hottest month in Beijing, so the other purpose of promoting “Roam About the Classics” by NCPA is to create a kind of fashionable way to spend summer. Firstly, “Roam About the Classics” concert will include three famous orchestras from home and abroad, four well-known conductors and six concerts. More than 50 excellent music works by 39 famous composers will be presented in one week.

July 4 and 5: The Tenerife Orchestra opens “Roam Around the Classics”

The Tenerife Orchestra opens “Roam Around the Classics” in Beijing July 4, 5 led by Chinese maestro Lü Jia, who led them in eleven of nineteen concerts last year. Most of the credit for the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra’s success is normally attributed to Victor Pablo Pérez who became the ensemble’s conductor after 1985. Since its creation, the orchestra has created over 30 recorded albums through labels Auvidis, Decca or Duetsche Gramophone, winning them international awards and fame such as best recording of the year by both Ritmo and CD Compact.
They will be performing classic pieces by Mozart, Puccini, Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, and Stravinsky, including widely recognized and adored melodies such as Firebird, Le nozze di Fígaro, Oh! Mio babbino caro, and the William Tell Overture.

Check the program schedule of The Tenerife Orchestra

July 7 and 8: Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra: Igniting Occidental modern craze and outlining European classical brilliance

Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra on stage July 7th and 8th will also be extraordinary. Chen Zuohuang, the Musical Art Director of the NCPA along with famous German conductor Christian Ehwald will take turns to conduct the Orchestra, presenting distinctive individualistic works. On Jul. 7th, classical works of British and American contemporary composers such as Bernstein, Gershwin, Copland and Britten will be performed to ignite the pure Occidental modern craze; on Jul. 8th, the Orchestra will turn 180 degrees to draw the outline of flourishing and gorgeous European classical brilliance: Hungary’s boldness and unconstraint, Czech’s lightness and cheerfulness as well as Norway’s greenness and vibrancy that make the whole concert an arbitrary tour of music.

Check the program schedule of Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra

July 10 and 11: “Prince of Film Music” performs together with China National Opera House Symphony Orchestra to change the opera hall to a “three-dimensional cinema”

The last performance of the concert is offered by Erich Kunzel, coined the “Master of film music”. In the two concerts on July 10th and 11th, Kunzel will continue his love for film music and move a series of classical melodies from behind the screen curtain to the stage. From them, the whole stage of the opera hall will be changed to a huge simulated “three-dimensional cinema” holding more than 2000 audiences through special effects. Regarding how to make the change happen, NCPA has expressed that it will keep it a secret temporarily. Wonders are far beyond that. Another success trumped by Kunzel, the 73-year-old conductor master for dominating in the world music circle for many years is to re-perform familiar classical music in brand new instruments so as to form the unique personality of the musical composition.

 

Find information about Ticket and National Center for Performing Arts

Ticketing Information

Price: VIP　300　200　120　80　50 RMB
Getting Tickets from the National Center for the Performing Arts
Buying tickets in person
The box office of the National Centre for the Performing Arts is located at the north entrance of the centre. It is open between 9:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. every day. We accept cash, American Express, Master Card, Visa and Union Pay debit cards. Most overseas international credit cards are accepted.
Booking tickets over the phone
Call +86 10 6655 0000 between 9:30 a.m. and 8 p.m. A delivery service is available or tickets may be collected 24 hours after placing your order. Please remember to bring your order number when picking up your tickets.
Group tickets:
86 10 6655 0893
86 10 6655 0105
86 10 6655 0891
Office hour: 9:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Freaky or Funny? Crazy Chinese Taxi Stories

Freaky or Funny? Crazy Chinese Taxi Stories

Jul 01, 2009
By Andrea Hunt, eChinacities.com

Taxi drivers all over the world tend to be a bit sketchy at times, and I have to say the first arguments I ever get into in another country inevitably stem from the taxi driver trying to rip me off. This has happened to me in Mexico City and Rome, Buenos Aires and London. In this way, you become quite capable of yelling obscenities over miscellaneous unwarranted meter charges, unnecessary detours, and the link. Other times in taxis, you find yourself in the weirdest and most awkward situations. This situation is usually exacerbated by a language barrier. In China, this rule is no exception. Occasionally, there are some pretty strange taxi situations you encounter with taxis in China that leave you with some colorful and crazy Chinese taxi stories.

