From: Chapter 12 of

'Finding Myself In China'

('Still a work in progress')

2003

In as much as China may be an 'exotic' country in the Far East, those of us who live here, as opposed to those of you who fly in and out in tour groups, know first hand that there is nothing exotic about travelling around China when it comes to all the pushing and shoving that goes on, whether it be in the queues to buy tickets, the headlong rush to enter trains and buses, or the scramble for seats, even when your ticket assigns you a particular numbered one.

I am the first to admit that when possible, I fly, because firstly I can afford to, and secondly it is the least of all hassles, even though just like taking buses and trains, things do not always run smoothly.

The first thing to know about travelling in China, is that even on airplanes (sometimes), unless attendants hold a firm reign on the wild horses, people pretty much sit where they please.  I was recently in Macao/Macau, and I found the western type mentality a bit of a culture shock. Cars stopping on pedestrian crossings as soon as I walked onto them was one such shock. The extent to which I found myself in a 'foreign' environment however, was only really brought home to me clearly, when upon leaving Macao, I arrived at Shenzhen airport to take a flight to Chengdu. The moment we began to board, I was reminded that I was once again in a different culture.

You know that rule that you can only take one piece of personal luggage onto the plane? Well forget it! Not only do the Chinese carry more than one piece of hand luggage, but on that trip, I witnessed one lady entering the plane carrying 6 bags and dragging one suitcase.  The poor attendants were running up and down the aisle trying to find places to put everyone's extra luggage, which included shoving them into the amenities cupboards, and stashing them under seats.

Then there were all those people who found that their seats were occupied by others, and had to try and get them back. As they engaged in that activity, they of course blocked the aisle. Most fellow passengers finding their way blocked, did not bother to just wait until the situation was sorted out, but began pushing, shoving and climbing over luggage in the aisle, as though the plane was going to take off before they could get to their own particular seat. The attendants of course put on their best smiles and valiantly tried to keep their cool while they got everyone organised. 

I have to admit that it has been a while since I have seen that on an airplane, but that trip really brought home to me the cultural difference that can sometimes be observed in China. Although not perhaps so common today, when I first came to China I witnessed it every time I traveled on a plane. Buses and trains were even worse. Fortunately, the nearer we get to the Olympic Games, the more intense is the Government  education campaign to get the ordinary citizens to use some semblance of Foreign manners.

The hardest thing about buying train tickets in China, is the long queues, especially in the golden weeks - those special holidays in May and October for Labour day and National holiday, as well as Spring Festival Time and the beginning and end of the Summer holidays. While prior to leaving Wuhan  I did notice a great improvement in passenger behaviour on my trips to Hong Hu, the fact remains that there is nothing worse for the foreigner than finding himself being forced to sit in an unallocated seat, and then have someone complain about it.  I have at times felt that all the resulting fuss and bother was my fault.

I have witnessed foreigners who stand up to Chinese people and firmly inform them in an 'unknown tongue' that the local has to abide by the seating allocation and move to suit the foreigner, but it is my impression that the average Chinese person does not appreciate being ordered around by Western Imperialists.  The thing that all Chinese know and that all foreigners must learn, is that in China, he who is timid will probably get walked on. Take taxis for instance.

As a general rule, I never take a taxi from any local bus or train station. I always walk a block or two before hailing a taxi.  The reason is that the drivers at the train and bus stations are counting on the fact that either you are ignorant of distances and fares in that part of China, or on the Chinese custom of pushing ahead of those in front of you.  By accepting the driver's quoted price to your destination, you demonstrate that you like to be able to jump ahead of everyone else, or that you are ignorant of the true fare.

If you must take a taxi, there are some things that you must not do.  Firstly you must not agree to any 'special price'. You insist on the meter. Secondly, unless absolutely necessary 'for you', do not put luggage in the boot/trunk of the taxi. Thirdly, you should already know roughly both the time and the cost of the journey.  The reason for these warnings is that taxi drivers who quote a special price are cheating. Firstly they cheat you. Secondly they cheat the owner of the taxi (should they merely be the driver), and thirdly, they cheat the government.  If you must take 'a' taxi from a place where every driver is quoting prices, cut his quote to 40% and work your way up as is necessary.

A few years ago at Beijing airport, I was grabbed by several drivers while still in the terminal. The drivers were all speaking broken English and offering me deals. One finally said that he would give me an extra special price of only 200rmb to take me to my hotel.  It was then that I stopped just shaking my head 'No!' and spoke. I said: Thank you for the special fare. I know it is a special fare, because the fare to Tian an'men is only 75 rmb, and I am only travelling a little way past that. I will give you 100rmb. Finally we settled on 120 rmb.

