Thursday, March 31, 2005

Well, That Didnt Take Very Long

I woke up this morning and found out I had a Chinese girlfriend. Turns out its a lot easier to get a girl in China than America, or maybe its just because I am an American, but whatever it is doesnt matter now. Plus she did watch all of 24 Season 3 with me, so either she has good (my) taste or she wants me bad enough to put up with 24 hours of Jack Bauer, not to mention my infamous shenanigans.

Oh, her name is WanXiao, her English name is Winnie. I'll have a picture up soon. Not that I dont already have a bunch, we've been going out doing things as she has been introducing me to Harbin, but they are all with other people; I dont have a good shot of just her. Turns out all those outings were dates, and we were never alone before the other day because "dating" involves chaperones here until the couple is comfortable with each other. But now I know, yup, those were dates and I got a girlfriend.

I still don't unmderstand just how it all happened, but I never really understood the dating scene in the West either, so why would I here? Either way, I should just be happy with what I got. (Here is a clue: It isn't herpes.)

Get Real Paid


P3300153
Originally uploaded by billmcgonigle.
The title to this entry was almost: "Its All About the Maos, Baby. Uhh. Uh-huh. Yeah."

Today was my first payday. As the photo is there to help illustrate, I get paid in cash, which is a bit odd, because then I'm walking around with a huge wad of dough all day until I can get home and put it someplace safe.

Everything about the money system here is in the midst of change. First off, lets start with the basics. The Yuan (or, informally, "kuai") is the base denomination, like the dollar. One tenth of a yuan is a mao (or "jiao") and one tenth of that is a fen. Eight Yuan is roughly equal to US $1, which makes a mao worth about $.012, and the fen practically worthless. You'll hardly see any fen floating around in modern China.

In the picture you'll see my hand full of 100 Y bills. Oddly enough, the 100 Y bill did not exist a few years ago. In fact, the largest denomination in 1987 (approx, I'm getting this hear-say) was the 10 Y note. But as the economy has exploded since then, the government found the need for larger denominations, and now they got 'em.

The 100 Y note is pretty common, often counterfeited, and rather annoying to make change for. Its similar to the $20 bill in all these senses.

Who be dippin in the Benz with the spoilers?

Sorry.

Anyways, most everything still works in cash here. I've seen maybe one credit card machine in a store being used since I arrived. I think I mentioned this before, but it still weirds me out when I see people forking over hundreds in cash, if not thousands, for certain purchases.

I don't know what the bank system is like, or if the common Chinaman will even use it. In Beijing I did see a lot of people using ATMs, but I havent even seen an ATM in Harbin. I've talked to my Chinese staff about getting a bank account, since I don't like the idea of holding onto my cash for fear of spending/losing/eating it, and they all just stare at me like I'm some sort of stupid White Man speaking gibberish. None of them can fathom why I'd want to use a bank.

Seven zeros, over in Rio Dijanery.

Sorry.

I feel like the issue of China's economy will be one of the frequently visited themes in this blog. If anyone out there has any questions about anything in particular, just email me and I'll address them ASAP if I have something to say.

Uh-huh, yeah.

Tuesday, March 29, 2005

52 Card Pickup

I've been doing a lot of walking around Harbin of late, as the weather has gotten above 35 degrees and I want to explore the city. In my travels I've noticed lots and lots of playing cards scattered around the streets. Curious as to the reason behind this phenomenon, I asked one of my Chinese TAs what the deal was. Turns out younger kids, as a game, try to build entire decks from cards they find lying in the street or in the gutter. Adults will throw portions of decks out of their apartment or car windows everynow and then to keep the game going.

This seems absolutely retarded to me. And I know retarded.

Also, on a different note, I've recently been bought a lot of ice cream by some of my female college students. This would usually be awesome, but let me remind you that it is rather cold here still, and they usually bring it to me as I stand outside after class waiting for my driver to pick me up, and its kinda hard to enjoy banana ice cream at 10 AM when its 35 degrees outside. But hey, free ice cream!

Monday, March 28, 2005

Dangerous Questions to Ask Bill During a Short Car Ride

"The two parties that run the government in America are called the Liberal Party and the Conservative Party, right?"

