I should mention that the ubiquity of the "shabi" (or "SB" on the Internets) chant in China probably means the real translation should be "asshole," as "cunt" seems to be on a different tier of offensiveness in American English. But I've chosen to go with the literal translation, just because. (In the interest of fairness, we should point out that if a star player arrived in Beijing, Guo'an fans here would chant "Shenhua SB" as well.)
As described by videographer Ryan Emond: Moments in China is a collection of vivid moments I experienced while traveling around China last month. The piece flows from Hong Kong to Beijing, and visits Guilin, Shanghai, and Guangzhou. Some moments are more significant than others, but I have a personal connection with each. They’re vivid indeed. Enjoy.
The Rolling Stones played at Shanghai Grand Stadium on April 8, 2006, and its official YouTube page just released a video of them performing "Gimme Shelter" there. No fading away for BJC -- we'll be back with you shortly.
By The Good Doctor I have a theory about what makes Beijing so attractive to so many expats: whatever activity it is you’re interested in, you can advance to a higher level here more quickly than you could back home. And if there’s an activity you’re interested in, it’s much easier getting started in Beijing... Read more »
Zhou Guangren 周广仁 is probably China's most famous musician you've never heard of, the country's first pianist to win an international prize. Born in Hannover, Germany, in 1928, her Chinese parents eventually settled in Shanghai, where she attended a German school before withdrawing in the early-40s due to its fascist, pro-Hitler teachings. Her dad was adamantly opposed to her piano training, believing she was too smart to make a career out of music, but she persisted, and after the war was convinced to stay in China to teach at the Central Academy.
Liquor makes people do strange things: jump off rooftops, get hitched to strangers... play real-life Grand Theft Auto. On Monday in Luliang, Shanxi province, a security guard at a restaurant who had too much to drink decided he'd try to hijack a car, because why the hell not. He was successful! But when that vehicle crashed into a flower bin/arrangement at a nearby plaza, he scrambled out and decided to take a second car. This was not a good idea. We're told it did not take long for police to apprehend him.
Have you ever been to a Chinese public pool? They're usually crowded, the water's inevitably dirty, and young children should probably never be allowed near. So what do you do when your kid is desperate for a dip?
An email has been going around among Shanghai expats, and it's worth a look for those who aren't already too cynical. The full thing is over at Shanghaiist, but here's the money graf:
Did you know there are 14,694 people per square kilometer in Beijing, and five million people own cars as of January? Furthermore, did you know that the area inside Second Ring Road, just 62.5 square kilometers, makes up 6 percent of Beijing's total area yet accounts for 30 percent of all traffic? Or that within Second Ring Road, government compounds take up an incredible 58 percent of space, with the implication that the government's transportation needs -- think private cars, probably Audis -- does more to cripple the traffic grid than anything else?
