Ok ok so we've covered the first scam from the construction company. But they are all in it and pay bribes to the HKG therefore there is nothing people can really do about it. (For you Americans Estate agents are realtors just in case you didn't know).
Anyway the even worse insidious people are the estate agencies. They double count like politicians.
As I said before using say a 600sq ft flat, you'd expect there to be 600sqft of floor space right? Like if you buy a car you would expect it to have wheels right?
In HK estate agents are scummers, as said often the livable space in a flat/apartment is as low as 50% of the advertised floor space. Estate agents also count the walls as living space for starters. But they count things you don't even think of!
The landing outside your flat ~ this is counted as usable floor space
The freaking LIFT ~ this is counted as usable floor space
The lobby downstairs is often counted too but divided between the flats ~ this is counted as usable floor space.
The stairs! ~ this is counted as usable floor space
A shelf no really you have an 8x8 room, minus the wall space lets say it is really 7x7 (it often is) so you get 49sq ft, not too bad, livable not great but this is Hong Kong remember. An estate agent will come along advertising place including the wall space as 64sqft. The scummer agent then sticks a 4x1 shelf up or even four of the damned things ~ this is counted as usable floor space this then becomes 68sqft. He adds 4 more shelves and suddenly your 49sqft room has become 80sqft.
The above can be repeated in all sorts of ways, so a shelf above a shower thats space.
Window sills are counted.
The narrow shelf which sits OUTSIDE your flat hanging 200ft above the ground is counted as space.
The freaking window sill on the outside is again counted as usable livable space.
The washing line! is counted as space.
A fan vent which is a hole in the wall is double counted too
Hey wait, I think I just thought of a way to pick up the hot babe who works as an estate agent in Tai Po. When I can claim to have a Lexington Steele or even a Jonah Falcon freakshow and when I finally whip it out claim exactly the same arguements as she claims.
I have been given what seems like a once in a lifetime opportunity. The town I live in is offering a tourist group trip to Beijing. One week, all expenses paid, including airfare, hotel, food, and ground transit a sum of money. My mother said she would send me (Im 17) even though I would go alone. I just have a few concerns. When I pictured visiting China for the first time, I imagined it would be Hong Kong, not the belly of the beast that is Beijing. I feel a bit insecure about visiting mainland China. I feel like Id be entering a hostile environment (with all the tension in Sino-American relations lately). Im worried I might accidentally get into trouble from not being familiar with local laws. China also has all these visa restrictions for entering and leaving the country. I want to be sure I'll be able to return home safely and when I need to.
So should I go for it? (the deadline's not until August)
And if I do, do you have any tips on how to stay safe and out of trouble?
I just want some reassurance.
Kevin B
Dear Kevin.
I'll split this up a bit as I felt I'm not very lucid on this.
Visa
I believe you are getting the wrong end of the stick here, as China/US relations is just the governments who are rattling sabres at each other (I think you are American anyway). This just means they increase the cost of Visas for Americans to $150 a pop.
Visa restrictions are nothing more than a scam, they make shed loads of money out of it and put up hurdles you can jump over easily. Take note TCG actually requires a visa to visit China, as I missed the deadline of a home return permit and overseas born folks like me have certain restrictions in getting home return permits. Funny eh? From what I recall getting a Chinese visa says you have to have a flight in and a flight out and a hotel booked. At first glance people think whoa! In reality this is a piece of piss, flight in and a flight out? A hotel?
Flights are simple, though if you are North American flying is really the only option, but you can fake this too! China has no ability to check passenger manifests YET and probably can't be bothered to check yet either. The embassy staff are overworked so all everybody did was fake the flight itinerary (like I did) and go in via any means they wanted.
Doug for example mentioned in my book and faked up a flight ticket in Mongolia and a hotel booking and travelled in via bus.
Christian did the same thing but via train.
I did the same thing too I said I would fly in via the Mongolian / Beij airport. I actually ended up entering via boat into China via Incheon and Tianjin.
The visas only state a period of entry i.e. it is valid for 3 months from the date issued and runs for the length of the visa when you enter. Be careful! faking up flights stick 30 days or something between the entry and exit flights! Christian managed to get a 5 day visa for some reason.
Visas also do not state port of entry or exit as said my 2009 trek, I was supposed to enter via the Mongolia border but entered via Tianjin, I was also supposed to exit via Korea too flying out, but I left by train and went to cities not even listed on my itinerary (I put down Beijing/Shanghai and Hangzhao).
The hotel room is simple just find a hostel and pay $1 to book it print it out and there you go you've beaten the 'tough' visa scam money making machine of the PRC. TBH Russian visas are harder to get.
The border guards didn't even look at it for more than a second the hostel people did though not that they cared they just wanted to make chat. You can leave anytime you want, via any means you want I had a shiny 60 day visa and only used it for 34 days, the guard didn't care.
Are old history these days, and the blokes throwing stuff at the embassy were PAID actors, so says one of my ex-gfs who was living nearby when they happened. Also since Obama came into presidency there has been a marked warming of relations, as said it is just a government vs government thing. The Beijingers are like most people they worry about stuff their own daily lives. TCG for example does not particularly like the UK government but thinks meh, and is more worried about maintaining my motorbikes and I dedicate more to my own careers biking and writing than anything else.