This question is not dangerous because I am in China and certain topics can not be discussed in certain venues, but because my name is The Bill. Have you met me?

Beck and the Chinese Education System

First off, I read yesterday that there is a new Beck album. If any of our readers would be so kind to try and email it to me (in MP3 format, gotta love Gmail) or maybe IM it to me, I would be most grateful. They've got Beck here, well, I've seen "Sea Change" in a store, but there is no telling how long till this newest masterpiece hits the Far Eastern Shores. But I'm at no loss for asstastic Europop, thank god.

Anyways, after I've taught two college classes today (only one more week of "Robinson Crusoe!" Yes!) I've got some thoughts about the Chinese education system floating in my head.

The system is similar to some other Asian countries, where children work exceptionally hard throughout grade school and high school and then once they get into college they just slack off like crazy. Moreso than anyone might joke American college students might slack off. These kids are so lazy they make Potenza look like a coked-up workoholic.

But the younger kids get it pretty rough. Most are in school 7 days a week: 6 in their regular school then extra private schooling on the day off. Plus in the evenings. This is where my school comes in. When I asked one student what she did when she first woke up (expecting "Get out of bed" or "Eat breakfast" or "Brush my teeth") her reply was "study." Thats also what she did for lunch, and after school, and before bed. These kids do not stop working until college, its ridiculous. But the entire system is based around rote memorization, and that is it. There is little thinking taught, if its not flat out discouraged. Few students can come up with their own original thoughts, which makes teaching English a challenge at times. (Conversely, I used to run into trouble in my Chinese classes at Georgetown because I preferred to experiment with the language instead of just repeating patterns from the book.)

The schools are even publically ranked. I don't mean that there is some sort of report that gets published by some arbitrary body, akin to the US News & World Report, but the rankings are often the names of the schools. "Harbin School #1," "#2," "#125." The higher the number is usually the better. This isnt always 100% accurate, but it seems to have been the case so far.

College classes get ranked as well, and the students know it. You have your regular students and your "K" students. "K" students failed their admissions exam, but thanks to money and/or connections (guanxi) they got into the college. The "K" students usually have better housing and all sorts of other perks. The only downside is that they are permanently marked with this "K," it comes after their name in roll and designates their classes. A scarlet letter, of sorts. The other students don't think too highly of them, if they are not a bit jealous in some way, but I'm lucky to have to "K" classes.

Dinner time, more on this later. Now, somebody Beck me up.

Friday, March 25, 2005

Anybody Want a Penpal?

I'm thinking about setting some of my students up with penpals. This could be done via the regular post or more likely through email. If anyone is interested, email me at [CENSORED]. Please don't volunteer unless you're going to be serious and reply to the students.

Thursday, March 24, 2005

I Hate Bargaining, But I'm Good at It

Many of you know I am not a big fan of shopping. Especially comparison shopping, something my mother seems to have taken from a hobby to a science. But as I'm new in town, and there are certain luxuries that I want to invest in for the next year, I am out shopping on all my days off.

There are a variety of shopping venues in Harbin. First off you have the major department stores. These are the most western of all the shops, usually 5 or 6 floors with everything and anything, even a supermarket. The selection is wide, and the quality of what you'll find is usually pretty good, but the prices are fixed and non-negotiable. These are the least hassle to deal with, but while they will have one or two varieties of anything youre looking for, they might not have enough for you to always find exactly what you want.

Then there are the little hole-in-the-wall stores. There is at least one on every block, and they carry all the things you need to get by in your day to day life. The quality is pretty shoddy on most items, but they really make their money on food, beer, and cigarettes. Very similar to a 7-11 back home, but dirtier and with more junk for sale. And no nachos. But once they get to know you, they might give you a gift every now and then, like yesterday when I got a free snack.

The real action, and the real China, lies in the markets. These are where every merchant gets a little booth or floor space and you can really search through a wide selection and bargain. There are clothing markets, furniture markets, computer markets, just about anything. And whats great is that you can set one merchant against another in a price war. Today I was out looking for an easy chair and a TV table. I couldn't find a chair I liked (all the ones in the market I went to were too hard, more like hotel lobby chairs than something I want to watch TV or read in) I did find a few tables. Going back and forth between two booths I got about 35% knocked off the starting price, including delivery and assembly. My Chinese TA was surprised I was able to get all that I did for the price that I paid, and another TA wants me to help her buy something now. Which doesnt make much sense, since, you know, I'm the silly foreigner with a bare working knowledge of the language and she has lived here all her life.

