Life and Travel in China

I recently read on some Polish news website that China is planning to abolish (or rather change) the one-child policy. Of course, specialists didn't come up with this idea simply to make families bigger and make things more fun in Chinese homes ;-). Of course, it is about economic aspects, society is aging, the newly developing pension system will be overloaded, and there will be a shortage of workers both in industry and in agriculture. Having two children is even a privilege of rich people willing to pay fines. There are also various other rules, depending on the region, social policy, etc. I wrote about it earlier. Of course, they will not change this policy so easily, because it provides them with good income - all these official fees (financial penalties) for the second and subsequent children, these bribes, a lot of formalities before planning a pregnancy. The average official would not be happy to see that people could simply breed without his interference and without his permissions. I'm sorry for writing this like this, but in China, when it comes to pregnancies, births and children, officials and doctors often have a very matter-of-fact approach, for them it's numbers, symbols, notes, all in order to properly control an ordinary Chinese family. This will probably change under pressure from specialists who will make the central government realize that in the long run, limiting births will greatly harm China's future. On the other hand, they cannot allow some poor people, disabled people, sick people to have many offspring - I know it sounds Nazi, but that's how it is in the Middle Kingdom. An ordinary person does not have many rights there, freedom of choice and decision, even in intimate spheres, and a disabled person even less has no rights there. Unless he is a millionaire, then he can buy the favor of local authorities. But do you know many rich disabled Chinese people? I don't, they are usually beggars...

I remember how at first I was offended when someone wrote on some forum that the city of Shenzhen had no character or atmosphere. If I had to judge it now, after living in Shenzhen for so long, I would probably agree with it. Supposedly in Shenzhen there is the DaMeiSha and XiaoMeiSha beaches, supposedly there is the old Dongmeng market (now shopping malls and mainly brand stores), supposedly there are nightlife areas such as Coco Park, Shekou or Louhu, supposedly there is everything - a modern center and skyscrapers too... but none of these places has this something and this city is like taken out of the game SimCity. Roads, main arteries, department stores, skyscrapers, housing estates, schools and hospitals, all planned and built. Hong Kong or Shanghai are different, it's worth being there because you can feel the unique atmosphere. In Hong Kong, a mix of cultures, a beautiful bay, stunning views from Victoria Peak, delicious NaiCha (cold milk tea), night markets and tiny temples. In Shanghai there is also a beautiful bay, stunning skyscrapers with the Pearl of the Orient at the forefront, small streets with the smell of Chinese dumplings and seafood, large temples and museums. One of our Chinese friends always emphasizes that Shenzhen is the best, because she lived for some time in ZhuHai, Shanghai and Indonesia. Honestly, I don't know what she's raving about. Shenzhen is simply a metropolis to which there is no need to return, unless you live or do business there ;-).

Recently, Zhejiang and Fujian provinces were hit by a typhoon, even two typhoons. According to our friends, heavy rain and storms lasted all day and all night, with winds reaching speeds of 150-200 km/h. At the beginning of my stay in China, I also witnessed a typhoon. It wasn't a pleasant feeling, especially on the 27th floor. I had the impression that the whole building was creaking and bending under such a storm. Interestingly, many people do not make it a tragedy. Maybe because they most often work in factories, live there or rent apartments - so they do not lose their own belongings. It may sound absurd, but for some people it is even such an attraction. Work at the factory has stopped, there is water everywhere, they send one person who is waist-deep in water to go get some lunch. People are just waiting for the water to recede. A friend of mine wrote to me that now they travel around the city of Ningbo by boat (instead of buses), it sounded very natural, like 'there is water, we go by boat' and wrote that 'it should be better tomorrow'. Young people do not panic and do not dramatize. The situation is certainly worse somewhere in the countryside, where people lose their houses, belongings, animals, farmlands... Fortunately, thanks to meteorological warnings and alarms, some people managed to evacuate, most of the boats returned safely to ports and there were not so many victims of this storm.

Some time ago I had the opportunity to observe how rapidly villages, for example in Hunan province, are changing. I mentioned it earlier - all the families rebuilt their houses as ordered! From small rural cottages, tenement houses 3-4 stories high have grown. The higher the house, the better the family status, so the thinking goes. Unfortunately, this sometimes leads to tragedy. Two feuding neighbors, one of them Zhang was told by the other that he had no right to build a taller house and that he was a failure. The conflict continued for some time until Zhang decided to take revenge. He kidnapped his neighbor's grandson, an 8-year-old boy. He was accompanied by two girls, aged 9. Initially, he planned to kill only the boy, but was afraid that the girls would be witnesses, and ended up killing three children. A shocking crime and perhaps difficult to understand, sick envy. In China, unfortunately, material status is an important determinant in life. If someone despises another person by pointing out that he is poor, can't cope, doesn't have a big house, doesn't drive a new car, then it is a very serious insult. Ordinary insults in China are not as painful as bringing up financial issues. I have witnessed such situations myself. Many young Chinese pretend to be richer than they actually are. Without it, even their family would not respect them. However, nothing justifies such a terrible crime, killing three children - because the neighbor has a taller house?! Sick...

I have further proof that the Chinese are getting better and better. I remember when I bought some pants in 2005, they were often too tight at the waist. I joked that in China, men's pants are cinched at the waist. My Polish friend laughed a lot about it, but that was the reality. Jeans were often tight around the waist or even around the thighs, and the tracksuits had super-strong elastic bands so that they hugged the belly. I'm not a big guy, but their clothes were really tight, for slim or even skinny guys. Now that I see it, it's changing... pants are available in a wider range of sizes and no one narrows them down so much anymore. Of course, 'slimmer' versions still predominate, but there are also ones for bigger guys. Looking at Chinese youth, this trend will continue, there will be demand for XL clothing ;-).