差得远

Josh's Wild Ride

2013-05-09T08:13:05Z

Today we have a guest post from Joshua Ogden-Davis. Enjoy!

If you’re a foreigner, then chances are you’ll probably never be able to rent a public bike in Haikou again – and while I do feel really bad about that, I did, however, just have a pretty awesome Monday.

It started out innocently enough. I was tooling around on Google Maps and became fascinated with the northern edge of Xinbu Island, which seemed like some sort of beach/prairie/marshland something. On some maps it was even listed as ocean. Marian suggested that I go check it out on one of the new public bikes, rentable at automated stations scattered all over Haikou. “You’d be the first foreigner I know to try one,” she said. From what I know about exchange students (largely unwilling to do anything in Chinese that isn’t strictly necessary) and real expats (who, if they want to ride a bike, just buy one of their own), I figured I might actually be the first one of all. Sign me up!

After breakfast this morning I headed down to the nearest bike station, on a little road right behind my house. The rack was full of bikes, and while there was a sign on the booth saying that an attendant would be around from 9:30-11:30am (I forgot the afternoon hours) M-F to sell snacks and help people get their bike card, but even though it was 10am on a Monday, the booth was closed and locked. Later on I would discover that this is pretty normal right now around Haikou, but at the time I just furrowed my brow, muttered a bit, and started walking towards the next-closest station.

I made a wrong turn along the way, cutting left a block too early, and was about to turn around and retrace my steps when I realized I was standing right in front of a booth I’d never noticed before. It was open and everything. I checked my mental map of Haikou and was pleased to find that, with this station, there were public bikes available on three consecutive blocks around my house. Now that’s coverage! When they’re open, anyway.

I waited patiently behind a man who was buying what appeared to be some sort of pickled chicken feet out of a Tupperware box. As he was completing his purchase, I asked, “Is this where you get a bike card?”

“Yes,” replied the attendant, who was a very small woman in her late twenties, inexplicably clad in a black sweater for her day of sitting in a metal box on a tropical island in the spring. “Do you want to get one now?”

“Yep.”

“Where’s your ID card from?”

“USA.”

The attendant froze and stared at me. The man with the pickled chicken foot (now dangling from his right hand in a clear plastic bag) stopped walking away to stare at me over his shoulder. Finally, the woman regained her composure, gave an embarrassed smile, and stammered, “Ah, well, then, your Chinese is very good.”

“Thanks,” I said. This is only the second time that a Chinese person has apparently mistaken me for some kind of Chinese, and just like the first time, I was both very proud and very suspicious of the woman who assumes the 6’4”, white-skinned, long (brown) haired, bearded, obnoxious-Tang-style-shirt-wearing guy must be Chinese just because he can do basic communication in the language.

I took out my passport and tried to hand it to her, but she just gave it an uncertain look and froze again.

“I’ve never given a card to a foreigner before. I don’t know how to do it. Let me call and ask.”

I just smiled and nodded, already used to the kind of thinking that leads to a public bike system being installed in the capital city of the “International Tourism Island” without any preparation being made for international use. After a few seconds, someone picked up her call.

“Yeah. There’s a foreigner here who wants a bike card. No, a Foreigner. A for-eign-er. Yeah, from the USA. I don’t think it’ll be a problem. He must have been here for a few years, his Chinese is pretty good. Ok, then. How should I do it? Ok. Ok. Do you want me to charge extra or something? Ok, got it. So, just do it like a normal person, then, right? No problem. Thanks!”

The part about charging extra almost made me laugh, but I held it in. The fact that she said it right in front of me lets me know that any extra fees would have been an administrative concern instead of another exciting round of Gouge Whitey. How I love me some Gouge Whitey.

She handed me a form that asked for my basic info. While I was filling it out, she took time to marvel over my passport. Suddenly, when I was almost done with the form, she froze for the third time.

“You were born in ‘85?”

“Yeah,” I replied, a little off balance for the first time.

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

She looked back and forth between me and the passport.

“You don’t believe it?” I prompted.

She checked one more time. “It’s just… no, I believe it.”

She handed my passport back, and that was it.

I handed over 300 yuan, 200 as a deposit and 100 to be put on the card. 200 seemed like a pretty steep deposit, but fortunately Nicki had already filled me in, so I wasn’t suspicious. The card is used to open the bike lock at any bike station around town, and the fees are deducted from the amount on the card at an hourly rate that I probably should have checked, but was strangely unconcerned about. If I had known how long it would be before I would turn that bike back in, I probably would have taken note. As it is, the fee is probably only a couple kuai an hour, and my card still works, anyway.

The bikes themselves are bright orange fixed-gears with a sizable basket in front, a bike lock with key installed in the frame for easy parking, and a mercifully adjustable seat. Put all the way up, my legs could extend about 70% of the way, much more than I was expecting. After getting it set up, I just flashed the card on the bike rack, slid the bike out, and was on my way. Easy peasy.

The first couple of blocks were a bit rough – I’d never ridden a fixie, and the pedals aren’t very long, meaning that I felt like I was furiously treading water the whole time. I got the hang of it after a few minutes, but I was always one of the slowest things in the motorcycle lane/sidewalk/highway (depending on what was available on each leg of the journey). Up Longkun Road, right on Binhai Avenue, across the Renmin Bridge, up to Wuzhong Road, and I was on my way to Xinbu Island for the first time.

As soon as I came off the bridge onto the island, I felt like I’d left the city altogether. While the Haidian side of the bridge was apartment high rises, the first thing I passed through on Xinbu was large plots of undeveloped land. I peddled along happily through the coconut trees for a while before the road abruptly dead-ended into a construction site, a few blocks earlier than it looked like it should from the map. I decided to give it a try anyway and turned north onto a “paved” road that looked more like a mole farm. It seemed that some concrete had been poured on the ground just to give context to the hundreds upon hundreds of baseball-sized potholes that were spaced with puzzling regularity. They were so dense that it was impossible to avoid them, and each time the bike’s basket rattled with an impact, I thought, “Sorry!” Ha. If only I knew what was still in store for that bike.

After a bit the holes stopped and the puddles began. Big, long, muddy ones that cover the whole road and make you wonder at exactly which moment you will plunge off of the concrete, into an unseen obstacle, or down into a bottomless, underwater mud pit. Fortunately, none of those happened, but the bike’s brakes did begin to make both squeaking and scraping sounds. Sorry!