You might recall an earlier post do Russians/Chinese hate each other? I travelled via the Amur region and there was no hate (ok so I got shot at, but I get shot at in the UK). On the face of it, it has been an area of tension for decades, the governments were hard line about each other for years. But when I travelled through the region on my motorbike there were no problems at all 'the incident of 4 KGB/FSB officers in my hotel room was quite funny actually'.
Chinese even in Mainland China are more savvy than the government gives them credit for they will differentiate between the people and the government 我没有投票 (Wǒ méiyǒu tóupiào) I didn't vote for him is a disarming phrase I heard many people use when Bush was still in power.
Safety
Read some of the China scam things (I have to edit them to include counter measures).
Make no bones about it, I do not know your ethnicity your skin colour or what, but if you are how shall I say it non Chinese looking you will be subjected to the attempted scams as mentioned in my earlier posts. All these scams are easy to dodge and to differentiate.
When you visit Wangfujin for example (this does not happen to me the fact I dress like a bum and I also blend in perfectly means it doesn't happen) usually 2 fantastically sexy girls in uber short skirts (can a skirt be too short? British bikers often die as a result of short skirts as people rubber neck and hit bikers we judged collectively it was worth it though) Will ask you they would like to practice English?
Meeting people is what makes your trip* you can instantly ascertain if this is a scam or not when they mention tea house say Starbucks? If they really want to meet you and practice they'll say Hao Hao, or yes or whatever. If they walk away it was a scam.
So are the Wangfujin I need 30RMB to get a train ticket home. Did I mention Wangfujin is a bad place to be? Tourist tat they see you and they'll mention special price and you can ignore it, or sometimes aggressively they will grab your wrists. Just walk away or learn a French or German phrase it confuses the hell out of them and they.
Carry a money belt seriously , and a dummy wallet usual tourist precautions.
Things to look out for
Tours, I think this is why I like the 365Inn Qinmen district as they are forthright about it, they have tours listed one with shopping one without. The shopping time included trips are much cheaper but you'll spend 2-3 hours hustled around specifically designed tourist tat shops and they really hate it when you don't buy anything.
Local and tourist menus, again why I like the 365Inn it shows prices outside to everybody.
People who flag you down to buy things, USB sticks are common which are smaller capacity than advertised.
Laws
The police generally mind their own business and never stop western tourists they stop me because I look like a bum (what do you expect I'd been wearing the same tshirt and jeans for 99 days!). Watch this video
You can't actually do this in Taipei a supposed democracy, nor London either as laws prevent taking photos and pictures (should they be used for terrorism that old excuse).
Usual laws apply as to other places, don't get too drunk, or EVER feel the need to have your hair cut, Beijing barbershops are not what they seem. Getting drunk is hard as the beers all contain this chemical preserver crap in it, due to the way Chinese people tend not to drink huge quantities of beer. This beer gives you a horrible headache a hard thumping one which is like literally being pounded over the head with a hammer constantly.
You are even allowed to bring in banned movies and books into the country, the restrictions are they just aren't allowed to sell them. The Abonination which is the lonely planet is thankfully not allowed in China, well they aren't allowed to sell it anyway. Though probably not a good idea to bring porn into the country!
Thoughts
Some thoughts, TCG hates package tours even though the price here is not too much more than a flight out there add in the visa and the hotel and food are virtually free.
I can't conform this however but I think what will happen on these all inclusive tours is that simply you'll be taken back and forth from the hotel, to restaurants which serve identical meals, and then shuttled towards tourist attractions and be taken to shopping trips between shuttle runs. Which is a sort of travel I don't like as you never really meet real people which I feel is the point of travel in the first place. If I were you (like I was in 1998) I'd go out and do it alone! But really do take sometime out rent a bicycle and get to the 4th ring or farther from the centre as the centre is all comercialised and touristy. You can get a feel for this around the Qianmen hutongs though.
Some random stuff which goes nowhere else:
Bring tissues or bog roll around with you public toilets 99% of the time don't have them or have a rip off vending machine. You may need tissues due to the uber pollution spitting happens because of this.
Don't rent bicycles from cheap places they are cheap as they are rotten or scammers.
Don't be insulted when people are frank about things. As in my prior post.
Don't even think of drinking the tap water.
Unless you want to be mentally scarred don't use hutong toilets seriously so they were not as bad as ex USSR Azerbaijani toilets but real bad.
Watch out for fake notes 20s and 50s are increasingly common
100RMB is HUGE in some areas though only erm $13 US or £9 UK£ you should carry some smaller money everywhere. 1RMB coins are useful for the metro
Dark alleyways at night (the kind I walk down) should really be avoided
Should you go for it?
Your choice, as above I personally hate hand hand holding tours and prefer to go out there myself and meet people myself, it depends on your personality tbh whereby if you are outgoing and will approach people then no problem. If you are more reserved then it is more problematic.
