Crocodiles and Cowboys in Melaka, The Brave New World in Shanghai

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I watch the World Cup Final in the early hours, staying awake long enough to see French captain Zinedane Zidane head butt his way to infamy. The city, like much of Asia, is groggy and foggy the next morning. As the Chinese embrace western consumerism, there is a big influx of foreigners hoping to cash in on the boom. Greg tells me that about half of the expats don’t last more than a year. “Anyone who thinks they can just come into China and make it big is in for a surprise,” he says. Government is involved in just about anything, and navigating the political landscape requires incredible connections, with the cultural understanding of how best to use them. This is, after all, a people who live according to the rules of “not losing face.” But when the green light switches, the acceleration of development can leave one with windburns. As for the issue of a free and open democratic society, perhaps China is closer to the USA than most people realize. Americans like to believe they have a say in the government and media, but how many people really believe that anymore? In China, they’re free and open in admitting that the government prefers that things are not entirely free and open. I could not access BBC Online, but I’m writing in this in a hotel room in Beijing where BBC World News is the only English TV channel. Blogs are blocked, but most people look more concerned about the size of their cell phone than voicing their personal concerns to the general public. It is obvious that the gray, communist-bloc mentality of China is history.

From Shanghai, a night train to Beijing. I shared a compartment with three men, dressed in pajamas. Nobody said as much as a syllable throughout the 12 hour journey (the legendary “hwachaak” spit of China was fortuitously absent). The train was modern and comfortable, but I had problems sleeping at 160 km/hr. Better get used to it. I’m off to join the Vodka Train, a three-week adventure by train from Beijing to St Petersburg.

The Rainbow Hotel
Bejing,

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