– Anyone who’s lived in China for more than a couple weeks has likely amassed a pile of pirated DVDs. Coming from Western countries where the prices are 15-30x more, it’s tough to throw even the worst ones away (I’ve still got my copy of Benchwarmers for Christ’s sake). Getting them home is one of the … Read More »
– A supporter of open-source software managed to take the spotlight away from the bazillion dollar man, Bill Gates, during the Windows creator’s visit to Beijing yesterday. The unidentified man waited until Billy was finished congratulating some students at Beijing University, and then stormed the stage brandishing a sign stating: “Free Software, Open Source” I saw … Read More »
– As most everyone with Internet, cable, a radio or a newspaper knows by now – there was a terrible shooting at Virginia Tech University yesterday where a man shot and killed 32 people, injuring 15 others. What’s quickly coming to light is that the killer was very likely a 25-year-old Chinese man in the US … Read More »
– The big news in China the past couple weeks has been about Western fast food chains (McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut) underpaying their staff in China – particularly the part-timers. The issue was sparked by accusations from China’s top trade union that McDonald’s was underpaying their employees (Reuters/China Daily), in some places by almost half, … Read More »
– Just a quick note to say that Lost Laowai now has its own official group on Facebook. If you’re a member of the popular social networking site, be sure to join the group of fellow lost laowai! Come see who else is a member, put faces to names around the China blogsphere (yikes!), ask questions … Read More »
– I’m not a timid man. Generally speaking I don’t get overtly nervous in most situations. However, any time I see the financial protection services folk, clad in their somewhat comical blue combats, and armed with a tube of a gun, I get shaky. These guys, whose job it is to protect transfers of money between … Read More »
– UPDATE May 12/09: While this solution may still work, if you are in China for any length of time, we recommend getting yourself hooked up with a Virtual Private Network (VPN). For a super-fast and versatile solution, check out WiTopia. If their inexpensive yearly fee is too much for you, give the slightly slower (but … Read More »
– Living in China brings with it a number of occasions where most can do nothing but scratch their heads and say “WTF?” However, largely by the help of the English-language China blogsphere, we’ve started to create a dictionary that can assist in putting words to the weird, definitions to the disarray and captions to the … Read More »
– I love etymology. I’m not sure what about knowing “why” a word is what it is that steams my baozi, but I just dig it. I confess, I’m not hardcore about it, but do frequently visit www.etymonline.com for casual reading. For armchair etymologists like myself, the Chinese language is a fantastic source of wonders. Learning … Read More »
– Staying positive in China is a topic that has been making the rounds through expat circles of late. Whether it be John’s generally always upbeat blog (except when it comes to Spring Festival), the well-written “10 Reasons Why Living In China Is Great” or Rick’s soon-to-be-published post about Chinese do-gooders. Now, don’t get me wrong. … Read More »
– I’m generally the first to admit I’m lazy. Perhaps it’s not lazy so much as being part of the Goldfish Attention Span Generation (GASG). I just can’t be bothered to focus on something for too long. This, perhaps, is why when I first heard of Active Chinese I was a little concerned it was a … Read More »
– One of the (few) benefits of moving into an apartment inherited from a fellow expat is that occasionally they leave books behind. English-language reading material is not difficult to find in China, but stories that delve into the Chinese condition more than the State-approved classics are absent in the bookstores and often guarded by their … Read More »
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