The road turned right after passing by what appeared to be a bunch of shrimp farms, and then, through the trees, I began to see lots of large burial mounds. Each one was a steep dome at least four feet high, with a marble gravestone placed in front. No grass grew on them, but at the top of each, a little extra dirt had been added to support a piece of sod, with live green grass in it. Some of these top-pieces had vines growing out of them, which began to reach down the side of the mound towards the ground. Some were surrounded 7/8 of the way by a low stone wall, often with characters written on them.

To explore further, I took a left onto a deeply rutted dirt/mud road, frequented by dump trucks that were heading to and from a construction site. The bike began to skid and slide and almost stick in the deep mud, and I finally decided to hop off and push the bike for a

while. As soon as I did, I realized that I was standing right in front of a small, one-room concrete temple with a sloped tile roof built on the edge of the graveyard. I couldn’t read the traditional characters above the door, (probably wouldn’t have recognized the simplified characters either) though I imagine it must have had something to do with the function of the graveyard itself.

I propped the bike on its kickstand and walked around taking pictures for a while. Pictures of the temple from lots of different angles (the back was pleasantly overgrown with vines and leafy plants), the architecture of the graves, the nearby construction site, and a small pond. It took me a few moments to realize that a large stone halfway submerged in the pond was actually a toppled gravestone, face down and partially overgrown. Thought provoking, creepy yet tranquil, good for photographing.

Pictures taken, I hopped back on the bike and within a few seconds was on the other side of the trees, finally looking out over that vast beach/prairie/marshland something that I had originally come to explore. Now that I was on-site, I could confirm with my own eyes that it was indeed a beach/prairie/marshland something. Some parts were covered in grass (enough to feed at least one large herd of cattle, minding its own business in the distance), some parts were puddle and too muddy to bike through, and some parts consisted of slightly soggy sand. I mostly stuck to the parts solid enough to ride over, though unexpected muddy patches threatened to throw me off the bike from time to time.

Further down the tree line I noticed a pond with a small wooden sign in front. The ground around it was too muddy for the bike, so I put it on the kickstand and went to go examine the sign. After a few steps I heard the bike clatter to the ground, its kickstand having sunk into the only partially solid sand. “Sorry,” I thought. A few moments later I was close enough to the sign to see that it actually said nothing at all, its former message completely worn off by the constant breeze and wind off the sea, at the other end of the beach/prairie/marsh. In fact, as I examined the vigorous rippling on the surface of the pond, I realized that the breeze was a bit more intense than perhaps it should be. The weather report had said that it would be merely “cloudy” that day, but I was now pretty far away from any shelter, and decided that caution was necessary.

After hauling the bike out of the moist ground (some mud had gotten into the brake handle – “Sorry!”), I started to walk away from the tree line to get a better look at the sky. To my chagrin, it was already raining visibly a few miles to the east, and the western skies were dark and forbidding. I couldn’t flee south because of the trees, and I couldn’t flee north because of, you know, the ocean, so I decided the best course of action was to walk to the seashore, where Google Maps had told me I would find a road that skirts the coast, then ride as fast as possible back to the village on the island and find a place to weather the storm.

Time was of the essence, but unfortunately, that beach/prairie/marsh was just too cool to rush across. All kinds of seashells and other ocean artifacts were strewn about everywhere, most of them larger, more vibrant, and more intact than you find on the average beach.

Purples and oranges and mother-of-pearl were in abundance, and I stopped every ten or twenty seconds to examine something I’d never seen before. My favorite find was a shard of orange-ish clam shell a few centimeters thick. The complete shell may have been bigger than my hand, and I have big hands. The bike may or may not have fallen into the mud a few more times during my foraging sessions (Sorry!), and I’m not gonna lie, I did pocket a silver-dollar sized slab of something like translucent nacre (maybe from a scallop shell?) and a two-inch lavender sea snail shell, preserved so well that the end still came to a fine point.

When I finally arrived at the water, I discovered two things. First, the rain to the east was moving closer, almost falling on the beach/prairie/marsh, while the sky to the west was darker than ever, now with scattered lightning. Second, the “road” was not a road at all, but actually wall of concrete blocks more than four feet high (at that point) and about four feet wide. It was flat enough to ride on, but the winds were picking up. If I blew off on the land side, I’d fall between four and six feet onto wet sand. If I blew of on the sea side, I’d fall even farther onto large, uneven concrete blocks used to prevent erosion. Nevertheless, the idea of getting stranded in the open during a thunderstorm didn’t sound too good either, so I hoisted the bike onto the wall with a loud clank (Sorry!) and set off to the west, where it would be easier to find shelter.

The ride was good and the winds were navigable, so I kept on until little raindrops began to pelt my face and it became clear that I wasn’t going to make it to the village in time. I noticed a raised earthen road that went from the wall straight into the forest on the other side of the opening, and while a four-meter gap had been cut out of it to prevent its use by large vehicles, I decided to follow the motorcycle tracks around the deconstructed part of the road and head as quickly as possible to the cover of the trees, bumping hastily over large rocks and pieces of brick, plunging through murky puddles, and sliding around in the mud (Sorry!). It was at this point that I began to suspect the front wheel might have become slightly bent, but there was nothing that could be done about that at the moment.

I pulled up about twenty yards from the trees, my path blocked by a shallow creek, not three inches deep but running very quickly over soft sand. I noted that the worst of the storm had apparently passed by to the south, and that I was going to get little more than a light sprinkle. Nevertheless, at this point the only option other than going back across that hellhole of a broken-brick road to the shore was to try to find a way through the forest, back to the shrimp farms and somewhat-usable roads. And this would require fording the shallow creek.

I took a moment to admire the abandoned and crumbled, decidedly fort-like concrete structure on the edge of a nearby pond before cautiously approaching the stream. By now my hiking boots were already soaked through, so I decided to proceed slowly through the creek, pulling the bike along with me and testing each step very carefully before applying weight. That worked well for the first step, and the second step, but the third step, right in the middle of the creek, sent my left leg up to the knee in mud (Shlooooorp! Sorry!), and by the time I scrambled up the opposite bank, everything from the knees down was completely covered in sticky grey goop. As I pushed the bike along towards the forest, the turning wheels were so caked that the sound was the same as if I was just dragging the bike through the mud behind me.

