December 6, 2010
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Views of modern China
Sprawling among all the high rise buildings that have sprung up in Shanghai over recent years are several houses that have managed to resist the modernity that the city boasts. It is a reminder of days long gone, in this city where Mao used to reside and quite possibly drew up his plans for the illegal invasion and re-annexation of Tibet. Fat peasant farming tosser.
There are several pointers to how things used to be, how Shanghai is perhaps not quite as technologically advanced as it claims to be. Take, for instance, Pudong international airport. More modern, on the face of things, than Hong Kong airport (which should not really be too surprising given the fact that HK airport is 13 years old), there was a small surprise for me when the Dragonair plane landed. A “Follow Me” car, to lead us to the gate. The gate though is clearly marked, and pretty easy, even for a blind pilot, to find. I honestly thought that the use for these – especially in perfectly clear weather like we had when I arrived – had disappeared shortly after the dinosaurs became extinct. Keeping some more people in jobs, life in post-Mao’s China truly following the party desire of full employment. After all, that is sure to bring less unhappiness to the masses of people, and keep them from protesting. A quiet life is all the Chinese Politburo desires.
It was not as cold as I thought it would be when I got here, my winter clothing not really needed. My Free Tibet shirt though made it through customs just fine – as it always does. My personal protest against the mainland not even an itch in the side of the government, despite my own feeling of a small personal triumph.
I took a taxi all the way in to the city, not sure if I was being ripped off, but the fact that the flight arrived at 11:30 PM meant that I was not in the mood for bargaining. It turned out that I got a good deal.
The taxi arrived at the hotel location, and the first thing that I was asked was if I wanted a woman – a couple of woman traffickers or pimps giving me an opportunity to look and choose any girl I wanted. The only girl I want though is waiting for me in Taiwan, and the only thing I want to take to bed tonight is myself.
Check in was fine – the guy spoke decent enough English – and I headed up in to the room which was like pretty much any other hotel room in the universe. CNN and BBC on TV (cool – especially as I did not know BBC had been unblocked) but no Taiwanese TV station. Weird.
After a good night of sleep, I got up, showered and made myself look respectable, before heading downstairs for brekkie – western food which was way too greasy for my liking, but something for the fat belly anyway. My colleagues turned up on time, and then we headed out to the Starbucks for a coffee before walking across the road to our Shanghai office base.
The smog that I experienced in HK is almost as obvious here too. It all makes the air quality in Taiwan look comparatively very good. Despite it being a cold day yesterday, visibility was down, and today with the sunshine office buildings just a kilometre away look like they could be far in the distance. This is the price, perhaps, of what we humans call urban development.
Nestled in among all the modernity is Mao’s former residence, as well as various temples, all competing for their relevance in a society that is way too wrapped in itself and the belief of making money than to care for some peasant-to-chairman who essentially laid the foundations of what this country has become today.
I wonder how he would have reacted had he been able to see what has become of the country. Having made millions of his own people starve thanks to his poor policy making and decisions, he is still revered. He is still worshiped with god-like status. The history books have been edited to give him an unquestionable and undeniable place in Mainland culture. This man who was responsible for several million people’s deaths during his 31 years in power is not remembered for the negative things. He is not remembered internally for his nation brutally crushing the uprising in Tibet. He is remembered instead for bringing this nation together.
The truth though is way different to what is taught to the children in schools. But the same can also be said about our very own Chiang Kai Shek – a man who was equally responsible for brutality inside pre-PRC China. A man who can not quite claim responsibility for the 20 million deaths that have been attributed to Mao. Responsible for a mere 18 million deaths, Cash My Check is nothing but a beginner in the world tyrant league. Not even a podium finish in the world league. Funny how the Chinese whine about the Japanese in Nanjing when Mao and Chiang made Hirota Koki and Tojo Hideki look liked absolute beginners. They complain at Japanese leaders visiting the Yasukuni shrine when they worship Mao with the same (if not more) level of passion and blindness.
At dinner last night, I asked the friend of one colleague if she had ever visited Taiwan. She said no – our government was making it difficult with stupid rules. I said, perhaps it is YOUR government. And perhaps, it is BOTH sets of governments. But this is what mainland Chinese are taught. It is ALWAYS the other party at fault. The Communist government is beyond reproach. They are above all semblance of doubt. They are the untouchables. Some things in China just don’t change over time.
As a child, I would hear about how many bicycles were ridden in China. Despite the amount of cars that are now on the streets, the bikes are still there. It’s just that half of them are electric bikes now, without pedals.
Despite the chaotic driving style, there are also a lot fewer accidents than in Taiwan. In the 5 days I was there, I only saw one accident, and was involved in the aftermath of a second, as we landed in a traffic jam on the way to Pudong airport on the return journey. The taxi driver was one of the fastest drivers I have ever seen, taking his Passat (or Santana as they are called here) in to supersonic warp speeds. Captain Kirk would have been well chuffed, had he actually been able to speak Chinese. What I didn’t understand though was why he would honk his horn at people in the middle of a traffic jam, trying to get them to manoevre out his way, when all 4 lanes of the freeway were jam packed. Still, I have long since given up trying to understand such things.
And finally the food. We went out to one vegetarian restaurant on the first full day in Shanghai – some of my Taiwanese colleagues also joining me in China for this training session – and whereas I enjoyed the food, like the breakfast it was way too greasy. And not just for my taste – apparently the Taiwanese felt the same way.
On my last day in the country, the Free Tibet shirt was worn at breakfast. It made an open and public appearance, for once, in mainland China. By the time that we got in to the taxi for the trip to the airport, the Exeter City shirt had covered it up, but it was still being worn. I checked in to the terminal, went through customs which I thought was a little weird, and decided not to walk through the red channel. What am I going to declare going out? The public declaration of the Tibetan shirt was not something I decided was worthwhile doing.
And that was it – the trip was over. Mainland China a little better than I had previously thought, but still nowhere near how I feel about Taiwan. I will never want to move here, even though I know people who are in Shanghai. People who have moved from Taiwan miss the island, and I can understand why. Shanghai seems a place devoid of passion, where making money is all that matters, where people will not look you in the eye, where no one has a smile on their face.
100 metres from me is the Dragonair plane that will take me back to Hong Kong, with the connection flight to Taipei. In just 6 hours I will be at home, and in all truth, that’s the only place I want to be.
