Life and Travel in China

My Chinese friend has two apartments and she tried to rent this old apartment for quite a long time. Someone offered her 4,200 RMB (approximately PLN 2,100), but she insisted on 4,500 RMB, a difference of PLN 150. Ultimately, she didn't agree and probably couldn't rent it to anyone else for 3-4 months. Recently, a family came across willing to rent this place. It turned out that they were very rich people, they drove fancy cars worth millions. They had their own apartment and even a villa (for China this is an exceptional luxury), and they were also supposedly owners of a factory. They wanted to rent my friend's apartment only because their child went to a private school nearby. They rented it, paid a deposit and after a few days they suddenly disappeared. As it turned out, many people are looking for them for debts. It seems that their lives and well-being depend on many loans and credits. It is possible that a few years ago the factory was doing very well and they took money for further investments, development, their own pleasures, real estate and vehicles... Ultimately, the crisis or smaller orders caused Eldorado to end. I know similar stories from other provinces in China. Factories were either going bankrupt or were operating at a minimum. All it takes is for a large customer to cancel orders, for material prices to increase, or for the supplier to change. In China, mega bankrupts appear just as quickly as fortunes are created.

Coming back to the topic of birth control, birth limits in China. My friend told me that now the fine for the second child, a daughter born to him, is ONLY 200 THOUSAND RMB (about PLN 100,000). I don't know if he has already paid the fine, or if he avoids it by not registering his newborn, or if he is looking for some friends, or maybe he has already paid it. It's not that difficult for him, he is the manager of a large company, he earns well and travels a lot. Just envy! He has already visited America, Europe and even Africa. I thought his worldview was more objective, but it wasn't... Despite such punishments for his second child, he said he loved China and the government was fine. He didn't believe my reports from the foreign press about the corruption and fortune of the former Chinese Prime Minister, he said that it was America that wanted to destroy them, and he still liked Wen Jiabao very much. Previously, I wrote about a certain Carla who, like him, likes the Chinese government and sees no problem in anything, there is no censorship, there is no poverty or injustice, everything is perfect... Of course, the point of view depends on where you sit. They are successful, they don't complain. It's a pity that they don't see the fate of other Chinese...

As usual, Christmas decorations can be seen all over China, even though it's not officially Christmas. It is worth going to Hong Kong, where the Christmas atmosphere is more visible due to the large number of Americans and Europeans living permanently in Hong Kong. Many native Hong Kong residents are also Catholic and Protestant. While in China the holidays have only a commercial dimension and are a curiosity from the West, in Hong Kong the holidays have a more traditional dimension. This is probably influenced by the presence of churches, Catholic schools, etc. Of course, the commercial dimension is also huge: promotions in supermarkets, electronics, gifts, packaging, branded jewelry, perfumes. There is also an excellent trading period - from our holidays until the Chinese New Year. During this period, many tourists come to Hong Kong, including neighbors from mainland China, who find it increasingly easier to cross the border.

What an injustice this is. The Chinese have two new years! The calendar one now is more important for us, but we only have one day off, and in China they have 2-3 days off on this occasion. The Chinese New Year begins on February 10, and they usually have 10-30 days off. On the other hand, they don't have much holidays, so I don't envy them that ;-).

I haven't spoken for a long time, just a lot of work, everyday life... Now I have to write, because today the Year of the Snake began and the Year of the Dragon ended quite well. I won't write about traditions or the Chinese 'Christmas Eve' anymore, because I mentioned it earlier. It is worth returning to red envelopes - 'hong bao'. These are the forms of gifts that the Chinese give each other on New Year's Day. It is a decorated red envelope with money inside. It used to be symbolic amounts, even 10-20 RMB. Now China has become richer and it happens that in big cities people give each other 2000-3000 RMB, and since the banknote with the highest value is 100 RMB the envelope is already very stuffed. I've been wondering recently where this tradition came from. During the Qin dynasty, older people used coins with a red tag (string), which were supposed to scare away evil spirits and bring good luck. When printing was introduced, the strings were replaced with red envelopes. Currently, it is the most important New Year's gift. Usually you don't write anything on the envelope (there are decorative signs 'happiness', 'wealth' etc.), although I made exceptions, I just wanted to clearly express my wishes. The recipient can spend the money as they wish and the giver should not ask 'what will you spend it on?' The Chinese are honorable when it comes to money and there are often fights, giving away envelopes, and in other cases people 'outfight' - who is wealthier and who gave more. Such a tradition...