Under the cover of the trees, with the bike on the kickstand and my backpack on in the basket, I slumped to the ground and sipped some Gatorade while letting the adrenaline dissipate. An examination of the bike revealed that the front wheel wasn’t bent but had wiggled a little lose (Sorry!), the back axel was completely wrapped in vines (Sorry!), the bell was filled with sand and made a crunching sound instead of a ring (Sorry!), the chain was covered in sand and dirt (Sorry!), and every crevice on the frame was filled with mud (Still sorry!).

I took a moment to think about the woman in the back cardigan sitting in the bike booth a block away from my house. She was hesitant to rent a bike to a foreigner, though even she probably didn’t know exactly why. I tried to remember if she had said anything about staying on roads, or about fines for damaging the bikes, but I couldn’t. As I took out my keys to start prying the vines off of the axel, I felt a moment of sympathy for the woman in the black cardigan, sighing at my destructive, foreign self and thinking, “It’s enough to make you racist.”

After the vines were all out, I rolled the bike back down to the stream and splashed water over the handles and wheels until most of the mud was gone, though it became clear that I wouldn't be able to remove all the signs of my unexpected utilization of public property.

With the bike as clean as it would get, I turned back and bumped along a relatively solid track through the woods, looking for the main road. After passing what looked like a few abandoned tea parties (rotted chairs and sofas arranged around broken tables in the middle of the forest), I rounded a corner and suddenly found myself on a concrete track heading straight for the main road in the middle of the shrimp farms. I laughed to myself as I rode back through the puddles, amused by how worried I had been about the bike back at the beginning of the trip. I pulled into the village and stopped at a corner store for food and drink – it was now almost five in the afternoon. I’d been out for over six hours with nothing but Gatorade to drink.

As I loaded up my backpack with water and snacks, the shopkeeper noticed my completely gray legs. “How did you get so dirty?” she asked.

“I… uh…” I’ve tried to explain adventurousness to Chinese friends before, and whenever I talk about getting dirtier than I have to just for the chance to see or do something new, they just stare at me with blank incomprehension. So I simplified the story: “I fell.”

She laughed. “Such a big guy! How could you fall?”

This “big guy” thing has been puzzling me for years. Back in my first year in China, when I got sick for the first time, my boss laughed and said, “Such a big guy! How could you get sick like that?” I was still naive at that time, naive enough to try and explain that pathogens are so small that the relative sizes between humans couldn’t have an effect on their ability to infect you. But she would have nothing of it. “You’re so big and strong. I don’t know how you got sick. You should drink more tea.”

In response to the shopkeeper, I pointed at the bike and said, “The bike is small. I’m big. That makes it very easy to fall.”

She leaned out to look at the bike. “Oh, is that one of the bikes you can rent on the side of the street in town?”

I was surprised. I live downtown, and apparently this rural shopkeeper had known about this progressive social and urban planning project well before I had. “Yes, it is.”

“Is it expensive?”

“I’m not sure. You have to pay 200 kuai to get the card, and then you have to put at least 100 kuai on the card, but I think it’s pretty cheap to use.”

She nodded. “Expensive.”

With a belly full of stuffed buns, I headed back into town on my muddy, wobbly borrowed bike. I flicked the bell compulsively, and by the time I was back on Haidian, the crunching had gradually changed back into a muffled ring. Whenever I stopped at a crossing, pedestrians would stare at my mud-caked shins for a while before looking up at me with unreadable expressions. “Good afternoon,” I would say. Few people responded. A tall, hairy foreigner in a completely soiled Tang-style shirt and red gym shorts precariously riding a creaky, squeaky, and once-orange public bike through the city streets must have been quite a sight to see.

As I got closer to home, I was seriously worrying about the terrible first impression I would make on the bike program on behalf of all foreigners in Haikou by renting a bike for seven hours and returning it covered in mud and in serious need of repair. If they figured out that the messed up bike was the first bike ever rented to a foreigner, would they ever rent to foreigners again? Would they charge more because of “our” “destructive” nature? For an added layer of protection, I stopped at an unmanned bike station by the east gate of Hainan University and used the card to switch out the half-destroyed bike for a shiny new one. I’m sure they could still track me through the card, but oh, well.

While crossing the Renmin Bridge, I relived the seven-hour adventure in my mind. Not only was it incredibly fun, it proved that the admirable idea of a public bike program was actually carried out pretty well. After you get a card, all you have to do is flash it once when renting or returning a bike. Stations are almost everywhere, and you can return a bike anywhere you like. The bikes themselves, while a bit small for my taste, can take a lot of punishment – I should know. All in all, I was feeling really positive about the whole scenario, bathed in the soft orange light of the springtime sunset and looking out over the river as I cruised across the bridge.

Then the ride suddenly became incredibly bumpy, and I realized that the back tire on my shiny new bike was completely flat. Karma, I suppose.

Excellent Hainan tourism reference from the WTTC

2013-05-02T12:43:06Z

Hainan will host the 2014 World Travel and Tourism Global Summit, and the WTTC has a great resource on Hainan available for download as a PDF on their website. As it was written in 2011 it's slightly out of date, but the analysis of Hainan is fantastic and detailed, a must read for anyone who is interested in Hainan, and especially tourism here.

Check it out.

The WTTC website itself, for those who want to know more about them: http://www.wttc.org/

Scary scary scary

2013-04-16T02:08:04Z

Just had a chat with the director of our tourism office and candidly told him some of the reasons western tourists avoid China.
1. scary hospitals
2. scary bathrooms
3. scary food

Any more I should add to the list?

Posted via LiveJournal app for Android.

North Korea

2013-04-15T23:49:36Z

Conversations with Cabbies are great for getting a quick and dirty feel for how people are feeling and what they are thinking...

Last night it went like this.

Cabbie: Where are you from?

Me: America

C: Oh, you guys want to start a war with North Korea.

Me: Not us! They want to start a war, not us!

C: Sure sounds like your president wants to start a war....

Me: I like peace!

......

C: So why are you going up to Binhai Lu?

Translation work

2013-03-07T07:05:52Z

I've been employed by a translation agency since December, but most of my work there in the first few months was final proofreading and editing of already translated work, with very little original translation. I greatly enjoy proofreading and editing. (Killing typos and fixing grammar makes my heart sing. Yeah, know I'm a weirdo.) It's nice though, to finally get to do a bit of translation work in my latest assignment. I'm working in the offices of the Tourism Information and Advisory Center of Hainan, editing their English language website. I just started there this week, and there's a lot of proofreading to do, as well as several empty pages that need content added. If you have any suggestions about the site, please let me know!