Either way, I still need to find an easy chair. Once that is done I'll be getting some pictures up of my place.

Just a Few Things That Have Entertained Me Recently

1. Teaching Texas Hold 'Em to my fellow staff and in turn not only taking their money but cultivating some dangerous gambling habits.
2. Lecturing for almost two hours on BBQ.
3. Watching my Chinese ability flourish.
4. Sitting at a table with a Tibetan, Malian, and a Canadian discussing... well... we were drunk.
5. Dumplings. My lord, do I love dumplings.
6. Taking an early but strong lead in the office weight loss competition. I lost 3 kilos last week (7 pounds or so), the next best showing was 1.5 kilos. Don't worry, I'm still eating right, I've just cut out a lot of junk that I used to really live on back in the States. There is no Five Guys (or meatstroke) in China, there is no Courtyard Roast Beef, there is no Dunkin Donuts.

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

Fringe Benefits

Its been three and a half weeks since my first class, and I'd be lying if I said the job was easy or all fun and games. Its exhausting, draining both physically and mentally; but the reward you get from the student who smiles when they master a new word or who can show off his latest English colloquialism in front of his parents. An infinite amount of respects goes out to all the teachers I have ever known or had the pleasure of studying under.

Sap aside, being an English teacher in China brings some rather cool perks. For instance, last night I was invited out to dinner with one of my students and her family (she's married, with a kid in another class at my school). This is not the first free dinner I've received, nor will it be the last. Then today, while putzing around downtown, a car pulled up along the sidewalk. One of my students say me wandering around the sidewalk and wanted to offer me a ride home. I should mention my students is 5 years old. After quickly chatting (in Chinese) with his parents I was treated with a short tour of Harbin, cruising around in a recent model (and very spacious) Benz.

English teachers here get more public respect than any occupation I can think of in the US. While sitting at dinner last Friday, one of my coworkers was presented with 6 liters of beer as a gift from another table, and yet another table paid for his entire meal. All of this simply because he was an English teacher.

Harbin, though not my initial target city, proves itself the best choice for me more and more everyday. Not being as international as Beijing, Occidentals are still given this bit of glamour. And English teachers, as the bestowers of that oh-so-coveted skill that is spoken English, gain an extra level of fascination and appeal.

Yet still we are not spectacles or living sights. Sure, every now and then I'll get a stare, but usually I find it a bit comical, often from a little kid who has probably never seen a honkey before. Either way, my ego is sufficiently stroked.

Friday, March 18, 2005

Senior Poopypants

Just got home from my Saturday morning "GoGo Loves English" class. These are the youngest of the young, few with any sort of English experience or bladder control.

Since many have never been exposed to English before, I get to name a number of them. Today I had a parent come up to me before class to inform me her son needed a proper English callsign. "Who is your child?" I asked in Chinese. She pointed to a young tyke with a shaved head and a rat tail happily banging his head against the wall as if for sport.

"His name shall be: Quinn."

"Quinn?"

"Yes. Quinn. He reminds me of someone I know named 'Quinn.' Its a good name."

I've got a Bart in the same class, a Homer in another, both of whom I've named. Other names on the short list: Cartman, Chef, Stanley, Rizzuto, Snuffaluffagus, Meatwad, and Tarzan.

Wednesday, March 16, 2005

Happy St. Patrick's Day

By the time I finish writing this here post it will be St. Patrick's Day in China. So happy St. Patty's to all y ou Irish mothers out there. And also to all you drunks, wannabes, and friends-of. But not to the French. Never to the dirty French.

One year ago, on St. Patrick's Day 2004, I was actually in Ireland touring around the south west of the Emerald Isle with my fam. The celebration there was nothing like what it was in the US, well, to say, people were not riotous, drunk, and perpetuating Irish stereotypes as they do from Boston to Baton Rouge. It was actually a religious holiday, believe it or not.

