Archive for the ‘China Travel’ Category

May312010

Posted By
Glen

Fact or Fiction VI: Xinjiang, The Final Frontier

Welcome back one and all to the May edition of Fact or Fiction. Those of you who read either of the last three will know, every edition I will have a guest and we will discuss a few of the big issues in China of the day. Every answer will have a “Fact” or a “Fiction” and some justification to go along with it.

Today my guest is Josh Summers, a writer with a passion for the province of Xinjiang. He and his wife arrived in Xinjiang in August of 2006 and for reasons unknown to them stayed for almost four years. Their experiences in the province have been featured on sites such as the BBC, MSNBC and China Daily, but Josh takes most pride in the writings he publishes on his own site, Xinjiang: Far West China.

Although he moved back to Texas in March of 2010, he continues to focus on his adopted home back in China. In May he released a Turpan travel guide and is almost finished completing two more guides for Urumqi and Kashgar. The perks of life in America have already worn off after two months and he’s hoping to return again to Xinjiang in the future.

Today Josh and I are going to be discussing a variety of issues in the Westernmost region in the Middle Kingdom. So join us for Fact or Fiction 6: Xinjiang, the Final Frontier…

Apr242010

42Comments

Posted By
Ryan

Hilarious Shanghai Expo Trial Run Email Meme + Photos

Steven (of LLW and Sinobytes renown) sent me an e-mail yesterday that has been make its way from Chinese inbox to Chinese inbox in an expedient fashion. I thought it was hilarious, and a some what rare opportunity to get a peek at the Chinese taking the piss at their own expense. Below is not the complete e-mail with photos, but the majority of it — organized into slightly more coherent groupings.

By far my favourite is the photo captioned “上海资源丰富，请随便享用” — the first image in the “Water Fountains” section. Let it never be said that the Chinese are devoid of sarcasm.

主题: 对不起,我们丢脸了 / Subject: Sorry, we’ve lost face.

See the images, with explanations, after the jump.

Apr202010

13Comments

Posted By
Glen

Fact or Fiction V: The Glenpire Strikes Back

Welcome back one and all to the April edition of Fact or Fiction. Those of you who read either of the last three will know, every edition I will have a guest and we will discuss a few of the big issues in China of the day. Every answer will have a “Fact” or a “Fiction” and some justification to go along with it.

Today my guest is Rebekah Pothaar, the former editor of Ctrip and Chinatravel.net and former Shanghaiist and CNNGo contributor. She always dreamed of being a travel writer until she discovered through experience that writing is one of the most badly paid “glam” jobs on earth. So in 2009, she tossed her old dreams out the window and chose a life of corporate advertising in Shanghai. Since then she has what they call “career prospects” but rarely has time to write. Lonely Planet and The Telegraph phone her from time to time asking for her work, but she disdainfully asks them to show her the money. So far, they haven’t coughed up anything worth rolling out of bed for. She dreams that one day writers will be paid enough so she can leave the advertising business and return to writing again. In her spare time, she still enjoys traveling in China and lists camping on the Great Wall and running the Great Wall Marathon as her most unique China experiences. With the May Holiday coming up, Rebekah and I will be discussing several travel issues in this crazy country of ours.

So join us for Fact or Fiction 5: The Glenpire Strikes Back!! (…I’ve seriously been waiting four issues of this to use that title)

Mar102010

14Comments

Posted By
Steven

10 fantastic iPhone apps for your China life

If you’ve gotten your paws on an iPhone or an iPod Touch, you’ve likely added lots of useful apps to it. You might, however, have overlooked the fact that there are lots of apps – many by Chinese developers – that you can use daily to help find your way around, speak the language, or get information.

I’ve chosen 10 China-relevant apps, most of which are free

Feb222010

11Comments

Posted By
Katie

The laowai relapse

There I was, a 6-month China veteran, standing in the middle of a Beijing street, having my first ever argument with a tuk-tuk driver, while my shell-shocked parents and younger brother gaped in awe. To my credit, the argument was in Chinese. Not to my credit, my part of the argument consisted of about 3 [...]

Dec152009

12Comments

Posted By
Ryan

Laowai homecoming — mass-transit misery

I’ve been home in Canada for a little more than a week, and am already beginning to rub up against the things that run different from my laowai life in China. And while we’ve covered this topic a few times on the blog, I felt like using this post as an opportunity to reach out [...]

Dec152009

NoComments

Posted By
Katie

Travel-Worn: the scarf

Scarves are a big trend in fashion now, especially in China. I was assured of this by a woman who told me “all Chinese girls like to wear scarves!” when she sold me a pair of custom-painted knock-off Chuck Taylors for Y70. I’ve purchased a few scarves since arriving in China, and they’ve come in [...]

Sep072009

28Comments

Posted By
Glen

10 Slightly Off the Beaten Path Locations in China

Still haven’t made up your mind for the October Holiday yet? Don’t want to bother leaving the country, but have already done Beijing, Shanghai, Xi’an, and the like? Well worry not, I’m here to help!

I’ve come up with 10 of my favourite places to visit here in China that are off the usual laowai tourist route. Of course, since this country has a billion people, it is very difficult to truly be able to leave the beaten path. But is that necessarily such a bad thing? I mean, places are visited because they are exceptional…for the most part. But many of these locations seem to be skipped over by other foreigners for reasons I do not truly understand.

Hopefully you’ll find some inspirations here…

Aug022009

4Comments

Posted By
Ryan

Plague Strikes Qinghai: Glen has sniffles.

I was talking with friend and frequent Lost Laowai contributor Glen yesterday. He mentioned that he is currently hanging out in Xining, Qinghai, and while he has intentions of travelling more, his plans have been delayed as he is feeling under the weather. And then I read this: One dies of Pneumonic plague in NW [...]

Jun142009

17Comments

Posted By
Jalal

Riding the Chinese Railway: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.

I am in some doubt as to where I stand on taking the train for long-distance journeys in China. I have in the past found myself admiring the rail networks ability to transport you to the farthest corners of the country, provided with food, water, and a place to lie down and sleep. On other [...]