Back in Beijing as a visitor

The plane slowly descends through the grey smog and land at the Beijing capital airport. I look out of the window, the sky is pale grey, and people are going around in summer shirts. Welcome home! I pick up my luggage and jump into a taxi outside the airport. “Where are you going?” the driver asks, after learning that it is only a short ride, he starts complaining, “I have waited for four hours in queue just to get a job like this…” Well, now I really feel I am home, having to deal with tricky issues like this again. I want to tell him that it is his choice to come to the airport and it is not my choice that I have to go to this hotel that happens to be just off the airport highway. But, I keep my mouth shut. It is no use arguing with him, it is only making it worse. They only want me to pay them some nice tip, but instead of offering a good service, they get grouchy and hope to use this to win your support. Sad really, I am sure this kind of trick would ever work for anyone. When I arrive at the hotel and pay him the taxi fare with a few Yuan extra, apparently he is not satisfied with my tip, so he just sits there and don’t even bother to open the trunk where my luggage is placed. I have to ask him very politely “could you please open the trunk so I can get my luggage”? Then he slowly pushes the button, fortunately by then the guy from the hotel lobby has come out and help me to get my rather heavy luggage from the taxi.

So three months have passed since I moved to London, the first impression is that the service level has not improved much in Beijing. The same ordeal you still have to deal with!

Taking a deep breath in the hot and dusty air, such a different world here compared with mild and cloudy weather in London. The traffic is not getting any better, but I noticed there are new grass and flowers planted along the third ring road – after all the government is trying hard to improve the image of the city.

It is a bit strange to be back in Beijing as a visitor and stay in a hotel. When I am out in the famous Yashow market and seeing the tourists doing the haggling, I have to say I am impressed by how lively the business is here. I guess the universal rule for shopping is that to get more for less, and that is the attraction for most people at least, and with the variety of things they carry, no wonder they think it is a heaven for budget shoppers. And I am even more amazed when I accidentally leave the market when it is just closing for the day. The crowd, including both shoppers and vendors are going out at the same time, moving like a wave in the sea to the main gate. The scene reminds me of the Chinese word “the human air” (Ren Qi) which I haven’t found the right translations. It basically describes a phenomena that presence of mass population makes the place or event more appealing and exciting.

On the last evening I am hanging out with some friends in a bar, it turns out two of my friends are leaving Beijing soon too, we are joking maybe 2006 is the year of leaving Beijing (not a bad choice considering the fact it is a major construction site right now), though I am sure there will be more people coming as well. This is a city still attracts people with its dynamics, history and unique culture. I would hate to see my beloved city turning to be just any of those metropolitan cities with no character. I have liked London a lot since I moved there mainly because it is a city with a character, that is what makes it an enchanting place to live. My worry for Beijing is that people tend to focus too much on material things, after all modernization doesn’t mean just ugly tall buildings which would only do further damage to the environment which is already endangered.