I'm expecting my feet and legs to be pretty sore after each Kendo class.
I will be doing Kendo three times a week.
I've arrived back to Shenzhen to discover a (relatively) cheap foot massage place has just opened on the first floor of my apartment building.
Something tells me I'll become a very frequent customer.
Shixiabei, Shenzhen.
Shixiabei, Shenzhen.
Fumin Road, Futian, Shenzhen
Beautiful
Beautiful
The Chinese city of Shenzhen recently commissioned the French firm Vincent Callebaut Architects to come up with an innovative and sustainable building solution for the growing metropolis. The result is this: The Shenzhen Asian Cairn Farmscraper project, an initiative consisting of six mix-used towers structured like a pile of rocks. Aside from being absolutely gorgeous, the buildings will provide space for residents, offices, shops, recreation — and as the name would imply, its own food.
China is often accused of being environmentally irresponsible, and for good reason. But it's a claim that may not stand the test of time. With an eye firmly planted on the future, the city of Shenzhen is actively responding to the demands of its rising population, unchecked urban sprawl, and rising CO2 emissions.
I would normally equate words like 'vaporware' and 'never-gonna-happen' to a project like this but I've seen too many crazy structures actually go forward and be built in this city, so never say never.
Cool
Literally. I just cleaned house all day.
Haiyue. Nanshan, Shenzhen.
Hong Kong at night.
Hong Kong at night.
In ECA International's 2012 location rankings for expat living conditions, Hong Kong comes in at #3 on the Asian city list behind Singapore and Kobe, Japan. In terms of ECA's global rankings, Hong Kong is 11th, Shanghai 83rd, Beijing 99th, Guangzhou 112th, and Shenzhen 123rd. Shenzhen is #18 on the Asian city list. On the report's rankings of mainland Chinese cities:
Scores have generally remained steady across most Chinese locations. Shanghai, ranked 83rd globally, is the most liveable of the mainland Chinese locations assessed, followed by Beijing (99). Small improvements in facilities for expatriates, such as health amenities and availability of goods and services, have meant that Guangzhou (112) is closing the gap with Shanghai and Beijing.
The three least livable cities globally for expats? Baghdad, Kabul, and Port-au-Prince.
Hollywood Road, Hong Kong.
Tallest I've ever sat on. At the buffet on the top floor of Holiday Plaza. Window of the World, Shenzhen.
Hire a couple of old men on bicycles. Fumin Road, Futian, Shenzhen.
I guess I've been away too long, but after living in China, these proposed 'micro-apartments' simply look a lot like normal, efficient apartments you would find in any Chinese urban area. I lived in one looking very similar to this my first year in Shenzhen.
A cgi image of a future San Francisco micro apartment
One thing that is different about these proposed apartments? Price.
The micro-units are estimated to go for $1,300 to $1,500 a month. The average studio apartment in San Francisco rents at $2,075 a month, according to real estate service RealFacts.
"It's not a lot of space for $1,500," Campos said.
For the equivalent 9,450 RMB a month, even in an expensive city such as Shenzhen, you'd be looking to rent a two story, 3 bedroom apartment overlooking a golf course. A 'micro-apartment' in a main downtown area would run you only 2000-3000 RMB ($320-470).
Huawei's Wuhan headquaters
Huawei's Wuhan headquaters
More on Huawei, why is power consumption slowing, where do wealthy Chinese want to immigrate, and why are there no Chinese Mark Zuckerbergs?
1. Huawei Says US Probe Is 'Protectionism'
"No, I don't think there will be an impact," Huawei's senior vice-president Zhang Chunxiang said. Zhang, who spoke on the sidelines of a business event in Hangzhou, said both sides were still talking and that the US investigation was a sign of trade protectionism.
"They investigated for 11 months and they didn't consider all the different material supplied by Huawei and they still came to that conclusion. "They investigated like they had never investigated at all," he said.
