It has been a long time since I have talked to him, but I still clearly recall going to school with Mark Rowswell. In China he is much more commonly known as “Da Shan”, or Big Mountain. Mark is not only Canadian, like myself, but also comes from Toronto, my home town.

I met Mark while attending classes at Beijing University. As fellow Canadians in a place with many more Americans and other foreigners, we, of course, got to know each other. It turns out that his parents lived near lived near my parents, in the quiet suburb of North York, around Don Mills and Finch.

It was clear very early that Mark was gifted at learning Mandarin. Apart from his BA in languages from the University of Toronto, he spent the time to hang out on the streets of Beijing, near our university, to talk to the locals. Over time he had picked up some pretty guttural Beijing Hua. He could switch it on and back to standard Mandarin like a light switch, which was amazing.

While Mark had inspired me to run to the Beijing Foreign Language Institute in order to purchase a Beijing Hua dictionary, colloquial Beijing Hua never stuck with me. I still speak with a very standard Dongbei accent, albeit with an unconscious trailing ‘r’ on many words. The Dongbei people I meet find it odd.

One thing about Mark was his dedication to studying Mandarin. He took classes in the Zhongwen Xi with other native Chinese students. He studied hard to keep up. There were few students that studied harder than Mark.

One night a group of us were chatting in our dorm when Mark came by. He told us about his idea of learning Xiangsheng from a famous Xiangsheng master. Which Xiangsheng master would spend the time to teach a student, much less a foreign student? He told us he had, with the help of friends, already found a Xiangsheng master, and that he was taking classes. The goal was to practice for the New Year’s Festival.

He told us about his Xiangsheng costume. He went to his room get it. He returned dressed in a long dark green silk dress, the ones seen in old Chinese movies. His sleeves were large at the openings. The quality of the material was excellent. Mark told us that such costumes were difficult to find in Beijing and were expensive. As Xiangsheng newbies at the time we had a good laugh at his costume and wished him very well.

A recent news article stated that Mark had just become a new Canadian cultural ambassador to China. I would counter that Mark has been Canada’s cultural ambassador to China for a good twenty years. He is a truly nice guy, fun to be around and quite normal by any measure. Yet his Mandarin stands head and shoulders over any other foreigner I have heard, including myself.

Mark’s curiosity and dedication to China is unquestionable. While we were evacuated to HK during the Tiananmen incident, Mark went just a little south of Beijing and stayed with locals. When I returned to China in August, Mark was nonplussed: He had never left China. There was no risk to foreigners, he said, and he was correct.

When I returned to China in 2008 I turned on the TV to find Mark teaching Chinese the English words for officiating soccer. I saw his face on shopping bags and on billboards. It was interesting to see Mark’s face 15′ high. I also saw Mark lead the Canadian Olympic team for the opening games in Beijing. Was that not part of his ambassador role?

As a Chinese Canadian I will never stick out like a white foreigner in China. In China Mark Rowswell attempts the impossible: To be a native Chinese in China and he does a good job of it.

Parking Costs in China's large cities is becoming prohibitive. And so it should. Too many cars in a city reduces the quality of life for everyone.

Anyone who has recently visited China and Beijing knows that there are too many cars on the streets, thus clogging the free flow of traffic. Gone are the days of riding a bicycle. Public transit is the only way to get around, but buses are just as slow as cars. Beijing has started a lottery for potential new car buyers, which helps. The solution may lie in a scarcity of parking spaces. If you have no parking space you have no place to park your car.

I had thought that China was pretty smart when I saw that most people ride their bicycles to commute. To my dismay cars have taken over Chinese roads. Contributing to air pollution, high crash rates and a reduction in commute times for people, this is not progress in a positive direction. I have no issue with Chinese people buying cars, but when it reduces the quality of life this must stop.

Maybe the solution will come about from a scarcity of parking spots. Most people in Beijing live in apartment buildings, with limited parking. These parking spots have become much more expensive as more people want to buy a car.

Interestingly the diagram above shows Beijing’s housing costs to be 22,310 RMB/ sq M. Since 1 sq M = 10.76 sq ft, this amounts to 2, 073 RMB/ sq ft. At 7 CAD to 1 RMB, this converts to $296CAD/sq ft, very similar in cost to inexpensive housing in Toronto. Parking spots are separate in China. The average parking spot in Beijing costs 140,000 RMB, or $20,000CAD. This cost is included in most apartment buildings here in Canada, though can be priced separately in new condos.

