Life and Travel in China

I'm ashamed to admit it, because I haven't updated the website for a long time. It's a bit neglected and the competition is definitely ahead of me now ;-). I still have a lot of new photos and even more from the archive, but unfortunately too many responsibilities mean that I only have a backlog. February 5 begins the Year of the Pig in China - traditionally a good year for motherhood. Many of our Chinese friends go abroad more and more often during this period. A friend from Guangzhou is in Singapore, and another from Shenzhen went abroad with her family to Thailand for the first time. One of them speaks little English, but in countries such as Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia (Bali Island), Malaysia - they can easily count on the help of Chinese guides and translators, Chinese travel agencies have their representatives there. Foreign travel for the Chinese was practically unrealistic 20 years ago. Now they can afford such trips, and visiting the Middle Kingdom or staying at home is not enough of an experience for young, nouveau riche Chinese. They travel, shop, sightsee, spend time in luxury hotels and SPAs, and simply enjoy life.

The situation in Hong Kong is currently very tense. It all started with protests against the extradition of suspects from Hong Kong to China. Now the protests have turned indirectly against the authorities in Beijing and directly against the authorities in Hong Kong. Of course, the truth lies somewhere in the middle. I understand people who are afraid of Chinese power, injustice, violation of citizens' rights and limited freedom, limited democracy. On the other hand, the protesters were overly aggressive, frustration and anger broke out. There were groups of bored kids who had previously lived in a quite peaceful and yet rich country like Hong Kong. Of course, there are reasonable people among them fighting for democracy, but the vast majority behave as if they wanted to introduce anarchy and paralyze the country. In internet comments, someone rightly noticed that in any "normal" Western country the police would deal with them very quickly. Blocking airports would be considered an act of terrorism. In the US, the National Guard would probably step in. We saw how President Macron dealt with his opponents, there were regular wars in the streets. Nobody talks about civil rights or democracy in such cases. In the case of China, the situation is different. It's sad to see the hatred between the police and the people of Hong Kong growing. It's sad to see buildings, metro stations and infrastructure being destroyed in the city where I loved walking and taking photos. What's next? I am afraid that the Chinese army or special police forces will enter Hong Kong from Shenzhen. Then everything will change.

Did you know that in China, the beginning of primary school is basically the end of childhood? We wanted to buy a toy as a gift for our friend's son, and she said, "No, don't buy it! We've already put all the toys away, he's going to school this year." Brother - 7 years old and you have no toys! You get books, notebooks, exercises, and a whole load of extracurricular activities. A baby like that has no life left. Another Chinese friend told me that children already in primary school have a lot of homework. They are at school practically from morning to evening, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Of course, during this time they have a lunch break. Some are in boarding schools, others return home for dinner and overnight stays. Apart from that, everything revolves around school. Doing homework at night! Would you like that? I'm not really a fan of giving children too much freedom, because then they come up with all sorts of stupid ideas, but... you can't go overboard either. 7 years and no more toys? There are many toys that teach and develop. For example, modeling, Lego Technic, interactive toys, robots, remote-controlled toys, etc. The problem is also the lack of proper direction of play. Most often, grandparents take care of their grandchildren in China. My grandparents had absolutely no toys during their childhood. So how should they instruct the young generation - how to have fun, what to play with, how to learn through play. This is what is missing in China. Many parents simply spend exorbitant amounts of money on extracurricular activities because they don't have time or have no idea what to do with their children. So, when school starts in China, adult life begins - responsibilities, schedule, no time for rest. I don't envy them!

I noticed some time ago that Chinese censorship has reached technological heights. They used to have to look for their opponents, people who criticized the government - often anonymously, on the Internet. Now they basically have them on their hands. Every website, every messenger, every portal, every forum now requires registration with a Chinese phone number (and sometimes also with an ID). The numbers are, of course, registered on the basis of ID cards, and in the case of foreigners, on the basis of passports. If we add all types of payments by phone, communication and cashless operations via WeChat, maps and locations, we basically know where who is, when they moved, where they were, what they bought, what they ate... in addition, an ID card is required when purchasing train or bus tickets, at the entrances to famous tourist attractions, etc. This makes it difficult to hide from the authorities. Now no secret policeman has to follow anyone, he doesn't have to go anywhere, because they know everything - all you need is a computer and appropriate software. On the one hand, it's good because you can easily track down a criminal, a pedophile, etc. On the other hand, people who fight for democracy in China, for human rights and for freedom don't have it easy. Everything they say, write, add a link, video, photo - everything is immediately assigned to them. No privacy and full monitoring of every citizen.

It appears that the protests in Hong Kong will have the opposite effect than intended. If they had not happened, Hong Kong would have lost its autonomy and been slowly 'absorbed' by mainland China, but it would have been a gradual process. Thanks to this, the inhabitants of Hong Kong could continue to enjoy relative freedom and democracy for the next few, maybe a dozen or so years. The protests of students, who first started behaving quite aggressively towards the police and towards other residents, resulted in Beijing getting the green light to enter Hong Kong more aggressively. It's a simple pattern - can't you cope? Is your system not working? Is there a mess on the streets? We will help, we will remedy this, we will introduce our system, our rules! While I understand the ideas of fighting for democracy and freedom, I do not understand the methods of people from Hong Kong at all: destroying property, demolishing shops, banks, city infrastructure, beating people with different views, racist behavior, etc. Most of the protesters were young people, students. I must admit that they never had a bad time in Hong Kong. This city-state was modern, developed, gave them enormous opportunities, and additionally, as citizens of Hong Kong, they could travel to various countries without the restrictions that citizens of the People's Republic of China have. I think there were three main drivers behind the protests. For poorer people who were less fortunate, whose parents worked hard for little wages and found it difficult to make a living in Hong Kong, for them the reason to fight was simply frustration. Others who were doing quite well, had a prosperous life, were simply bored and looking for excitement. In one of the interviews, a young boy compared their protest to the game GTA, that it was like Grand Theft Auto in real life. It's better to 'play' something than to sit at a desk and study. The third driving force behind these protests was, of course, anarchy and the desire to destabilize the country. In Hong Kong, for years, people have been taught obedience, following the rules, standing in queues for the bus, giving up seats to the elderly, etc. Of course, there is nothing wrong with this, but apparently they have become tired of this obedience. Now the protesters are losing to the police, the police have stopped dealing with them because Beijing gave them an ultimatum. The Chinese government can now implement its reforms in Hong Kong more aggressively and quickly. China is a strong economy and can easily take over Hong Kong.