Hip Hop Nation

Bet you never expected this out of the youth of Shanghai. Then again that is the beauty of being young, the willingness to do and try anything

Steroids from China

Well, if China-US trade relations can't get any worse it gets worse. I have a feeling things are going to get a lot worse before things stabilize.

In the past year it has been toys, food, cribs, toothpaste and now steroids and HGH.

Performance enhancing drugs has been part of the world sports scene for a long time now but it has received its brightest spotlight this year with the breaking of the most legendary and fabled record in American sports. Barry Bonds' anatomic makeover reputedly began about 7 years ago. At that time Bonds was considered a sure hall of famer, but nobody thought he could challenge Hank Aaron's all time home run record of 755. In the past 7 years Bonds has had some of the most productive home run seasons even though he has been in his late 30s to early 40s. Last month Bonds broke Aaron's record and the reception was muted from baseball fans everywhere.

With all of this going on this year in the realm of world trade and sports, now we have the news of a drug bust of unprecedented size where it has been discovered that China supplies about 75% of the world trade in performance enhancing drugs.

Seems like the secret behind the China's economic miracle in the past 20 year where GDP growth has been averaging around double digits annually is being revealed. The Chinese have been engaging in not just legitimate industries but the illegitimate ones as well. It seems there is no industry where the Chinese would find immoral to get involved with. The problem is that they are so damn good at it just highlights everything that much more.

Sometimes as an ethnic Chinese, I can't help but to feel embarrassed about some of the shady business that the Chinese are involved

Man in the Mirror

So I was reading the Wall Street Journal the other day and came across a very telling article about America. The article focused on a woman who for conservation reasons began to hang her clothes on clotheslines instead of drying them in a clothes dryer like most people in America. For environmental reasons this makes perfect sense. Apparently, clothes dryer account for 6% of the electric consumption by US households, third behind refrigerators and lighting. For an appliance that is for total convenience, this is quite high. You can justify refrigerators and lighting as more of a necessity than clothes dryers.

The woman's actions set off a firestorm of controversy with her neighbors and her community association. For reasons such as property value and the image that the neighborhood wants to portray this was very much frowned upon by her neighbors. She has received numerous letters from the community association threatening lawsuits since the bylaws of the association prohibits clothes hanging apparatuses appearing in clear view. It has gotten so far that the woman is considering moving from the area.

You can read the article here:

http://www.realestatejournal.com/homegarden/20070919-chaker.html

Here in China, drying clothes on clotheslines is the norm. Very few people use clothes dryers.

America finds it very convenient to blame countries like China for the global pollution problem. There is no doubt it is a big problem here in China. Especially with large industries using cheaper but environmentally harmful methods to conduct business. However, it is because of the gluttonous consumption by the first world countries especially America that gives the incentive to the businesses in China to do these things; after all much of the manufacturing are for products being exported to the first world. I think the blame are on both sides.

Ordinary citizens in China consumes far less that their counterparts in America. Just the differences in the way clothes are dried will tell you a lot. Most people here uses bicycles and mass transit as their main mode of transportation while the Americans drive. You will see differences such as these in all facets of everyday life. But make no mistake about it, as the China's economy rises, you will no doubt start to see some of the same wasteful consumption that the Americans are indulging themselves with. The American lifestyle is the benchmark for emerging countries. Therefore instead of blaming, perhaps Americans should set an example for the rest of the world of how to live responsibly. They can start by giving up their clothes dryers.

Phone ettiquette

After I got my cell phone when I first arrived in Shanghai last year I realized that people here does not believe in voice mail. It is not available in the standard package of your cell phone contract; if you had voice mail nobody will use it anyway. The longer that I am here the more I realized the reason for this. When people make a phone call they expect the other person to answer their call. If you commit the mortal sin of shutting off your phone, boy will you get it. People will take it personally if you do not have your cell phone on when they call.