I don't expect to find much appreciation in either vein here in China. I've been teaching the history of St. Patrick to my classes, as well as the modern American interpretation, but I doubt I've converted many if any. On the note of Irish-American riotousness, I don't think any college students in China drink at all. Seriously. They all love to sleep and eat and... well, little else, but none of them will mention anything about alcohol. Of the 90 or so college freshmen I have, only 1 admitted to ever having imbided sweet sweet beer. Mind you, Harbin is the the #2 consumer of beer in the world.

Shop talk aside, I'm going to a a German establishment tomorrow for lunch. All you can eat, all you can drink, US $3. And they have ales, stouts, and porters on top of the local lagers. A boon for your courageous author, a lover of the darker beers. After that, chances are likely that the local expat bar will be on the agenda.

For now, well, I've introduced poker (Texas Hold-Em) to my Canadian and Chinese staff, and they are chomping at the bit for more. Good for me. Feeling accomplished in spreading all worth-while vices, I think it is now time to settle in with a Rutger Hauer opus: "Blind Fury." He's lucky he can't see what he's up against!

Tuesday, March 15, 2005

Also Your Age

Apparently I'm 26 in China. Didn't realize the plane ride was that long. Har har.

The explanation is that when you are born here, you are considered to be 1, not 0, as in the West. Then, due to the position of my birthday (Dec. 18, 1980) in consideration of the lunar calendar, I get yet another year in there. In the end, I'm 26. Well into my mid-twenties. Ah!

This revelation has altered my view of many of my students. I thought my college students all seemed a bit old to be freshmen, and my teenagers a little underdeveloped for their supposed ages. But the biggest shock is my class of what I thought were 5 & 6 year olds, which now I realize could be as young as 3 or 4. Can you imagine learning a second language at that young of an age? Well, they are not learning much, the book we are using is way over their heads and the director of my school has told me not to worry about keeping on schedule with the tykes, but just to cover what I can.

Ah! 26!

Sunday, March 13, 2005

A Rich Story


Marble Boat
Originally uploaded by billmcgonigle.
Back as the 19th century became the 20th, the US of A was busy modernizing its Navy, largely in part to good ol' TR. Well, dear reader, the US was not alone in this effort! No! China too was developing a new naval power.

The Empress at the time had quite a large budget, millions if not billions to work with, dedicated only to the naval effort. Well, the picture seen here is the final and only result of those funds.

It's a big, marble boat. I don't think it ever went anywhere, as its on a lake, docked right next to the Summer Palace. If it could properly float, I still doubt it would have stood a chance against our Western, non-marble frigates. But it did come with all the latest in technology, including AEGIS missile tracking systems and cupholders.

Rich Story is a Gtown roommate. Rich is half Chinese. Rich is fully in the Navy. Rich practices naval beverage warfare. Watch your Coke.

Saturday, March 12, 2005

Also Yogurt

This coworker of mine, a dingo-ate-my-baby, shrimp-on-the-barbie Australian (Just kidding, I just like to give her a hard time for being Australian. Their toliets flow backwards, you know.) has been touting this particular brand of yogurt that I should try. I usually like yogurt, so I picked up a couple of bags of it the other day.

Yes, bags.

Slicing one open, I emptied the rather mellifluous contents into a bowl and grabbed a spoon. Feeling rather silly, as though I was spooning water into my mouth, I ate the entire bowl with my utensil.

Turns out yogurt is considered a drink here, not, uh, whatever it is considered back in the US. I felt like a fool. Nothing new.

Friday, March 11, 2005

A Single Plum Floating in Perfume, Served in a Man's Hat

For those who do not worship "The Simpsons," this is what a Yoko Ono-ish character orders to drink at Moe's Tavern. Why do I bring it up? Because this post is about boozing in China.

Despite what you may have heard, Harbin holds the oldest brewery in China. Beer is a big deal here, and they drink more of it than any other city in the world besides Hamburg, Germany. Most restaraunts assume you're drinking beer, to the point of which it can be very difficult (and annoying) if you just want a soda. But usually, I wont complain.

