Transportation

Yesterday we had a guide and a driver of a van from the hotel take 5 of us to 3 different types of shopping areas in Guangzhou. Several of the group were interested in buying jade, and the guide was able to negotiate for them in the jade district, which covered several streets with small vendors lining this area. This approach kept us in the comfort zone since the guide and the driver were able to get us around with little trouble. At one area she advised me on negotiating a watch: I scored a nice Rolex for $21. Yes, what a bargain!

I could just sit in the hotel (the Ritz no less), relax at the pool, have a drink, whatever, and not get out of the comfort zone. But one surefire way of discovering and learning new things quickly is to force yourself out of the comfort zone, as I did today. There were 2 museums I wanted to see, based on travel guide descriptions. The concierge armed me with maps and cards from the hotel in Cantonese to show taxi drivers, who here, as in many countries where English is not the first language, speak little English.

The first museum was an easy setup, since all I do is tell the doorman where I want to go in English, he tells the driver in Cantonese and off we go. Taxis are still cheap here. This ride of about 20 minutes cost all of $5. Another thing is that I am traveling solo. I always feel more comfortable with a traveling companion to sort out problems, so there are several uncomfortable aspects of this trip: traveling alone, language issues, unfamiliar location, among others.

The museum was built around the tomb of an emperor from about 100 BC. This tomb was discovered in 1983 and Indiana Jones nor other tomb raiders had discovered it before that, so it was full of everything that went in when the emperor died, other than the emporer who deteriorated to small fragments of bone and teeth. Quite a find, and the artifacts are historically significant. Many descriptions are also in English, and I rent an audio guide in English that gives excellent descritptions of many artifacts. Museum entry was $2 and the audio guide $1.50.

My second museum was listed in the hotel travel map. Taxeee! Universal taxi hand signals work well. I show the driver the guide, he nods yes, and off we go. I get to the museum, go in, then discover this was not the one I wanted. The hotel travel guide listed this as the Guangzhou museum, which I want to visit, but it was really the Guongdong museum. Ooops.

Taxeee! This time there is a problem, as the travel guide I have for the correct museum is not written out in Cantonese, so the driver has no clue. Next best solution, head to the Ritz and sort it out. The card from the concierge is spot on with directions, off we go and within a few minutes I am at the hotel. Total taxi bill for this ride: $1.

I talk the problem over with the concierge who finds the correct address for the museum, writes it on the card, gets a taxi for me, tells the driver where to go, and off we go. This time I do end up at the Guangzhou art museum, which has a nice selection of Chinese art work. Only had about 1 and half hours till closing, but this was enough time as some galleries were not open. But it didn't have the terra cotta soldiers that one travel guide said were there. Must have been a temporary exhibit. Surprisingly, these last two museums here have not added English to many of the art notes, and the map of the facilities are not very useful. Beijing, Guilin, and Yangshou were way ahead of this city in English advancement.

Taxee! Now I want to go to a mall clear cross town, and the driver is able to figure it out from the travel guide I have. No problem getting there. I spot a Starbucks, score a latte and 2 Guangzhou city mugs, and relax in this crowded and noisy Starbucks, where everyone but me is oriental. So even the natives are getting into the Starbucks experience here.

This mall is crowded at 6 pm Sunday evening. Stores stay open late even on Sunday, and the place is a sea of young Chinese. Taxeee! Traffic is a mess, but I get a taxi quickly. This is not too far from the hotel so the ride is smooth. I’m back, no longer uncomfortable about getting around this city alone.

The hotel has almost all employees working on English. On the street and in museums, it is not uncommon for young Chinese, maybe 10 or so, to say “hello” when they spot me. I think they are trying out their English that they are now starting to learn in elementary grades. Even though this is a major industrial and trade city, there are not a lot of westerners here, relative to the population. Thus, people stare at us all the time. Which initially is uncomfortable, but after a while it no longer matters to us.

Overall the day was a success: 2 museums I needed to see today (they are not open tomorrow, Monday), I navigate the city with assorted tricks in taxis, people staring is not a problem, I have a better orientation of the city, and I feel more confident that I can get around a city alone where languages are not the same.
Peter

I have a completely new perspective on driving in China. On my last trip in November 2006, I concluded that there is just a chaotic mess of drivers versus pedestrials versus bicyclist. On this second trip, and seeing exactly the same pattern in Beijing, Yinchuan, Guilin, and Yangshou, I have concluded 2 things: 1. this is the way it works in China, and 2. it works in China.

Taken from front seat of van, which is passing the bus on the left. The van is in the middle lane. Note oncoming traffic on left.

Let me explain. As soon as you get in a car (and we do not drive in China, it would be suicide), you see a lot of close calls. Cars, trucks, buses, pedestrians, bicycles, and motorcycles are all weaving and dodging each other in a mess of close calls and chicken. I have never seen a stop sign, but there are occasional traffic lights - but rare. It's really spooky when you drive down the street and see buses and trucks suddenly in your lane, but miraculously get back into their own lane without incident. The first time you see this you figure you are dead, as you would be in the US. But after witnessing the same thing time after time with no incident, you realize that something is going on here.

What I realized is that since everyone is doing this, it works because everyone is actually looking out for all the others. Someone cuts you off, you slow down, no big deal. You cut someone off, not big deal, they slow down and avoid you. It all evens out at the end of the day. People are actually patient in this big mess of traffic.

In an aside here, we witnessed the same behavior on a river cruise with maybe 5 or 6 cruise boats passing and weaving and missing each other by feet on the river. Go figure. And these were boats that could hold several hundred people, not just little boats that could manuveur quickly. It's just the way they drive here.

We even did a bike ride that included a few miles in this traffic. If I tried cutting in front of cars in the US, I would probably get knocked off the bike and die. Here, a car just slows and avoids you. After a few of these, I gained confidence that I could cut off or swerve around cars without any problem. By the way, no one on bicycles wears helmets, and motor-bike drivers wear 1960's helmets at most. And horn-honking on the road is a ritual that could be a warning, a greeting, or just a defective vehicle.

So I concluded that this scheme works because everyone here knows the deal. You swerve, you dodge, you play chicken, you honk your horn, you cut some off, you get cut off. But the great thing is that traffic moves, and there are few incidents. We have not yet seen anyone injured, and amazingly, there is no road rage! I have not witnessed one case of a driver yelling or getting angry. No flipped fingers (that may not even be the sign in China). And police tend to be scarce, so there are few tickets written. That's because this mess works.

We even witnessed little kids, maybe 7 or 8 years old running into traffic knowing that they will not get knocked over unless they are not careful. This skill starts at an early age here.

So what we have is a system that seems incredibly foreign to us (Americans), but works well in China. Do not try this at home, you will cause major road rage!

Peter