Sorry to sound like a broken record but you can go to most hostels pay $5-7US a night for a bed in a dorm (the girlie who stayed in my dorm kept a knife under her pillow) meet people there who will independently arrange their own sightseeing trips. Though this of course is hit and miss as you may meet touristy tourists or you may meet sensible people or crazy people. Like the Israelis , the Japanese bloke and the Korean guy pretending to be Japanese and the Russian and dutch guy.
A trip is WHAT YOU MAKE OF IT.
Ollie, The Dutch guy and myself got on because Beijing was virtually the end of our respective trips and we generally were not so much into looking at things more having some fun unwinding after crossing Russia which was rough.
I read a book recently barbed wire and babushkas, and from the perspective of the author it appeared as if the Siberian Russians absolutely hate the Chinese, is this true? What do Chinese think about the Russians?
Kat
Dear Kat
I have read the book you are talking about, it is quite good, however I feel it is rather a strong generalisation, it is like saying all whatever people are thieves or something.
My personal motorbike trip through Russia elicited nothing more than curious glances and hellos, they did laugh at my inability to drink as much as them but that is genetic. However there is some truth in all of the perceived hatred.
#1 History, Stalin did not support Mao Zedong in the Korean war with full MiG support hence MiG alley. This caused the Sino-Russian split, when China wanted independence from the Soviet Union even though Stalin helped Mao attain power. Though this may seem ungrateful it was a rather nasty relationship anyway, i.e. China could supply endless expendable labour while the USSR could provide technology and weapons, the infantry rushes in Korea 1951 AND the war with Vietnam where China lost 10,000-50,000 troops and 100-400 tanks in 'teaching' Vietnam a lesson in 1979. Ergo the infantry rush was still used as recent as 1979!
Anyway, the split meant both sides started spouting up anti Soviet and anti Chinese propaganda against each other, for decades meaning that there is an ingrained hate.
#1.1 This was exacerbated by the fact that both powers nearly went to full scale war with each other over the Demansky Island , more here. Which resulted in a gigantic build up on infantry and war machines on both sides of the river over this 0.7sq km island.
Over time China accused Russia of land grabs, as my dad puts it 10,000 Hong Kongs have been taken, I do not know the Russian point of view in all of this but when the USSR had all the guns you can't do anything about it. A similar thing happened in Hong Kong itself, the British had guns lots of them and therefore FORCED the lease of Hong Kong.
#2 The cultures i.e. White Siberians who migrated by force or by choice to Siberia and Far Eastern Russia the cultures are different. On various things, Food / religion, language.
Consider Europe for a moment, France and Germany, they are next to each other, they have similar languages in that they have a common Greek alphabet ancestry and borrow words from each other. The same applies to French and English, for example we borrow the word entrepreneur and all sorts.
In China/Siberia, Russians use Cryllic and speak toned language. In China they speak Mandarin and or variations of which is harsh and atonal and uses pictogram characters not Cyrillic. Thus there is incompatibility there.
In General we eat and drink similar things to each other, we have staples of bread, wheat oats etc which is common to all our countries. So are food and languages are similar. Although we've been at war with each other for decades pre 1900 and had two big ones. Though this was politicians accentuating and purposely driving divisions between peoples.
In Siberia, the people there eat as a staple the humble potato, Kartoshka the growing seasons are a bit short for wheat in Siberia, and other root crops as well as meat. In Siberia I remember being told that not eating meat at a meal is like not eating meat at all.
While in China, people eat millet, wheat turned into noodles and rice. Note Northern and western China rice is not eaten in great quantities they eat potatoes and millet, if you go to Beijing you will see that they eat a millet style porridge in the mornings, you go South to Shanghai or Xian where the rice growing regions are and they eat congee a rice based porridge.
Again another difference.
As in the book 1984 by Orwell, Winston States that peoples are kept separate so that they can't sit down and realise that the propaganda is untrue and that the barbarous enemy is generally the same as he is. Some events like the Christmas celebrations in the trenches of WWI show this.
Finally the skin colour is the same. You put an Englishman next to a German if they don't speak you can mistake one for the other. While Siberia and China people look different. You stick a Chinese person next to a white Siberian and you can immediately tell the difference.
#3 Economy
China is currently a massive squid sucking up resources and money, on the border regions and many areas near the coast there are phenomenal factories and infrastructure building in China. consider Heihe vs Blagoveshchensk . Heihe was little more than a military town 20 years ago, nothing there but a huge garrison of infantry. In 20 years it has developed so quickly compared to Blagoveshchensk. In that the PRC government has in effect enacted policies for rapid expansion and development along the Amur river yet the Russians have no managed to achieve a similar amount of progress. Such that the exports by volume at least go one way. (China buys Russian weapons produced in the Komsolonsk region). This undermines the Russian economy massively, why buy Russian if you can get made in China much cheaper?
All of the above reasons are why people are suspicious of their neighbours there is just such a large number of differences that it is hard not to as said I went out there and wasn't harassed at all sooo your mileage may vary. I found Siberians to be friendly and accommodating almost all the time, I emphasise almost.
