With the endless western media Sinophobia, enforced 'invisibility' of our British community, for BBCs who haven't completely embraced multiculturalism, being a 'minority', increasingly depressing economic times, even if you are relatively quite well off financially, if you have an ounce of social observation/sympathy, it can at times be difficult to 'switch off' from negative news around us.
In the East however, things are looking better comparatively, BBC's whose parents are from the New Territories often have village homes they can travel to and from, relatives they can stay with for some time, whilst looking for work, or even just for a break from being here in the UK.
Culturally, for some BBCs although popular HK/Chinese music TV or Film may not compete in quality with western output, China is increasingly becoming westernised, and in both China and Hong Kong there are many English speaking students, not to mention many who want to learn the English language.
The main problem for some BBC's is the Chinese language, having already integrated with western society or encouraged to continue to speak Cantonese/Mandarin growing up, as well as we ought to, though it may take some time to get back to a fluent level, if we are lucky to have helpful parents, and sometimes friends/relatives or spouses who do,we can have an advantage when it comes to improving our speaking ability which can obviously help us when it comes to finding work out there.
In the UK, It's clear western media will not tolerate Chinese,except at arm's length, BBC's will never create an independent media, FOBS will continue to run their FOB businesses and create their own exclusive FOB-only circles, all of which will do nothing for British Chinese social identity despite China's growing world presence.
Despite partnering with British Companies, until China buys up western media, which could be some time off, if ever, and British Chinese community takes more social interest beyond 'Self-interest', for BBC's who want to reconnect with our Chinese heritage, looking to the Far East as a serious option for relocation, if not a long extended stay, could be the missing piece in our culture-starved lives.
As an ethnic Chinese living in Britain, how do you feel, about the fact you and future generations growing up in the UK may never be fully accepted by British society, and only tolerated? And if relocating to the Far East, is an option by contrast, is it one worth considering?
British Born Chinese Trip to North and South of China Part 4
George Clooney, Modernisation and Chinese Culture
Having experienced Guangzhou's development, my last week back in Beijing opened my eyes to modernisation. I visited an exhibition of new and up and coming artists. Here I felt artists were experiencing a forced cultural transition from 'old'ie traditional Beijing culture to 'extremely new' and finding unease.
People of china sucking from the teat of the communist cow.
Artificial future that could collapse like a tunnel of plastic chairs ?
In a western style cafe I met a young 20ish Beijing female artist and the topic landed on Chinese culture. When asking her about what the government are doing to promote Chinese culture, she told me ' I don't even think the government themselves know what Chinese culture is.' I took a look at her work she showed me on her ipad - all western artist influenced. A naked woman being sexually devoured by an octopus with penis like tentacles. I asked her where she was going to study next, and she revealed she was eager to go New York to Study Sculpture. I could only nod in sad agreement thinking 'we've lost another one'.
White Minorities
It's not such a major issue but what I did notice was the amount of white people at one of the exhibitions, ironically the Summer Palace, which was besieged several times and burnt down by westerners, and a considerable amount of tourists.
Hows it feel to be the 'minority' now ?
'Read: where the allies invaded...'
Read:'destroyed by Anglo French Allied forces...'
White Guy/ Chinese Girl Couples
Several times, amazingly in Summer Palace and at the Forbidden City, two places that were besieged by allied imperialists, I saw these Chinese girl White guy pairings, and some white guy taking photos of his Chinese friends, who amazingly were all female.
It didn't help that my mainlander friend is unhealthily fascinated with white people, and so in a tourist resort full of Chinese, I somehow found myself surrounded by white tourists.
White Advertising
The big 12 X 18ft George Clooney watch poster in Wang Fu Jing shopping district, and the interracial ad with GC and a Chinese girl on TV didn't exactly help my wishes of wanting to see a less white worshipping China, and nor did this George Clooney commercial which was doing the rounds on Chinese TV at the time:
And if there's any compensation, I did actually see a white skin cream bus poster next to an energy drink with a pic of a Black man. So maybe Beijing is focusing on international relations. Sorry I don't have pics of these, you'll just to have to believe me.
On the whole, Beijing with it's TV, tries to emulate the US with its new found 'freedom'. The intro to the tennis opening, noticeably showed only white sports players, and indeed most of the participants were white (Polish etc ) but there were Chinese players - so why no Chinese players on the opening program intro?
Winner: Modernisation or westernisation?
My thoughts during my second week were mixed. On one hand it's clear that people are happier, but at the same time whilst the younger generation are on the way to and from work, the more affluent older generation are just grateful for what the government has done.