A bottle of beer at my local corner mart costs 1.5 yuan, plus a .5 deposit. 2 yuan is equal to about $.25. Yeah. Hooray. A bottle stands at 630 mL, and I have no idea how many onces that is, but its more than 12. Despite the bigger bottle, the alcohol content is actually lower, somewhere around 3.5 proof, a little more than half that of some American beer. The end result is I have to drink more beer to get as drunk as I would back home, but the larger bottles balances this annoyance out. However, it does inspire more frequent trips to the local WC.

The beer is light, but tasty. Brewed locally, they never use preservatives. That means the beer is always fresh, and whatever doesnt sell quick enough gets returned. Often times a shopkeeper will tell you just how old the beer is, in case you were wondering. (I usually dont care, but it does provide for some conversation. "Ahhh, Friday! Friday was a good day for this label!") More often than not the beer is left outside, hardly ever refridgerated. But since Harbin is as cold as it is, I have yet to come across a warm beer. Some of you might think warm beer to be odd, if not gross, but you should know that in Chinese culture cold drink traditionally carry the stigma of being a (Tom) bearinger of disease and illness. Bartenders will at times look at you funny if you ask for a "cold one."

Outside of beer, China has wine and "bai jiu." The Asian winos hold a different nose from their Western counterparts, basically everything we in the West deem bad or poor qualities in wine are considered to be the best elements here in China. As such, the wine is often too sweet and too full for my tastes, plus, like the beer, its weaker in its alcohol. But since none of the food pairs well with the local wine, who really cares.

Hard spirits are hard to come by outside of the local paint thinner, a moonshine loved by locals and feared by foreigners called "bai jiu," or literally "white liquor." Contrary to the other imbibements discussed, bai jiu is stronger than any sort of western counterpart. And far, far, far grosser. We (the expat community) are always careful not to find ourselves in a situation where a native is buying us drinks of bai jiu and we become obligated to drink it or insult our friends. The drink is true rot gut. Just a shot or two and you'll be writhing in pain for a day at least. As it sits in your glass, the bai jiu holds a shimmer like gasoline in water; as it sits in your stomach, uuughgghhg. Sometimes the characters used to describe bai jiu translate as "wood alcohol," sometimes as "reject the dragon wine," other times... who knows. Its gross.

Western spirits are hard to come by save at select bars or huge department stores. I haven't been able to find any yet myself. Right now, as I write, I'm sipping on a brandy, which isn't that great, but its doing what I need. I'd be happier if I had some ice (I have yet to find ice trays, again, a convenience that has fallen victim to the superstition against cold drinks) but I'd be happiest if I could find some decent scotch. There is a bottle of Cutty Sark on display in the lobby of one of my schools, and some one has already drank half of it. I kinda want the other half. Maybe tomorrow, perhaps in preparation for my 8 AM class of 4-6 yr olds...

Thursday, March 10, 2005

The Jobby Job

As I'm here in China to teach, figured you'd all like to hear a little about that.

I'm a teacher for the California Sunshine Foreign Language Center, or Sunshine for short. The school has been open for a little over a year and a half now, has two offices and looks to be opening a third this summer. Its got a good rep around Harbin and lately has been making moves into the business market. I am one of the first teachers they have farmed out to teach to execs downtown.

The facilities of the school are exceptional for China. All the walls are painted in lively colors, glass walls and glass doors keep every classroom open to any visitors eyes as well as avoiding any sort of claustrophobic atmosphere in the at times crowded rooms. The owner is the former police chief of Harbin and he guanxi's the hell out of the connections he made in that position ("guanxi" is the Chinese art of fully utilizing one's network). Mr. Lin himself does not speak much English, nor is he around the school a lot. Any higher level administration usually comes from Dan Symes, our president, I guess. Dan's a Canadia who has now been in Harbin 10+ years. Fun guy who I've been relying on a bit to learn the city and meet new friends.

The staff are all Chinese, many 22, a few a bit older. All are female, save work study student who has returned to college for his finals. They handle all the office work plus provide good "bad cop" disciplinary backup in rowdy classes. They'll also translate difficuly English or important messages (homework, test rules). Even though they are officially TAs, I don't seem them much in my classes save for with the young kids. A few are helping me with my Chinese, as they have little to nothing to do when there are no classes in session.

