Background: For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established an autocratic socialist system that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population, living standards have improved dramatically and the room for personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain tight.
July 1st 2008Asia » China » Shanghai » Xujiahui July 1, 2008
A pretty long time has lapsed since my last entry.
I did get back to Beijing, spent a few days in Qingdao on the coast where I found the youth hostels (2) not all that welcoming an ... 7 photos[full story]
May 12th 2008Asia » China » Shanghai » Xujiahui Awoke with a nasty head (suprise? much?) to a fairly empty hotal room as Sam, Kelvin, Mandy and Anita had left for England. Poor Sam..'he will just hate me for a week' and 2 hours sleep = hell. We cle ... [full story]
May 23rd 2008Asia » China » Shanghai » Xujiahui At 10am everybody stirred and we headed to Sacha's by 11am. We went cos of their buffet/main meal/FREE FLOW champagne scene for 115 yuan (about 8 quid!!). Sat outside bathed with sun and surrounded by ... [full story]
May 10th 2008Asia » China » Shanghai » Xujiahui Woke on the sofa in the hotel and went with Ben and Anita to look for a laptop for Nita. The technology malls in Shanghai are quite something, 6 stories high and every shop filled with workers. Filled ... [full story]
May 12th 2008Asia » China » Shanghai » Xujiahui Hi Everyone!!
It's been a while since we've had good computer access. In Hong Kong we stayed in a dump so there was no free internet like in Beijing and Shanghai. I am now in Kaohsiung City, Taiw ... 81 photos[full story]
February 16th 2008Asia » China » Shanghai » Xujiahui Så for søren så er det blog tid igen, der er jo gået lidt tid siden den forrige! Lige nu sidder jeg i vores hostels fællesrum hvor der er Wifi (trådløst net), fee! Sidst jeg skrev her var i tirsdags h ... [full story]
January 17th 2008Asia » China » Shanghai » Xujiahui Hey everyone,
Well, we've been back to work now for over two weeks, so our Xmas break ending on January 3rd has been a bit of a shock to the system -- not to mention having Chris' visit rapidly win ... 26 photos[full story]
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