Millionaire hutong owners
For most however, from the street peddlers selling bracelets, hats, and all kinds of trinkets just to make a living, to the taxi driver who took me from the railway station to the hotel who I just sensed had a pretty tough life... I can't help but feel a sense of emotional disparity. Its feint, but its noticeable. Like I said before, It's a great place, but being culturally sensitive to my fellow Chinese, I feel that only those who can afford to stay, stay in Beijing and those who cannot, despite having residence here are forced to become homeless or struggle to maintain their new standard of living.
Historically China's whiteworshipping can be seen as a case of Chicken or Egg. Sun Yat Sen fought for modernisation but now CCP seems desperate to westernise, but in reality whatever cultural offering they have from 'investing in innovation' to ' making museums free' to 'building another cultural centre' ends up in mass disinterest. Bit watching like a senior citizen learn how to breakdance. You know he wants to show you he can, but he's 50 years too late and its painful to watch.
Bottom line: unless the people have real freedom and not the illusion of freedom, culture will continue to embarrass.
I have heard some things about Shanghai, which I havent visited yet, so I will reserve judgement for when I visit, but in comparing Beijing and Guangzhou, I'd say Beijing is more apparent in it's whiteworshipping maybe because it's much younger in it's adoption of modernisation.
Despite demonisation by the west, we BBC'ers are still lucky to still have such a great motherland, which is more than I can say for the other countries that have been pillaged by Imperialists.
But regardless of modernisation, as a BBC and a Chinese ethnic 'minority' in the west, I'm grateful for having a homeland that is thriving and growing. Just a shame that when I arrived back home I got withdrawal symptoms for at least a week and a half . But that's the way it is. Can't wait til my next trip out there again.
Guangzhou, Opium Museum and Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall
Different countries paying tribute to Sun Yat Sen at the time of his death
From trying to hold my trainers above water trudging through the sudden flash flooded streets at midnight back to our hotel to getting mobbed by beggars, Guangzhou was the most memorable part of my trip to China.
During my first few days there, the weather was not what I was used to in Beijing. Hot during the day outside, damp and humid at night indoors.. took some getting used to.
Language was still a problem especially as my Canto is rusty and my mainlander friend doesnt speak any Cantonese. But we both managed to get by.
In Guangzhou the best experiences are the buses. They say foreigners dont like to travel on the buses - maybe I was only there for a few days but I didnt mind the crowding and shoving too much.
View from front of Guangzhou bus pic 1
If i cant always express my respect for elders through language, I'll do it by way of manners. But I can see how people can get aggravated by the pushing and shoving on a regular basis, I guess the trick is to just show some courtesy. And in some cases, it worked - when people are defensive, you just do the opposite and they usually appreciate the gesture.
View from front of Guangzhou bus pic 2
So...Opium War Museum. Here are some pics I took. Again, flash photography was forbidden, and all I had was a flash camera which I had to sneak inside. Either way it was an interesting experience learning about how Guangzhou mainly shipped and exported goods to and from China, cotton, silk. tea. before the Brits arrived and drugged everyone.
Roughly translates into 'Guangzhou will never forget disaster of Opium War'
The original Xin Hai revolutionary Sun Yat Sen whose goal was to modernise China, his revolution however was short lived as he was eventually betrayed by the Qing dynasty president Yuan Shikai (who played an important role in toppling Qing government) who disbanded the assembly and attempted to revive the monarchy. , But as this attempt failed, China fell from grace as the Japanese invasion carried on up to the civil war until the founding of the People's Republic of China and then the Communists couldnt collaborate with Chiang Kai Shek who wanted capitalism and fled to Taiwan.
So what had I learnt here?Mainly that China has a frail spotted past - frail in that there wasnt the right collaboration between powers ... and 'spotted' because of two contraversial figures - Mao and Chiang Kai Shek, so that any achievements were often undermined by tragedy.
Although Mao united China, for the last 20 years - or the cultural revolution - he went power mad.
If it wasnt for his extra 20 years reign, China would arguably be 20 years more advanced by now and if Deng Shiao Ping ruled earlier it wouldve been capitalist faster but as it is, it took much longer.
Infighting egos and lack of foresight destroyed the China empire amaking it an easier target for western subterfuge.
So what about Guangzhou today? Well in the mass of cheap luxury goods, and crowds spewing around the Beijing Roads, cramming on buses, nobility and self-discipline isn't so evident.
But in the park Tai Chi and Tai Chi broadsword, - the last remnants of our culture is still being practiced daily by the older gen.
Practicing TaiChi broadsword in Guangdong Cemetary
Also some kids playing kicking the shuttlecock or Jiànzi with relatives/family with amazing accuracy.
