China Trip2：Beijing

Came back to Beijing on April 11^th. The first thing to do was to sort out my books in the old one-room house rented from the city. Such houses are to be torn down sooner or later and the current policy of the government is to give you some money to ask you to buy your own residence. Actually the money given to you to compensate your loss due to reconstruction is far from enough. For those households that do not have considerable savings and income, reconstruction means debt or loss of residence. Most households in the yard where I used to live are such households, I guess. Those families with many working sons and daughters may fare well. For my aunt�s family and me, I am doubtful.

4 月11 日回到北京。 第一件要做的事是整理我在旧平房里的书。 这种平房早晚是要拆的。 现行 的政策是给拆迁户一点钱， 让他们自己买房。 其实钱根本不够。 对于那些没有高收入的家庭来说， 拆迁意味着负债或者丧失住处。我看我住的大杂院里大部分家庭是这样的。 如果家里上班 的孩子多的话可能还能对付得不错，对于我和我舅母来说，我很怀疑。

The work was tiresome and time consuming. I had planned to get rid of the books that I can afford not to have, but I was sick from working and had to stop at separating them from what I want to keep. My aunt will eventually do the job of selling them to garbage collectors later.

这个差使又累又费时间。我计划把可以扔掉的书处理掉，但是我病了，只好把它们和要留下的书分开后就算了。以后恐怕还是得我舅母把它们处理掉。

I had 9 days in Beijing and sorting out the books took me 3 days. I managed to squeeze some time for get-togethers with old friends and school mates and I had to be selective. I did not have time to contact my college mates at all.

我在北京只有九天时间，弄书就花了三天。我挤出一点时间和老朋友老同学聚会。我不得不有所取舍。大学的同学就没时间联系了。

The first party was with friends from a singles club that I joined in the 90’s. One of them got married and divorced again and one couple, both from the club, had a lovely son. All the rest just leave their future happiness to fate. All are in high spirits though. And all but I remained young. We had a pleasant evening. It was a pity that one friend had to be absent due to a trip to the States. I had met her in her company though, the second day when I arrived in China. She is a self-taught accountant who now works as the chief of the accounting department and makes good money. She has her own car. When I went to see her, I had no jacket but a water-proof US army jacket that I brought with me as rain coat. I felt very embarrassed under the stare of the Chinese white-collar employees of the company. I later found out that in Beijing, only poorly paid laborers wear the colorful military uniform.

The second party was with high school mates. One of them had bought an apartment worth a lot of money. We later went to his place. It was located on the 18^th floor of a residential neighborhood that has 24 hour property management service. There is an underground garage and a swimming pool. The apartment is close to 200 square meters in space and has very good view of gracefully curving highways. I could not help but wonder how he could earn that much money and it turned out that his wife was rewarded with half of the expense by her work unit for her contributions. They got the rest by loans. In China, although many people are getting rich, the majority solve their housing problem by work unit support, combined with personal savings. Buying use right is a cheaper way. Only a few people can really afford million-worth apartments and houses. Another school mate who is now looking for an expensive apartment has his own factory so I am not surprised that he can afford it.

Three of my school mates have their private cars now, bought new. One is 190K RMB, more than 20K in US dollars. In China, keeping a car is also expensive. I did not manage to find out how they can now afford owning a car. I guess the salary must have been increased considerable during the past years. One of my school mates revealed more surprising news about a child hood neighbor of mine who had been working for the Youth Travel Agency since graduation from college. He has bought not only a main residence but a resort house in the distant suburb of Beijing. It seems that I am the only one mocked by time and fate--- no considerable savings, no residence of my own and no great career achievement. I wondered if I had stayed in China what would have happened to me and yet I could not see how a college teacher could accumulate that much of wealth in 6 years, even though I can moonlight.

As the Bible says, one should not seek fortunes in this world, but in heaven. Yet, success is measured in money terms nowadays and when I cannot even call a place my own, what can support my confidence?

They asked me about life in the U.S. I just told them that it was very plain, nothing surprising. I told them about my financial situation and the cost of living in Monterey and the prospect thereby predictable. I said what I like the States was the clean environment, the politeness of the people and the way people carry out their life according to law. What I do not like it here is the loneliness and lack of "re4nao4". Especially in Monterey, you have no place to go after work, unless you drive out and find some hobby such as fishing. I must have sounded not very encouraging, for one of them said: “the more I listen to you, the less I want my daughter to go to the States later.”

Two days later, one of them told me that two classmates detected my low spirits at the party and wish to find out why. I did not say anything. There was no time for me to tell them all the concerns in my life like in the past old days. One of them left Beijing on business and we decided to cancel the second party that we talked about. Besides, I had used to not talking about my life.

I have two college mates in Beijing but I did not have their phone and I gave up trying the old numbers that no longer worked. I tried the number of one of my students, who was surprised and glad to hear I am back. She and her colleague plus boyfriend (I assume so, for they held hands) treated me in a small Shaanxi style noodle restaurant near the Tuanjiehu Park. This restaurant has ten framed pictures on the walls, each tells about one “strange” folk custom in the province. I video-taped all of them. That meal, though simple, was the most unpretentious one that I had outside home.