Where the translation comes in is on the news section of the site. I'll be translating several current articles a week, and hopefully they should start appearing in the news section very soon! Here's the first one I did. Although I've been in China for 8 years I have only been a translator for a short while, so please let me know if you see anything that can be improved! (Note: originally this was formatted side by side, but that format wasn't cooperating with the blog!)

海南仅有一家热气球俱乐部乘坐需注意

2013-03-04来源：海南特区报　　

2月26日，一个载有21人的热气球在埃及旅游城市卢克索上空爆炸，十多人遇难，让许多游客对热气球的安全性打上了一个大大的问号。3月2日，记者采访了曾任第六届海口热气球节组委会副总协调的阮先生。据介绍，海南省仅在三亚有一家热气球俱乐部开展热气球体验活动，而且仅限于系留飞行体验，“只要操作得当，严格遵守国家有关规定，热气球的安全系数应该说还是很高的。”

　　海南省仅一家热气球俱乐部

　　业内人士介绍，目前全世界约有2万个热气球，只有一部分用于旅游观光。2010年，中国已拥有可飞行球具200具，有效注册飞行员300人以上，注册俱乐部约20家。

　　据了解，虽然海南省曾先后举办海口热气球节、飞越琼州海峡挑战赛等活动，但全省各大景点暂时还没有推出热气球观光旅游项目。目前，海南省只有三亚云中浪漫热气球俱乐部这一家经营热气球业务的公司，游客可以体验热气球系留飞行(用物理手段将热气球限定在距离地面一定高度和范围内)，无法体验自由飞。

　热气球不可能“零风险”

　　阮先生介绍，单从数据上看，热气球的安全系数是相当高的，但其安全性要受气象、风速、设备、燃料及操作等多个因素影响，近年来发生的热气球事故大多是由于人为操作不当造成的。阮先生告诉记者，只要不折不扣地遵守相关规定，不在恶劣气象条件下飞行，热气球飞行的风险就可以降到最低，但作为一项运动，不可能做到“零风险”。

　　由于热气球本身具有极限运动的一些特征，不适合老人、小孩和有恐高症的游客乘坐，旅行社一般不会安排游客参与热气球观光的活动项目。但部分旅行社将此类活动列为自费项目供游客选择。需要提醒的是，一般的旅游意外保险内容都不包括热气球活动，游客如果要参与此项活动，最好能事先购买一份包含高空项目的保险。

　　乘坐热气球有三点要注意

　　据了解，伴随着热气球项目的火热，近年来热气球观光事故也时有发生。已开通热气球观光项目的桂林就曾于2004年5月、2006年8月、2009年10月先后发生3起事故。那么，作为普通游客，如何判断热气球观光项目的安全性呢?对此，专业人士给出了一些建议。

　　首先，要看经营者的资质和设备。经营热气球观光项目需要中国航天协会气球委员会的资质认证。在搭乘之前，游客还需要查看一下热气球本身的设备条件，比如球体是否较新，吊篮是否密实，燃烧气瓶、管道及燃烧器是否完备等。其次，游客可以要求看一下飞行员的驾照，一般“老飞行员”经验丰富，安全性也相对有保障。最后，要特别关注天气，如果天气恶劣，游客千万不要固执己见，毕竟生命安全比尝鲜更重要。

There's Just One Hot Air Balloon Club in Hainan –Take Care When Riding

2013-03-04 Source: Hainan Special Zone News

On February 26, a hot air balloon carrying 21 people exploded over the Egyptian city of Luxor, killing over 10 people and causing many tourists to question hot air balloon safety. On May 2, Mr. Ruan, assistant director of the 6th Haikou Hot Air Balloon Festival Committee spoke with reporters. According to him, Sanya has Hainan's only Hot Air Balloon Club offering a hot air balloon ride experience, and is limited to tethered flights only. “As long as flights are operated properly, in strict compliance with National Regulations, hot air balloon safety should be very good.”

There Is Only One Hot Air Balloon Club in Hainan

According to an industry insider, there are currently 20,000 hot air balloons in the world, although only some of those are used in sightseeing and tourism. In 2010, China already had 200 flight worthy balloons, more than 300 registered pilots, and 20 registered clubs.

Although Hainan Province already has held several successive Haikou Hot Air Balloon Festivals, and competitive balloon flights across the Qiongzhou Strait, there are not yet hot air balloon events held at every tourism spot around the province. Currently Sanya Romance In The Air Hot Air Balloon Club is the only hot air balloon company operating in Hainan. Tourists can take tethered flights (tethering limits the height and distance of the flight), but untethered flights are not allowed.

There's No Such Thing as a “Zero Risk” Hot Air Balloon

As Mr. Ruan explains, just looking at the numbers, the safety statistics of hot air balloons are actually quite good, but safety can be affected by weather, wind speed, equipment, fuel, and many other factors. Most of the recent hot air balloon accidents have been caused by human error. According to Mr. Ruan, as long as the safety regulations are followed to the letter, and balloons do not fly in bad weather conditions, the risks of riding in hot air balloons can be significantly lowered, but as with any other activity, there's no such thing as “zero risk”.

Due to the special nature of hot air balloons, they are not suitable for the elderly, young children, and those with a fear of heights, and travel agencies are unable to book flights for these guests, although some agencies will provide them for guests who fly at their own risk. Please be aware that most travel insurance does not cover hot air ballon rides. If you want to ride in a hot air balloon, it's best to first buy insurance that covers this type of activity.

Three Important Points About Hot Air Balloon Rides

As we have seen, as hot air balloon rides have become more popular, hot air balloon accidents have also occurred. After hot air balloon tourism began in Guilin, successive accidents occurred in May of 2004, August of 2006, and October of 2009. So, how can the average tourist assess hot air balloon safety? Here are a few suggestions from industry experts.

First, take a look at the operator's abilities and equipment. Operating a hot air balloon tourist flight requires a license from the China Aerospace Association Hot Air Balloon Committee. Before riding, guests should also look over the condition of the hot air balloon and equipment, for example whether or not the balloon is relatively new, whether the basket is tightly woven, and whether there are any problems with the gas tanks, tubes, or burners. Next, riders can ask to take a look at the pilot's license. Generally, older pilots have more experience, and are able to ensure your safety. Finally, pay close attention to the weather. In case of bad weather, travelers should absolutely not insist on flying. After all, safety is the most important consideration.