Ten bad driving habits, by Chen Xin, People Daily, equally applicable here in Toronto, Canada

As a lifelong resident of Toronto I can attest that many fellow Torontonians wonder out loud why Chinese drivers are so terrible. I am one of them. As I live in Scarborough, a heavily Chinese area of Toronto, there are certain major intersections that I avoid due to a very high proportion of Chinese drivers that approach 100%. As my ethnic background is Chinese, I have ruled out genetics. Moreover I know many Canadian born Chinese, or Huayi, that are excellent drivers. Further, anyone from Hong Kong can attest to the prowess of their local driving skill. So why are Chinese drivers so terrible?

If you have traveled to China you know that driving in China is terrible and very dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists.

Beijing began a five-year action plan over the weekend aimed at cracking down on traffic violations and bad driving habits in a bid to ease the city’s worsening traffic situation.

Over the next five years, traffic police will crack down on drunk driving, running red lights, the illegal occupation of emergency lanes and bus lanes, driving without a license, and six other traffic violations. Bad driving habits, such as forcibly overtaking another vehicle and forcing it into another lane, will also be targeted.

Traffic in Beijing is horrible. I recall taking 45 minutes to travel 2 kms in a taxi. There are way too many cars on Beijing streets to travel efficiently. Still, cars that do move are dangerous. Traffic signals are ignored if there is no police on site. People park their cars everywhere, blocking whomever they wish. It seems that there is a blatant disregard for the safety and convenience of others. I suppose if you do not know someone else personally, you have no personal connection (guanxi), and therefore no need to be cordial.

I will not cite examples of bad driving practice that I have personally witnessed in China, as they are too numerous. And very scary. Suffice it to say that in trying to cross a busy Chinese street you may not make it to the other side uninjured.

We can only guess at the reasons why Chinese are terrible drivers.

1. Driving is relatively new: Yes, in China the ability to drive is very new, only within the last 10 years. New drivers lack skill. That get a driver’s license from Hong Kong are excellent drivers, and those that fail migrate to Toronto and get an Ontario driver’s license. Many from Mainland China do not have a drivers license from China, so this is their first time driving here in Toronto.
2. Driving is a status symbol: It seems like when Chinese migrate to Toronto from China one of their goals is to get the largest vehicle possible. Maybe this is to brag to those back in China that they are financially well off? Unfortunately these large vehicles are more difficult to drive. These new drives drive so poorly that they become a hazard to everyone else on the road.
3. Driving rules are not enforced: This is true both in China and Toronto. Bad driving is applicable to all drivers here in Toronto. If police would enforce existing laws there would be better overall driving habits, but even the police break the laws.

No matter where you originate, here in Toronto Chinese drivers have a bad reputation as terrible drivers. Hopefully the next generation of young Chinese drivers will not follow their parents and grow up to be skilled and courteous drivers. Parents need to learn from their kids.

China's 60 mile traffic jam of coal trucks lasted 10 days.

Contrary to popular belief, China is still Communist. There has been no change of political will, only the naive belief of foreigners that as China becomes wealthier that China will abide by its own rules of law. This is not the case, as the Toronto Star’s Asia correspondent Bill Schiller, found out. He traveled a little outside Beijing into the countryside only 3 hours train ride away, only to find out that things are run differently in the countryside. Reporters do get hassled and told in uncertain terms to leave.

Surprised he should not be, and from his writing this seemed evident. It sounds like he expected to be questioned, but not hassled by multiple levels of police and politicians.

Let’s set down some assumptions. Schiller is probably an accredited journalist in China, which means that, barring special cases such as Tibet, he can roam the vast expanse of the Middle Kingdom at will, writing whatever drivel that comes out of his middle orifice. Police, army nor politicians should not impede his reporting unless he has broken some law of the land. These privileges are backed up by some big wig bureaucrat in Beijing, and maybe a law that covers foreign journalists. The free reign of foreign journalists in China has been touted as proof positive that China is a welcoming and “open” country to foreign friends.

This is openness is not quite true, as many a foreign journalist has found out. While there has been improvements over the years, even during the 2008 Olympics when all eyes were on China, foreign journalists complained of rough treatment and arrest by Chinese police. China is at least consistent if not fair.