The only western style food that I had was with a distant relative who still lives in the old place though her phone has changed. She took her daughter, the driver and me to the Lufthansa Building, where they often frequent a German beer bar. We had salad, various kinds of meat, bread and biscuits. The total cost is 600 RMB. She joked that we had come here to taste what the poor people would like to have (in China): meat, meat and meat.

I had a chance of going to a Hubei cuisine restaurant near the Friendship Hotel, taken there by a long time friend and her husband, an artist. I had thought that Hubei food was not popular in other cities, but this restaurant was full. The restaurant has a nice name: Nine-headed bird, coming from a folk saying “In the sky there flies the nine-headed bird and on the ground there walks the Hubei guy.”The meaning is that Hubei people are very lihai (tough and rough).

Before returning to China, I had thought of satisfying my appetite with local foods, but actually when I arrived, I simply could not remember what are available and had no time to plan a cuisine tour of the city. I ate what came into my view when it was time to eat and I was not at home. Consequently, I did not eat much, not even a yangrouchuan barbecued mutton strung on an iron stick.

Many people returning from the U.S. to China want to take advantage of the currency different to shop cheap. Apart from food, clothing is one big item. I had no big shopping plan, just want to buy some underwear, several pants, one or two jackets, socks, and shoes. When I went to shopping however, I found outwear expensive, even when I convert the prices into US currency. Of course bargain is the common practice but still, it is hard to decide if one really has bought something good but cheap.

Quality is often a problem. When you are not sure, better buy cheap to prepare for the item’s short duration or buy very expensive to guarantee the quality. That is if you do not have the expertise to tell bad from good. I bought a pair of shoes for 18 in Wuhan and it lasted me a little more than two weeks. I had planned to buy a pair of joggers but I hesitated till the last day and bought one pair for 100 RMB in a state-owned shop that I used to go when I was very young, believing the shop would not cheat me and praying the shoes would last in the States.

There have been much change in the way shops organize their merchandise. My generation is used to the old department stores, where you can find anything to satisfy daily needs, but now the new fancy shopping centers rule the market. On the first floor is always the cosmetics, then garments, watches and glasses, jewelry electronic stuff etc. Such big shops sell big, so better not try to find needles and threads and buttons there. To find these, go to the so called small commodities whole sales market. But the illogical organization of goods in such markets often puzzles you.

One of my co-workers asked me to buy some Chinese paintings for her from Rongbaozhai, a famous shop selling Chinese art work, mainly paintings. I found the price there however very expensive. For reproductions of famous paintings, the price ranges from 400 to 700 or more. For originals, go to the 10k and above. Instead I went to look around in the small private galleries near that state-owned shop. There one can find original paintings of quite good quality for less than 500. Some are artists still waiting for their fame and fortune to come. Another place to look is the famous Panjiayuan Used Goods Markets, open every Saturday and Sunday. The market has been expanded. Vendors now sell their goods with a roof over their heads, instead of working under the sun. The market is an encyclopedia

At the market I “fell in love” with a girl of Sani Nationality, a branch of the Yi Nationality, who comes from Shi Lin, the Stone Forest, of Yunnan Province. She used to be a tour guide there. Recently I read in People�s Daily (Overseas Edition) that in Shilin, there are many Sani girls working as tour guides. A Photo shows that they all wear colorful ethnic costume. That day, that girl, who told me her Chinese Han name is Li, also wore her ethnic dress. That added to her natural beauty: tall, slim, skin of a suntan color, long face with straight nose ridge, snow white teeth with perfect alignment (it is a puzzle how some minority peoples have very good teeth. It is a good anthropological and medical research topic), and a smiling face. She was selling some of her folks� handicraft products, many of which hand-made.

With her permission, I did a brief video interview of her, asking her some general questions. I intend to use the clip for my students in their Chinese classes. I asked her if her people resented the compulsory learning of Mandarin in middle schools. She told me no. At first they were not used to speaking Mandarin, but later they realized the importance of the language and learned willingly. Later after the interview, she became more talkative and told me the symbolic meaning of her costume, especially the hat, which no man is allowed to touch. I also asked her if tourism had any negative effect on her people, such as making them more money conscious. She said no. Her people still prefer to give priority to folk culture activities. Whenever there is a dance, they will go, leaving their business. Only the local Han people work hard at their stalls. She urged me to visit Yunnan. I had been to Yunnan before, many years ago, but never had any chance to go to the ethnic areas. I think I must find a chance to visit some well know ethnic people someday.

Traffic in Beijing is something one from the States will need some time to adjust to. On local roads, there are almost no rules enforced. Who ever gets in front of another vehicle or pedestrian has the right of way. Therefore, making a left turn does not mean one has to brake for the incoming traffic. I rode most of the time, not wanting to be confused by the many new buses and to be held up in traffic jam. The beauty of riding a bike is the freedom but in spring, one has to fight the dusty wind. I felt like taking a shower every time I went out.

