If you're involved in the online expat scene in China, there are a few people you come to know, very quickly, almost all in a very positive light, but one name has stood out over the years and it doesn't bring with it positive connotations, Chris Devonshire-Ellis. FOARP has the best, most comprehensive introduction of Mr. Devonshire-Ellis around.
The name led to many stories and blogs in previous years, but little has been heard about him lately, though recently he was back to his old ways, threatening the dean of Shanghai blogging, Wang Jianshuo. However, recently it appears Devonshire-Ellis did something unprecedented among bloggers in China and quite possibly around the world.
In his firm's "China Briefing" newsletter, he published a statement from a chummy "interview" with a Chinese government official in which the official makes very remarkable statements about the yuan, the Chinese currency, that, it seems were completely fabricated. China Law Blog has a great look at the whole story, breaking it down with links to other bloggers and some pertinent questions. Though it's doubtful that CDE could face legal charges for his questionable article, whatever connections he has to the Chinese government are certain to be burned. Pretending to be a journalist will get you in trouble in China, but when you do so and it influences the country's currency, I'd expect major ramifications.
This story is causing a mini-storm on twitter and could end up being the expat community's story of 2009, even though the year's only 2 months old.
Showing posts with label Laowai. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Laowai. Show all posts
2009/02/20
2008/12/30
Stuff Laowai Like 3 - Great Wall (Simatai)
Which one is Badaling and which is Simatai?*After a long hiatus, we're back on the laowai watching track, and what better to talk about than the Great Wall? The Great Wall is one of the wonders of the world, it is an absolutely amazing place to see that is a must for every visitor to Beijing. Laowai make it a point to visit the Wall, but in typical laowai fashion, just seeing the Wall isn't enough for them.
The Badaling section of the Great Wall is packed with tourists all times of the year, often including those "evil" groups of Chinese tourists in colored baseball hats. This is because Badaling is the closest part of the Wall to the city and the most accessible. Much of it has been rebuilt/renovated to make the climb a little easier and trams and rides make it even more touristy. You don't even need to be part of a tour, a city bus will take you from Dongzhimen to the foot of the wall in an under an hour for less than RMB20.
This is too easy for laowai, who deride Badaling (crowded, but still beautiful) as "inauthentic" and "boring" in comparison with the Simatai section in Miyun. To laowai, Simatai is the authentic and "genuine" Great Wall, all other sections are imposters. To get to Simatai, its an over 4 hour trip independently, but most laowai organize a tour through one of the many Nanluoguxiang hostels (as laowai love staying in hutongs). Further, they often do it as a hike from Jinshanling to Simatai, as laowai love to pretend to enjoy the outdoors. Plus, it gives them the chance to insult Beijing's air (as in "wow, it feels so good to see blue skies and breathe fresh air") making it an optimal choice.
Though any section of the Great Wall is sure to impress and amaze visitors and friends, if you want to become friends with a laowai, definitely propose a trip to Simatai.
*For those wondering, the first is Badaling and second is Simatai
2008/05/27
Teahouses, Temples, and WaiTan
The US edition of GQ has a photo spread in this month's magazine called "An American in Shanghai" featuring one of summer's best and most versatile materials, seersucker. The photo locations are M on the Bund, Fangban Rd (near Yu Garden), Fuxing Park, Dongtai Rd, Cheng Huang Temple (Yu Garden), Huxinting Teahouse (Yu Garden), and Nanjing East Rd.
The depressing thing for those in China who see the spread is that, despite the summer sun starting to bare down on Shanghai (and Beijing), options for summer suits are minimal. Summer suits made of cotton and seersucker are perfect for every occasion, dressed up enough for the office (though not for a major client/customer meeting), they also are very easily dressed down for a stylish, but casual touch at weekend parties or a night on the town. However, they are almost impossible to find in stores or at tailors in China. You'll either have to make a trip overseas or look at high end retail shops, as the fashion labels all feature these great summer suits. Even staid old school Brooks Brothers has released a cotton version of their great Fitzgerald suit (aka the JFK suit) for the summer.
Linen is the other great summer fabric, though it is more for casual situations (or possibly a more casual, non client/customer meeting day at the office). Senli & Ma, my favorite Beijing tailor, now has linen in, its extremely high quality, but with a hefty price tag to match.
