Life and Travel in China

I observe how much China has changed in just 17 years. Shenzhen is practically unrecognizable, I even regret not taking more photos, because many new skyscrapers have been built since then. In the provinces - where I used to ride a scooter on dirt roads, there are now wide streets, modern hotels, shops and factories. People have also changed. In the past, girls in China did not use cosmetics at all or used very poor and cheap products that even damaged their skin. The Chinese bought at stalls and in small shops - unbranded belts, watches, fake handbags. For most people, the logo, name and brand didn't matter, it was supposed to be cheap. I remember when, while traveling, on planes or trains, the Chinese used some old bags (like from the market), packed things into some damaged luggage or bags. Now many people stand out with branded handbags and bags. Many men now buy decent belts, really expensive watches, jade jewelry, etc. Not only global companies are playing a role, but also many Chinese brands have emerged that are appreciated and expensive. I remember when these brands used to have small shops in Dongmen Square in Shenzhen. There was a company store of the shirt manufacturer Youngor in Ningbo, I bought beautiful shirts there for about 80-120 RMB, and now it is an exclusive brand offering elegant men's clothing. In the past, white people in Chinese cities were an attraction in itself, people took photos with me, talked to me, smiled, today you can see foreigners from Europe, the USA and Africa everywhere. The Chinese (before the pandemic) traveled a lot and bought exclusive goods all over Europe and America. Their worldview has changed, they can afford more and more pleasure. Many people not only work to provide for themselves, but can increasingly afford holidays, travel with the whole family or some unusual hobby. The Internet is also playing an increasingly important role - even farmers sell their vegetables on various online platforms using smartphones. Of course, the whole world has changed over these two decades, but the pace of change in the Middle Kingdom is shocking. Just look at my photos from 2004-2006 to understand this.

Can you imagine a situation where there is a civil war, e.g. in Somalia (of course, I don't wish wars on anyone, but there have been various situations in the history of the world) and China sends its army there, Chinese airfields enter the waters surrounding Somalia, Chinese helicopters fly over the cities... Or a more abstract situation - Alaska is an independent country and the US plans to take over and absorb it, at which point China says STOP, we will not allow it. Another example - the US attacks Mexico, and the Chinese military sends its agents, soldiers, mercenaries to support Mexico. What if China established military bases in Germany? Would this bother anyone? After all, economically and business-wise, the Middle Kingdom gets along very well with Germany. Are these scenarios annoying? Of course, because we are used to the fact that the United States interferes in almost all conflicts in the world, and also starts many of them (officially and unofficially). What if China did this? They usually don't do that, and they still have a bad reputation in the world and "poor press". Believe me, the Middle Kingdom, with its population, military power, and modern technologies, could wage many wars in the world (and in a dozen or so years probably also in space), but it is simply a more peaceful nation. They are not a perfect country, many people are harmed there, but the vast majority of Chinese people live simply well. It's probably important that the country cares about its citizens. We are like that too, right? 500+ ha ha ha. One party bought itself power for life.

The authorities in the Middle Kingdom are now encouraging people through various social campaigns not to treat the purchase of apartments as an investment. It seems that too many crooks have pumped trillions of yuan into real estate. Of course, such actions resulted in higher, even absurd, apartment prices. I don't know if it's too late for such actions. The practice of real estate investment was developing 15-20 years ago in China. Several people I know in Shenzhen, Shanghai, Guangzhou and even smaller Shunde already have 2-3 apartments. Another program is to suspend and limit additional classes for students of Chinese schools. Too many private schools, various courses and tutoring have already been established. This applies to both the academic sphere (largely also learning English), as well as sports and music. Children are rarely at home, after compulsory classes, they go straight to additional classes. They come home for dinner, basically. Chinese students don't have it easy, they are very competitive, have high expectations, and have pressure from parents and the environment.

While there are protests of lock-down opponents and anti-vaccine activists in Poland and Europe; in the Middle Kingdom there is no discussion with the authorities! This is nothing new, but not all of us are even aware of the level of surveillance and modern technologies used to fight Covid. Can you imagine a situation where two policemen approach you at a train station and take you for a Covid test. Why? As it turns out, you were close to infected people the day before. How do the police know about this? It's not hard to guess what the location of the phones is. Of course, this is not a recommendation or a request, but basically an order. China is now extremely controlling its citizens regarding coronavirus infections. Have you probably heard about the famous event at Disneyland in Shanghai? The entire amusement park was closed and all tourists (34,000 people) were tested because there was a suspicion that there was one infected person in the park. On the one hand, it is total surveillance of individuals and communities - e.g. company employees, workers in factories, or amusement parks, restaurants, hotels, it is a simple trampling on human rights, and on the other, it is a very effective control of the pandemic situation. In Europe we have total chaos and possibly recommendations, in the Middle Kingdom we have order and orders. Society is also more punitive, responsible and taught to follow certain basic principles, rights and obligations. I guess that China will cope with the pandemic much better than Europe and the Americas.

Some of you are probably wondering what traveling to China is like now. Well, they are very difficult. A Chinese friend of mine did a "tour around the World" ;-), visited the Netherlands, Germany, the Czech Republic, and then flew to the USA. He traveled for almost a month, lives in Shenzhen and usually flies out via Hong Kong. He is now returning to China and... this is where the stairs begin. He is vaccinated (he was also vaccinated in Europe), but he still has to have negative tests upon arrival to his homeland. In addition, he must undergo a two-week quarantine. There is no discussion here and he must spend 14 days in a resort/hotel designated by the authorities, at his own expense, of course. If that wasn't enough, after these 14 days he should spend another 7 days in home quarantine! Can you imagine something like this? In Europe and the USA we still have a lot of privileges and freedoms. In the Middle Kingdom, there are no discussions about Covid, quarantine or restrictions. And not only in these matters... It has its pros and cons, although the average European would certainly not like such solutions. We would probably call it an "attack on our freedom."