Travelling in China

[Birdjaguar]

I'm back from a month in China. It was an eyeopening trip of a spectacular country. I will post some of pictures and videos I took, plus the tips I learned about how to prepare for a serious trip there and some things you can expect to find.

Half the trip was business oriented and half sightseeing. I will entertain any questions about either aspect or anything else.

Cities visited on business: Kunming (Yunnan); Nanning (Guangxi); Ganzhou (Jiangxi), Shenzhen (Guangdong), Guangzhou (Guangdong), Baoji (Shaanxi), Changsha (Hunan).
Places visited for sightseeing: Xian (Shaanxi), Pingyao (Shanxi), Beijing, Zhangjiajie (Hunan) (National Park)

Bullet Trains: Xian to Pingyao; Pingyao to Beijing; and Beijing to Changsha
Slow trains: Changsha to Zhangjiajie

Interesting topics:

• Construction
• Driving and Traffic
• Food
• Tourist destinations
• Taxis
• Pollution
• Internet connections
• Money
• etc.

 

[FriendlyFire]

Has Chinese admiration for the Trumps changed since starting of the Trade war ?

 

[Birdjaguar]

Has Chinese admiration for the Trumps changed since starting of the Trade war ?

I cannot speak for President Xi, but i was asked about Trump a few times while sightseeing. Those folks think he is crazy. The subject of politics never came up in business discussion. Since it is presumed that in any group meeting of people there is someone who reports to the government present, nothing political said.

 

[FriendlyFire]

I read the Chinese were spellbound by the wealth, and success of the Trump family
Many had very positive imagine of Trump and hoped to emulate him.

Hmmm I suspect that each US President gets some sort of Honeymoon period
The positive media coverage is a little weird to see as Trump has made himself an enemy of almost all US Media after the election.

Guess it good to know that Trump image in China is now burst.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Me at the 9 Dragon Wall in the Forbidden Palace.

 

[Birdjaguar]

The tariffs were too new for what they will actually mean to be determined. They will not improve Trump's image.

 

[Cheetah]

Were you able to/were people at all willing to/did you try to talk about politics at all during your trip?

 

[Lillefix]

Were there any notable attractions in the cities you visited on business(Kunming, Nanning, Ganzhou, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Baoji, Changsha)?

 

[Moriarte]

Is it customary, like here, in the west, to barter (*bargain) during serious business negotiations? Do the Chinese play this game at all and if yes - in what way? I am interested because I feel I'll have to deal with Chinese companies sooner or later, I'm curious how far can one push within boundaries of locally recognized dignity.

Used to visit Cairo on a business trip in '00. We weren't expected to talk business first week. A bad taste, the intermediary explained. Instead, we visited couple of weddings, got drunk few times and visited many people before getting to the point of selling them some russian timber. Anyway, they saw it like this - if you're a friend there is no reason to burden yourself with trust issues, or at least I grasped it that way, in retrospect.

 

[Bamspeedy]

I was there in Feb (Zengcheng, near Guangzhou) and I never talked to people about Trump, but they are still fascinated by foreigners.
There was the guy at a playground who tried to get his toddler in a picture with my two youngest kids (of course his toddler wouldn't sit still).
My kids were playing with toys from a toy vendor in a park, soon it attracted a crowd and then all the chinese kids wanted the toys my kids were playing with.
Staring-Get lots of that, but it wasn't too bad. Sure, alot of people will look at you for maybe three seconds or so then carry on with their business. 10-20% though will stare for alot longer.
Three or four young policeman were taking a break and they were looking at us and laughing amongst themselves. I thought they were thinking poorly of us and we were the butt of their jokes, but then they start coming near us and one asks if my son was Chinese (half chinese) and said he 'looks cute'.

Changed alot in 9 years since I was last there or if because it was Chinese New Year if that had anything to do with it. 95% of the cars looked to be less than 5 years old, maybe even less than 3. 95% of the cars had tinted windows, it seemed more like an industry standard instead of an option. I was kinda surprised 9 years ago even farmers in the fields had cell phones, now they are all playing with their smart phones in the fields.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Were you able to/were people at all willing to/did you try to talk about politics at all during your trip?

There was little reason for me to bring it up. One, because most of the people who might talk about it, didn't speak English so conversation was rudimentary; and two, I was quite glad to get away from politics for a while. It was much more fun to just just interact in non controversial ways. I never broached the topic of the Chinese government/politics except when talking about funding projects.

Is it customary, like here, in the west, to barter during serious business negotiations? Do the Chinese play this game at all and if yes - in what way? I am interested because I feel I'll have to deal with Chinese companies sooner or later, I'm curious how far can one push within boundaries of locally recognized dignity.

Used to visit Cairo on a business trip in '00. We weren't expected to talk business first week. A bad taste, the intermediary explained. Instead, we visited couple of weddings, got drunk few times and visited many people before getting to the point of selling them some russian timber. Anyway, they saw it like this - if you're a friend there is no reason to burden yourself with trust issues, or at least I grasped it that way, in retrospect.

Most of my expenses were for food, hotel, taxis, fees to get into attractions and travel. I probably spent less than $40 on stuff. I never made an effort to bargain. When I did show interest in something that was more than $15, owners were quite willing to drop the price if I walked away. I didn't have any space to bring much home in any case.

