Answer: When your blog is blocked out by government filters.
Yes, censorship is alive and well in China, and although I respect the obviously enormous economic progress this country has made it's things like this that make me realise all is not as it appears. I wish I had the language skills to dig a little deeper and maybe have a discussion about politics with a local.
So, this will be my first and last China blog until I leave the country (my brother is posting it for me). For those interested, not to worry - I will update my blog once we are in Russia.
PS: Facebook is blocked too, but The Age is not. So it's ok to read the news but not to talk about what you've read? Go figure.
Monday, July 13, 2009
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Shopping for electronics in Hong Kong
I have heard about the unscrupulous behavior of some electronic good sellers in HK, but to be honest it seemed a bit exaggerated. This seemed like such a cosmopolitan city, catering for the tourist trade, did they really need to cheap people to make a quick dollar? The answer is YES.
After my camera unexpectedly and without any warning died two days ago, I thought it would be a good opportunity to upgrade, given our current location and HK's fame for cheap electronics. It didn't take me long to decide which camera I wanted. Having been very happy with a Canon IXUS I thought I might as well a newer model of the same. So off we went comparing prices.
The first 3 places we went to (on Hong Kong Island) were reasonably priced, but I had hopes of finding something cheaper. So we checked out Nathan Rd in Kowloon. The first place I asked in quoted me a price almost 400 HKD cheaper, so I thought, sweet! Sat down, they asked for the credit card. It was a bit odd that they used one of the old style imprint machines, but we didn't question it too much. So we are sitting down, waiting while the Salesperson #1 is getting the camera "from the back". Meanwhile, Salesperson #2 sits down and tries to get me to "upgrade" to a different camera, which is supposed to offer a radically improved image despite having less megapixels. I am looking at this camera - it's bigger, bulkier, uses non-rechargeable batteries, so I say "I don't want it, I just want the camera I bought thanks". After some resistance, Salesperson #2 nods to someone behind me, and it's at this point that we notice that Salesperson #1 hasn't gone anywhere at all, but was just sitting behind us the entire time! Just then he gets off his chair, and goes to the back of the store. A minute later he comes back "sorry, the camera you want is out of stock, you must choose another model". WTF??? Why did you sell it to me then??? At this point Tim rips up the credit card slip, and we storm out of the store.
Analysing what just happened we realise:
- It was quite odd that we paid for the camera before we even saw the box. Not the usual sale process; aren't you meant to get the goods and then pay for them?
- They must have never intended selling us that camera for the price they quoted. That's why they used the imprint rather than the eftpos machine, so it would be easy to rip up the slip when we upgraded our purchase, rather than having to reverse the transaction out.
Wiser but angrier, we try store 2. Guess what - for a very low price we can buy this camera, but there is a catch: it's not in the store, he must go to get it from somewhere else, and meanwhile we need to pay for it now.
Us: No thanks, we will pay for it when we see it in front of us.
Salesperson: Oh no sir, can't do that, I have to pay the man you see, so you need to pay me now.
Us: Forget it, goodbye.
Same story at store 3, except that this guy has the nerve the add that we must pay up-front because "he doesn't trust us, as we might change our mind!"
So we go back to cheapest of the stores on HK Island, and buy it there. When I mention that I was quoted much lower prices elsewhere, the guy mournfully shook his head and said "not possible price, you must be careful when someone says they can do this price". So I described to him what happened and he said it was a very common scam. You pay for the goods, which then turn out to be not in stock, but that's OK because here is a better camera you can buy for just a little bit more. Because you've done no research on this model, you have no idea if they are quoting you a good price or not. And it's NOT a good price. The camera they were trying to "upgrade" me to is actually a much shittier and cheaper model than the one I selected. Assholes.
I am very suprised that this still goes on in a city like Hong Kong.
After my camera unexpectedly and without any warning died two days ago, I thought it would be a good opportunity to upgrade, given our current location and HK's fame for cheap electronics. It didn't take me long to decide which camera I wanted. Having been very happy with a Canon IXUS I thought I might as well a newer model of the same. So off we went comparing prices.
The first 3 places we went to (on Hong Kong Island) were reasonably priced, but I had hopes of finding something cheaper. So we checked out Nathan Rd in Kowloon. The first place I asked in quoted me a price almost 400 HKD cheaper, so I thought, sweet! Sat down, they asked for the credit card. It was a bit odd that they used one of the old style imprint machines, but we didn't question it too much. So we are sitting down, waiting while the Salesperson #1 is getting the camera "from the back". Meanwhile, Salesperson #2 sits down and tries to get me to "upgrade" to a different camera, which is supposed to offer a radically improved image despite having less megapixels. I am looking at this camera - it's bigger, bulkier, uses non-rechargeable batteries, so I say "I don't want it, I just want the camera I bought thanks". After some resistance, Salesperson #2 nods to someone behind me, and it's at this point that we notice that Salesperson #1 hasn't gone anywhere at all, but was just sitting behind us the entire time! Just then he gets off his chair, and goes to the back of the store. A minute later he comes back "sorry, the camera you want is out of stock, you must choose another model". WTF??? Why did you sell it to me then??? At this point Tim rips up the credit card slip, and we storm out of the store.
Analysing what just happened we realise:
- It was quite odd that we paid for the camera before we even saw the box. Not the usual sale process; aren't you meant to get the goods and then pay for them?
- They must have never intended selling us that camera for the price they quoted. That's why they used the imprint rather than the eftpos machine, so it would be easy to rip up the slip when we upgraded our purchase, rather than having to reverse the transaction out.