Even if a journalist is roughed up or barred from entering some Chinese location, while there must be a complaints process, such as the Office of Foreign Affairs or such, one should not be surprised if you get no satisfactory result. The damage has already been done, the foreign journalist was barred from what someone believed to be a sensitive Chinese issue, and this was done for the common good of China. The ends justifies the means, at least behind the scenes.

I would hesitate to say that China outright lies about their openness to foreign journalists. No, I think there is a cultural difference that should be noted. If foreign journalists would only report on the good aspects of Chinese life, there would be no issue of banned access. When reporting on a perceived negative or suspect aspects of Chinese life, for the good of the reputation of the greater China and the face of the Chinese race, these foreign devils should expect to get a kick in the keister. This is “openness” Chinese style.

Similar to North America and Europe, China has laws. Dissimilar is that these laws are there to protect the individual from the state and not to protect the state from the individual. This means that laws are used to control civilians and not used to control the government, police or politicians. This difference is very important, as the belief that China’s laws will protect you from a crooked politician’s wrath might land you in isolation for a couple of months in a black jail. As Mr Schiller found out, local politicians and police routinely use this “upper hand” to remove miscreants that have shown up on their patch. They know they are legally allowed to do this and they use it to their advantage.

Let’s get back to Bill Schiller, the TorStar Asia Correspondent and his shiny accredited journalist badge. You are a white foreigner stopped at a truck stop for coal trucks heading into Beijing. If you were Chinese like Jan Wong you might have had better luck, but as is, you stuck out like a sore thumb. There are secret police at near every truck stop in China. What did you expect from local politicians who are trying to cover up their problems with the clogged highway. This is causing Beijing much lost productivity and Beijing politicians much lost face, as this story has been carried around the world. The heat from Beijing travels downstream to these local politicians, who, unsurprisingly, were not welcoming to your presence. Frankly I am glad that Mr Schiller was so accommodating, or he would have been thrown in jail and beaten to a pulp by local police and paid thugs.

This is not a condemnation of the actions of Mr Schiller, only an explanation of why he was treated like a pariah. I realize that he is a journalist and writes stories for a living. I have read as many of his stories as I can and am very thankful for his insights. Still, when there is a sensitive issue in China all journalists, Chinese or foreign, should expect a crackdown from the local and national governments.

It’s nothing personal, Mr Schiller, it is just the way China works. The profession of journalist in China, like the profession of lawyer, can be hazardous to your health. Do as you are expected and you should do just fine. If you think you have been done wrong, you should see what happens to the people that you interview.

Note: The whole legal vs reality dichotomy in China is very intriguing. Cases occur in such regularity but seem to not shock people. Here is another example where an outspoken Chinese magazine, Caijing, researched black jails, which are technically illegal in China. Editors got hounded by the police. Only after they reported being hounded that some Beijing politician stepped in to remove one company. The other hundreds of companies that illegally detain and beat up citizens and throw them into private black jails are still in operation. The highlighted company is closed down, its owners jailed, in order for China and Beijing to save face. It matters little that the huge problem still exists.

Prior to this police investigation, authorities have always denied the existence of the detention centers, and the fact that they’ve acknowledged them is good news. But don’t jump to the conclusion that the government is now committed to cleaning out the black jail system just yet.

After Caijing published its investigation of the illegal security firm, police officers began harassing its editors to reveal its sources, arguing that the article threatened “stability and unity.” It was only after Caijing publicized another article reporting that incident that Beijing’s new police chief personally apologized to the deputy editor, assuring him that no one on the staff would be punished, eventually calling for the investigation.

But even with Anyuanding’s shut down, it is only one company in a long, messy web of officials protecting themselves from “disharmony.” Really curing the country of its black jails will take nothing short of a major petition system overhaul.

Sandstorms or fengsha are common each spring in Beijing. Of the many things I learned while living there was how to survive the onslaught. The sand is so fine as to permeate every nook and cranny of your clothes, windows and food. The best thing to do is to get a fine scarf and wrap it around your head in order to protect your eyes. If you usually wear contact lenses switch to glasses. Clean and reclean everything. Try to keep your food air tight. Don’t worry, it will be over in about a month.

I do not know enough about geography to determine if fengsha is caused by people or is a natural phenomenon. I do know that it can be quite annoying. Sand blown by the wind into your eyes will hurt, and if you are riding a bicycle you might crash. Don’t take the risk. Cover your head and eyes with a fine scarf.

