Jing's Comments

My Experience of Culture and Religion in Tibet

Chinese people do have religion, which is called "Science". Modern chinese people believe in science more than any other culture. We are respecting people's beliefs in different religion, but you cannot disagree that religion was the reason causing so many killings between human beings.

Posted by Jing at 2008-04-12 07:28:24. More

Shanghai South Railway Statoin - Part II

i was surprised when i saw these pictures because, while the design in general is impressive, the landscape is so blatantly copied from the shell petroleum headquarters in france by kathryn gustafson, built in 1991. while probably not well known to the general public, it was featured in the very influential groundswell exhibition at the MOMA as well as the exhibition catalog in 2005 and is easily recognizable by anyone with training or interest in landscape architecture.

copying designs is not uncommon because our work is not covered by any copyright other than technical patents for individual technologies but it is especially pervasive in china and some other countries in asia because the designers have not had the opportunity to travel abroad during their education or interact with foreign designers, and the pressure to build so quickly. when i was working in beijing a few summers ago, i found such a nonchalant attitude towards it by the local professionals, even for very high profile projects.

shell petroleum

Posted by jing at 2007-08-03 03:11:06. More

China Eastern Airlines

I had very bad experience with China Eastern once - in January of 2000 I booked round-trip flight between LA and SH. In Shanghai I forgot to "re-confirm" my return flight >72 hours ahead and when I did so, I was told that my seat had been cancelled! And there's no seat left whatsoever cuz they over-booked. I still went to the airport on the scheduled return day to try my luck, only to find a bunch of furious passengers who just realized at the airport that their seats were all cancelled because of the same reason. We asked about the availability of the next day and they still gave the "no" answer.

Ironically, when I walked up to the ticketing counter of China Eastern, pretending that I wanted to buy a one-way ticket for LA of the next day, I was told that it's still available - for RMB 9000! I had to go home and went to airport again the next day, and took the same flight by standing-by. Obviously they could not make more money by selling the RMB9000 tickets so they had to accept those who already paid but were refused to board. I try to avoid China Eastern as much as I can ever since.

I am not sure if it's only China Eastern or all the airlines play the similar trick. At least I know not every airline asks for re-confirm, or would cancel your seat if you fail to do so. I have taken JAL/AA and ANA a couple of times between San Jose and Shanghai. Everytime I called their shanghai offices to re-confirm my return flight - because of the terrible experience with China Eastern - they always told me politely that there's no need to re-confirm. The drawback of taking JAL/ANA is that you have to connect at Japan. The good side - better service, better food, and personal TV even for coach-class.

So be sure to "re-confirm" your return flight if you have to take China Eastern in peak season.

Posted by Jing at 2006-10-24 11:31:59. More

San Jose Impression

a lot the noise reduction that you write of is a result of foam insulation in the buildings and better windows. the standard windows in new buildings, even residential, is two panes of glass filled with either xenon gas or vacumn, which is used for both noise reduction and energy conservation. if a building faces a highway or some other high noise area, they are required to have even better windows. a lot of the buildings here also have dampering systems that emit frequencies to counteract traffic noises in addition to the air conditioning, computer sounds, and other background noises that make the environment seem quieter than it actually is.

Posted by jing at 2006-06-08 06:25:59. More

Jian Shuo Wang Flying to San Jose

i don't know if this is worldwide or just in the us, but if you see the code ssss on your boarding pass, this means that they will handsearch your carryon luggage. if you are switched to another carrier on a leg of your flight, this will automatically happen. otherwise i think they check about 5 percent of passengers. if you try to check in online and the site tells you that it cannot print your boarding pass, this is clue that you have certainly been selected for screening.

also, remember to wear socks for your flight; they've started checking shoes again during airport security.

Posted by jing at 2006-06-05 01:31:25. More

Sasa Enters Shangahi

Hey, I wonder if the prices in Shanghai Sasa would be close to those in HK (or US). If they will still sell imported cosmetic products at the unreaonably high prices as those Shanghai's department stores do, I don't see much to feel excited about :) I heard China does not charge big tax on luxury cosmetic merchandises any more. Is it true? So far the price in China is definitely outrageous - I bought a gift set from EL in US for $25 + sales tax, and later found the same thing cost 590RMB in Shanghai, which was already said to be promotion price...

Posted by Jing at 2005-03-25 07:26:50. More

Dislike Doing or Starting to Do

Jianshuo, I'm pretty sure you do not have to learn Shanghai dialect, as not being able to say it does not really lower the convenience level of living in Shanghai now. This time I found Mandarin is much more widely accepted and used than it ever was. Actually I sometimes speak in Mandarin with my friends of Shanghai origin, or use lots of words in Mandarin (the switching between dialects came just so natually).

Of course, speaking in local dialect sounds more fun. It takes some efforts to practise, unless you don't have anything better to do... :D

As to those foreigners who live in China for a while but do not learn Chinese, it can be simply lack of interests and necessity. Of course one can live in a foreign country (maybe for business purpose), and be totally uninterested in local cultures. My mom lived in Thailand for 2+ years, and didn't intend to study Thai at all. She studied some Spanish when she's in Panama, figuring that Spanish could be useful. In both cases speaking English was already enough for living comfortably. So for foreigners not intending to get more involved with locals, it is OK to stay within their own language circles, as long as China tolerates English-speaking-only people as it does now.

