Typical China Experience

I broke down and bought a bike last week. BF bought one last year and often gets around the city for errands. It was a really warm sunny day last Sunday so I just had to get one so we could go for a ride together. I hesitated this long because it just seems like a perilous activity in this crazy Chinese city (so many cars, people, and bikes all at the same time going in different directions and speeds with rules I just don't get, especially at intersections).

So we went to the bike shop where BF bought hers. Of course they tried to show us the more expensive bikes first but I just want real basic transportation for occasional riding, nothing more. So there were two bikes to select from and I got a quick ride on each one. The shop owner does not speak English and trust me we can't speak Mandarin. We kept negotiating on the price to a point where he was not budging and I felt we were getting taken advantage of. We decided to walk away and look somewhere else. Wouldn't you know it the words "OK" came out of the shop keepers mouth but with much disdain for us. The whole outfit cost 400 yuan which is a little over $51. I know others have gotten their bikes for 300 or less but I thought well maybe the size of my bike alone justified a higher price and after all it was $50.

The shop owner proceeded to have his workers put on new pedals, a basket, and bike lock. We left the shop on the bike with BFon the back. Well the pedal was hitting on both sides with each stroke. I took the bike back to be fixed and they pounded away on the cranks to fix it. So off we went back to the apartment. It was getting late and very windy so we called it a day.

Yesterday we thought it would be nice to ride our bikes to a museum. I tried to ride my bike up the garage ramp at the apartment building and felt something slip and the pedaling did not feel right. When I got on the bike again I noticed the pedals were in the same position and there was no way to pedal the bike. I showed the bike to the guard at the apartment door and he pointed down the street. He doesn't speak English so I assumed he meant there was a street bike repairman down the street who could repair the bike. BF and I headed down the street and found a bike repairman on a corner two blocks away. There are bike repairmen scattered throughout the city streets.
I showed the repairman my predicament and he went to hammering and breaking off bolts to put new ones to keep the cranks in place. Then he noticed that there was still a problem with the crank and motioned that there was a lot of movement. He took off the cranks to find that the bearings were not packed and perhaps some were missing. Next he noticed that the rear wheel was not going straight and there was a lot of movement in the rear hub. He took off the wheel and wouldn't you know it the ball bearings were a problem there too. He then pointed out holes in the tire, no tape was put on the inside of the wheel to protect the inner tube from the spoke ends. I thought to myself what else could go wrong.

I finally got to take the bike for a spin and noticed that the steering was loose. I showed the repairman, so he took the handlebars out. Wouldn't you know it, there was a broken bearing ring. The bike is a total piece of crap that isn't even worth the $50 I paid for it. Now it is a $65 piece of junk after the 2 hour bike repair.

We finally took off on our bikes and decided to stop for lunch since it was getting late. We noticed that the weather had turned and was getting colder and windier. After we ate lunch we went outside to get back on our bikes and it was raining hard (it really does not rain much here in Beijing. I think it has only rained on 5 days since I have been here). We gave up and headed back home. We will have to see the museum another day.

Red Capital Club Restaurant

We visited the Red Capital Club Restaurant (not to be confused with the Capital Club a Beijing an executive Business Club) on Olympic countdown day 503 (24th of March). We went with 3 other expat couples (US/US, Australia/Australia, New Zealand/South Africa). BF came across this restaurant after asking a number of expats in our apartment building for recommendations on their favorite places to celebrate an occasion.

The restaurant is around a 10 minute taxi ride from our apartment. We shared the ride with one of the couples. It required using the concierge at the apartment to find a taxi driver who could find the place. It turns out the restaurant is down a long narrow alley-way in a hutong. It was a very scenic drive in the Dongsi hutongs, it did create some doubt; "were we really going in the right direction". There were no signs on the building for the restaurant, just a red door opening into the courtyard building, and "a red flag limo." Inside the restaurant they mentioned that the limo was Madame Mao's (uhmmmmmm) old red flag car and was for rent for a night on the town.

Fodor's offers the following description which I could not offer any better:
The Red Capital Club oozes nostalgia. Cultural Revolution memorabilia and books dating from the Great Leap Forward era (1958-60) adorn every nook. The fancifully written menu reads like an imperial fairy tale, with the names of dishes to match.

We started by meeting one of the couples in the cigar bar/lounge. They already had a bottle of Moet opened. The bar was actually one of the courtyard rooms that was used as a pre-dinner seating area to wait for the rest of your party, order drinks especially from their extensive wine menu, and a nice way to familiarize yourself with the menu of interesting dishes like "Imperial Phoenix, Empress Dowager's Choice, or Chiang Kai-Shek's Balls".

Once the last couple arrived, we ordered from the large menu while relaxing with a drink in the lounge. The wait staff then instructed us that they were ready to seat us. The dining room could seat about 30 people. This was definitely not a place that local Chinese frequented but was an expat or tourist experience. When we arrived to our table they had already placed a couple of appetizers we had ordered. Each dish was presented very nicely with either a carved fruit object or little statue to represent the dish. One of the dishes had a rooster carved out of a watermelon. It was really well done. I would recommend the place for visitors to Beijing.