Surviving Beijing fengsha: This woman has it right. Cover your whole head with a scarf.

I actually got used to eating sand while in Beijing. It sounds strange and I would not normally add it into my food, but living in Beijing you really have no choice as sand does get into everything. On the plus side there is no discernible taste, they are low in calories, have no trans fats and may even aid in your digestion.

On the negative side I witnessed many a Beijinger with very swollen and red eyes during this season. Sand is blown by the wind and is literally torpedoed full speed into your eyes. It not only stings but damages your eye.

Suffering particularly terribly are the children. Get them a scarf and wrap their heads in it. Some kids will detest having something so claustrophobic and will not used the scarf, but will be convinced when sand starts hitting their face. This I have witnessed in Beijing.

These boys have the right idea, using their hong lingdai as a mask. Lanzhou, Gansu, China by Xinhua

Whatever you do to cover up your face and eyes, do not put a plastic bag over your head. For those that do not see the obvious risk, the available oxygen in the bag will be used up and replaced with carbon dioxide, which will eventually leave you light headed. You will eventually faint and then die.

Don't put a plastic bag over your head as you might suffocate. Feng Sha in Beijing, China

There is always good with the bad. Once fengsha ends the air is clear and fresh, for at least a couple of days. Enjoy.

Chinese riders protected from sandstorms, Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China

Properly protected from fengsha with a lovely scarf. China

Sandstorm map covers a large area of China, from People's Daily

Related Links:
Beijing Dyes Hair Yellow For Free, With Sandstorm

In the past Beijing was racked by spring time sand storms that came down from Mongolia. Fengsha, as it is called, is a very fine yellow particulate that permeates the air and lands on all surfaces. it is so fine that it gets through closed windows. You can clean all you want, but it’ll still get through. As it does get into your food, maybe it helps digestion, I do not know.

Outside the sand would sting your eyes and face. The best protected were the women, who wrapped their heads with see-through scarves. The kids got the same treatment.

Beijing air is polluted and is hazardous to your health

Asia Society’s China Green project (you will need Flash) has a great set of photos showing Beijing pollution. I can attest to the terrible quality of Beijing’s air, though have not experienced the worst days. Frankly I would rather live elsewhere if I can help it. Prolonged exposure to poor air quality can only be bad for your health, contributing to lung ailments.

The photo to the right uses the identical location in Beijing, but spaced three days apart. How would you like to wake up to that kind of environment?

No matter. There are 9-12M people living in Beijing, all seeming content to live there. There are other more polluted places in the world. If I have a choice, and I do, I will live elsewhere.

Chinese Prisons and Legal System: Infamous for human rights violations

One of my deepest fears while on Chinese soil was being arrested and slogging through the morass they call the Chinese legal system. The blog Beijing Haze documents the efforts of an American wife and long term Beijing resident, on extricating her Chinese husband from the wrath of China’s prison system. Her husband was recently arrested in a massage parlour in a Beijing city-wide blitz against prostitution.

Here is her “About Me”:

I have spent over a decade as an American in China and there have been several times when I have composed blog entries in my head after a uniquely Beijing experience, but I never acted on it. Never did I imagine it would be my husband’s arrest and subsequent detention that would ignite the fire to put words on paper and share my experiences. My hope is that by doing so, I might help someone else who gets caught in the system (not as impossible as you may think) as well as helping myself to sort out my own thoughts on this ongoing ordeal. And I suppose it is also a way of placating my sense of guilt for participating in and therefore enabling the cycle of corruption and bribery, by documenting it and placing it on the public record of the Internet.

Her blog entries cover many of the shadier aspects of Chinese life such as bribery, forced confessions, moving prisoners from place to place, forced hard labour, lack of clear legal process, the conditions for early release, re-education through labour, to start. It is also interesting that she points out that certain districts in Beijing are safer than others.

Most disconcerting is the fact that she thought the U.S. Embassy could assist her. Her husband is a Chinese citizen and is thus under the clear jurisdiction of the PRC. Even if he was born in China, immigrated, became a US citizen, and gave up Chinese citizenship, there is a possibility that the Chinese legal system might consider him a Chinese citizen. One would think that after over a decade in China she would already know this.