Posted by Jing at 2005-03-10 03:16:10. More

Happy Valentine's Day

Gee, now I figured I should have found another time to get together with my college roommates but not the Valentine's day, on which Wendy should have spent the whole day with you only:)

I had a great Valentine's day afternoon/evening talking w/ Wendy, Xiao Fang, and you. You and Wendy are doing very well in Shanghai. You are one of the sweet couples that make me believe there is still true love in this world:) I'm so happy for you.

And thanks a lot for showing me some of the new developments in Pudong District. Very impressive place!

Posted by Jing at 2005-02-15 20:27:32. More

Top Two Differences in China

Generally speaking in Japan you do not tip servers in restaurants either, even in luxury ones although you might be automatically charged a service fee. So I would not see no-tipping as Bolshevik or obsolete, more of a tradition thing to me.

And yes, there are exceptions. I once saw people tipping "red hats" at PVG(those who helps you to carry heavy luggages). Maybe the exceptions can be expected only where there are more foreigners. Some restaurants in China also charge mandatory service fee, e.g. the famouse "Quan Ju De" at He Ping Men in Beijing, with service not necessarily worthing the money.

Posted by Jing at 2005-01-13 02:20:35. More

Life in New York is Tough for Me

Jianshuo, simply comparing absolute prices does not make much sense. At least I would not say food is expensive in the States compared to average incomes of American people. Even a graduate student makes $1000+ as RA or TA per month usually, way more than those in China, let alone full-time employees. If not dining out at luxury restaurants everyday, food should not be a concern at all for most of the people with stable income in the States. As for prices charged by restaurants/fast food chains, they just cannot be as low as RMB prices/8 considering the much more expensive labor/rent/utilities/other costs.

There is definitely no need for you to worry that "you are the poor in NYC". Do not judge everything from the perspective of short-time visitors from poor countries. I'm sure you are among at least the top 2-3% of Chinese people income-wise. You would be in the same good shape if you live in the States.

BTW, I was surprised that you had to spend $10-14 for two in McDonald's. Maybe NYC's McDonald's did not have the 99c value menu. :)

Posted by Jing at 2005-01-05 04:35:54. More

Cold New York

I love Monterey Park and its vicinity. LA is food heaven even for Chinese from NorCal. I was told that the Chinatown in SF is much cleaner than the one in NYC. Many Chinese restaurants in the Chinatown of SF, mostly Cantonese style. But I still eat at so-called the new Chinatown in Richmond District when I go to SF. Seems there are many "new Chinatowns" besides the historical ones in America's big cities.

Jianshuo and Fanfan, hope you have a save trip back home and enjoy most delicious and authentic Chinese food in Shanghai soon:) Have a happy and warm New Year!

Posted by Jing at 2004-12-29 05:13:54. More

Back from Geek Diner in Bellevue

Jianshuo, what you said about money transfer was really cool :) Right, there's no Citibank branch/ATM in Washington State whatsoever . I have a friend just joining MS. She was with Citibank before and had to change to BoA.
As I remembered last winter I saw plenty of BoAs in Shanghai, which shall be very convenient for you.

Posted by Jing at 2004-12-11 09:58:24. More

Getting Shore Pass (Temp Visa) for Japan

You did a good job at NRT! :) It sounds to me that the officers at Narita are well following the 72 hours visa on arrival regulation for Chinese citizens, while staffs of the airline at PVG pose tighter control to avoid potential troubles. I wonder if it can be different on your way back from US, if you still try to stay in Tokyo for a little longer.

Posted by Jing at 2004-12-09 16:04:11. More

Rejected by ANA and Postponed Travel

Ah...what happened was really bad. In summer 2001, I stopped at Tokyo for a little less than 72 hours (arrived on the 1st day afternoon and left on the 4th day morning) w/ my Chinese passport on my way back to Shanghai from US. I didn't have trouble getting the visa on arrival, although in LA at the checkin time, the JAL staff asked for approval from her supervisor. There was no problem at Narita either.

I didn't know that they changed the rule now. But anyway, I'm sure you would get chance to visit Tokyo in near future. It's a place definitely worth going.

Happy travelling...

Posted by Jing at 2004-12-05 09:35:22. More

Jian Shuo Wang is Going to U.S.

Hey, Wang Jiaoshuo, Long time no see!! A couple of days ago Xiao Fan told me about you guys' visiting US in near future. It looks like that you already got plenty of opinion/feedback regarding trip planning:) Good for you and I really hope you have a pleasant vacation. If you ever change your mind and decide to drop by Northern California (the San Francisco Bay Area, the Silicon Valley, whatever you want to call it), be sure to gimme a ring. I look forward to meeting you guys here. BTW, I live in LA for about one and half years totally. Unlikely most of other people, I would say I like LA quite a bit, a fun place to stay. Of course for visitors you might prefer San Francisco for its unique landscape and cultural circumstance. Anyway, let me know if you guys come to California.

Posted by Jing at 2004-11-19 14:02:23. More