Photo: Andrew Currie

Most taxi drivers in China generally astound me with their driving abilities and many of them are really cool people. Usually their reflexes are flawless, I have seen them swerve without flinching around a female driver who thought it would be a stellar idea to cross over 3 lanes on Beijing’s third ring road, slowing down to 20 miles an hour, to take a right exit. Another night, our taxi narrowly escaped three accidents in 20 minutes as drivers in front of us simply merged into our lanes or stopped in the middle of the highway, blatantly disregarding the fact that we were in the middle lane. Usually, the drivers are quick, and masterfully weave through the lanes of traffic, albeit faster than you would like at times, but still chatting away with you about the latest current events or about other topics like Led Zepplin.

But sometimes, the situations go from odd to downright bizarre or even creepy and you suddenly have a weird Chinese taxi story. For example, one time I had just returned via train to Zhuji and I got into a taxi outside the train station. There were tons of cabs and tricicaraxis waiting as well, and the cars were all jammed in a row. The taxi started the engine and prepared to leave only to realize there was an unoccupied tricicaraxi in front of us. The driver was a younger guy, about 25 years old, with long tousled hair falling over his ears and into his face. He impatiently smacked the steering wheel, blasting the horn repeatedly at the anonymous perpetrator who was blocking us. An older man emerged with his hands in the air with a look of annoyance on his face. My driver screamed at him to move the tricicaraxi but the old man yelled back something in dialect to the presumed effect of, “chill out! I’ll move it in a second!” Whatever the response was in dialect, it was unsatisfactory, and the driver inched forward and bumped the tricicaraxi, nudging it a few feet forward. The old man was pissed. His eyes glazed over and he tried to brace himself on the tricicaraxi but the driver slowly kept driving forward. The old man ran over to the driver’s side (thankfully not to mine) and opened the door, and reached into the car in an attempt to pry the driver out of the car. The driver stopped yelling and a fiery-eyed dialogue ensued. The driver managed to push the old man out of the way and shut the door, driving forward again but by this time he had knocked the tricicaraxi out of the way. The old man, unwilling to be defeated in some effort to “save face”, lofted himself onto the hood of the car. But the driver refused to stop, and I sat there stupidly unable to do anything while the driver moved forward, the old man clinging like a barnacle to the hood of the car. The driver screeched to a halt and the man fell to the ground and we sped away as my taxi driver yelled obscenities out the window. Young Driver 1 – Old Man 0. Poor guy, I seriously hope he didn’t get hurt.

On another occasion, I was in the taxi and on my daily 45-minute commute to work when the taxi driver was asking me the usual but annoying questions like if I liked Chinese food, how long I’d been in China, and so forth. He asked if I liked Beijing Opera music. I lied and said yes and so he went on and on at how culturally relevant it was for Chinese people. In actuality, I only like Chinese rock, punk, or metal bands in Beijing. Suddenly, he turns and looks at me, and starts screeching at me with the most ear piercing sounds I have ever heard in an Opera-like serenade. I wanted to throw myself out the window. With the abhorrence I’m sure my mother felt towards the metal music I blasted in my room at 6am on schooldays in high school, my poor ears instantly empathized with one who is subjected to music that they greatly despise. Sometimes there is nothing you can do about it; some music never grows on you, and the crooning taxi driver with his Beijing Opera tortured my poor ears for a good 30 minutes. Sometimes good intentions are ill received and it just creates a weird taxi story.