Oh yes, and about the copy, I hate the DC is to New York as Beijing is to Shanghai, NO! Granted, Beijing is the capital and home of the government, like DC, and New York is the home of US financial matters while Shanghai has a stock exchange, but Beijing, especially with the creation of its Financial District, is an equal player in the finance world. To argue which city is cooler, has better restaurants or better nightlife is not an easy argument and it really depends on your own personal preferences. Finally, a correction, Shanghai is not Beijing's sister, its more like Beijing's granddaughter, thank you very much.
And before we go, on the Laowai front, the article did justice to our post last week, mentioning stuff Laowai like about Shanghai (#2):
"neighborhoods built in the 1920s and ‘30s.” (read: love the history and "authenticity")
"staggering mix of old and new" (read: Acceptably Chinese)
French Concession “1920s art deco mansions, tucked-away cafes”
The depressing thing for those in China who see the spread is that, despite the summer sun starting to bare down on Shanghai (and Beijing), options for summer suits are minimal. Summer suits made of cotton and seersucker are perfect for every occasion, dressed up enough for the office (though not for a major client/customer meeting), they also are very easily dressed down for a stylish, but casual touch at weekend parties or a night on the town. However, they are almost impossible to find in stores or at tailors in China. You'll either have to make a trip overseas or look at high end retail shops, as the fashion labels all feature these great summer suits. Even staid old school Brooks Brothers has released a cotton version of their great Fitzgerald suit (aka the JFK suit) for the summer.
Linen is the other great summer fabric, though it is more for casual situations (or possibly a more casual, non client/customer meeting day at the office). Senli & Ma, my favorite Beijing tailor, now has linen in, its extremely high quality, but with a hefty price tag to match.
Oh yes, and about the copy, I hate the DC is to New York as Beijing is to Shanghai, NO! Granted, Beijing is the capital and home of the government, like DC, and New York is the home of US financial matters while Shanghai has a stock exchange, but Beijing, especially with the creation of its Financial District, is an equal player in the finance world. To argue which city is cooler, has better restaurants or better nightlife is not an easy argument and it really depends on your own personal preferences. Finally, a correction, Shanghai is not Beijing's sister, its more like Beijing's granddaughter, thank you very much.
And before we go, on the Laowai front, the article did justice to our post last week, mentioning stuff Laowai like about Shanghai (#2):
"neighborhoods built in the 1920s and ‘30s.” (read: love the history and "authenticity")
"staggering mix of old and new" (read: Acceptably Chinese)
French Concession “1920s art deco mansions, tucked-away cafes”
2008/05/14
Stuff Laowai Like 2 - Shanghai
While laowai love to chase after "authenticity", they won't give up creature comforts for their desire to be "authentic", they'll find other ways to make up for it. For this reason, laowai overwhelmingly prefer Shanghai to Beijing.
Nas raps about the "acceptable negro" (ie Bill Cosby types, NOT Chris Rock types) and Shanghai is an "acceptably Chinese" city. It isn't necessarily a matter of racism, but more about societal norms and what one's been exposed to. The city is very much Chinese, but there are still parts that don't feel like China, this pleases the laowai. The number of foreigners in Shanghai and the excellent selection of foreign restaurants also makes the laowai comfortable. Yet the laowai can also have a very "Chinese" day and satisfy his desire to feel like he's in China. While short-term visitors typically prefer Beijing for its "authentic" Chinese "feel", the true laowai (ie the expats), love Shanghai for its creature comforts and how it mirrors their life back home in New York or London or Los Angeles.
The laowai will quickly identify himself with all things Shanghai and will lust after a French Concession mansion, thus fulfilling his desire for history(very important to laowai), authenticity, as well as all the comforts of modern living (once they fix it up, something laowai love to do).
While the laowai might have many favorite spots around China (hint hint Yunnan and Tibet, coming soon), he will call Shanghai home and will forever prefer it to its "Grandfather" up north.
Nas raps about the "acceptable negro" (ie Bill Cosby types, NOT Chris Rock types) and Shanghai is an "acceptably Chinese" city. It isn't necessarily a matter of racism, but more about societal norms and what one's been exposed to. The city is very much Chinese, but there are still parts that don't feel like China, this pleases the laowai. The number of foreigners in Shanghai and the excellent selection of foreign restaurants also makes the laowai comfortable. Yet the laowai can also have a very "Chinese" day and satisfy his desire to feel like he's in China. While short-term visitors typically prefer Beijing for its "authentic" Chinese "feel", the true laowai (ie the expats), love Shanghai for its creature comforts and how it mirrors their life back home in New York or London or Los Angeles.
