Blogs from Guangzhou, Guangdong, China, Asia - page 6

MAYA Mum said I could write this blog because I really wanted to tell you what happened. We were going home to Melbourne when our plane BROKE!! Well it was going to be our plane. We came off the first plane in Guangzhou (thanks for spelling that one for me Mum!) but when we went to the second plane to Melbourne, the lady at the airport said we had to wait until tomorrow because the plane to Melbourne BROKE!!!! That’s EXACTLY what she said. How did the plane break??? (Did it break in half??? Yikes!!!) OK here are the bad things that happened. The plane broke (which you already know of course)… but not in half and all that. The bus taking us to the hotel where we were staying ALSO BROKE!!!which was ... read more

As the train rolled out of Guangzhou Railway Station, I was lulled by the calming sway of the railcar as it smoothly coasted out of the city centre at a steady 155 kilometres an hour. While I contemplated reading my current book, I could not turn away from the landscape thinking to myself, ‘one and a half billion people lie outside the windows of this train’. This idea is constantly playing in my mind. The cities never end and I often wonder how so many people can live amongst each other and how so much was ever built to begin with. For the entire two hour train ride – with the odd exception of a tiny plot of lingering farm land – there is never a break from the sea of concrete that meets the tracks ... read more

“Oh, oh.” “What’s wrong?” Erin asks me seeing the concerned look on my face. “Well, I just finished grading my exams and it’s a near failing average… I designed the exam at a grade nine level, so it couldn’t be any easier, and I already inflated my grades to meet Chinese standards… I’m going to call the course chair and see what he suggests.” After having the course chair come to our house, we sat down and I explained the situation. After showing him the ridiculously simple exam and the extremely poor results, he looked at me annoyed. “So, what’s the problem?” he asked in broken English. “Why did you waste my time by having me come here to discuss this?” “Huh?” I asked confused. Growing more annoyed he said, “I’m not sure what your problem ... read more

Upon coming to China, the idea of living in a Communist country had a mysterious ring to it. I had this impression of a world structured by order and rigid obedience, where I would step off the airplane into 1984, forced to censor my thoughts and feelings, terrified that I was being spied on by everyone around me. While there are indeed some semblances of those ideas, it is much more subtle than what I had expected. Today’s China has evolved from the typical Communist ideologies that shaped the world during the Cold War, to a point where – I would argue – China is much less Communist than it is Capitalist. While the Communist Party still dictates China and there is a definite reluctance to challenge the status quo, ... read more

Recently, Erin and I were invited to read poetry at a well publicized event to promote Chinese literary culture. The event featured Yang Lian, a prominent Chinese poet who was exiled for his criticisms against the Chinese government in the 1980s and the famous German literary scholar Wolfgang Kubin, who gained notoriety in China as a result of his controversial perspectives on Chinese culture. We were in good company! Visiting authors from foreign countries is a rarity in China and something carefully censored, so for a weekend, we were treated like royalty and our every need was meticulously catered to. On the day of the event, Erin and I were ushered to our seats front and centre, patiently waiting to read the words of the poets who sat beside us. First on the agenda, Yang Lian ... read more