Then there are the teachers, or "the talent," as one Canadian would say. All together we number nine, but I expect more to be coming on board soon. These characters, to be described more at a later date, are all quality people, each with their own quirk. Considering the genres of teachers I've met so far, the Susnshine crew ranks as some of the best to have as coworkers. I'm glad these are the people I'll be spending the majority of my time with, I really lucked out.

The school takes good care of us, which makes everything much easier. We might not get paid as much as some other private institutions around town, but we get certain luxuries (fully furnished apartments, daily meals, translation/chaperone assistance when needed) that make up for any discrepancy in pay. Plus, more than anythiing else, the school is dependable and would never screw one of their own, a practice all too common in this field.

Sunshine, as a private school apart from the local system, has to hold most of its classes at night and on the weekends. Saturday and Sunday are our busiest days, often with 3 or even 4 classes each day for each teacher. The classes range in age from: 4-6 year olds (very few), 6-9 year olds, 9-13 year olds, high school age, and adults. Out femal teachers get most of the younger age groups, I mostly have 9-13 year olds and adults. The 9-13 year olds are quite bright and teaching them can be a lot of fun. The adults are easy, as they dont care for the book, they just want to chat and practice their oral skills.

The classes are never larger than 15 students and run 2 hours with a 15 minute break half way through. Lesson plans are simple, we usually just follow along with the book, so you dont have to prep too too much. There is a large cross-section of the Expat Teaching Population that uses this opportunity to party 24/7. Every day you can hear a new story about such and such teacher at such and such school that wakes up every day with a beer and a joint and teaches 6 hours of kindergarten before crashing just long enough for the local expat bar to reopen so he might go out binging again. None of the Sunshine talent subscribes to this mantra, lucky for me, which is why its such a smooth running operation and a pleasure to work at. Not to say I dont like finding some of this other breed on nights I feel antsy for some stupid fun.

We, the teachers, dont prepare the tests or quizzes nor do we need to even assign homework or any sort of outside activity. Our most important job is to provide a friendly atmosphere so the students feel comfortable to speak and practice their English. They learn a lot in their regular schooling, but all through wrote memorization and writing drills, oral ability is not stressed if not ignored entirely. We drill on vocab and pronounciation, sure, but moreso we're there to ensure they dont sound like a textbook when they try to have conversations.

During the week we get shipped out to local colleges. Our biggest employer is the Harbin University of Science and Technology where I teach 4 sections of Freshmen Basic English Reading. The school actually ranks all their students and marks them as such, my attendance sheet lists each's name, and if they have a "K" next to it, I know they are one of the certified "too dumb to really be here but wealthy enough to buy off the admissions board" students. Its kinda like a academic scarlet letter. That aside, these students are mixed in with the intelligent ones to ensure every class holds a certain average and the documentation of such allows me to ignore these assholes in class and teach towards those who want it and can handle it.

Getting to and from relies upon our personal driver. He's a great guy and soon I'll be cursing fluently in Chinese thanks to him, but he only has two tapes of whiny Chinese pop that he listens to in the car, and its beginning to drive me batty.

Thats a basic rundown. I'll get some pictures up soon, show off the office and maybe some of my students. I'm also planning an introduction to the Sunshine characters as well as an apratment tour, but I've been busy. Between work and recent fun, I've been slipping, but I want to get back to daily or every-other-day posts. Now: bed.

Sunday, March 06, 2005

Two Wongs Will Never Make It White

Never said the 'bin was the cleanest of cities (or dorms for that matter).

The past few days have been exceptionally warm for this time of year in Harbin. Not sure if its actually getting much warmer, but at the least we're getting a lot more sun (which usually leads to it being warmer...). Now all those streets and sidewalks once layered with inches of packed, black ice now show their true colors. Actually, I shouldn't say that, its far from accurate. Instead, what I should say, is that all that ice, once jampacked and loaded with oil, coal, soot, and all sorts of grime, now melts and covers the walking and driving paths with a slick layer of gunk. It is exceptionally gross. I'm more afraid of losing my footing now than before with the ice, because not only is this gunk slicker than ice, but I have a feeling one will never get the stain out of their clothing. It also means I try to stay as far away from the street as possible, constantly fearing a passing automobile will splash me down. I feel like an otter in an oil spill. A sexy otter.