One time after a concert there were no available taxis because it was late and all of them had been snatched up. There were several illegal taxis, and while I am not saying this was a superb idea, we saw no real ones so we decided to take one.  I haggled the price down to 50 RMB; we were really far outside the city so that seemed like a pretty good deal. Meanwhile my friend had been negotiating and the driver was trying to get her to agree to pay by the km. I reconfirmed 3 different times that it would be 50 RMB and we got in. About fifteen minutes into the drive, the man points to his odometer and tells us that it’s 2 RMB per kilometer, it had been 30km. WHAT!? Oh nooooo pengyou! I told him that was a bunch of crap and that he said 50 RMB so it was 50. He pointed to my friend and said, “She said 2RMB per km.” I promptly told him that she only briefly discussed it with him and that I didn’t care what they had discussed because he and I had agreed on 50, three different times. He sat there and argued for what seemed like an eternity, adamantly refusing to go down in price. We told him we weren’t paying that much; he screeched on the breaks. There was probably not a lot of intelligent thought in the next action, but we all got out of the car on the side of the road. I would never do this in the US by the way, because someone will chop you up into pieces, but China is safe so, despite being a bad idea, we got out and started walking away from the car. The guy stayed in his car wondering what we were going to do. We stood about 30 feet away waiting in the darkness for a taxi to come along. And we waited. And waited. I think about 20 minutes went by when the guy got out of the car to tell us again that he wanted to charge us 2 kuai a kilometer, which wasn’t going to work. Out of sheer principle, we were not going to give into his shenanigans and my friend was drunkenly trying to be belligerent both in Chinese and English but the guy wouldn’t leave. So we waited some more and finally what seemed like an eternity later headlights appeared in the distance and a beautiful blue and yellow Beijing taxi pulled up. We practically leapt and ran for it and jumped in, very happy to have been saved from beside-the-highway abandonment on highway-middle-of-nowhere-China.  In the end, we ended up paying 80 RMB to get home in a real taxi, and know what? It was worth every penny. Stay away from the illegal taxi pirates.

The list of weird incidences goes on and on, from having a taxi driver stroke your beard to one chasing after your friend with a brick because he threw up in his car, to a driver who twitches like he is in serious need of a straightjacket, everyone has their own China weird taxi stories. Taxis are a necessary part of life here in China when you can’t drive a car. Like everywhere in the world, you are bound to happen upon some weird taxi situation and encounter some weirdoes here and there creating the weird taxi stories.  The situations might be odd, uncomfortable, funny, shocking, or freaky, but alas, you have no recourse.  You are at the mercy of these taxi drivers and you never know what’s going to happen as they flip up the sign and the meter starts running as they pull out into the highway…all as usual or China crazy taxi story?
Related Links
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Manchester United Vs Hangzhou Greentown in Hangzhou July 26!

Jul 01, 2009
By Andrea Hunt, www.eChinacities.com

In one of the most anticipated events for football fans here in China, this 2009-2010 Manchester United’s 18th season in the Premier League features “Man U”, managed by Sir Alex Ferguson, going head to head with Hangzhou Greentown杭州绿城足球俱乐部at Hangzhou’s Huanglong Sports Center in Zhejiang Province. Manchester United announced in April 2009 of this year that it would visit China as part of its Asian tour before heading to Munich for the Audi Cup 2009.

Photo: WIkepedia Photo: Wikepedia

As part of their Asia Tour 2009 and the seventh time they have visited Asia since 1995, Britain’s “Red Devils” will start July 18 in Malaysia in Kuala Lumper’s Bukit Jalil National Stadium. Their game in Jakarta, Indonesia, is 4 days later in Bung Karno Stadium against the Indonesian Super League Select XI on July 20. The team takes off to Seoul on July 24th to battle it out with FC Seoul at Seoul World Cup Stadium before finally getting to Hangzhou for their final Asian game on July 26th 2009.

Manchester United’s July Asian tour ends with games in Munich to commemorate Audi’s 100th year anniversary with the Audi Cup 2009 at Allianz Arena, and they will play against Boca Juniors, from La Boca Buenos Aires, Argentina on the 29 of July 2009. Meanwhile, Associazione Calcio Milano, or AC Milan from Milan, Lombardy Italy will play Bavarian team FC Bayern Munich from Germany, who have won a total of 14 Deutscher Fußball-Bund-Pokal, or German cups and 21 German titles.

Milano and Boca Juniors are tied worldwide with 18 officially recognized international titles with Milano holding 4 world titles including 3 International Cups in (1969, 1989, 1990) and one FIFA World Cup where they beat Boca Juniors, or Club Atlético Boca Juniors 4-2. The winners of these four games will play each other on July 30, 2009.

Manchester United, from Old Trattford, Greater Manchester, England is world renowned as the English Champions with 18 English League titles, 11 FA-or Football Association Challenge Cups as well as being the FIFA Club World Cup 2008 Champions when they defeated LDU Quito, Liga de Quito from Quito, Ecuador.