For business it is very different. We were/are selling economic development services and matchmaking with US companies. Our trip was rooted in a conference we held in Albuquerque in October where we opened a dialogue with 200 Chinese attendees. This trip was to strengthen our relationships with those people and companies who showed interest and to expand our network in China. On the business side we are dealing in projects that begin at a low end of $25,000 plus expenses to projects that are upwards of $80 million. This trip was all about expanding contracts and building personal relationships so that there is trust on both sides. You have to begin there. We came away with over 70 prospective deals and three invitations to come back (on their dime) in may and June. We are preparing proposals for those and they will be negotiated like any business deal. Two companies are preparing proposals for us to consider.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Were there any notable attractions in the cities you visited on business(Kunming, Nanning, Ganzhou, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Baoji, Changsha)?

I saw very little beyond meetings rooms, restaurants, hotels and driving around in those cities, but I know that there are cool places nearby most of them. We had no time for any sightseeing in those places. The History of Chinese bronze museum in Baoji was closed when we tried to go there, but we did make it up to a famous pagoda and park. I'll post some pics. I haven't moved all my pics off my phone yet, so they are coming slowly.

Is there an easy way move 500 pictures and 150 videos from an iPhone to a PC?

 

[Birdjaguar]

I was there in Feb (Zengcheng, near Guangzhou) and I never talked to people about Trump, but they are still fascinated by foreigners.
There was the guy at a playground who tried to get his toddler in a picture with my two youngest kids (of course his toddler wouldn't sit still).
My kids were playing with toys from a toy vendor in a park, soon it attracted a crowd and then all the chinese kids wanted the toys my kids were playing with.
Staring-Get lots of that, but it wasn't too bad. Sure, alot of people will look at you for maybe three seconds or so then carry on with their business. 10-20% though will stare for alot longer.
Three or four young policeman were taking a break and they were looking at us and laughing amongst themselves. I thought they were thinking poorly of us and we were the butt of their jokes, but then they start coming near us and one asks if my son was Chinese (half chinese) and said he 'looks cute'.

Changed alot in 9 years since I was last there or if because it was Chinese New Year if that had anything to do with it. 95% of the cars looked to be less than 5 years old, maybe even less than 3. 95% of the cars had tinted windows, it seemed more like an industry standard instead of an option. I was kinda surprised 9 years ago even farmers in the fields had cell phones, now they are all playing with their smart phones in the fields.

Yes, outside of major tourist cities foreigners do create stir. My having a beard was a big attraction for (especially for kids). They wondered how I could eat. I often got asked to pose for pictures. At 5-10 I was taller than 90% of the people around me. I never worried worried about what was obivous whispering. I just smiled and said "nihou". They were surprised, smiled back and returned the salutation or said "hello".

 

[Birdjaguar]

Two views of the "Chinese money building in Shenzhen. they were taken from a train.

 

[Birdjaguar]

One of the striking things I saw in cities other than Beijing was the lack of traffic signals. In Kunming I saw less than five. In Nanning fewer than a dozen. I never saw a single stop sign anywhere. Ganzhou, Baoji, Guangzhou and Shenzhen may have had a few more. Traffic just drives through intersections as they please. Plus the roads are full of scooters, a variety of three wheeled vehicles and bicycles. People do drive slower than in the US, but lanes are ignored and cars just push their way to where they want to go. I also never saw an accident. Keep in mind, these are cities of 2 to 8 million people.

We did a lot of driving around every city from hotels to meetings, to development sites, to restaurants etc. Where there were signals, they had a very cool countdown feature. As you can see we were just driving through the intersection as those making left turns were doing so. Notice the countdown clock. With those everyone knows how long they have to wait for the light to change. No need for yellow lights.

 

[Birdjaguar]

One of our interpreters in front of the Bronze Museum in Baoji. I would have liked to see the inside, but we got there too late. Next trip.

 

[Lillefix]

One of the striking things I saw in cities other than Beijing was the lack of traffic signals. In Kunming I saw less than five. In Nanning fewer than a dozen. I never saw a single stop sign anywhere. Ganzhou, Baoji, Guangzhou and Shenzhen may have had a few more. Traffic just drives through intersections as they please. Plus the roads are full of scooters, a variety of three wheeled vehicles and bicycles. People do drive slower than in the US, but lanes are ignored and cars just push their way to where they want to go. I also never saw an accident. Keep in mind, these are cities of 2 to 8 million people.

We did a lot of driving around every city from hotels to meetings, to development sites, to restaurants etc. Where there were signals, they had a very cool countdown feature. As you can see we were just driving through the intersection as those making left turns were doing so. Notice the countdown clock. With those everyone knows how long they have to wait for the light to change. No need for yellow lights.

View attachment 492794

Less then a week ago I came over this channel:

And he says exactly what you say. There is no enforcement of the traffic rules in China and he specifically says the Chinese don't know about stop signs(not that we use them so much here Europe either, but things seem to work out with the priority to the right rule).

 

[Birdjaguar]

The pagoda in Baoji.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Panorama from the pagoda. Baoji city is in the distance. The haze is pollution.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Less then a week ago I came over this channel:

And he says exactly what you say. There is no enforcement of the traffic rules in China and he specifically says the Chinese don't know about stop signs(not that we use them so much here Europe either, but things seem to work out with the priority to the right rule).

He is right on.