I think the reason that for this is the nature of how things are done here in China. Usually when someone wants something to be done, they want it done right away. Therefore if they were to call somebody on the phone about something, they will not trust the voice mail to deliver their message. They want to personally speak the to other party. I believe that they feel that if they don't convey their message directly to the other party that whatever needs to be done will be delayed.

The cell phone in China is as ubiquitous as it is in America and that is surprising to some extent considering the economics. Cell phones here take up a considerable amount of one's finances; much more than in America. Yet nearly everyone has it. Text messaging is a very popular method of communication as well. The reason is partially economic and partially cowardice. Text messaging is far cheaper than a call, so for the messages that can be conveyed succinctly then text will be the preferred method. The other reason for the popularity of text messaging is the unwillingness to convey awkward messages. Text is a way to dodge the confrontation. I heard of stories in China where relationships have ended via text messaging. I have also heard of people getting fired via text message.

Its interesting to see different cultures utilize the same medium in different ways.

Popcorn caution

OK, this blog is not about China, but then again not everything on my mind is.

I was perusing the New York Times website today and found a shocking headline. "Doctor Links a Man’s Illness to a Microwave Popcorn Habit". Was this some sort of microwave oven problem? I remember when I was a child when the first microwave ovens hit the kitchens of Americans I had heard of horror stories of people getting their flesh cooked because of faulty switches that did not shut off the microwave ovens when the doors opened. That may have been an urban legend but you tend to remember things that you hear as a child no matter how irrational it was. Perhaps the article was about somebody's weight related illnesses from eating too much microwave popcorn.

So I proceeded to the article as you can:

www.nytimes.com/2007/09/05/us/05popcorn.html?em&ex=1189483200&en=0ba2a1d76e6b4409&ei=5087%0A

Hmm, the guy got sick from heated diacetyl - an additive to enhance the butter flavor of popcorn?!! This is certainly the first time that I have heard of this issue.

There is actually an occupational hazard namely "Popcorn Worker's Lung" and it can be fatal!

My goodness, what has the world come to where one cannot even enjoy the pleasures of popcorn without some health hazard. This just show you that our civilization has gotten to the point where we are so far removed from the natural world and are in this synthetic world that we are creating hazards for ourselves. We humans think we are smart, but unfortunately I think we are just smart enough to get ourselves into trouble.

Profile of a Chinese Worker

To expand on my previous post, I want to paint a picture of what a typical Chinese migrant worker's life is like from my perspective. I mentioned previously that we occasionally have clothes made by a husband and wife team (actually I just do it occasionally, my wife does it regularly). We talk to them when we see them and have somewhat of an idea of what their life is like.

I took some video clips of their environment. The first footage that I took are of the exterior and the second footage is of the interior of their home/shop. They are located in an older part of Shanghai called Dongjiadu. It is not too far from the Huangpu River so I think it is a matter of time when this area gets leveled for high rise waterfront apartments. Their home is located within a labyrinth like area. If you don't know the area your are likely to get lost. What struck me when I first entered their home/shop is how small it was. I think the space is probably around 100 sq ft. If you look at the footage you will see that most of the space are for work. They built a make shift bed that is elevated above one of their work tables. There is no bathroom in the space so they use communal bathrooms located down the street. Their sole source of entertainment in this kind of environment is the TV set placed on a table between their workbenches that is always on when I have been there. They have two sewing machines and two workbenches. The makeshift kitchen is in a separate space and it is entered from the exterior.





This couple is from Jiangsu province and the town that they are from is an 8 hour train ride from Shanghai. The reason they came to Shanghai is because they can make more money here than their village. There is a deep economic and social chasm between large urban areas like Shanghai and the rural areas. The couple left their son who is now a teenager back in the village where his grandparents are caring for him. They work 7 days a week and each day they work long hours to make as much money as possible. Therefore, there is no time to go see their son except for the Chinese New Year period. This is a period of time not unlike Thanksgiving and Christmas rolled into one. Most migrant workers in China will stop working for one to three weeks to go home and visit family and friends. Unfortunately for many this is the only time they get to go home and see their immediate family members. It is not uncommon for a family of three to live apart and see each other on Chinese New Year. The father and mother may be working in different cities while the child is cared for by the grandparents back in their village.