The laowai will quickly identify himself with all things Shanghai and will lust after a French Concession mansion, thus fulfilling his desire for history(very important to laowai), authenticity, as well as all the comforts of modern living (once they fix it up, something laowai love to do).
While the laowai might have many favorite spots around China (hint hint Yunnan and Tibet, coming soon), he will call Shanghai home and will forever prefer it to its "Grandfather" up north.
2008/05/13
A Lazy Foreigner's Look at the Beijing Dining Scene (Brought to You by the Wall Street Journal)
For a few months now, I’ve been frustrated with the quality of reporting coming out of China. It isn’t so much the news writers, but sports and features writers are coming to the capital and filing reports for folks back home in preparation for the Olympics, all too often just offering a guidebook glimpse of the city and failing to understand it. This time, a food writer from the Wall Street Journal works his lazy best on Beijing’s food scene. His recommendations and comments are straight of a Lonely Planet, giving knowledgeable readers the feeling that he could have written the article without even setting foot in one of the hutongs he talks about so much.
The writer states that: "the city has something else to offer attendees willing to venture beyond hotel and tourist restaurants: some of the best food on the planet.” Unfortunately, with few exceptions, he focuses only on tourist restaurants. The article talks about the “extremes of Chinese food”, listing a Crystal Jade fish dish that costs US$41 as the “most expensive” dish. Well, while it might be the most expensive out of the restaurants he chose, that’s far from the most expensive dish one could find in Beijing. Further, to call the Peking Duck at Liqun as the “most delicious” dish in Beijing is going a bit far.
He talks to 3 “foodies” to get his 8 recommendations, but these “foodies” qualifications are questionable at best. Let’s look at the choices:
Peking Duck – Liqun
Liqun has long been an expat favorite, probably because its in a hutong and its “authentic” because it is very run down. The restaurant is tiny, “inelegant” (as the author puts it), and the customer base seems to be entirely foreign. The duck is good, but isn’t outstanding and for my money, even though it is high on pomp, Da Dong’s duck is still the city’s best (with City Hotel’s restaurant in 2nd and Bianyifang in 3rd). Compared to those, Liqun’s just average.
Beijing Snacks – Jiumen Xiaochi
Another very popular hutong spot on every tourist’s list. It is one of the few places around to still sample many of the local specialities. The problem is, this place really isn’t very good, there are much smaller local places around that offer some of these dishes, but not many options to find them all in one setting. I still prefer the area around Huguosi for my Beijing snacks, but I can’t really complain too much about this choice, though why not sample another Beijing speciality, zhajiang mian at one of the many good options (like Lao ZhaJiangMian Wang)? Or what about the local chicken wings for places with real personality?
Tan Family Cuisine – Guo Yao Xiao Yu
Another hutong spot, are you starting to see the pattern? I’ve never been to this spot so I won’t say much about it. From my understanding of “Tan Family Cuisine”, its an offshoot of imperial dining, and while the idea of this tiny restaurant in a hutong might be appealing to some, there are better choices that aren’t necessarily on the tourist path. For my money, I’d go with Na Jia Xiao Guan, an excellent restaurant with an interesting design and always a huge line out front.
Guizhou - Jun Qin Hua
4th pick and 4th hutong you’d be entering. He describes this place’s Guizhou style lazi ji as the spiciest dish in China， though I highly doubt it could compare to a Chongqing style hotpot at Hai Di Lao. He completely misses the fact that while Guizhou food is spicy, it is a very different spicy from what you’ll find at the Hunan or Sichuan restaurants that foreigners are more used to. Guizhou food often incorporates sour flavors to cut the spiciness, not mentioning this is sort of doing a disservice to the reader. However, I do give him credit for not going with the easy choice of 3 Guizhou Ren.
Beijing Dumplings – Xian Lao Man
What can I say, this place does offer excellent dumplings and so I can’t complain too much about its inclusion.
Beijing Congee – Hong Zhuang Yuan
I’ve never heard of “Beijing congee” before, and typically consider this a very southern dish. Never been to this restaurant and therefore don’t want to say too much about it, though it seems like he was just trying to mix it up by throwing in a cheaper restaurant.
Modern Beijing – Hua Jia Yi Yuan
This place is excellent and draws in a pretty Chinese customer base, I have no complaints with its inclusion on the list.