Luckily China, 1.8 billion socialists strong, commands one of the greatest public works brigades in the world. Maybe not the most advanced or efficient, but they got man power coming out the gills. A day after the heavy snowfall in Beijing, all the sidewalks were swept clean of snow and a number of laborers continued to work diligently keeping any puddles from forming anywhere one could. I expect that the street moppers and the whisk brooms will make an appearance here soon enough, because if its not safe to walk it certainly can not be safe to drive.

But I'm not getting my hopes up.

Saturday, March 05, 2005

If I Were China, Frank Nagle Would Be My Taiwan

Duurrrrrrrr...

Read this article from CNN to get up to date with the latest sabre-rattling: http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/03/05/china.npc/index.html

I'm not even going to begin to comment on this. It's really just business as usual here, but any of our readers who are not familiar with the tension in the straits should become at least acquainted with it.

In related news: I've heard that Frank Nagle, GTown's own soul-patched, saxed-out cross breed of Shaggy and The Dawson will be getting a haircut and a real job. At least a haircut. Why, Frank, why?! You must hold on to your hair and treasure it, for one day (7th Grade, perhaps) it might not be there!

Act fast, Ted Berg. God speed.

In Cars


WarZone
Originally uploaded by billmcgonigle.
Doo bidi doo.

One thing I hated about my life back in NoVA was commuting. Driving to and fro at first gave a bit of pleasure, but in the long run, I found it a huge annoyance. I didn't enjoy maintaining my car, often pushing how long I could go without an oil change or refueling. (However, I still took better care of my car than I did of Ms. Kearns'. Bridg, I will never live that down.)

Why do I bring this up? Well, now, in China, I have a personal driver. Yup, a chauffeur. He's an employee of my school whose primary job is to shuttle us profs around town to our various teaching commitments, but as the one teacher who knows Chinese (the driver, Soong, can't speak English, but we have been trading good curses for each's native tongue) I'm quickly developing a good friendship with him. As such, he'll drive me wherever I need/want to go if he has the time. Saves me cab fare or the annoyance of the overcrowded buses.

Traffic laws here are ridiculous. First off, all those ideas you might have of millions of Chinese on bicycles does not apply to Harbin. Due to the extreme cold, very few people here subject themselves to riding face first into the wind without the protection of a heating system or at least a windshield. This means the roads are loaded with automobiles of all sorts.

The major roads are benefitted with a fence in between the two directions and painted line dividers between lanes. Some even have bicyles/moped lanes.

Most roads lack all of these luxuries. That's where the fun comes in.

The entire roadway becomes a free for all: where ever your car can fit, you can go. Bus on the right? Want to pass it? Just drive on the left side of the road! And don't worry about that mule cart or truck heading straight at you! You can honk!

The results are displays of driving as daring as any Barrett Hamilton adventure yet as dumb as... uh... well, its dumb. And at times, quite unnerving.

Pedestrians dont make it any easier. There are random crosswalks on most roads, never at instances where a crosswalk would make sense. Lights will indicate when traffic is to stop so walkers may cross, but the walkers never wait for these handy lights. It is not out of the ordinary to find people standing in between lanes on the highway that runs through town. Imagine trying to cross 495 while traffic is clipping by. Thats daily life here in China.

I should also mention that drivers dont pay attention to street lights. They are not so much a law here as a suggestions from your annoying older brother who knows best and likes to tell you so but you never want to listen. (Take that, BBA!)

The worst of all are the cabs. First off, they are the most daring (worst) of all drivers. More than a few times has my cab, in an effort to pass some traffic, leaped up on the sidewalk and begun honking pedestrians out of its way. With that, they have no fear or sense of safety in where they drive. Take a look of this picture, thats a cab that just drove through a street exploding every which way with firecrackers. And not tiny wussy noisemakers, but explosions big enough to take your hand off.

Riding in a cab, youre greeted by a local liveryman encased within a sturdy roll cage. That's nice and all, especially since you dont have the pleasure of your own seat belt. So the cabbie could easily survive a tumble off a cliff, but youre dead at the first short stop. Thanks. At least youre cheap and I dont have to tip you.