Hangzhou Greentown 杭州绿城足球俱乐部, is now playing in the Chinese Super League since winning China’s Jia League title in 2006. The Jia League title, or Chinese League One, is right under the Super League title of the highest-ranking teams. The team was founded in January 14, 1998 and plays in Hangzhou Huanglong Sports Center.

This game will be watched by China’s adoring Manchester United football fans, or Hong Mo (Red Devil) Fan Club as well as others from China on July 26, 2009. For ticket information see below!

China: Hangzhou Greentown FC v United
26 July 2009, Huangzhou Huanglong Sports Center, kick-off 13:00 BST

Ticket Price: RMB 100 – RMB 1600 (RM 51 ~ RM 822)

Match tickets are available online via http://www.sjfc.net/. Mandarin-speaking fans can also call +86-400-887-6887.

***

Related Links

Hangzhou>In Pulse>Qualifying Competition for 2011 AFC Asian Cup
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Remember the BCD? Get ready for TIC: This is China

Remember the BCD? Get ready for TIC: This is China

May 25, 2009
By Andrea Hunt, www.eChinacities.com

If you remember our last article on the Bad China Day you will recall that in addition to the BCD, there is also TIC. This is a phrase that I have heard widely with foreigners in China and therefore, I have no idea who to credit for this ingenious phrase. TIC stands for “This is China.” This is the phrase you use when no other rational explanation can be found from a Western standpoint. The only condolence your confused Western head has is that you are in China, and normal logic in a given situation need not apply to you, Sir or Madam Laowai. If you can start the sentence with the words, “You would think… (dot.dot.dot), then this is the appropriate expression to use! TIC is normal, for you are here in China! Because this is different from anything we knew before and were used to, we must just accept that sometimes we are out of our mental and physical capacity to understand. Why? This is China.

Photo: po go re lo va

TIC. This usually happens at random moments, and sometimes is largely incorporated into the BCD – Bad China Day. Sometimes these occurrences cause frustration and other times they are simply baffling but do not warrant anger.

Sometimes they occur where there are rules everywhere that can’t be bent because there exists an inflexible procedure; sometimes we want to go around the rules if it makes more sense another way. Let’s start with the bank. Let’s say you walk into the bank in the middle of the afternoon to put money on your electricity card. This is the same bank you use to pay your electricity every single month. There are no other customers there and so you walk up to one of the three available people at the counter to pay your electricity only before barely being tackled by a nicely dressed woman who insists that you pick a number. You are a bit taken aback and look around to confirm that you are, indeed, the only customer there so you don’t really see the point of taking the number but walk over to the machine and get your number-1204. You stand there blinking and annoyed as the numbers above the tellers change. 6451, 6452. No one comes. 1202,1203. Nothing.1204-Finally, your number is called and you go up to the desk. You understand full well that order in the bank necessitates a number but seeing as how you are the only one that seemed a bit pointless. You walk up to the lady and tell her that you would like to add money to your card only to be told that you can’t. You ask a series of questions and can only confirm that no, today you can’t do it at that bank; you must walk down the street to the post office to pay. TIC.

Photo: {dpade1337}

A friend of mine crashed his motorbike in Thailand and needed me to wire 600 RMB to him so I elected to use my lunch hour to go to the Western Union in the China Post Office. I pulled out my 600 RMB and told the lady the routing number of the Western Union in Bangkok. She told me that they didn’t take RMB, only US Dollars. I was confused.

”But can’t you change the money into Dollars when you wire it by using the exchange rate?” I inquired.

”No,” she said, “You must change the money first.”

”Fine, where can I change it?” I asked.

I was told that the only place around here that would change RMB to US Dollars was Bank of China, which was not nearby.

I pondered a moment, “Wait! I have my US Visa Bank Card! Can I use that to wire the money? That way the money coming out of the account is directly in US Dollars.”

“No, they must be actual US Dollars in order to wire it,” she said flatly.

“But you are not wiring actual paper money, it’s a wire transfer! Why can’t you take it off the card and wire it? You are Western Union!”

I finally gave up. TIC.

Usually at Chinese restaurants in small towns you will find it virtually impossible to find cold beer unless you ask them to put it in the meat fridge for you and you plan on hanging out for a few hours. On several occasions, we went to some restaurants and asked for several beers.