Hakka - Kejia Xiao Zhen
I’m not a fan of southern food and wouldn’t really choose to eat Hakka food in Beijing. I don’t have too much to say about this place except, you guessed it, yet another hutong restaurant
Sichuan – Fei Teng Yu Xiang
This is a place that is popular with foreigners due to its Gongti location, but does get a decent amount of locals as well. The food’s good, but for the price, I’d go to the much classier South Beauty or Yu Xiang Ren Jia, which are just as good, and of course, the always popular Chuan Ban. Then again, there are many great choices for Sichuan food in Beijing and it’s kind of hard to go wrong.
Actually, this article (and the overwhelming choice of hutong dining), is connected to Stuff Laowai Like. Laowai favorites included in the article are: hutongs (coming soon), authenticity (coming soon), "local specialities", and contrasts.
The writer states that: "the city has something else to offer attendees willing to venture beyond hotel and tourist restaurants: some of the best food on the planet.” Unfortunately, with few exceptions, he focuses only on tourist restaurants. The article talks about the “extremes of Chinese food”, listing a Crystal Jade fish dish that costs US$41 as the “most expensive” dish. Well, while it might be the most expensive out of the restaurants he chose, that’s far from the most expensive dish one could find in Beijing. Further, to call the Peking Duck at Liqun as the “most delicious” dish in Beijing is going a bit far.
He talks to 3 “foodies” to get his 8 recommendations, but these “foodies” qualifications are questionable at best. Let’s look at the choices:
Peking Duck – Liqun
Liqun has long been an expat favorite, probably because its in a hutong and its “authentic” because it is very run down. The restaurant is tiny, “inelegant” (as the author puts it), and the customer base seems to be entirely foreign. The duck is good, but isn’t outstanding and for my money, even though it is high on pomp, Da Dong’s duck is still the city’s best (with City Hotel’s restaurant in 2nd and Bianyifang in 3rd). Compared to those, Liqun’s just average.
Beijing Snacks – Jiumen Xiaochi
Another very popular hutong spot on every tourist’s list. It is one of the few places around to still sample many of the local specialities. The problem is, this place really isn’t very good, there are much smaller local places around that offer some of these dishes, but not many options to find them all in one setting. I still prefer the area around Huguosi for my Beijing snacks, but I can’t really complain too much about this choice, though why not sample another Beijing speciality, zhajiang mian at one of the many good options (like Lao ZhaJiangMian Wang)? Or what about the local chicken wings for places with real personality?
Tan Family Cuisine – Guo Yao Xiao Yu
Another hutong spot, are you starting to see the pattern? I’ve never been to this spot so I won’t say much about it. From my understanding of “Tan Family Cuisine”, its an offshoot of imperial dining, and while the idea of this tiny restaurant in a hutong might be appealing to some, there are better choices that aren’t necessarily on the tourist path. For my money, I’d go with Na Jia Xiao Guan, an excellent restaurant with an interesting design and always a huge line out front.
Guizhou - Jun Qin Hua
4th pick and 4th hutong you’d be entering. He describes this place’s Guizhou style lazi ji as the spiciest dish in China， though I highly doubt it could compare to a Chongqing style hotpot at Hai Di Lao. He completely misses the fact that while Guizhou food is spicy, it is a very different spicy from what you’ll find at the Hunan or Sichuan restaurants that foreigners are more used to. Guizhou food often incorporates sour flavors to cut the spiciness, not mentioning this is sort of doing a disservice to the reader. However, I do give him credit for not going with the easy choice of 3 Guizhou Ren.
Beijing Dumplings – Xian Lao Man
What can I say, this place does offer excellent dumplings and so I can’t complain too much about its inclusion.
Beijing Congee – Hong Zhuang Yuan
I’ve never heard of “Beijing congee” before, and typically consider this a very southern dish. Never been to this restaurant and therefore don’t want to say too much about it, though it seems like he was just trying to mix it up by throwing in a cheaper restaurant.
Modern Beijing – Hua Jia Yi Yuan
This place is excellent and draws in a pretty Chinese customer base, I have no complaints with its inclusion on the list.
Hakka - Kejia Xiao Zhen
I’m not a fan of southern food and wouldn’t really choose to eat Hakka food in Beijing. I don’t have too much to say about this place except, you guessed it, yet another hutong restaurant
Sichuan – Fei Teng Yu Xiang
This is a place that is popular with foreigners due to its Gongti location, but does get a decent amount of locals as well. The food’s good, but for the price, I’d go to the much classier South Beauty or Yu Xiang Ren Jia, which are just as good, and of course, the always popular Chuan Ban. Then again, there are many great choices for Sichuan food in Beijing and it’s kind of hard to go wrong.