Gary Numan was wrong. Her in my car, in China, I feel the least safe of all.

Friday, March 04, 2005

Eastern Europe in Eastern China


St Sophia
Originally uploaded by billmcgonigle.
As mentioned, here is an example of the Eastern European architecture randomly found in Harbin. Pictured is St. Sophia's Church, of which my hotel had a view. I'm going to post more pictures online soon, I'll put a link up for them once I do.

If you couldn't tell, this is an Eastern Orthodox church. In the foreground is one of the many ice sculptures found all around town. Actually, many have now been destroyed in an effort to keep them from melting and then refreezing as ice on the streets. Not that it matters, the streets are already covered in ice.

Thursday, March 03, 2005

"The Pearl Under the Neck of the Swan"

Many of our readers know that this is not my first time in China, or even for that matter, in Harbin. I spent a number of months in the summer of 1997 traveling throughout the Middle Kingdom with 13 other students of Zhongwen from Andover. Half of our time was spent here in Harbin where we spent out mornings in various classes and our afternoons and evenings putzing around.

My memories of Harbin, though faded, were not very impressive. Actually, I recently went back to my journals from that trip and found that I had described the city at that time as being "boring" and "run-down."

A lot has changed since 1997. Either that, or our tour guides did a truly rotten job of showing us around this metropolis.

The population of the city is officially around 10 million, though that includes all the outlying villages, which don't really count. In the city proper, we're probably looking at three to four million, of which there are between 400 and 700 expats running around at any given time, and I'm not counting Russians.

The city is teeming with life, everywhere I've gone so far at least. The northeast of China, and Harbin especially, has recently been targeted by the government for re-development. Any structure under six stories and not protected for historical reasons stands only for destruction and replacement by some nature of skyscraper. This means many of the structures that must have given me the impression of the city being "run-down" are now gone, replaced with monuments of neon lights and mirrored windows.

This doesn't mean the entire city has been laid waste and rebuilt, quite the contrary. The city of Harbin was built at the request of the Russians roughly a century ago. As such, the older parts of the city consist of old European style architecture. I've never been to Eastern Europe, but from what I understand, strolling down somoe of the streets here in Harbin one could think themselves in Prague or St. Petersburg. The contrast in architecture leads to a very interesting and fun dynamic, one that I personally like quite a bit.

While the older section of the city might resemble Olde Europe, the newest area, literally called "New Development Zone," is more reminiscent of Las Vegas than anything else. (I'd imagine Tokyo might be a better comparison, but I've never been to Tokyo, so I'm going to refrain from using it.) I've driven through it a few times and the glare from the neon was just tremendous. Though the bars in this area apparently close earlier than some others in the city (4 AM is early...) it probably does not matter what time you come stumbling out as the lights make it as bright as day.

The district I live in is called "NanGong," and while there is nothing tremendously special about it, it does have anything you would want and it is in the middle of everything else. My office is less than a 5 minute walk away, closer than 3800 or America House was from campus, there are a few local stores and eateries, and a major shopping area is still within a short walk. I'm still exploring the neighborhood, but I imagine I'll be quite satisfied with it. I've already found my local karaoke bar.

There is a lot for me to seek out here in Harbin, and even though I have a year to do it, I feel a need to get out and venture where I can as soon as I can. Dan, the Canadian who is one of the partners at my school, continues to recommend and point out popular expat hangouts. Once I get on schedule I'll certainly start taking heed of his advice.

Oh, "The Pearl Under the Neck of the Swan" is one of the nicknames the Chinese have for Harbin. I still havent figured out what they mean by it.

Wednesday, March 02, 2005

Life in China

Most of my posts up until now have been rather touristy, and for good reason: I've been a tourist. But now I'm settling into my apartment and working out lesson plans and learning how to live here in Harbin. As such, the nature of this blog will shift from anecdotes to study (though I'll still be throwing in the best stories). Looks like I might have my internet hooked up at home tonight, or maybe tomorrow, but once that happens I'll be able to put more work into satisfying my readers' thirst for vicarious adventure.