Back to our couple. Most of their business come from owners of small clothing shops scattered throughout the Shanghai. They also have a client who sells clothes via the Internet and target Koreans since they can pay more for these clothes than the Shanghaiese. So these tailors are at the bottom of the food chain.

This couple rarely has any leisure time. Its not only because they are so busy trying to make money but also the little money they make will not go far in Shanghai where costs are much higher than where they are from. Also since they are outsiders in Shanghai, they are treated differently than the local Shanghaiese. This is a typical story of the migrant workers who come from rural areas to the urban centers of China to seek a better opportunity. In Shanghai, I would say that vast majority of the menial work is done by these migrant workers.

It is difficult to imagine such a life where I am from.

Cheap Labor

OK, enough about the negatives of living here in Shanghai. One of the best things about living here in Shanghai as an expatriate is the power of your money. When you are an American expat coming to China, you probably already have a decent amount of money saved up in the US (but in many American's case maybe not) . That sum is probably not enough to retire on the US, but in China that amount may very well be a fortune. Combined that with an expat income, you can live very well.

What this means is flexibility. You are able to do things in your life that you normally would not because the cost will be too prohibitive. It could mean being able to live in the middle of the city. These things also extend into small things in your everyday life. For instance if you don't want to do house work and want to hire domestic help it is very cheap. It costs between 7 to 10 RMB per hour for a maid (called ayi here in Shanghai), that is about .93-$1.30 per hour. For a live in maid or nanny it could only cost about 800-1200 RMB per month ($105 - $155). Rates depends on experience and believe it or not where the maid is from (maids from within Shanghai can command higher rates than the ones from outside of Shanghai; prejudice in China is another topic for another time).

Other things could be getting a massage on a regular basis. Getting a Chinese style message for 1 hour would cost about 50-60RMB ($6.60 - $8.00). This could be a foot massage or a back massage.

Tailor made clothes is another inexpensive indulgence. There is an area in the older part of Shanghai called Dongjiadu where one can buy fabric of your choice from textile vendors then bring them to a tailor who can do a pretty good job of producing a knock off of your choice. You can bring a sample for them to copy or even a picture of that Armani is good enough. Usually for a man's cotton shirt you can have tailor made for about 100 RMB ($13). For women's clothes the possibilities are only limited by the ability of the tailor. In general the quality of the clothes depends on the tailor. From my experience, the skill level is pretty decent.

The reason for the cheap labor is no secret. There are 1.3 billion people in this country who only around 30 years ago was under the iron grip of a totalitarian regime that for all intents and purposes stopped progress for about 30 years (1949-1979). Some could argue that China may have regressed during that period. 1.3 billion dwarfs the population of the US (300 million), and some believe that it is a low estimate. Some estimates have the actual population of China in the neighborhood of 1.5 -1.7 billion. Can you imagine the margin of error exceeds the population of the US!! When there is such fierce competition for everything including jobs, food and services it is very difficult for people in this environment to stand out. This keeps wages low and working conditions poor. The Chinese are also notoriously frugal which also keeps prices down. The Chinese are some of the most price sensitive consumers in the world.

My last story is about the time we moved from our first apartment in Shanghai to the one we currently reside at. We had an appointment with movers for a Sunday. Well, on that Saturday we realized that we were fully packed and were actually ready to go. I half joked but half seriously told my wife that we should just call the movers and see if they are free, after all it is China and for these types of blue collar workers they are willing to work at any time. We called, and sure enough the movers were free and could be at our apartment in 20 minutes. About two hours after that idea was hatched all of our stuff had made it to our new apartment. That will never happen in NY. If we even had the nerve to inquire with movers in NY of such an idea I am sure we would have been told that we were crazy. BTW, the final bill was 250 RMB ($33) for 4 movers.

Anyway, cheap labor is good from my perspective. However, when you look at it from the other angle things look quite grim.