We were asked, “Do you want cold beer or warm beer?”

We replied excitedly at the prospect of actual cold beer in the middle of December, “Yes! Bring 3 please!”

“We don’t have cold beer here,” was her reply.

We thought out loud to ourselves, “Interesting. But, if you don’t have any cold beer then why did you ask if we wanted it cold?”

I turned and looked around, “But what about that beer that is in the refrigerator over there?”

“No, it’s not plugged in,” she replied coyly as if that was the dumbest thing she had ever heard.

I couldn’t think of anything to say. ”Not plugged in? Of course. Why would it be? Right…warm beer would be fine.” TIC

Photo: lanuiop

One weekend trip while hanging out in beautiful Suzhou for a few days a few of us who were living in small Chinese cities at the time were craving some Western Food. We walked past what appeared to be an Irish pub, usually a safe bet worldwide when it comes to a hearty meal and good beer selection. We went in the bar to inspect and to check out the menu.

“Burgers!” my friend squealed.

“Hey, do you also have cheese? Can you make a cheeseburger?” I asked.

“Oh yes, of course you can order a cheeseburger here!” the lady beamed.

So we ordered one cheeseburger and one hamburger and went to sit down. What seemed like an eternity later she joyfully skipped over and put the plate before me. I leaned over and looked. What lay before me was a toasted hamburger bun with a large piece of lettuce and a piece of American wrapper cheese. It looked very thin. I picked up the top bun and peered over the “burger.” As I suspected, there was a slightly wet, yet crispy piece of iceberg lettuce and a square piece of cheese.

I looked up at her blankly and asked innocently,” Um. Where is the hamburger?” (Remember TIC: Things are not always what they seem. This is China; they could be bringing it separately for all I know).

“You order cheeseburger,” she chirps.

Blink, blink….”Yes, so where is the cheeseburger?”

She gestures towards the toasted bun. “That’s cheeseburger,” she says.

“But, where is the meat?” I challenged, wrinkling my brow.

“You mean the beef?” she asks, totally confused.

Now I was puzzled beyond words. “Yes! Where’s the beef?” I asked, with memories of that 80s commercial in my head. Now I was fully expecting her to suddenly chant, “It’s in your teeth!”

She put her hands on her hips, “OH! You want a beef cheeseburger, why you not say?”

I choked a little. “Yes! A beef cheeseburger!” (?!?!!!)

“Ah OK! I ask them make the beef cheeseburger for you!” and she ran to the kitchen and brought back a barely masticable piece of steak to put in the bun. TIC.

Admittedly, sometimes the strangest of situations are truly hilarious because at times we really don’t understand the thinking that is behind the action. After awhile the stranger things seem more commonplace and you wonder why certain things seemed odd to you when you first got here. I’m sure there are 5 million strange things about any of our countries; it’s the nature of living in a different country. There are always going to be customs or situations that you just can’t understand. There have been many questioned asked about the US for which I honestly have no rational answer-I can only reply, “I have no idea, that’s just the way it is.” So when in China, remember when you can start the sentence with “You would think that…” remember, TIC.

***

Related links:

How to Get a Drink Thrown in Your Face Over Panda Sex
Oh No You Didn’t…Bitten by a Prostitute?!
Me vs China: What the H*ll is a BCD?
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Grumpy Old Man Pushes a Jumper off the Bridge?

Grumpy Old Man Pushes a Jumper off the Bridge?

By Andrea Hunt, eChinacities.com

One of the weirdest stories to be circulating around the Internet the last few days in China is of an attempted suicide. Yes, unfortunately these stories are not uncommon. Students get overstressed before tests or people get in debt, have family pressures, etc. But usually, attempted suicides are met with compassionate people who try to coax the person out of harm’s way by talking some sense into them.

Photo: news.163.com

Not the case with a 31-year-old man in Guangzhou who was apparently on the Hai Zhu Bridge. What makes this story a bit controversial is that an old man climbed up to the top to speak to the jumper, shook his hand, and then pushed him off the bridge. When asked, he said he was “annoyed” at the frequency of the attempted suicides on the bridge that had apparently disrupted traffic. There have been 15 jumpers that year and the old man is sick of it.