Recently at  Shanghai Train terminus, while I was looking for the terminus for the No 5 airport shuttle, a female taxi driver approached me.  I told her I wasn't interested, and began to walk away. She then told me that I should give her a price, so I told her I would pay 100 rmb to the airport. She immediately said yes. This scared me!  For a minute I thought I had misread an article on the internet, and that the price was not 160-200 rmb but 60-100 rmb.  Once we got going though, she asked me if 120 rmb would be OK. So I said yes.  We got talking and she told me that she gave me this good price because I was the first foreigner to get in her cab during her 15 years of driving.  Later I asked her what the real price was, and she said it was approximately 160 rmb.  She was a lovely lady - but she was still cheating the boss and the government.

As I have said, buying an airplane ticket can be a hassle, but as long as you don't suffer any lengthy delays caused by weather, it is certainly an easy way to get around China, except of course, that it usually involves catching a taxi to and from the airport.  If you are booked into a hotel of course, that hotel will be able to give you advice on either taking their shuttle bus or catching public shuttles. As long as you don't have a lot of luggage, it is cheap and convenient. 

In September of 2003 my eldest son paid me a surprise visit. Although he only planned to stay one month, he ended up staying a total of 3 months.  I remember that before he returned to Australia, he made a confession to me.  He told me that prior to experiencing China for himself, he had begun to wonder if, given all the things I had written home about, I had turned into a racist. Having experienced life in China for himself however, he was reassured that I was not racist - just honest.

Unfortunately for many people in the West, when expats relate daily life as it is in their new country, 'our western' psychological conditioning causes us to recoil with politically correct abhorrence.  When it is you experiencing that life for yourself however, the lens through which you look is not that false 'rose coloured' politically conditioned one worn back home, but rather a lens that is polished by reality itself.  It does gives you a whole new perspective on life, and the meaning of 'politically correct' words.  In fact, I would have to say that it is only because I was living in China, that I was able to appreciate the power of propaganda and the power of carefully crafted language; and from that I came to be able to see straight through the utter B.S. that is 'Political Correctness' in the West.

I read recently that John Laws the radio announcer (Australia), caused a furore because he said that Chinese drivers were the worst.  He stands accused of perpetuating "an unfair stereotype of Chinese people". Living in China as I do, I would like to say that as far as his comments apply to traffic conditions in China, Mr. Laws is quite right. The claim that his statement perpetuates some stereotype, is pure politically correct B.S. To call a liar, a liar, might not be polite, but it is true. Unfortunately, as one can see by studying 'hate speech law' proposals, 'Truth' is no longer considered an acceptable defense in a court of law, to accusations of racism and 'hate speech'.

Given all the garbage that one reads in the press about the Chinese government, I for one fail to see how making a comment about Chinese drivers can be worse than the inherent racism involved when various activists assert that Chinese politicians are murderers, fascists and criminals. As Chinese politics and politicians originate at village level, western public railings and accusations against the character of Chinese people in politics; individuals who represent Chinese society; are totally racist. Anyway as this chapter is not about political correctness, let me get back on track.

When you put it all together, that first year in China resulted in seeing very little of China, and certainly could not be considered to have been a touring holiday. As far as exotic goes however, both back then (2003) and now (2007), I actually find the everyday 'ordinary' sights and life of China far more appealing than the big cities, and certainly far more appealing than the official tourist sites.  Seeing, visiting, and wandering in an 'out of the way', tiny, shabby, but regularly patronised Buddhist temple on the banks of the Yangtse, is far more interesting to me, that the beautifully decorated, neon lit, 'gilt leaf' temples found at so many 'tourist sites'. And wandering down back streets and seeing life as it is; and more than that, meeting and talking with the people who live in such places, is much more memorable than sanitized tours.

That's not to say that the official tours are not special.  I loved visiting the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace, and have done so twice. Everyone should go there, but let me give you a tip though. Before visiting either place, go to the internet and find and read: 'Two Years in the Forbidden City' by Princess Der Ling. Honestly, with her stories in mind, it really makes those places come alive.

Just recently I visited Emei Shan -  Mt. Emei - in Sichuan.  At 3000 metres it is spectacular. Some things in China are exotic and some are just plain breathtaking. For the most part however, what you see in China, is normal life - for the Chinese.

Part 2 Continues Sunday 4th November 2007

R.P.Bendedek

Email: rpbendedek@hotmail.com

Photographic Stories From China
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R.P.BenDedek is the pseudonym of the Author of 'The King's Calendar: The Secret of Qumran' (www.kingscalendar.com), and is a guest columnist at Magic City Morning Star News. An Australian, he currently teaches Conversational English in China.

"The King's Calendar" is a chronological study of the historical books of the Bible (Kings and Chronicles), Josephus, Seder Olam Rabbah, and the (Essene) Damascus Document of The Dead Sea Scrolls.