chongqing

Many buildings are marked with a “chai” character, meaning that they are to be demolished.

Lost in China, 24.12.10. nytimes travel.

shanghai transformation

Wuijang Road

Sometimes what officials claim is conservation is anything but. Old buildings are rebuilt with new materials, while developers have torn down protected structures in the dead of night, often with official support. And even in protected zones old architecture has been displaced by new roads and hotels. Conservationists here are on constant alert, and protests among residents have become increasingly frequent. “It’s an arduous war,” said Mr. Ruan, who four years ago founded the Ruan Yisan Heritage Foundation, a preservation group.

In Shanghai, Preservation Takes Work. NYtimes, 27.04.2010

beijing auto show

In this photo taken Saturday, April 24, 2010, a model stands next to the all-electric I-Car, a concept car debuted by at the Beijing Auto China 2010 show in Beijing. Dongfeng Motor Corp. showed its all-electric I-Car, a toy-like concept car that looks like a smiley face on wheels. The tiny hatchback's styling is straight out of "Star Trek," with glowing neon blue hubcaps and a futuristic interior with touch-pad buttons.

In this April 24, 2010 photo, the electric car EK-2 from Chinese automaker Geely is displayed at the Beijing Auto China 2010 show held in Beijing. Geely unveiled six alternative energy vehicles, some of which it said it plans to release by next year. Geely shot to prominence abroad in March when it agreed to buy Volvo Cars from Ford Motor Co. for $1.8 billion. The first Chinese-made car to hit the U.S. market might be an all-electric minivan that skips over gasoline technology and gets a head start on theauto industry's next era.

A Chinese-made Geely electric car is on display at the Beijing Auto Show near the capital's airport on April 26, 2010. Chinese-made electric cars and a hybrid bus are among 95 alternative energy vehicles on display in Beijing as auto makers crank up investment in green technology in the world's biggest auto market.

2010 Beijing auto show, photo gallery. SFgate

new chinese luxury island

The most prominent development is a series of four luxury apartment towers and a "seven-star" hotel on Phoenix Island, a spit of sand off the coast that was created by the provincial government as a cruise ship dock. Photo: Shiho Fukada

In the last two months, Hainan, an island the size of Belgium in the South China Sea, has become a potent symbol of China’s economic vitality — or, perhaps, its excesses. Even in a country where new wealth spawns new tales of luxury living every day, Hainan is viewed with a mix of awe, envy and disgust. ...

“People are coming with entire bags full of cash,” said Raymond Hau, general manager of the Sun Valley Golf Resort, which is building the 220 luxury villas. “I’ve seen this myself. A man had a bag and unzipped it. Boom. ‘Here’s the deposit,’ he said. ‘I want two apartments.’” ...

Now, in Sanya, even those benefiting from the current boom say property and hotel prices have reached absurd levels. “There’s no real economy,” said Lin Mingkun, the manager of the yacht club and a condo owner. “It’s a bubble economy.”

full article: On China’s Hainan Island, the Boom Is Deafening. NYtimes, 30.03.2010

taishan towers

Photo by: Alan Chin

Fortresses Inspired by West Crumble in a New China, NYtimes article

I visited this place when I went to China a few years ago. My dad's side of the family is from Taishan, which is actually pronounced toisan in Cantonese, and hoisan (with more of a down tone) in taishanese/toisanhua/hoisan, the local dialect.

CCP's 60th Anniversary

From the displays of advanced weaponry to the celebration posters highlighting Shanghai's forest of skyscrapers, the unmistakable message of the celebration was that Mao was right and that the Communist Party is carrying all China to prosperity and worldwide respect.

“There is no ideology in China anymore,” Zhang Ming, a professor of political science at Renmin University in Beijing, said in an interview on Wednesday. “The government has no ideology. The people have no ideology. The reason the government is in power is because they can say: ‘I can make your lives better every day. I can give you stability. And I have the power.’ As long as they make people’s lives better, it’s O.K. But what happens on the day when they no longer can?”

On Day for China Pride, Little Interest in Ideology | NYtimes

Civilized City Contest

flashbrella, guangzhou

One 20-year-old college student who was serving as a crosswalk guard in downtown Guangzhou said his parents, who work for the government, forced him to volunteer for the duty. He looked embarrassed and bored as he stood on the curb wearing a yellow sash and carrying a matching flag that said, "Please wait for the green light."

"I don't really understand this 'Civilized City' campaign. It seems so silly," said the student, who only gave his surname, Chen, because he feared he would run afoul of the government and his parents. "Every year we do this stuff for a few weeks, and when the inspection is over, things go back to normal. People continue jaywalking and littering. It's just a show."

Gritty Chinese city seeks to shed 'spitting' image

By William Foreman, AP

Glad I didn't go to Guangzhou the two times I've visited China. Had the chance though, but extremely hot weather, and the danger of being pickpocketed.. so didn't go.