Life and Travel in China

I've heard that admission to amusement parks in the United States costs around $30-50. The absurd thing is that in China the prices are almost identical! The problem is that in China there are millions of people in such amusement parks, open-air museums and theme parks. Of course, the owners of these places don't care about this. They always let the crowds come in, millions of people buy tickets and then stand in lines. It's often the case that they spend half the day waiting. They are not only waiting to ride a carousel or enter a 3D cinema, but even to take a photo in some important place. However, this does not bother the Chinese, they are used to crowds. In 6 years, I have never, absolutely NEVER seen a Chinese person complain that it is too crowded, that there are too many people, that they are wasting their time and money, that it is unfair, that it is stuffy. This topic is usually discussed by foreigners visiting China.

There is a huge football stadium in the center of Shenzhen, it was a sports center. There are tennis courts, smaller soccer fields, basketball courts, bike shops, sports accessories, golf, clothing, etc. The problem is that the entire center is terribly run down! It's hard to believe, because China can generally afford renovations, changes and improvements. They will probably abandon this stadium after all! They are already building a new sports center in a completely different area. In this old center, even the entrance gate is destroyed, Mercedes is testing cars on the main square, the security was shouting at us to get off the Mercedes route! Walking around the stadium, you feel like you've stepped into another era. Rusty gates, cracked walls, damp, bad smell. Of course, there are still shops, bars, people coming there, but everything looks as if time stopped 20 years ago. The Chinese generally love sports, they are very active, so I am surprised by the condition of this facility and the approach of the city authorities to this sports center. The Universiade will be held in Shenzhen in 2011. I wonder what they will do with the old stadium? Will they demolish it, renovate it at the last minute, or cover it with something and pretend that nothing is there?!

Recently I saw how propaganda is created, or more precisely, a propaganda video. I guess it was about checking the traffic police. The scene looked like this: the latest Honda - a police motorcycle, absolutely new (I have never seen such a fancy motorcycle), three shiny, waxed off-road police cars just received from the manufacturer, a beautiful policewoman in a pressed uniform, several other impeccably dressed policemen. In between all this, a large tripod and a camera, a scriptwriter, a camera operator. In addition, the vehicle that was stopped by the police. Interestingly, two white people are standing next to this car. The man is holding a piece of paper, he's probably learning his dialogue! Such a video will probably be broadcast as a documentary about police work, or maybe an instructional video for the police? In my opinion, however, they greatly exaggerated the aesthetics of this entire scene! Seeing these policemen and such well-kept vehicles, I immediately noticed that something was wrong here. I thought maybe they were protecting someone, but then I saw a camera and sheets of paper with a script.

I recently saw such a 'privileged vehicle' at night in the center of Shenzhen. There was a guy sitting inside, not a very nice guy, next to him was a woman holding a white poodle. The Chinese man was driving a black Mercedes, and his registration numbers were covered with camouflage fabric. Such people are outside the law. They are not bound by any regulations, limits, inspections or fines, they do not pay for fuel out of their own pockets, they have company apartments, they keep mistresses, they are kings of life, all thanks to the communist party and the system in China. They are untouchable - as I have already written about. I recently saw a similar car with its number plates covered in front of a large massage parlor. And individual groups of such people, who form a large army throughout China, will never allow this system to be changed. These are policemen, politicians, show business people, owners of large factories and large corporations, soldiers, descendants of former leaders or politicians, and local authorities. They live simply great in this environment.

Today I found an interesting promotion in the hypermarket. I bought three Snickers in a blister along with... Energizer AAA batteries. In Poland, of course, it is unthinkable to pack food and sweets together with batteries. As you can see, this is a normal promotion in China! I'll eat some candy bars and put the batteries in the remote control, ha ha!