Actually, this article (and the overwhelming choice of hutong dining), is connected to Stuff Laowai Like. Laowai favorites included in the article are: hutongs (coming soon), authenticity (coming soon), "local specialities", and contrasts.
2008/05/05
Stuff Laowai Like 1 - ABC/CBC Girls
On the list of Stuff White People Like, Asian girls come in at number 11 and is a top post on that site. For us, we think this should be number 1 on the list of Stuff Laowai Like. But not just any Asian girls, laowai guys, especially those who haven't been in China long and don't speak much Chinese are specifically into American Born Chinese/Canadian Born Chinese/Australian Born Chinese girls.
Why is this the case? Having just gotten off the plane in Beijing or Shanghai, the laowai male (in this case typically between 20 and 30 years old) with limited Chinese skills wants to find himself a woman, but he isn't as shallow as the old laowai papas who just wants any young thing, the younger guys want someone who they can talk to, share with, and bitch about "another China day." With rare exceptions, the majority of native Chinese women they meet at a Sanlitun/Hengshan bar speak only limited English and have completely different cultural values and thoughts. Therefore, these guys focus on the ABC/CBC girls in the crowd: Chinese looks and perfect English, plus somebody who can serve as their translator/secretary, what more could you ask for?
Unfortunately, these relationships often fail because over time, as the laowai male gets more acclimated to China, he wants to "go native" (and thus be more "authentic" something we'll be covering a lot in the future) and/or his ABC/CBC girl gets sick of her "duties" and/or she ends up returning to the US/Canada.
Why is this the case? Having just gotten off the plane in Beijing or Shanghai, the laowai male (in this case typically between 20 and 30 years old) with limited Chinese skills wants to find himself a woman, but he isn't as shallow as the old laowai papas who just wants any young thing, the younger guys want someone who they can talk to, share with, and bitch about "another China day." With rare exceptions, the majority of native Chinese women they meet at a Sanlitun/Hengshan bar speak only limited English and have completely different cultural values and thoughts. Therefore, these guys focus on the ABC/CBC girls in the crowd: Chinese looks and perfect English, plus somebody who can serve as their translator/secretary, what more could you ask for?
Unfortunately, these relationships often fail because over time, as the laowai male gets more acclimated to China, he wants to "go native" (and thus be more "authentic" something we'll be covering a lot in the future) and/or his ABC/CBC girl gets sick of her "duties" and/or she ends up returning to the US/Canada.
Stuff Laowai Like: Introduction
Inspiration can come to you at any time, its strange like that. One day, sitting in a lovely courtyard waiting for a meal and starving, a statement was made when looking around at other tables, "why do laowai like Yunnan food so much?" It was at that point it hit me, a new feature could be created and after a teleconference with the other writers, it was.
Stuff Laowai Like is our own take on the very popular blog (with book coming soon), Stuff White People Like. During the next few weeks, months, and possibly years, we'll look at and analyze those things that laowai like about living in China.
Now, we know laowai are a diverse group consisting of North Americans and Europeans that speak a wide range of languages, have huge differences in age, salary, etc etc. This will focus on the Canadian and American laowai in China as this is where we can offer the most insight, though we'll try to infiltrate the French and German laowai society here (anybody who can help with that, we'd greatly appreciate it). While there is such diversity among laowai, its still easy to accurately generalize about a large number of laowai in China and that's what we'll be doing.
Yes, perhaps we're biting off more than we can chew with yet another feature starting up and one (and a half) writer down, but we press on. Most of all, we must once again fight as blogspot is blocked, but again, we press on. As always, any suggestions or opinions about this new feature, please leave a comment or email us at modernleifeng@gmail.com.
Stuff Laowai Like is our own take on the very popular blog (with book coming soon), Stuff White People Like. During the next few weeks, months, and possibly years, we'll look at and analyze those things that laowai like about living in China.
Now, we know laowai are a diverse group consisting of North Americans and Europeans that speak a wide range of languages, have huge differences in age, salary, etc etc. This will focus on the Canadian and American laowai in China as this is where we can offer the most insight, though we'll try to infiltrate the French and German laowai society here (anybody who can help with that, we'd greatly appreciate it). While there is such diversity among laowai, its still easy to accurately generalize about a large number of laowai in China and that's what we'll be doing.
Yes, perhaps we're biting off more than we can chew with yet another feature starting up and one (and a half) writer down, but we press on. Most of all, we must once again fight as blogspot is blocked, but again, we press on. As always, any suggestions or opinions about this new feature, please leave a comment or email us at modernleifeng@gmail.com.
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