Watch: Fight between Chinese and laowai passenger on train

Terex · 4 days

Yeah, if I was on that train I'd be fighting with the foreigner. What a dick move in any culture.

Zooperman · 4 days

Yeah, I went to my local zoo (small, undeveloped town in the SW) and there was a man who had a bear chained by his nose, connected to a stick that was used by a man to make the bear perform tricks. It was terrible to watch.

you_need_this · 5 days

I went from knowing no characters 15 months ago to being able to understand passages of China's Newsweek (as long as I have a dictionary near me) There are probably better methods than what I have done, but really what it takes is time + persistence. You cannot take a day off, learning how to read characters (not passages or poetry) is just memorizing thousands of things. When I put it like that to me it sounds easier.

I started with remembr.it It is another SMS like others have suggested. This just teaches you 2200+ characters, in a smart fashion. I did this everyday. Again these were just characters, not words. But learning what the character itself means is very useful later on
Learn all the time, you live in China, I viewed my new word as a puzzle. Oo! Look at that sign, what is does say? the menu? the business card. etc.) You can pick up on lots of easy vocab that way
After I finished the remembr.it I started reading more from textbooks, putting the characters into a grammatical context
I got stickystudy for iOS. This program is like remembr.it only it has words. Over 5 months I have expanded my vocab greatly by using this
Now by just using flashcards + textbooks I am at a level where I can pick up something that is US-Today level and understand the meaning of a passage (not even close to every word though). But this is great! Now everyday I read for at least an hour, and slowly things just become easier and easier (although it is still incredibly difficult)

CleanBaldy · 6 days

They cannot legally do this anymore because of access to flush for those with disabilities. I wish I could cite the source but I am on the run and don't have time now.

rissah · 6 days

This is an incredibly cheap ticket, I wish I could go to the Philippines right now. That being said last winter I went there out of Guangzhou, for some reason they always have the cheapest tickets to the Philippines, just a tip for anyone who wants to get away from China's brutal winters.

ipwndurmom69 · 7 days

I agree but people are self conscious about pooping. It is a shame really

CramsyAU · 8 days

This is good to know, but even though it doesn't seem to matter to you I just took the new-hsk and the writing section was typed not handwritten, just in case you ever need it for a job. (I'm in the same boat as you, I never want to spend the precious time I take to study Chinese in order to memorize stroke orders, when I rarely ever handwrite in English, let alone Chinese)

CramsyAU · 8 days

You don't even need to finish your courses. The only requirements are that you are foreign, and are over 18 with some ability in Chinese (CSC scholarship you need HSK-2 passing, Chongqing... no specifications, Confucius HSK-3 for one year, HSK-2 for semester scholarship) Also the Confucius Institute one you need to be connected to a CI in your home country so they are little more difficult to get.

This being said, the application process is very non-transparent and tough to make a life decision with as they won't tell you when you if you get it until June, even though you will apply by March-April (as compared to graduate schools who usually tell you by the spring.)

CramsyAU · 8 days

Ha, I like your analogy. This is true, like any standardized test, many Chinese schools will have HSK classes which basically teach you ways to take the test better but not learn the language very well. With a dictionary I can now read a magazine that is about the same level as a Newsweek in America but have tried HSK-5 practice tests and have failed (the difference between getting the idea of the story, understanding the main points- against putting the exact word in a sentence.)

That being said I am going to stay and study here for another year to not only actually improve my Chinese but to pass the HSK-6. At some point you need to be bench-marked

CramsyAU · 8 days

I have been applying for tons of scholarships (which you should look into, Confucius Institute, CSC, Chongqing municipal scholarship) for one year of studying. They typically say that if you are a serious student one year of studying should bring you from hsk-2 to hsk-5. So maybe you would be able to do it in 6 months hsk-3 to hsk-5 but yeah. If you are a serious student, of course you can do it, just make sure you practice your reading vocabulary everyday.