2. Report: White House Finds China's Huawei Is Risky, But Not Because Of Spying
A White House-ordered review of security risks posed by suppliers to U.S. telecommunications companies found no clear evidence that Huawei Technologies Ltd had spied for China, two people familiar with the probe told Reuters.
Instead, those leading the 18-month review concluded early this year that relying on Huawei, the world's second-largest maker of networking gear, was risky for other reasons, such as the presence of vulnerabilities that hackers could exploit.
3. Where Well-Off Chinese Are Looking To Immigrate
On a recent Saturday, some 140 developers from more than 20 countries showcased their properties to Chinese buyers in an expo held in Beijing. To catch the eyes of the prospective buyers, the developers handed out fancy brochures, decorated their exhibit booths with bold-color pictures of featured properties, and in some cases, even had young saleswomen wearing bunny ears.
But what attracted many of the Chinese visitors the most was the lure of foreign residency, which made the 30 exhibitors from Cyprus the most prominent group at the entire expo. Why Cyprus? While mild weather, rich history and a nice location in the Eastern Mediterranean might make the tiny island nation an attractive place to live, the main appeal is the incredibly low bar it sets for immigration: Anyone who spends €300,000, or roughly $393,000, on a piece of property on the island automatically becomes eligible for permanent European Union residency.
Interesting.
4. China's Power Consumption Slows Further
"The slower growth of power consumption is the result of energy-consuming industries, like the real estate and infrastructure construction sectors, decelerating amid the slowing economy," said Zhou Dadi, standing vice president of the China Energy Research Society.
The NEA data showed that electricity consumed by the industrial and manufacturing sector continued to slide, accounting for 73 percent of the the country's total power consumption in September, with energy-intensive industries taking the lion's share. From July to September, power consumption by the industrial and manufacturing sector continued to decline, indicating that the Chinese economy is still facing downward pressure.
5. Local Government Accused Of Forcing Students To Work For Foxconn
Citing a teacher at Shandong Business Institute, China National Radio reported that all of vocational colleges in Yantai, a city in northern Shandong Province, were given a clear order by the local government, asking them to send students to work at Foxconn factories as interns from September this year...
The students, supposed to finish their internship of one to three months at these factories, have to work overtime and nights just like regular employees, the report said. Students complained that their work had nothing to do with their majors, and was exhausting.
Sounds like a worthwhile internship.
6. Why Isn't There A Mark Zuckerberg In China?
Chinese education tends to be better for depth than breadth. In other words, when you graduate as a software engineer, you may have very strong fundamentals in math and engineering, but you don't get as much exposure to user experience, communications, product design, business acumen, team-work, etc. as you would in a typical US university.
Very true. Breadth vs depth.
7. China Opens Atomic Bomb Facility To Red Tourists
Chinese government officials have announced plans to spend roughly one million dollars to open the former atomic bomb test site Malan Base in the remote Uighur Autonomous Region. The Telegraph reports that the site is of particular interest because the base is where Chinese scientists developed their first atomic bomb, which was detonated nearby in 1964...
The new tourist attraction will, according to UPI, include laboratories, dormitories and a 1000-foot-long underground air raid shelter. The project is being managed by local government actors working with Beijing's Tsinghua University.
I'd visit this site. Sounds like an interesting place for science/military nerds.
It all started with this email:
Are you in Shenzhen? I can't get in your home to feed your cats because I can't open the door with the key! I don't know what happened, did you come back and change the lock?
Over the next hour after frantic emails and calls between me and the friend looking after my cats while I'm gone, we found out the management of the apartment complex had to break into my apartment the prior day as a pipe had burst in my kitchen and flooded the entire apartment. My landlord then came that night and tried his best to clean up the floor. In the process the front door lock was changed. It was only the next day my friend arrived at the apartment and found she couldn't open the door.
I'm 10,000 miles away and still don't know the condition of the apartment. Thank goodness I unplugged all the power strips before I left or else some kitties might have been fried. They're okay but will probably be the happiest they've ever been to see me when I get back. I leave Monday for Beijing.
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