Movie nights

One of the ironic things that has happened to me during my time in Shanghai is that I now have a chance to watch quite a bit of critically acclaimed movies. I have never been much of a movie buff. I know plenty of people who flock to the theaters to watch movies during its opening weekend. I also know people who subscribe to Netflix and developed a system where they burn copies of DVDs that they received and quickly turning the DVDs back to Netflix so they can get more. They don't even watch the movies right away; they are only interested in quickly amassing a large collection so they have their pick to watch on a rainy day. I know others who are addicted to pay-per-view movies. Well, I am not any of those people. I tend to watch movies once in a while when my friends or my wife are in the mood. I also tend to watch the Oscar nominated movies after they get nominated. So you can say that I am a passive movie fan. I enjoy a good movie just like the next person, but I rarely go out of my way to watch a movie.

Then I discover www.imdb.com and came to China. I don't think it will come as a shock to anyone that China probably has the biggest knock-off DVD market in the world. When you are in Shanghai it is difficult to pass a day without either passing some street vendor or a small shop peddling counterfeit DVDs. You can get nearly anything that is popular in the world of cinema or television. The selection is decidedly American-centric; although there is also quite a bit of Korean, Japanese, mainland Chinese, and Hong Kong movies and TV shows available as well.

My pattern of watching American TV shows now that I am in Shanghai has become buying a seasons worth of DVDs during the summer months after they go on hiatus. That is how I have been able to follow "Lost". Most of the highly rated American TV shows are available in this way. This also includes the classic TV shows like "Seinfeld", "Curb Your Enthusiasm" or "Friends". One season (24 episodes) of DVD quality video will be on 8 DVD disks costing 5-7RMB per disk (.65-.92). One season of compressed video files will fit on 2 DVD disks again costing 5-7 RMB. You do the math, it’s pretty cheap.

I recently started to check out the imdb top 250 of all time movies and realized that I may have seen about 50 of them. Then I realized that this was a good list for me to check out some good movies that I missed. Some of the DVD stores here in Shanghai have a pretty good collection of movies that include quite a number of the movies on this list. These stores tend to be in the areas that where foreign expatriates live. These are the people who drive the demand for these older movies. Lately, I had a chance to watch "Taxi Driver", "Fight Club", "Seven Samurai", "Reservoir Dogs", "Kill Bill", and "Leon" to name a few. I will probably try to check out some of the the top 10 movies soon, like "The Godfather", "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly".

Anyway, here is the list for those of you who have not seen it:

http://www.imdb.com/chart/top

At 5-7 RMB a pop for these movie classics, you just can't beat it.

BTW, Fight Club was a much better movie than I thought. I thought it was going to be one of those blood sport movies and wondered why it was on the list. Well now I know.

Getting Around in Shanghai

I think it is safe to say that NY traffic is reputed to be the most notorious in America. It would be also safe to say that NY drivers are probably the most aggressive in America. In Shanghai on the other hand, its every man for himself. In the US, the pecking order is usually cars yields to pedestrians although not always the case in NY. Here in Shanghai, cars do not yield to pedestrians so it would take a brave soul to walk in front of an oncoming car. Usually in that kind of situation the car will stop but he will do so about 2 inches from your body and it would be of the screeching variety, or he just might hit you. Add on top an onslaught of bicycle traffic going in every direction on sidewalks and the road and about 18 million Shanghaiese and you have a fairly harrowing experience for the uninitiated.

My commute to work is a 18 minute bus ride or a 18 minute taxi ride. With the kind of traffic we are talking about taxis are no faster than the bus. In Shanghai, people commute primarily by either bus or bicycle. The subway system here is not too extensive (5 lines) so far so for now bus and bike are still king. These buses are usually filled to the brim with people and in that kind of situation you throw civility out the window and yield to physics. Just move with the flow and don't fight the force pushing you in a particular direction. Most bus rides within the city will run between 2-3 RMB (26-39 cents). These bus drivers all think they are Mario Andretti, swerving between lanes, cutting off cars and missing cyclists and pedestrians by inches. There are lots of car accidents in Shanghai (for that matter China in general), but considering their rules of the road I am surprised there aren't more.