Pea Soup

2013-02-03T10:28:50Z

今天的新单词包括：大雾

今天，不少市民一早起床就感受到了浓浓的大雾。

在我家也有。

Haikou Bike Rental

2013-02-02T05:56:44Z

We've seen something similar in the past, but it now seems that a much more extensive bike rental program is being rolled out here in Haikou. Recently these have been installed at locations all over town:

They read: Haikou Public Bicycle System and they have a website: http://www.ibike668.com/

On the website, many additional city bike programs are listed, and I see some additional pictures of Haikou. Looks like we should be able to rent and return bikes at any of the company bicycle stands around town.

They don't appear to be operational yet (no bikes!) but stay tuned and I will find out prices and how it all works as soon as I can!

Mamma Mia! in Haikou

2013-01-09T07:10:55Z

Recently I posted on Lost Laowai about a video I saw on FluentU about the Chinese language version of the Mama Mia! stage show.

Now I have found out (via Weibo) that the show is coming here to Haikou

It will be showing at the Hainan Province International Exhibition Center at 8:30 PM nightly from Jan. 20-25th. Ticket prices range from 50-450 yuan, and you can get more information and purchase tickets online here (website in Chinese)

If I can, I'd really love to go. Yeah, Mama Mia! is a bit cheesy but it's good fun and I think it will be a great opportunity to do something really different and entertaining here in Haikou, as well as a good chance to practice my Chinese listening ability!

If you're interested in going together, let me know!

BTW: The English word "HIGH" below does not mean what you think it does... it's been borrowed into Chinese and they use it to mean a happy, good, excited feeling... that you can get from entirely wholesome activities :)

Kablooie!

2012-12-26T03:35:43Z

Saw this on Weibo thismorning. The old Hainan Airlines building (only 18 years old) on Haixiu Lu was demolished on Christmas morning. Bummer for all the businesses and residences in the area, looks like they must have gotten a face-full of dust! Was anybody over in that area that day? Did you see or hear it?

海南微博

12月25日上午10点30分整，老海航大厦准点定向爆破。1994年11月22日，海南航空公司总部开始在海秀东路29号的海航发展大厦办公。2011年1月29日，海南航空股份有限公司发布公告，公司总部搬迁至“国兴大道7号新海航大厦”。此次，“年仅18岁”的老海航大厦爆破是海南迄今为止爆破的最大建筑物。

收起|查看大图|向左转|向右转

Haikou Starbucks

2012-11-05T08:29:05Z

Every time I head over to Yusha Lu's Jinghua Cheng mall, I ask at the information desk when the Starbucks (which has been advertised there for months) will open. They always have the same answer: "It's under construction now, and it will open soon."

Now What's on Sanya is reporting that we will have to wait until February or March. Le sigh.

They also report that there will be 10 locations around Hainan, which tallies with the rumors I've been hearing that there will be at least 3 here in Haikou, and a few in Sanya as well.

None probably though, in Haidian Dao, which is a real shame. C'mon Starbcks, don'cha know that most of the Haikou laowai live here in the Dao? Whaddya mean you don't think broke college students and lowly English teachers have the cash flow to buy expensive frappes?

I'll have you know I'm a very fancy Medical English teacher, thank you very much! And here in the Dao, we do love our coffee.

Oppa Weiwei Style

2012-10-26T00:23:28Z

Nothing like starting my day with a new Gangnam video - found by my loving hubby! This one is Ai Wei Wei (famous artist and dissident) doing the dance. I think the handcuffs are an especially nice touch:

I wanted to add a Youku version for anybody who can't see youtube, but I should have known: 搜索结果可能涉及不符合相关法律法规和政策的内容，未予显示。 (The search results may contain material that does not comply with relevant rules and regulations of the government....blah blah blah.)

Those islands...

2012-10-20T04:26:50Z

You know how you keep tabs open for days and sometimes weeks because you wanna take a closer look at something or write about it but you just don't have time right now? No? Just me? Ok well time to close some tabs.

As you know, tensions have been high recently over lots of different disputed islands.

The Sansha islands close to Hainan (where I have lived since 2005)

There are articles saying that if China goes to war over the Sansha islands, Hainan will bear the brunt.

The Diaoyu islands close to Okinawa (where I lived when I was 4-8 years old)

There are articles saying that if China goes to war over the Diaoyu Islands, Okinawa will bear the brunt.

All of this talk of war on some of my favorite islands in the world is hard to hear. I feel especially involved emotionally because of my close attachment to Hainan and Okinawa, although I try to be as UNINVOLVED as possible in the discussion - I debated for a long time about even writing this post!

When I was a kid living on Okinawa, I had no understanding of the real reason I was there - my Dad was serving in the US military and he was stationed on Okinawa as part of the US military presence there. I had a vague understanding that we got those bases as a result of winning WW2, and my family took vacations to places like the suicide cliffs, where many Japanese jumped rather than be captured by incoming American troops.

Now, some hard-liners are even saying that Okinawa should be part of China!

Living in Hainan I see reminders of WW2, too. I didn't realize the extent of the Japanese occupation of Hainan until, on a bus roulette vacation last September, I ended up standing on a mass grave of Chinese killed by the Japanese during the occupation. The fact that it was the 10th anniversary of 9/11 made everything just that much more surreal.

Despite trying to stay away from the dispute, as an American living in Hainan it's pretty difficult. I stopped at a newspaper stand to buy a coke recently and the owner asked me where I was from. When I told her I was American, her friend immediately asked me: "Is your America working together with Japan to strike our China?" No, no, I told her. Not me! I don't wanna strike anybody. Time to start claiming I'm from Canada?

The anti-Japan rallies and riots are a bit scary, and the attacks on Japanese citizens living in China break my heart. I hate the idea of hating someone just because of their nationality. Last week, I was planning to check out a new Teppanyaki restaurant that had opened in a local mall, but when I got there I saw this:

The signs said things like "Defending our Diaoyu Islands" "China must win!" "The Diaoyu Islands are China's!" "This business supports China's defense of the Diaoyu!" "This business no longer uses Japanese products!" and so on.

We decided not to eat there after all. Not because I support Japan over China - If I'd been in Japan and seen a Chinese restaurant with anti-China slogans I wouldn't have eaten there either. Just because I'm uncomfortable with this kind of political rhetoric.

