Entries from February 2008 ↓

Beijing’s new air terminal, Terminal 3 at Beijing Capital International Airport, reputedly the world’s largest airport building, will start trial operations this Friday, 29 Feb. 

The new terminal will have 64 restaurants, 90 shops and a high-speed commuter train that will transport passengers to the city centre. And its runway is big enough to handle the huge Airbus A380 superjumbo. Its floor space, to match up to its reputation as the world’s largest airport building,  is nearly 100 hectares.

The building, designed by the famous British architect Lord Foster, is decked out in red columns and gold roof, the typical “Chinese elements”, an evocation of the imperial palaces in ancient China.

What interests me most is that the state media hailed its world-record pace of construction – finished in under four years. But not to forget that it also means a world-record pace of destruction - more than 10,000 villages have been demolished over a short period of time to pave way for the construction.

And the fast pace is intended - to open the new air terminal in time for the Olympics in August when a huge number of visitors are expected and the current airport capacity can hardly cope.

If you happen to be planning a visit to China, think about attending the Guangzhou Cherry Blossoms Festival. The Festival is said to be the largest ever in China for Cherry Blossom display. About 12,000 Cherry Blossom trees are planted in the Sculpture Park, Guangzhou.

Details:
Date: Now to 23 March 2008
Address: Guangzhou Sculpture Park（广州雕塑公园）, No 545, Xiatang Road West（下塘西路）
Entrance Fee: 40RMB
Website: www.cn-sakura.com (in Chinese only)

How to go:
It is 1.3km from the Guangzhou Train Station (not the Guangzhou East Train Station). Take the taxi from there.

Or if you come from other cities in China, take a long-distance bus to the Guangyuan Bus Terminal (for long-distance buses) in Guangzhou. The Park is only about 500m away.

How expensive is the rent during the Olympics months in Beijing this summer? A two-room apartment of about 115 square meters, which is not more than half-a-hour walk from the major Olympic venues, will cost RMB14,500 in monthly rent, according to reports. The apartment’s current monthly rent is only RMB3,000.

In China, there is a special name for apartments like this - they call it “Olympic housing”. It refers to apartments near major Olympic venues, fully equipped with electrical appliances and furniture, and new - completed after year 2000. It is predicted that the rent will start to climb from May, culminating in August when the Games are held.

Hotel price, predictably, will also go up by four to six times over the same period. So if you plan to go to Beijing to watch the Olympics, plan for the accommodation now.

You can find websites devoted to housing/accommodation service during the Beijing Olympics, such as this one. Sorry, though, it is in Chinese language only.

The veteran Hong Kong journalist Ching Cheong was finally released by the China authority, on the eve of Chinese New Year, who had spent more than 1000 days in jail for allegedly spying for Taiwan. 

His family, the Hong Kong Journalists’ Association and many friends of his, had been trying different ways to secure his release since his detention, with the belief that he is innocent.

During those 1000 plus days, his father died. To lessen Ching’s misery, his family hid the sad news from him.

Upon his return to Hong Kong, Ching asked for his father, when he saw that all his family was there, except his father. Only then was he told of the passing of his father. His tears started to flow.

The snowstorms that are sweeping China bear out two plain facts: how much the Chinese value family and the misery of China’s migrant workers.

With the Chinese New Year (starting 7 Feb) nearing, Chinese people, particularly the migrant workers, are flocking to train/bus stations to catch trains for going back to the hometown for reunion and celebration. What with their hard life as a migrant worker, the Chinese New Year offers them once-in-a-year opportunity for some relief and jubilation. That explains why they are so desperate for going home, despite the expected transport chaos and big crowd.

But this year the unexpected snowstorms make their journey home unbearably hard. Those stranded in Guangzhou station go without food and water, bracing chilly cold and squeezed in a sea of people, for days. The scene from TV is mind boggling.

But what is seen from TV is hard to compare with what is experienced. Here’s a report on what is experienced, from South China Morning Post.

Angry men, howling women and scared babies

He Huifeng
Feb 01, 2008

Until this week, the largest crowd I had ever seen was a jubilant 30,000 at a concert by Taiwanese singer Luo Dayou in Shenzhen five years ago. I remember being amazed by the size of that crowd.

Yesterday, I found myself among 180,000 desperate travellers stranded for days at Guangzhou railway station because of the crisis gripping the mainland. I was sardined among them - angry men, howling women and scared babies - and it wasn’t amazement I felt; it was fear. The only word that came to mind to describe the scene was “hell”.
When I arrived at the station at 10am it seemed more crowded than it had been the day before. I was right. Many travellers had been driven away to make room for Premier Wen Jiabao’s brief visit on Wednesday - and yesterday they returned.

Most were migrant workers desperate to return home for the Lunar New Year. As a journalist based in Shenzhen, I had talked to them and listened to their stories, observing their plight from the fringes.

But yesterday I joined the crowd and experienced the nightmare first hand. Before I had time to make sense of the situation, I was sucked into the seething mass and lost any sense of direction. All I could see were the backs of heads and necks. Pressed so tightly together it was obvious that many passengers had not taken a shower for several days.
The only thing I could do was keep pace with the crowd. I had to move in quick, small steps; otherwise, I would fall to the ground and be trampled by those behind me. Pushed, shoved and slapped until I was ready to collapse. Horror scenes of a human stampede crossed my mind.

Children screamed as they tried to keep up and hold on to the coats of parents struggling with luggage. Several men with pregnant wives or elderly parents begged police to let them board the train first. Police looked on, expressionless.

Eventually I escaped the madness. But for the waiting passengers it would be another long, cold winter night.