The most interesting thing in riding is to compete with cars and buses for the right of way when crossing the roads. The right turning vehicles will squeeze into your way. All you need to do is to be brave and inconsiderate. You also need to assume they have good brakes, for they seldom slow down when you are already in their way. Of course you need to have good calculation and your courtesy shows here, giving them enough time to react, slowing down or changing lane.

Beijing has built heavily on roads to relieve the burden of traffic, but the increasing number of private cars puts that effort in shadow. Still I feel that road conditions have improved, especially on main roads. The construction of new buildings now prepares for the burgeoning automobile culture, the signs are bigger and parking lots are included in the land use design. I once rode in my friend’s car on the second ring road and felt just like riding on the freeway of an American city. That was in the evening. During daytime, there may be congestion even on freeways.

Police has changed the color of their uniform, now bluish black. They seem to be more polite and professional. Now there is another security force in Beijing, called Beijing Security. It seems they are not the real police. Most of the guys are young people from other provinces. They behave rather rule-biding. They will dare not act impolite to people I believe, for local citizens of Beijing will not take it. Another kind of uniformed personnel is the so called City Face Police, responsible for the decency of the appearance of the streets. They will control the way bikes are parked, posters are posted etc. Their uniform is ugly dark yellow or brown and many of them are senior citizens and women.

I only saw once a police van rounding up homeless people along the Jiangguomen Street in the evening. They were ridding the streets of beggars.

Six years absence from Beijing brought me to significant changes in the urban landscape. Because I had little time sightseeing, I was unable to see all the new buildings and constructions. I did not even have time to see the new Changan Boulvard that I had planned to see, the Ming and Qing style street scene, as a friend of mine had told me. I had no time walking into many of the new shopping centers and plazas. I had no time to take a walk in one of its old parks. Many years absence made the city too big for me to maneuver. I began to feel surprised at my ability to negotiate the city on bike many years ago. I had grown so used to small cities that I sometimes felt it an undesirable idea to ride even within the Second Ring Road.

My main space is in the Xicheng and Xuanwu districts. I biked the “Main Street”;Changan Boulevards and their extensions east and west, from Jianguomen to Gongzhufen. Along this line, major changes are around Wangfujing and Xidan, as well as Fuxingmen (By the way, the Pinyin spelling of "Fuxing" sounds like fucksing. It was a big transliteration problem years ago when Fuxing Hotel was built). It is not necessary nor desirable to talk about the new buildings one by one. The general expression that I have is that the Beijing government is determined to alter the style of this street and turn it into something like New York downtown. It is only a matter of time when high rises come up along this street. Beijing was built by the Yuan rulers and the whole city’s style is like the Mongolian camp, low buildings against a broad open dome of sky. High rises go contrary to this design. It is a pity that the government did not adopt Architect Liang Sicheng’s suggestion that a new Beijing be built alongside the old one.

My personal attitude towards the landscape change was strangely nonchalant, especially around my old living space. The changes has prevented me from view Beijing as my hometown. Even when I was biking around Xuanwumen, I did not feel those changes at all, as if those buildings have always been there. Because I was very familiar with the streets, I did not feel lost and feel that “the changes are so big that I cannot find my way home". For me, there had been no home. I know this feeling is a sad one, which indicates the dilution of my sense of root. To tell you the truth, even if Beijing should tear down Tiananmen, I would not feel surprised.

This feeling gave me a new angle of looking at Beijing�s change. I regard it as a place that is new to me and I can therefore look at the developments from a positive point of view. I feel indeed proud of the skills that built those beautiful plazas, office buildings, apartment complexes. They have dwarfed the ten major constructions of 1959. They also have brought a new taste of modernity to the people who have been craving for it since 1900. Indeed, in this hasty rush for modernity, there is sometimes a lack of careful planning of landscape design. Take the "Main Street" for example, it seems to me now that it has been treated as a dumpster of any type of constructions that, when put together, are only an assembly of aesthetically unrelated buildings. I simply cannot imagine that years later from now, a big round dome of National Opera Theatre should appear beside the Great Hall of the People.

Despite all this negative feelings, however, I became fond of the city two days before returning to the States and wished to have more time savoring the street life. I was waiting for a friend in front of the Chang An Store as the sun was setting down. The pedestrian cross-over silhouetted gracefully in the orange colored haze. The new giants along the Changan Boulevard were reflecting the sun and they appear beautiful. Despite my much regret over the city’s reconstruction strategy, I must say that the city is building something good out of the initial mistake and what one can expect of her can be summed up by an ancient motto that I would like to translate this way: it is no use to cry over spilled milk and there is something nice to scoop up as the fresh one is delivered. The old Beijing has been mutilated and the new city has yet to take shape. Beijing will be a city of old and new, of history and future, of continuity and creation.