For more information check out this website: http://www.redcapitalclub.com.cn/club.html

500 Days and Counting

On March 26th, there will only be 500 days until the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
http://en.beijing2008.cn/03/39/honoraryvisitors.shtml

There are some local events planned to commemorate the occasion like a 5K and 10K run, an 18K walk in Chaoyang Park in 5 loops which symbolizes the Olympic rings. You can also become a 2008 Honorary Official Website Visitor. Click on the link to become an Honorary Visitor (there are responsibilities with the honor, like catching spelling or grammar errors on the official website). http://en.beijing2008.cn/40/39/article214023940.shtml

One of the benefits of becoming a Visitor is also this nice certificate:It is China so you can buy a yellow commemorative badge whose front bears the characters of "500 days to go before the Games of the XXIX Olympiad" in both Chinese and English as well as the description of the countdown on March 27, 2007 and the Games' opening on August 8, 2008. On its reverse side the official emblem of the Olympics is shown. The badge's issue is limited to 10,000 and each piece has a serial number which collectors pay attention to.

The China National Philatelic Corporation will issue post cards decorated with the Beijing Olympic emblem and mascots on the occasion of the 500-day countdown to the opening of the 2008:

















This auspicious date also coincides with our countdown to returning to the U.S.

Education Update

AF has decided that she is going to be a Scots(wo)man and live in Fife for the next four years studying English.

EF is waiting to hear from schools she recently visited and then needs to decide whether a transfer is best for her.

MF has already begun the registration process for his senior year at Loyola. An audit of his graduation requirements shows he needs to do a Loyola sponsored internship at a company for 100 unpaid hours or an international experience. Which do you think he picked? He is going to spend his winter break (2 weeks) in warm sunny Chile and Argentina.

In a call the other day he mentioned he had such a great news day. He ended up with what he calls the best dorm on campus at Loyola for his senior year. In addition, he was offered a summer internship at CCS in Wilmington as a Fraud Analyst. Good things come in three just like bad things, right? Not sure if the third good thing ever happened.........

Chinese Napping at Work

Napping is one of the more unusual habits that we face while working in China. We need to be careful about scheduling meetings during the lunch hours so the workers can schedule nap times at their desks. We often experience people sleeping in our meetings as well.

The picture above was taken at the annual National People's Congress (NPC) meeting where more than 2,800 NPC deputies attended the Fifth Session of the Tenth NPC.

A Birthday in China

I had my first birthday in China. It was a very nice experience but not quite the same as being in the US. My family and co-workers were very thoughtful. Co-workers had planned to take me to lunch and had invited BF. Unfortunately, I had brought a lunch to work since I had a very busy Friday planned. We did have a nice tiramisu birthday cake complete with only 5 candles.

BF took AF and me to a really nice restaurant and club at the Twins Mall (sounds like a US shopping center). It was quite elaborate and well decorated with drapery, unique seating, lighting, mirrors and, artwork. The bathrooms were quite elaborate as well.......

The dinner menu was very extensive contemporary Chinese from sky and land and river and ocean. It was a little overwhelming at first to understand the proportions of each dish even though the menu was in Chinese and English (standard, per person, two people). We did finally manage our way through it. It was very expensive for Beijing but a unique experience that we will not forget. Definitely worth introducing the establishment to friends.

Liulichang Culture Street

We went with a couple of co-workers on Saturday to do some shopping, tailoring, and hit Liulichang Street. Liulichang is known throughout China and the world for its ancient books, calligraphy, paintings, rubbings, ink stones and ink. The street is only 750 meters long, but we walked through hutongs to another shopping area as well. (below is a picture of the Hutong which was more interesting than Liulichang)
Our co-workers introduced us to an old traditional Chinese restaurant where we had squirrel fish (very tasty).

Chinese Proverbs

Every once in a while our co-workers with Chinese passports will impart some words of wisdom from old Chinese proverbs. Here is one that was priceless and got a giggle from the office (not sure it was actually an old Chinese proverb, but it was good anyway.

I seem to be having a perpetual cold in Beijing. I actually will have 3 week stretches with no cold and then catch another. I am currently recovering from one, but had one sneezing fit today. Here is where the words of wisdom from an old Chinese proverb comes in:

"One sneeze means someone is missing you; two sneezes means someone is cursing you"

I asked what about the multiple sneezing fit that I just had, what does that mean? The wise response was "you have a cold."

US Road Trip

BF and AF left me in Beijing to fend for myself. They are on a spring break college road trip. The entire family (with exception of me) is driving through Maine, RI, NY and OH to look at potential new schools for EF. Perhaps this will help AF to make a decision on her college.

It sounds like they are having an adventure with lots of cold, snowy NE weather. The car did not like starting in -26 wind chill. They are taking turns driving and catching up on some sleep when they can.