Wiser but angrier, we try store 2. Guess what - for a very low price we can buy this camera, but there is a catch: it's not in the store, he must go to get it from somewhere else, and meanwhile we need to pay for it now.
Us: No thanks, we will pay for it when we see it in front of us.
Salesperson: Oh no sir, can't do that, I have to pay the man you see, so you need to pay me now.
Us: Forget it, goodbye.
Same story at store 3, except that this guy has the nerve the add that we must pay up-front because "he doesn't trust us, as we might change our mind!"
So we go back to cheapest of the stores on HK Island, and buy it there. When I mention that I was quoted much lower prices elsewhere, the guy mournfully shook his head and said "not possible price, you must be careful when someone says they can do this price". So I described to him what happened and he said it was a very common scam. You pay for the goods, which then turn out to be not in stock, but that's OK because here is a better camera you can buy for just a little bit more. Because you've done no research on this model, you have no idea if they are quoting you a good price or not. And it's NOT a good price. The camera they were trying to "upgrade" me to is actually a much shittier and cheaper model than the one I selected. Assholes.
I am very suprised that this still goes on in a city like Hong Kong.
Exciting News!
We got our 3-month Russian visa! This was by far the hardest and most expensive visa process I've ever gone through, and really it just shows you what beaurocracy gone wild can do. The main obstacle was a rule that you can only apply for a russian visa in the country of your residence; i.e. for us in Australia. This was complemented by a rule that you cannot apply more than 3 months' in advance; i.e. long after we left Australia. But in true Russian style these rules are pretty randomly applied by Consulates around the world, and what is out of the question in Bangkok is apparently OK in Hong Hong. We are going to Russia!
Friday, July 3, 2009
Bangkok
Again, I will try to be conscientious and complete by Thailand entry with Bangkok. To make a long story short: I really like it. One the one hand it’s just like any big city - lots of people. lots of traffic, lots of pollution. But somehow it also has a strong character of its own, and for me it represents a great mix of what KL and Singapore have to offer. Very cheap and very good food, very nice people (excluding the tuk-tuk drivers), excellent service everywhere you go and some really great shopping. In short, everything a tourist could want at a very affordable price. And despite being very touristy, somehow it’s just really chilled out.
NB: The Thais love love LOVE their king. His pictures are absolutely everywhere, from dentists’ office to billboards. It’s really at a level of personality cult, which is probably OK as he is acknowledged to be a benign influence. Easily mis-used though.
NB: The Thais love love LOVE their king. His pictures are absolutely everywhere, from dentists’ office to billboards. It’s really at a level of personality cult, which is probably OK as he is acknowledged to be a benign influence. Easily mis-used though.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Sukhothai
Sukhothai – an ancient city without the tourists or souvenir stalls. This might be my favorite historical sight so far. Not only was it beautiful, it was also enjoyable .
There is quite a large area to cover, so we got pushbikes to ride around it, which was fun in itself. There were hardly any tourists around; it was just so serene and tranquil. The way it’s meant to be.
There is quite a large area to cover, so we got pushbikes to ride around it, which was fun in itself. There were hardly any tourists around; it was just so serene and tranquil. The way it’s meant to be.
Food, glorious food!
The last few days we've taken a trip from Bangkok to the north of Thailand. Chiang Mai is a city famous for its temples - apparently it has over 300 of them. I have nothing against temples, but there is only so many of them you can see before you get "templed out". To my untrained eye, knowing absolutely nothing about Thai architecture, they all look pretty much alike after a while.
The real highlight of Chiang Mai was our cooking course. We started at the local market, where we were shown all the local fruit and vegetable, and tubs of shrimp paste, desiccated coconut etc. Then we spent then entire day cooking, and eating the result of our labors. It was delicious and by the end of the day I was completely and utterly stuffed.
The course has given me a lot of confidence in coking Thai (which I love) without the pre-packed sources. The quality of Thai food relies on the fresh, good ingredients, and not any complicated cooking methods. Most dishes are ready in minutes, and no dish takes more than 30 min to prepare. That includes curries where we made the curry paste from scratch. Can’t wait to try it at home!
The real highlight of Chiang Mai was our cooking course. We started at the local market, where we were shown all the local fruit and vegetable, and tubs of shrimp paste, desiccated coconut etc. Then we spent then entire day cooking, and eating the result of our labors. It was delicious and by the end of the day I was completely and utterly stuffed.
The course has given me a lot of confidence in coking Thai (which I love) without the pre-packed sources. The quality of Thai food relies on the fresh, good ingredients, and not any complicated cooking methods. Most dishes are ready in minutes, and no dish takes more than 30 min to prepare. That includes curries where we made the curry paste from scratch. Can’t wait to try it at home!
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Can anyone help identify this lizard?
We are quite curious. In Bangkok atm, we walked to Chinatown and stopped to have lunch by a rather filthy canal. Idly watching the rubbish floating by, we noticed a BIG lizard in the water. Then it climbed out onto the stairs and people started throwing food at it and laughing at our excited chatter and attempts to film/take picture of it.
Before long, there was another one, and another one, and we counted five really BIG lizards just in that little section of the canal we were sitting by. They must feed on food scraps, because I don't think any fish can survive in that water. Anyone know what it is?
Before long, there was another one, and another one, and we counted five really BIG lizards just in that little section of the canal we were sitting by. They must feed on food scraps, because I don't think any fish can survive in that water. Anyone know what it is?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)