So uncomfortable, in fact, that I actually turned down my first real paying professional translation job because it was too political. Most of the articles were discussing China's long history and rich cultural heritage in the Sansha Islands. Especially since this project was to have a "translated by...." I wanted that translation byline, badly! But couldn't put my name on that kind of a project. I'm hoping the next project that comes along will be set in less treacherous waters.

I'm also hoping all the islands will continue to be beautiful, sunny, sandy....and peaceful.

Skritter interview!

2012-10-17T01:11:13Z

I'm very excited to announce that, as one of the top learners over at Skritter (who me???) I am the featured interviewee for this month's newsletter. You can check the whole thing out here, and I've gleefully copied my interview for you below:

Impressing Taxi Drivers With Nicki

One of the bloggers at Lost Laowai talks about learning Chinese.

George: Nick, Scott, and I have been fans of Lost Laowai ever since we started Skritter, and so it was a pleasure to have a quick chat with one of the site's authors and prolific Skritterers. Nicki has been contributing her perspective on China and learning Chinese for years. When I first reached out to see whether I could convince her to be interviewed in our newsletter she politey asked if she could wait until later since she was heading out the door for a few days in Guangzhou. Later in September I got to hear a little about her learning perspective.

George: Thanks for being willing to answer some questions, and I hope that your trip to Guangzhou was awesome!

Nicki: I had a great time in Guangzhou, thanks! Had a great conversation with a taxi driver there. I got into the cab and gave him my hotel name and address.

"How long have you been in Guangzhou?"

"One day."

"No, what I mean is, how long have you lived here in Guangzhou?

"Today is my first day in Guangzhou! I just arrived today."

"But how can you speak such great Chinese???"

"I've lived in Hainan since 2005."

"Ahhh, no wonder!"

George: Well, I would expect no less from a master such as yourself!

Nicki: Actually, I don't think my spoken Chinese is all that great for having lived here as long as I have. Most English teachers can relate: when your job is about English, many of your relationships with Chinese friends get stuck in English mode too. Between lesson planning, pizza and beers at the local hostel with expat friends, and downloading the latest episode of Dr. Who, Chinese practice often just doesn't happen. When I signed up for Skritter back in 2008, I'd been in China for three years and was at an elementary level with my speaking ability. I couldn't really read though, and I decided that was the year I'd really push my character knowledge, and see if I could get it to catch up to my speaking ability. I got a wee bit addicted to Skritter though, and now, four years later, my literacy rate in Chinese outstrips my conversation ability.

I learn every time ... especially that one time that nobody told me that the medical lecture had been cancelled due to a meeting of the hospital's branch of the Chinese Communist Party!

What to do? Obviously, I need to get out more into all Chinese language environments. Earlier this year, I decided to try something new. I've been working for the last couple of years at the local city hospital. It's a teaching hospital, so I asked if it would be alright for me to sit in on medical lectures... in Chinese!

George: That sounds pretty intense!

Nicki: Yeah, this is a total win for me. I can meet hospital staff who may be unaware of our hospital's English program and invite them to participate. I can get to know my students outside the English classroom setting and reverse our roles! I can show my bosses that I'm interested in being more involved in the hospital. And the big win: I consider the medical lectures to be free Chinese classes! I sit there with my notebook and come out with notes about, say, coronary heart disease (that's 冠心病, by the way) in Chinese!

I don't want to give the impression that I'm understanding every word of these lectures though. I get maybe 30-40 percent. But hey, I have no medical background so I probably wouldn't be getting all of it even if it were in English. I always tell myself:You don't have to understand everything. You just have to learn something new. Which I do, every time. Especially that one time that nobody told me that the medical lecture had been cancelled due to a meeting of the hospital's branch of the Chinese Communist Party! I kept looking around the room thinking "any minute they are gonna notice there's a 老外 in here and toss me out!" We learned all about Opposing Liberalism, Strengthening Our Work Style! 反对自由主义，加强作风建设.

So I want to especially encourage all the English teachers in China. Your Chinese can be awesome. You might have to be a little more creative in finding ways to get it there, but you totally can. And I think you rock.

Laowai Style

2012-10-13T02:01:32Z

Check out my latest post over at Lost Laowai - kickin' it Laowai Style

Laowai Style

lostlaowai.com -

The latest Gangnam Style parody video is by Fullbright Scholar Jesse Appell, who lives in Beijing and is kickin' it Laowai Style.

Maybe I should switch my ringtone from Gangnam Style...

Prizes to be announced

2012-08-27T02:35:33Z

Just now, while searching for more news and photos of the anti-Japanese protests that happened here in Haikou yesterday, I did a "most recent 24 hours" image search on 海口 on Google. Love that feature. *blows kisses to Google*

Photo below came from here and shows marchers in front of Nanya Plaza (Carrefour) where we do our weekly grocery shopping.

Anyway, some of the photos archived on Google weren't available when I clicked through to the original site anymore. On blog.sohu.com I got a 404 message that read: "此文章已被外星人劫持或被博主隐藏! " "This article has already been kidnapped by aliens or hidden by the blog owner!" Cute. But um, aliens? Yeah probably someone a little closer to home...

Over on Facebook, when I posted yesterday's story about the protests, most people left one to two word expressions of disapproval and disgust, but there were a few amusing suggestions on how to solve the problem:

Jada Tan Rufo There was a basketball game on Dokdo/Takeshima island. So here's a novel idea. Why not get someone from the UN to be the referee and have China's national basketball team and Japan's national basketball team duke it out on Diaoyu/Senkaku Island. Whoever wins gets the island.

Peter Walker Everyone knows that you cannot visit Facebook in China. So just use a mobile phone try to visit Facebook on the Island. If you couldn't visit Facebook, it is mean the Island is Chinese, if you can, it is Japanese.

How would you propose solving it? Funniest most creative answer wins a prize*!

*don't be expecting to get anything big, like, you know, an island or something out of it, ok?

Rioting here in Haikou

2012-08-26T12:34:20Z

We were planning to go down to Guomao to the Pizza Hut for lunch after church today. We were standing by the side of the road trying to hail a taxi when Paul got a phone call from his wife Nancy. She told him that there were anti-Japan riots happenning in the Guomao area.