The aforementioned subway system is still a work in progress here. The long term plan is to build the most extensive subway system in the world by 2020. With the amount of people living and working here they need it. Hopefully this will alleviate some of the congestion above ground. There are only 5 lines in operation currently and by 2020 they plan to have 24 lines in operation. Generally, the fares on the subways here are 2-7RMB depending on distance (26-92 cents) traveled. The trains are far more modern and surprisingly cleaner than their NY counterparts. There are flat screen monitors on the station platform that lets the riders know when the next train will arrive. I think that they can do this because in most cases the subways are punctual. There are no mysterious stoppages of the trains in between stations that are a part of life in NY. Usually, the trains are fairly crowded and during rush hours, intensely crowded.

The taxis here in Shanghai, like their brethren around the world are the most aggressive drivers on the road. If bus drivers are Mario Andretti, then the cab drivers are Evel Knievel. 11RMB for the first 3km (1.87 miles) and 3RMB for each additional km. Most of the taxis are Volkswagen Santanas.

Despite all of these problems, I still would not trade my current commute with what I had in NY. Go from 80 minutes to 25 minutes door to door is not too bad. Of course most of that has to do with the fact that I can afford to live in the center of the city here while that is not as attainable in NY.

Greed

What better way to describe greed than looking at the psychology of the stock market? Here in Shanghai, the Shanghai Composite Index has risen to record highs day after day. On 1/1/06 this index stood at 1161 and in just 20 months the index is currently at 4980. This a staggering 328% gain in 20 months!! If you want to take a look at the data here it is:

http://finance.yahoo.com/q/hp?s=000001.SS

It seems like everybody, their parents and their grandparents are in the stock market. Everybody is talking about the stock market, people are quitting their jobs to day trade, and brokerages are popping up everywhere. At current levels the Shanghai Composite is trading at 55 times last year's earning as an aggregate. Does this sound familiar? I feel like I have traveled back in time and were back in the late 90's again when the NASDAQ rose to similar heights only to crash back to reality.

The problem with the bubble in China is that it has risen even faster than the NASDAQ bubble and it probably has more room to go up. Currently, citizens of China cannot invest abroad. Their only options are to put their money in the bank, real estate or domestic stocks. They cannot go abroad in search of better investments. On the flip side, foreigners cannot invest in the Chinese stock market either. This is creating a situation where in the short term, there will probably be a continuing rise in the Shanghai stock market. But when it drops, look out. The PE's might be in triple digits before that happens.

What drives all of this? Greed of course. Everybody knows that there are normal ways that things operate, but when greed takes over rational goes down the toilet. People are rationalizing that China's booming economy will sustain these prices and because there is so much saving in China that it needs to find a place go. Well we heard some of same arguments to justify the prices of the NASDAQ and where did that lead us?

I am not smart enough to say what the catalyst will be that will burst this bubble, all I know that it will happen in the near to intermediate future. And then greed will turn into fear and panic.

Censorship in China

This is going to sound bizarre, but I cannot view the homepage of my own blog at least not at home. This is because all blogs hosted by blogspot (aka google blogger) is banned in China. I am not entirely sure of the criteria necessary for a website to be blocked here in China but it would be safe to say that any criticism of the government through opinions or mention of notorious events in their history would fall under the censorship. Other reasons seems pretty random. For instance, I can view New York Times articles and yet cannot view BBC articles. I don't know what the BBC covers that gets them censored over the NY Times. Also why every blog hosted by blogspot would be censored is strange. Not all blogs on blogspot is about China; but perhaps it is such a popular host of blogs that they decided to give it blanket coverage. Other things seems pretty odd as well, for instance I have a friend who runs a website of his store that sells Japanese animation products in NY and for the longest time I could not view it here in Shanghai. However, at last check I was able to view his website. The products he sells seem innocuous to me, so the secret formula of the Great Digital Wall of China as mystifying as ever.