Very troubling is China’s laogai system of prisons. Here’s a quote from LaoGai.org:

The Laogai, China’s brutal system of labor camps, remains one of the most glaring blemishes on China’s human rights record. Although the term Laogai (reform through labor) was replaced in official use with jianyu (prison) in 1994, so as to suggest to Western countries that the Chinese penal system was not so different than theirs, the true nature of the Laogai has not changed… Moreover, the Laojiao (reeducation through labor) component of the Laogai system, which reappeared in the early 1980’s and allows for the arrest and detention of petty criminals for up to three years without formal charge or trial, is not even considered by the Chinese government to qualify as a prison. Rather, it is regarded as a form of administrative detention and is often employed against political and religious dissidents.

She also touches on using prison labour for export products, though she says that the Chinese government deems this illegal, it is not illegal by any international law. Use of Chinese prison labour is not new. What is new are accounts that organ harvesting is rampant in China’s prisons.

As an avid scholar of things Chinese it is very difficult to get authentic information about the process of detention and punishment, so this first hand account is very enlightening. I wish her well and thank her for sharing her experiences.

Can you fit 1 million people into Tiananmen Square?

Some topics are so foreign to Westerners that to encounter something so blatantly different is like running head first into a brick wall. Such is the case for modern Chinese history. I talk specifically about the student movement of May 4 1989 in Tiananmen Square

I am torn by writing because I have contradictory feelings at odds with each other. On one hand there is undisputable proof from eyewitness accounts and news footage that the events did occur and many people were killed. On the other hand, it was 20 years ago, so why bring up such an old and tired topic.

I am not so old and have lived a relatively pampered life here in North America. Not much of great historical interest has happened here in Toronto. What has triggered my ramblings is that in the eyes of official Chinese historians, not much of interest happened on that fateful 6-4. This, to me is puzzling at best and blatantly fraudulent at worst. In the North American view, an event happened, you have proof, you document it, then you move on. Life marches on as before, and the past becomes an event in history. For better or worse, interpretation of cause and effect is left up for debate. I feel slighted that this has not happened in China. Events of history cannot and should not be suppressed according to the prevailing views of politicians in power. Amnesia should not be part of any country’s history.

Naive was I as well as most other Chinese and foreign university students. They marched to protest against government and party corruption, and to fight for freedom and democracy. Or so I was told, and have the t-shirt to prove it. I’m sure most students knew theoretically but not realistically. Actually at the time I did not even know the Chinese word for democracy. Chinese students started skipping classes to join protest marches down to the Square. I saw Dazibao (large protest posters) at Sanjiaodi (3 Corner Place) in Beijing University, though my Chinese was not sufficient to read them. No matter. I had read about Mao’s Hundred Flowers Campaign, where Dazibao was used to protest and used again to punish the writers. But that old tactic could not be used today, right? That was just Chinese history, right? It turns out that they can and did. Stick with the tried and true.

Chinese students used the event more as an excuse to party, rather than some political protest. Students started skipping classes, walking down to the Square, having parties in their rooms, all laughing and giggles. I learned the term “ba ke” or to strike classes. It felt more like an alcohol free pub crawl rather than anything serious. We foreign students had no clue what was going on and continued going to our classes. Was this such a big deal?

Of course no one forced anyone else to go down to the Square, but intellectual curiosity got the best of us all. They had banners representing the school and their department. All departments organized walks carrying their banners proudly. It was odd for me to see these banners, but what the hell did I know of Chinese university life? If University of Toronto Engineering students could do it, why not the Beijing University English department? Odd, yes, but many things in China are odd. Banners and carrying on was not much odder than the rest. Or so I thought.

As far as I could tell from talking to Chinese friends, social issues were not well thought out. Serious discussions about China’s social and political issues were not so very important. First and foremost these were young university students, eager to learn and try new things, to exercise their independence and stretch their wings on their journey of life. Certainly university students of 2009 are the same. No, the mood was festive, with no thought as to implications. How can one expect young people to think so far ahead into the future?

Some students started camping out at the Square, carrying bedding and food. That’s more than unusual for a liquor free pub crawl. No, all of my friends didn’t do that. It was festive enough to represent your university and department and walk under your banner down to the Square, but not festive enough to stay down there. They all returned to their dorm beds for the night. Conditions down at the Square quickly turned unhygienic. There are no outdoor toilet facilities at the Square then and today. Garbage started to pile up. There was no running water or a place to dispose of dirty water. There was news of various diseases growing and spreading amongst students. The Beijing Health Department had condemned the Square. We did not doubt the authenticity of the news reports. Who would tell a lie in the news about such things?