Nobody in our group is Japanese, but we figured it would be best to avoid the area anyway. Riots are violent by nature, not something we wanted to get in the middle of, especially when we are visibly foreign, and who knows whether they'd have turned on us. After all, Japanese are foreigners, we are foreigners, who knows what could have happened. So we quickly changed our plans and went for dumplings in Haidiandao instead.

There are just a few news items and photos available yet, but apparently they happened in several cities across China this weekend, continuing the trend of rioting that's happened over the last several weeks.

Stay safe out there, everybody.

Photos taken from Chinese version of the news article here.

Anti-Japan protests occur in 4 China cities
BEIJING (Kyodo) -- Anti-Japan protesters massed Sunday in four Chinese cities, asserting Beijing's claim to sovereignty over the Japan-administered Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.

Marking the second straight weekend of anti-Japan protest events in China, a demonstration in Zhuji, Zhejiang Province, involved about 1,000 mostly teenagers while another in Haikou, Hainan Province, drew a few hundred people.

The others took place in the cities of Dongguan in Guangdong Province and Yangquan in Shanxi Province, both involving hundreds of protesters.

Protestors carried placards such as those reading, "Get out of the Diaoyu Islands, Japan," as they marched through the streets of the cities.

The islands in Okinawa Prefecture, known as Diaoyu in China, are also claimed by Taiwan, which calls them Tiaoyutai.

The protests occurred apparently in response to calls on Internet sites to stage anti-Japan protests Sunday after Japan arrested Chinese activists and deported them for landing on one of the islands earlier this month.

Similarly, about 1,000 people took part in a protest Sunday in Rizhao, Shandong Province, calling for a boycott of Japanese products. Some protestors turned violent and broke the windows of a Japanese restaurant.

In the wake of the latest round of anti-Japan protests that started last weekend, authorities have tightened security to avoid escalation of demonstrations, especially as China seeks to ensure social stability ahead of a reshuffle in the Communist Party leadership at a party congress slated for the fall.

Some of the anti-Japan protests in China in 2010 turned into anti-government demonstrations, with people denouncing widening gaps between the rich and poor and corruption in the bureaucracy.

Last Sunday, anti-Japan demonstrations took place in several major cities in China. In a protest in Shenzhen, southern China, some protestors vandalized Japanese restaurants and Japanese-brand vehicles.

Meanwhile, China's official Xinhua News Agency reported Saturday night that a top Chinese military official told senior U.S. military and government officials in meetings Friday in Washington that China strongly opposes any application of the U.S.-Japan security treaty to islands disputed between China and Japan.

Cai Yingting, deputy chief of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army, was quoted as saying he told his U.S. hosts that China is firmly opposed to the U.S. stance that the islands fall within the scope of the 1960 U.S.-Japan Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security, under which the United States would assist Japan in the event Japanese-administered territories come under armed attack.

All the happy I could remember

2012-08-25T09:45:32Z

I'd like to balance out my post over at Lost Laowai about some of the things about my recent adventure travelling with a Chinese tour group that went terribly wrong with a happy post over here about some of the things that were lots of fun.

The opening ceremony for the Baoting Qixi / WaterSplashing Festival was actually pretty good. They had fabulous costumed dancers - although there was a little old lady sitting behind my right shoulder who kept grabbing my arm and yanking me back to shout things in my ear like "Those girls aren't really Li. I'm a real Li! They can't dance very well. You should see me dance! Where are you from? America? Your president is Obama, right? Yeah we used to like him but not so much anymore. Why not? Well he used to be nice but he hasn't been very friendly to China recently!"

There were also several live music performances. My favorite was by a band called 大张北。At least one of the members used to be a part of my favorite Chinese band that ever broke up, 花儿乐队. They performed a couple of old 花儿乐队 songs, including 加油歌 and 嘻唰唰. Everybody was on their feet, singing along and screaming and videotaping with their phones. It was lots of fun. If you haven't heard the songs, check them out:

Our tour group also stopped by a very nice hot springs, and spent a few hours soaking in the steamy water. The scenery was idyllic.

We also got to release doves, which was kinda weird (Super fast little heartbeats! Scratchy litle claws!) but entertaining.

There was also some fun decor in the streets of Baoting. Strange fish! Giant toads!

And you can see our trusty pink flag and matching blue tour group hats in that last one, too. Good times. Plus, I did get to practice my spoken Chinese a whole lot, which I defnitely need to do now that Skritter has me reading and writing at a much higher level than I'm able to speak and listen. So, you see, travelling with a Chinese tour group isn't always COMPLETELTY horrible. If I ever do it again though, remind me to bring earplugs. Good ones. And maybe some kind of happy pills. Anybody got any happy pills? No? K let me know if you get your hands on any...

What day is it today?

2012-08-19T15:20:40Z

Seen on Google plus:

A cute Chinese version of the English days of the week.

Monday = 忙day

mang day (busy day)

Tuesday = 求死day

qiusi day (want to die day)

Wednesday = 未死day

weisi day (Not dead yet day)

Thursday = 受死day

shousi day (Dead day)

Friday = 福来day

fulai day (Happiness coming day)

h/t

隔壁老杨

How Books Shaped The American National Identity

2012-08-18T08:25:11Z

Listened to an NPR podcast today about a new exhibit at the Library of Congress:

How Books Shaped The American National Identity

by NPR STAFF

Listen to the Story

Talk of the Nation

[30 min 19 sec]

EnlargeRare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress

Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin was the best-selling novel of the 19th century. This copy belonged to civil rights leader Susan B. Anthony.

August 14, 2012

"Books can change the way we think and can continue to influence events long after they were written. The Library of Congress exhibit "Books That Shaped America" features 88 books — from Thomas Paine's Common Senseto Dr. Seuss' The Cat In The Hat — that have influenced national identity."

For my advanced ESL students here in China, I plan to give them this list. I think reading these books will not only improve their English, but also may give them more insight into American culture, and the big issues that have shaped our national identity. What do you think? Would you consider recommending these books to your students here in China?

Are there any you haven't read that you want to check out? Any great books you think they missed?

Not near the lampblack! No!!!

2012-08-17T04:56:34Z

Last week I took a photo of some Chinglish I found nearby and asked people on Google + to try to figure out where the photo was taken:

Nobody figured it out, but I did enjoy james kalin's suggestion that it was tattooed on my cousin. Nope, Nate Behary
nixed that idea, and I'm sure he'd have mentioned if it was tattooed on any of his siblings, my only cousins.