Whilst the culture long established in Guangzhou is one of materialism, the Guangzhou Prayer Temple was an odd combination - of commerce and spirituality.
Preparing Incense for prayer
Before entering the temple, a shaved headed man dressed as a monk came up to me with a small square piece of cloth with a gold plastic temple emblem attached to it, stuffed it into my pocket and immediately whipped out a notepad , asking me to sign away 1000rmb.
I didnt like his attitude when he kept badgering me - I couldnt believe I was actually negotiating with him how much I wanted to offer. Anyway I finally got him down to 200rmb, gave him the money and he quickly pissed off looking for his next victim.
But as you can imagine that put me off offering to help any other beggars and yes outside the temple there they were - begging cups outreached, disfigured, no arms, legs ...waiting for unsuspecting tourists...this was their living. Like some circus show.
Things got even worse when I went with my friend to a nearby park and I gave some money to an odd couple of performers - from nowhere this toothless old Chinese woman grabbed my arm and started shoving a tin in my face. And my friend was nowhere to be seen. Luckily I saw two police opposite under some trees and dashed across the street without getting killed by speeding bicycles and stood there next to them. Amazingly the woman vanished. It was time to go home.
If anything these are a pragmatic people concerned with survival, sleeping behind shopcounters on slow days when no customers, the bustle of everyday life.
Shopping in Beijing Road
But despite the sometimes tense edgy attitude on the hot days,most of the time it felt good to blend in, and once enjoying not being noticed to be an 'minority' as in the west.
At night in particular, walking on the riverside at night was peaceful experience...despite having to run to the toilet all the time because I had severe shits due to the different bacteria that food in China has.
Riverside in commercial district of Guangzhou
People playing Chinese chess near the riverside, couples walking /biking past and some guy expertly catching with a huge net drew a huge crowd over, were the nicer memories.
But after possibly overstaying longer than I should've done, especially with a grumpy Hunan roomate who disliked Guangzhou, we survived a week together without killing each other and finally it was time to leave.
Maybe Beijing which has recently opened up has a very young modern culture, and still has a future ahead of it, Guangdong in contrast is money, materialism, and technology, and general all round contentment with this existance therefore little need to express it.
There weren't too many people visiting the Opium Museum, on the day that I went, but the crowd was fairly busy for the Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall, maybe because of celebrating 100th anniversay of the Xinhai revolution...
Maybe it's a fair assumption to say Guangzhou-ers tend to care less for history of fighting for China's liberation from Qing Dynasty than the benefits of modernisation from the west that Sun Yat Sen's victory brought them. Hopefully Beijing , with it being the new cultural centre of China can learn from this,ie retaining its culture instead of blatantly accepting westernisation only time will tell.
Sun yat Sens statue outside his Memorial Hall
I really don't think I could live here in Guangzhou - and staying here for long periods with the extreme opposites of weather heat and humidity would probably just do my head in.
Beijing Road in Guangzhou
To top it off, all I dropped my UK mobile in the toilet visiting the Opium Museum. yes, those famous stoop your arse over the hole in the ground toilets that they had on the train here and it seems in most public places. And to top that, I had to wipe my arse with a herbal teabag I found in my travel pouch.
No idea why they don't have any toilet paper or soap in the Opium Museum but from that moment on, I learnt my lesson and from then on decided to pack my own supplies.
At least I had my roommate's spare phone for the rest of the trip.
Anyone else have strange experiences travelling in China/Guangzhou?
As a non-mandarin speaking BBC, It's common for us to experience all kinds of prejudice from getting confused looks when Its found out we arent mainlanders/locals... to English teacher job interviews where a white english teacher is chosen over us native English speakers....just because he is white( and some cases English is not even his native language).
One specific incident I experienced was in a 7-11.
Typically, after 2 weeks in China I was used to having shopped for my groceries, with no problem, typically handing them to the cashier and wait for her to tally the cost waiting for the bill to be given to me, but on this occasion she asked me a question, which may have loosely translated into something like ' do you need a bag' and when I replied ' wo ting bu dong' she started laughing and started muttering under her breath to her friend sitting beside her,in disbelief, no doubt probably thinking that this Chinese guy infront of her was making a joke, that he didn't understand.
In retrospect I should have followed up by asking her ' ni shur yin wen ma? ( do you speak english) ' but that would in my eyes would've exposed me as a being an overseas Chinese and i guess idealism and mainly wanting to save face overcame the reality that my Mandarin is very basic apart from a few words and some basic vocabulary, that isnt up to conversation level just yet..
My other experience was when was taking the train from Beijing to Taiyuan.