After a couple of weeks of skipping classes and partying, many students returned to their dorms hungry, sick and dirty. They certainly were partying hardy. I thought this quite odd. Eating poorly and getting sick did not sound like much fun to me. Ditto for not going to classes and losing the opportunity to learn. We were in university, and university students attend classes. Then again I was never the partying type.

After a month, the party had pretty much petered out. Beijing Chinese students returned to their campuses to recover, and were replaced by students from other universities throughout China. Enough was enough. Students were pretty much all in their dorms catching up on their sleep or recovering their health. Showers were in order for all. There were so many tired faces on campus, though Chinese students still did not resume classes. Our language classes continued as normal and I continued to study as normal.

It was at this juncture of time that the unthinkable would happen. The Chinese People Liberation Army would fire live rounds at students down at the Square and kill them. Unfortunately for the students, unlike their Beijing counterparts, they would not be able to return to their campuses, and like good comrades pat each other on the back for a job well done, take hot showers, sleep and regain their health. These students at the Square would never return to their families, and their families will never be able to track them down, to carry them home, and to bury them. The frailties of life and the harshness of Chinese politics were not lost on me.

To the lost students who would never return home, I pay my deepest respects, 20 years too late, and from a foreign country. To their families I offer my deepest condolences, 20 years too late and from a foreign country. I will always have a hint of disbelief, terror and regret when I recall this era of Chinese history. I will certainly not be alone.

Who has financed all this vacant Beijing Real Estate?

Any cursory examination of Beijing’s skyline in 2008-2009 will reveal that commercial buildings such as general office, retail space and hotels have been sprouting up like weeds. As the Olympics wound down and the Global Financial Crisis deepened, it was clear to all that the vacancy rate for these mamoth buildings is very high. Beijing is oversupplied with commercial real estate by an estimated 14 years of optimistic growth. One needs to wonder who financed these buildings and how will they recoup their investment. It seems like the heard mentality has prevailed.

___A recent article by Chan Akya of the Asia Times Online titled China’s unreal estate puts forth a very plausible theory on the overbuilding of commercial real estate in Beijing.

My schematic of what happens when countries with large current account surpluses peg their exchange rates briefly summarized below:
1. Large build-up of foreign exchange reserves that are invested in the debt of the importing country; in this case the United States;
2. Significant inflows of foreign exchange into the exporting country (China) lead to an explosion in local money supply as the central bank compulsorily buys all foreign exchange with local currency;
3. The competitive advantage of the nation in exports leads to greater investments as more companies move their factories to the country; leading to even greater exports in future; this feeds into the above 2 steps;
4. The excess supply of local currency from the above three steps leads to massive asset bubbles as local investors (including the exporters) use the money to chase after assets that are becoming increasingly scarce, such as land;
5. Eventually, all financial assets relating to the future income of the country – stocks, bonds and property – are inflated beyond everyone’s wildest imagination;
6. Reacting to inevitable government measures to cool down the flow of money around the economy (see steps laid out below), many companies start borrowing from overseas investors who are otherwise locked out of participating in the economy. These proceeds are used to invest, or more accurately speculate, in property, shares and so on, in effect accentuating the bubble conditions mentioned in step 5.

___Let me try to summarize:
1. The world buys lots of cheap Chinese goods, pays China in foreign currency
2. China’s money is pegged to the US dollar. China accumulated a whack load of US dollars. Huge inflows of foreign money start to burn a hole in Chinese pockets
3. Idle Chinese money compete for investment opportunities, exhaust them, and then start buying up and building commercial real estate
4. Reality hits home that there are too many new buildings chasing too few companies. Chinese business get nervous
5. Chinese business sells these “prime real estate” opportunities to foreigners or other Chinese companies, walking away with large profits.

___If China’s yuan could float, there would be a greater demand by foreigners for Chinese money. Chinese goods would appreciate in price and cost more. As the price of Chinese goods rises, fewer foreigners would buy Chinese goods, reducing demand, and possibly mitigating the huge influx of foreign capital in China. Because China’s yuan is pegged to the US dollar, this self-correcting mechanism does not function.

___It is clear that there is excessive unleased commercial real estate space in Beijing. All that marble needs to be financed but by whom? These nonperforming investments will need to be written down on some company’s accounting books. If these investors are foreigners, will this extra economic burden slow down a very tentative recovery from the Global Financial Crisis? If these investors are Chinese, will this force Chinese companies into bankruptcy? Will we ever know who financed these magnificent office towers?