Here are a couple of photos from Ryan McLaughlin 's house which should help you to figure it out:

That's right, all the photos came from toilet lids. When I noticed the label on my toilet lid last week, I remembered a Language Log post about a strange label on a toilet lid:

Here's what it said:

(DK)

Denne etiket skal fjernes før brug

(D)

Bitte vor Gebrauch enfernen

(GB)

Remove this label before use

(F)

Retirer cette ètiquette avant utilisation

(NL)

Dit etiket dient verwijdered te worden vóór ingebruikneming

(E)

Quite este rótulo antes de usar

There was much discussion and bafflement as to the purpose of such a label! At least the one on my toilet lid has a clear purpose - now I know not to leave it exposed near the lampblack! Where did I put that lampblack anyway, my lamps are looking quite decidedly unblackened, better get on that straightaway!

Mysteries and Micro-movies

2012-08-12T12:52:58Z

Sorry for the poor quality of the cell phone photo but...this boat has been hanging out around that spot for several weeks now. And it's dumping something in the photo? Is it going to build more land out there or just... dumping something mysterious off the north coast of Haikou's Haidian Island?

In other news.... Haikou is getting a movie theme park?

"The film group named the project as "Huanqiu 100" ("Globe 100") and dubbed it as a world-class theme park located in the Changliu district on the west side of the provincial capital Haikou."

"There will be three theme parks featuring Chinese movies, American movies, and European movies.

The three festival sites can host international film festivals, international country music festivals, and international special-effects film festivals.

There will be four theme hotels and five film production studios, named respectively as studios of world famous directors, actors and actresses, playwrights, producers, and agents.

In addition, there will be six national-grade production bases for animation films, creation of farm-themed films, special-effects films, film shooting, micro-movies, and film-industry education."

Yowza, that should be fun. Especially the farm-themed films. Also, what's a micro-movie? Anybody? Anybody? Bueller? Maybe I'll find out when it opens.... in 2016.

Well, I'm off to Guangzhou for a little R&R and passport renewal! Wish me lucky!

Marco Polo project

2012-08-11T10:10:06Z

For those of you interested in reading fiction and non-fiction from established and emerging Chinese writers, in the original Chinese or in translation, you might want to check out the Marco Polo Project.

http://marcopoloproject.org

It's a website run by a nonprofit group where you can not only read, but also contribute to the translation team.

From their FAQ:

Q: What is the Marco Polo Project?

A: The Marco Polo Project is an online platform that brings across contemporary Chinese writing to Western audiences. The website uses crowd-sourcing to select and translate Chinese fiction and non-fiction not currently available in any Western language. The Marco Polo Project is also an opportunity for users to practice and improve their language skills, and connect with people sharing similar interests around the world.

Shenyang Ghost town cartoons

2012-08-10T03:21:03Z

Recently, there have been reports of the town of Shenyang in Lianoning Province becoming a ghost town after local officials allegedly cracked down on small businesses, levying crippling fines against roadside shops and even street vendors. Terrified of being fined and thrown into jail, many of the local businesses shut their doors. Here are a couple of cartoons I found on Google + on the topic.

The first reads "沈阳商贩" - Shenyang small shops"

The second has the character

罚

fá

to punish / to penalize

cleverly worked into the rake of the official.

h/t China Digital Times:

中国数字时代

My job!

2012-08-09T00:21:29Z

For those of you who read Chinese, the following announcement on my hospital's website will tell you a little about what I do for a living these days. For those who don't, basically it says my new classes are scheduled to start in September. Wahoo!

　　院字【2012】78号

各科室：

　　我院自开展全员英语培训以来，在全院各级领导以及全院职工的共同努力之下，已成功地举办了两期英语训练班。许多来自临床一线及医技等科室的中层干部和中青年医务人员克服种种困难，百忙之中挤出时间积极参加了培训学习，学习气氛十分活泼、热烈，学习情况稳定。大家为了海南国际旅游岛建设，为提高自身英语能力，为打造一个新型的国际化医院正不断努力。

　　为巩固前期已经取得的学习成果，并使更多的医务人员能有机会参加学习，按照医院领导的指示以及培训计划的安排，将继续举办第三期英语培训班。第三期英语培训班仍将以英语口语培训为主，配合适当的医学内容，增加适量的医学英语阅读，旨在培养学员的实际语言运用能力。具体安排如下：

　　一、分班培训：本期培训班将分为两个班

　　1. 基础口语班: 重点为提高本院医护、医技等各类人员的基础听、说能力；

　　1) 学期: 六个月（约100学时）

　　2）教材：剑桥国际英语教程

　　3）人数：30人

　　2. 医学英语口语班：针对有一定英语水平的医务人员，旨在掌握和运用比较复杂的语言结构，进一步提高、拓展专业英语表达能力（基础医学及其他科技内容），提高语言表达流利度。

　　1）学期：六个月（约100学时）

　　2）教材：医学及科技短文（从VOA, WebMD等网络节选短文）

　　3）人数：30人

　　二、时间安排：

　　1. 2012年8月底前完成报名；

　　2. 2012年9月正式开始上课。

　　三、上课时间：

　　1. 医学英语口语班：周一、周三下午5点50分至7点30分

　　2. 基础口语班：周二、周四下午5点50分至7点30分

　　四、水平测试：

　　1. 测试时间： 9月3、4日（预定）；

　　2. 测试内容：听力，阅读，小写作；

　　3. 测试对象：凡报名参加培训人员（鼓励自愿报名），指定必须参加培训人员（待名单确定后，通知到科室及本人）。

　　医院投入大量的人力、财力举办英语培训班旨在提高我院职工的综合素质，为大家创造了极为难得的学习机会，希望各科室能积极配合、组织人员报名，踊跃参加学习。

　　报名时间：即日起至8月30日

　　联系电话：66189986 （内线：8986）

　　教学办

　　 2012年8月4日

That's a lot of baggage, Liu!

2012-08-08T12:57:12Z

You've probably already heard that Liu Xiang, China's favorite hurdler, fell at the first hurdle in his 2012 Olympic race, crushing once again the hopes and dreams and feelings of the Chinese people.

Here's what one cartoonist had to say about it:

《跨栏》背着那么多东西刘翔不摔跤才怪

作者：大尸凶

"Hurdles" Carrying so much on his back, it would be a wonder if Liu Xiang didn't fall down

Artist: Da Shi Xiong

h/t 中国数字时代