A ticket inspector asked me for my ticket and I showed it to her. What I didn't realise is that when I got back to my sleeper, she was still following me. My friend who was sitting on my sleeper spoke to her and then told me that she wanted my ticket - and thought that because I was walking away from her, I was mentally unstable!
But on the whole, I don't think the discrimination was that bad - to be honest, my experience with Canto FOBS in the UK tend to be worse due to their directness, and in my experience they make it damn clear when they look down on your comparitively rusty Cantonese.
In Guangzhou too,I had similar problems, although again,mainly avoided partly because of my mainlander friend accompanying me spoke Mandarin and partly because a lot of the communication can be achieved through body language and basic Cantonese.
Even the Beijing hotel receptionist who werent used to dealing with non-mandarin clients, by the end of my second week had gotten used to me speaking only English and showed appreciation when I made a basic effort to communicate in Putongua.
For obvious reasons Mainland Chinese dont really take too much interest in your problems as a BBC, but thankfully, most problems can be overcome by having a basic understanding and self expression of putongua and obvious body language. And since arriving back to the U.K. , I've resumed my Putonghua lessons seriously so hopefully these kind of language problems won't happen as much on my next trip. We shall see.
Well I've just gotten back from a one month trip in China, and travelling from Beijing to Guangzhou on a 23hr journey by slow train and getting in touch with my families cultural roots, and what a great experience it was.
My travel itinerary was Beijing for 7days,during Chinese holiday week in the first week of October then Guangzhou for 7 days and then Beijing for another 7 days. The first thing that comes to mind in staying in Beijing are the following: stand up toilets often with no toilet paper( bring your own), lots of people, crazy queues esp when waiting to board a long distance train, and beggars.
To be honest for the first week I wasn't too fond of being amongst Beijing people and my first experience of stepping on a bus and having to stand because there were no seats and a loose window rattling beside my head threatening to crack and cave in whilst the bus driver was hooting every second wasnt a good start, but by travelling with my mainlander friend, the trip managed to transform from one of hate and unfamiliarity into one of love, and that now im back in the dismal U.K. i can't wait to leave and go back.
Course living there in the long term would no doubt raise it's own set of issues but having travelled from North of China to South then back up to North again ( I didnt get to visit the middle but will do some point later) I can safely say that North is where I feel i fit in the best.
Fitting into the crowd
Being a BBC who has had little contact with the east, for me there's a huge difference between talking about being Chinese on the blog and having discussions about FOBS and BBCS and actually being in China and when you get here just being surrounded by so many Chinese, to me such arguments are considered obsolete.
Despite lots of reports of mainlanders reputed to have messy and disgusting habits, I didn't really experience anything of the sort. In fact, for me the best thing was just queuing up with the people and seeing their smiles and pride in taking photos in front of Mao. I mean where in the UK would you see so much patriotism? Would even an English family visit Buckingham palace on a holiday? London is pretty much a tourist area for European tourists, brits tend to stay in or do other things.
The only negative experience I can recall is when I was pushed aside by a photographer who was taking photos of a family, I guess maybe he was a hired hand by the look of his professional camera equipment. Granted his rudeness pissed me off, and when it happened again( !) but at a different photo spot , i wanted to say something but thought probably best not to.
The only other bad experience I had of the famous Chinese queue barging was when I was queuing at a weighing machine in a Guangzhou supermarket on a hot day. Naturally being first in queue, I handed him my Chinese pears when, a small woman pushed me aside- kid in one arm, bag of apples in the other - completely ignoring me. Then i tried again - another woman appeared -quickly shoved her bag of mushrooms infront of me. So this was starting to piss me off. Then low and behold on my right a small woman appeared - bag of fruit at the ready. So this time I gave her an retaliating stare. She backed away and I managed to get my Chinese pears weighed.
In retrospect its easier to say ' ah that's China' but compared to the horror stories I had heard before getting here,, I'd guess that people are getting more mannered.
For the first two weeks, I was accompanied by my mainlander friend and in the first week in Beijing with his friend from Mongolia visiting Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City, was a great experience. Visiting these tourists sites, yes, but specially being amongst the people.
Whilst the west is in decline, China is on the rise, and to be part of that felt great, as nothing swells the Chinese pride than being stuck in a crowd of happy , grateful mainlanders who are queuing up to have their photo infront of Mao's portrait, and you definitely don't feel as a 'minority' as you'd normally feel as a BBC in the UK.
For now, as much as the quirks that take some getting used to, like the Beijing taxis hooting all day long outside your hotel, the constant spitting, ... the errs and aars of the Northern accent, all I can say from my first experience my nationalist pride was reinforced and Beijing made me feel quite welcome.