This is just weird. What is wrong with people? Who pushes a jumper? Apparently there were mats below but how did the old man know where the guy was going to land? Obviously, when you push someone, you aren’t exactly aiming. The jumper suffered multiple injuries and was listed in critical condition even though he supposedly landed on the mats. The Chinese blogosphere’s reaction is mixed. Some people, like the old man, feel that jumpers have just messed up the traffic and are wasting everyone’s time, while others see these people’s suicide attempts as cries for help. Either way, this is definitely one of the weirdest things I have ever heard of and I haven’t seen such an aggressive reaction from a grumpy old man. He saluted the crowd afterwards and then was arrested. Grumpy old men- who knew they could be so dangerous?

What do you think?

To see the video on youku.com click here.

Expat Corner> Remember the BCD? Get ready for TIC: This is China

Expat Corner> Me vs China: What the H*ll is a BCD?

China Explorer> Volunteer with Pandas or at the Great Wall!

China Explorer> Airport Security Fun

All you need in Shanghai-find it at the Hiker!

All you need in Shanghai-find it at the Hiker!

By Andrea Hunt, eChinacities.com

So many people have to go on business trips to Shanghai or maybe just want a weekend to hang out in the city that offers diversity and some of the best restaurants, clubs and nightlife around. But a lot of times you want to be able to stay somewhere that will allow you to meet people in the process. Sure you meet people at hostels but the Shanghai Mingtown Hiker offers you a place to meet up with people from different cities who are both traveling and living in China. You can keep coming back and feel like it’s your second home.

Photo: Athrun

One of the unique aspects of the Hiker hostel as opposed to other hostels in Shanghai is that you meet other expats who end up in Shanghai several times a month for business trips. You arrive at the hostel and the staff already knows you. It’s good to know there is one place where you can all meet up with friends in other cities for a weekend and catch up. Interestingly enough, even people who live in Shanghai come to the hostel’s bar just to meet other travelers and have a cold beer or a pool game. It’s not just a hostel; it becomes a friendly environment away from home.

They offer dorm rooms with shared bathrooms or if you want a bit more privacy, you can get a single, double or triple. If you are traveling by yourself there is no better place to meet people and they provide every kind of service imaginable.  To give you an idea, I once left my suitcase for a month there and they are especially helpful for drawing maps and helping you navigate the city with its Shanghai hua, which causes added difficulties in communication.

The staff is absolutely wonderful and will help you out in any way they can whether its recommending a restaurant, how to get somewhere, or just getting you train tickets. They have movies playing in the evenings but if you want to go out there is always some one willing and able to head out on a night on the town.

Photo: Nao lizuka

The hostel is located right off Shanghai’s famous Nanjing Lu and close to the People’s Square. It’s conveniently by the subway and easy to find. Right next door, there is a massage place where you can cheaply pay someone to soak and rub your weary feet after a day of traversing the streets of Shanghai. Nanjing Lu offers all sorts of restaurants and shops, and you aren’t far away from Shanghai’s picturesque “Bund” area. Also, the Qipolu market is a close walk if you want to dizzy yourself with thousands of stacks of jeans and cheap fake brand name clothes. There are delicious street food vendors in the morning for when you are headed back to the bus station or coming home late.

Photo: akaalias

It’s not just a hostel, you can find those everywhere In Shanghai; you come here because you want to hang out with interesting people. It’s filled with other expats who live in China as well as international travelers who are in China for the first time. It makes for an interesting crowd and a rare place to share China stories. The funny thing about this hostel is if you keep going every few weeks, you end up bumping into the same people over and over again. You can end up meeting people who can become long-term friends just because they also have good taste in hostels and cheap Tsingtaos. Reserve ahead because this place fills up. They will only hold your reservation for about an hour because people come in at all hours trying to stay here.

This is the place to meet people, if you want sleep and peace and quiet, this isn’t the hostel for you. This hostel provides the social scene you want to have when you come to Shanghai alone or with people and you want to meet other cool people. If you come here for work occasionally there is nowhere else you should be staying. You can get to know the staff and see the other people who frequent Shanghai’s dizzying nights and bustling days. When you want a social scene away from home, it’s where you want to be.

Address:

MINGTOWN Hiker International Youth Hostel, Shanghai, China

No. 450 Middle Jiangxi Rd. Shanghai. P.R.China, 200002, Shanghai

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