If not hell go back to school for a year, take some Chinese classes back home and then apply to a year long Chinese study program. The Chinese government pays you to study for 1 year, housing, insurance and a small stipend.

CramsyAU · 8 days

On the new test the written section for me was done on a computer. It was all grading grammar structures basically.

x2percent · 8 days

If I remember right from the book cited in the article "Red Capitalism" this has basically been happening since the banks started. The banks are basically what funds close to everything (other than the FDI into manufacturing) in China. Any casual observer can see in every city no matter how large or small there is an insane amount of building that is financed by cheap land (through destroying villages) and free flowing capital (through the state banks) that never really needs to be paid off. Everyone gets paid on the micro and on the macro everything is fucked.

Darksagga · 8 days

I like the phrasing "more representative of China" I really get annoyed when people say that Shanghai isn't the "real" china but of course it is different. A different place (a third-tier or below city) is probably best microcosm of China (rich people, lots of development, but also lots of poverty, less foreign influence, a mix of traditional and modern cultures etc.)

Darksagga · 8 days

I am really happy that someone wrote this, certainly it has been said before but it needs to be said more often. Shanghai is China and the village in Guizhou is China, certainly the experiences are different but so is living in New York and living in rural West Virginia. Both are American experiences.

MJKauz · 10 days

This has always been my dream job. The thing is one doesn't need a Ph.D in one of the most difficult fields, they just need a little bit of celebrity for something. I know of a University (god knows why they did this) but they invited a New Housewive of New Jersey to speak. Speaking fees were over 10k plus airfare. What an amazing life.

my_novelty · 10 days

A good bottle of foreign liquor is always welcome (unless you know that he doesn't drink) It is the most common gift among business / academics in China.

Outside of that any kind of a local fine art / craft / photography would be acceptable. In my experience when I have been given gifts it is often a very local art / craft.

As for smaller gifts, American dollar bill is always nice (unless you met them in America last summer, wouldn't be so interesting then) When I came over I brought a photo book from my home state and it went over well, can usually find something like this at the local B and N

MarcoVincenzo · 10 days

It is funny, the public will often cry about how our schools are falling behind Chinese schools because they site test scores. Of course in China, the education system is just No Child Left Behind x 100 in terms of how much testing is emphasized. So you have a country who knows how to memorize a small set of facts and take multiple choice tests extremely well, that then a politician sees as have higher test scores than American students, so what should America do? Our students should be tested!!

newyork99 · 12 days

It also shows how sad the political system is, change happens when leaders push an agenda not succumb to the views that are already out there in a calculated fashion. The republicans don't go by polls, they change the polls.

laivindil · 12 days

I just don't understand how this changes anything. I mean just because he supports it doesn't mean anything. He doesn't support it enough to take it federally, he is leaving it up to the states.

ekser · 14 days

Umm, probably not, just people don't want to switch from FB because of the network effect it has (everyone else is one it) I don't see why a Chinese person would want to switch.

ekser · 14 days

The Chinese market is completely tapped with social media. Just because the majority of people don't use facebook doesn't mean there isn't social media here. From sina, to qq zone, almost every young person (and middle aged people) is highly engaged in some form of social media.

WheredMyMindGo · 14 days

I didn't even know this was a r/wtf posting. When I saw the picture I actually said outloud "What the fuck?!"

numerounoff · 14 days

I understand that, and I do, but just how much more bad ass would it be to do that if you were a millionaire.

numerounoff · 14 days

Wouldn't that be the best part about being wealthy. I have no interest in accumulating an incredible material things and find those who have the means (or don't) who do acquire so much really bizarre. But this does not mean I wouldn't love to be wealthy. How awesome would it be to own a really small dwelling with a few nice things and just have money. If you decided to do a cartwheel on the street people would look at you strange, but who cares you have no one but the law to answer to.

SleepyOta · 14 days

Get a card with low limit and cash back. I had my first credit card at 19, have never missed a payment and with cash back have actually made over $300 off my credit card company and have good credit to boot.

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