Now for this blog on blogspot, I am not blocked from my administrative page. This means that I am allowed to maintain the blog in every way - composing the blog, upload pictures, select/edit the look and feel of the blog, etc. - but I just cannot see the blog on its homepage. So is the Chinese government allowing people to let the story out to the rest of the world but feels the need to conceal it from its own people to prevent mutinous feelings at home? Who knows but this is very typical of the ways that China works. Their way of doing things sometimes seem contradicting and are always fluid. There will be many more stories based on this theme in future blogs.

Fortunately, I cannot view my blog only at home. This is because at home my internet access is via a Chinese internet provider so all content flowing through them are subject to censorship. However, at work my internet access is via servers in the US therefore I am able to view the blog with all of your wonderful feedback during work hours.

Restaurant Blues

After living in NY for so many years I have been spoiled by the endless variety of cuisines available in Gotham. So that was a bit of an adjustment when I came to Shanghai. Not that there aren't any good food here, quite on the contrary food here is quite good. Its just that the good food are of the various styles of Chinese food (Sichuan, Shanghaiese, Cantonese, Northern China etc) which are somewhat unique to each other but are fundamentally similar. In NYC one can enjoy good food from all corners of the world prepared by immigrants from those countries. Therefore authenticity of the food is preserved. Here in Shanghai, many foreign restaurants are owned by the Chinese, therefore authenticity is compromised. These small differences makes me think, " hmm something is just not right with this sushi".

Of course, it makes sense why this is the case. For most people around the world who want to make it big, America is still the big attraction and for immigrants the place to go is NYC. Flat out, there is just more money flowing through the US economy so that attracts some of the best talent and that includes chefs.

Anyway, my biggest disappointment is the dearth of quality Japanese food. There are plenty of mediocre Japanese restaurants, but very few are of the quality that exists in NYC. Most Japanese restaurants in Shanghai are of the buffet variety. Usually 150 RMB (around $20) gets you unlimited amount of freshly prepared food off the menu. This is not the buffet that one is familiar with in the US, you don't go to the buffet table and pick through cooked food under heat lamps. Here, you basically are handed a menu and you order anything off the menu in unlimited quantity. So the food at these places are better than your typical buffet, but it is still mediocre. When you are talking about 150 RMB a person for a meal you are talking about quite an expensive meal for an average person in Shanghai. This is a city where the average salary is in the neighborhood of 3000RMB a month. So imagine you make $36,000 in the States and you have to pay for a $150 meal.

What I miss are places like Seki Sushi, Sushi Yasuda, or Sushi of Gari in NYC. Don't get me thinking about the Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo. That is where I had the best sushi in my life behind a counter in a setting that would make a luncheonette proud.

Pizza is a similar story. I did not think that I would miss pizza when I left NY, but did I ever. And a lot has to do with the fact that the best pizza establishments in Shanghai is Pizza Hut or Papa John's. These are places that one would eat in the States when you can't decide where to eat. A large pie at these places would cost 75-110 RMB depending on the topping. That comes to $10 - $15 - around what you would pay in the States for a large pie. What this means is that these places are somewhat upscale here in China. Overall, the pizza scene in Shanghai is pretty grim. Boy, do I long for places like Grimaldi's in Garden City (haven't been to the original in Brooklyn), Nick's in Forest Hills and heck even the pizzeria by my parent's house.

Sigh, these are some of the things that one must adjust to when you leave a place like NYC.

First post

Just a brief introduction about myself. My name is Adam and I was born in Taipei, Taiwan and I left for New York City when I was 7. I have just moved to Shanghai, China last year after 28 years in NYC.

This blog will be about my current life in Shanghai with reflections back over my 35 years. It will also be my opinions about life, business, history, traveling, sports, politics or whatever else comes to my mind. There will not be any formal themes except what is on my mind. Sometimes there is not much, sometimes there will be a lot.