___Is the saying “Easy come, easy go” applicable here? Maybe a Chinese translation is in order.

Related links:
- Banks Face Big Losses From Bets on Chinese Realty
- China property prices ‘likely to halve’
- In China, Property Sales Show Signs of Picking Up

We were in Beijing just before the Olympics in August 2008, and upon arrival were greeted by Beijing’s biggest and most violent thunderstorm of the year. I’ve never seen rain in Beijing like that day. It was only after we got into our hotel and watched CCTV Channel 9 news that we found out the thunderstorm was man-made. Man vs Wild, specifically Peking Man. Chinese Peking Man wins this round. We enjoyed clean air for the day. The day after, I knew we had to leave the city. Even with manipulated air quality, Beijing has a real problem with air pollution.

___It’s not that I expected Canadian quality clean air when flying to Beijing. I recall riding my bicycle to downtown Beijing from Haidian, Beijing’s university district, spending a couple of hours downtown and returning to find my white shirt a pale shade of grey, accompanied by my coughing up blackened phlegm. Yes, it’s as nasty as it sounds. Every trip after I opted to always wear a kouzhao, an air filter of gauze that covers your mouth and nose. As well I always wore a coloured shirt. Though I knew it would do little, it was the least I could do to protect myself.

Pollution almost obscures Beijing's Birdsnest Stadium

___Traffic was another surprise that hit us in Beijing. A 4 km taxi ride took 50 minutes, almost as fast as walking speed. The taxi simply could not move because of the volume of vehicular traffic. Surely when the Beijing government decided to allow private citizens the right to buy cars, they were also considering their impact on daily traffic patterns. Apparently not. Days later a new restriction to not allow cars to drive one day a week came into effect, with almost no visible impact. At least cyclists were moving.

___I recall looking out of my dorm room window at the yellow band in the sky that was known as “fengsha”, or “wind sand”. It is very fine airborne particulate that gets blown into Beijing in the spring from Mongolia. Mothers would wrap their little one’s heads with colourful handkerchiefs so they did not get sand in their eyes. Then they did the same to themselves. Off they would ride on their Feige bicycles. This yellow sand would get everywhere. No matter how much you cleaned, an hour later all surfaces would be again covered by a yellow film of dust. Ah, fond memories, when I didn’t know much and cared less. Still, Beijing’s dust was odd enough for me to take notice.

Breath this, Chinese comrades

___It seems things have changed but not for the better. The yellow band is said to be less now, due to reforstation efforts surrounding Beijing. Instead the yellow has turned decidedly grey. While Beijing residents have been eschewing Feige for bicycle brands like Giant, cycling and walking in Beijing now is much more dangerous than before. You really need to watch you don’t get murdered by an errant taxi.

___In the years before and specifically the months preceeding the Olympics, China had specific plans to improve Beijing’s air quality, as they promised the world Olympic committees. Frankly I did not notice any appreciable difference when I was there. No matter what the Chinese government was saying about Beijing’s fog, international news sources and my nose and eyes were to discover the real truth: Beijing air is still pretty polluted. Due to the global economic slowdown it seems that idling polluting factories has improved Beijing’s air down to levels not seen in 10 years.

Do not worry, Comrades, this is only fog.

___I do worry about the long-term impact on the lungs of Chinese children and adults. Only time will tell if levels of asthma and other respiratory ailments will rise at the same rate as China’s economic growth. Polluted air hurts everyone, but can kill the very young, very old and very weak. While in Beijing breathing such terrible air quality, no amount of official Chinese press releases can convince you that the greyness you see and the thickness of air you feel on your skin is merely “fog”. The photos you see here are what I saw in Beijing. Even living a couple of years in this environment cannot be good for your health.

___Then again maybe rising levels of, say emphysema, will be attributed to China’s love of smoking, thus masking the effects of air pollution. At least China’s farmers are breathing clean air, unless they poison themselves with huge bongs and stinky cigarettes. Can nothing be done to protect Beijing’s air quality?

___Maybe the bright thinkers in China have already weighted the pros and cons of rapid economic growth, and have traded off negatives such as reduced air quality. Still I wonder if some of their economic profits were put to improving air quality and protecting “laobaixing” (the most common 100 surnames, commoners), would not the average people of China benefit the most?