Monday, February 23, 2004
Money Matters
The Chinese currency can be rather confusing.
Firstly, the Chinese Yuan (CNY) is also known as Renminbi (RMB).
One Yuan or Reminbi is also colloquially known as Kuai.
One Kuai has 10 jiao. Jiao is also called mao.
One jiao is divided into 10 fen.
Thank goodness, fen doesn’t have another name.
The RMB paper bills come in several denominations: one, two, five, ten, twenty, fifty and one hundred. The problem is the same denomination can come in different colours. This is because the old currencies are not taken out of circulation. So, you can receive change of the same currency that looks different.
Then, there is the “jiao” and “fen”. They can be issued in paper bills or coins. The latter being more in favour these days. Coins come in several denominations: RMB1, 2 and 5 jiao. There is also 1, 2, and 5 fen…which are not very much used.
I have yet to figure out how the jiao works. I had a rather unpleasant run-in with the supermarket cashier. My bill came up to RMB30.10. I gave him one twenty, one ten and two 5 jiao. He asked me for 1 mao. He was rather annoyed by my ignorance. I was and still am confused about the "jiaos".
I was lucky my experience involved just 10 cents. My poor friend had a far worse experience.
We were at, what-seems-to-be our regular weekend hang out, Xiang Yang market. As usual, we were having a good time haggling with the shopkeeper. Then, we went for our lunch at the nearby department store. Lunch was a rather normal Thai meal. The bill came up to over RMB60. We paid with one fifty and a twenty note. We chatted as we waited for the change. Then, the waitress came back with our fifty note and uttered some sentences in Chinese. What I could gather was there was something wrong with the note. The waitress could not explain in English so, we called the restaurant manager. True enough, the fifty note was a counterfeit!
We scrutinized the note carefully. None of us could tell the difference. So, the cashier compared it to a real note. We held the notes in the air. Both had a watermark.
“Aahhh…., it must be genuine, right?”
I always thought that the watermark was an indication of genuinity. Apparently, it’s not.
The restaurant manager asked us to feel the paper quality of both notes. To lay persons like us, we could hardly tell the difference. But, there is a slight difference if one took the time to look closely. He further demonstrated to us the final test- waving the note in the air and listening to the sound of the paper. There was a slight difference, if you really allow your imagination to run.
Photo: Can you tell the difference? Answer below.
Since being here, I always wonder why the storekeeper, supermarket cashier and stalls at the market scrutinise each of the notes I pass them in the air. It was a bit insulting…as if I will use counterfeit notes. Now, we know why. I guess we would need to check for watermark, feel the paper quality and listen to the sound of the notes carefully.
So, the good bargains received in the morning were not so good after all!
Chinese Way of Life
Trend setter or Fashion victim?
A Photo moment in China.
Lesson 33 in The art of Tai Tai hood
"Sometimes, you need to listen to the sound of money. This is how a ten bill sounds like....and this, a twenty..."
Answer: The top note is real. The bottom one is a counterfeit.
Your say? [ comment(s)]
The Chinese currency can be rather confusing.
Firstly, the Chinese Yuan (CNY) is also known as Renminbi (RMB).
One Yuan or Reminbi is also colloquially known as Kuai.
One Kuai has 10 jiao. Jiao is also called mao.
One jiao is divided into 10 fen.
Thank goodness, fen doesn’t have another name.
The RMB paper bills come in several denominations: one, two, five, ten, twenty, fifty and one hundred. The problem is the same denomination can come in different colours. This is because the old currencies are not taken out of circulation. So, you can receive change of the same currency that looks different.
Then, there is the “jiao” and “fen”. They can be issued in paper bills or coins. The latter being more in favour these days. Coins come in several denominations: RMB1, 2 and 5 jiao. There is also 1, 2, and 5 fen…which are not very much used.
I have yet to figure out how the jiao works. I had a rather unpleasant run-in with the supermarket cashier. My bill came up to RMB30.10. I gave him one twenty, one ten and two 5 jiao. He asked me for 1 mao. He was rather annoyed by my ignorance. I was and still am confused about the "jiaos".
I was lucky my experience involved just 10 cents. My poor friend had a far worse experience.
We were at, what-seems-to-be our regular weekend hang out, Xiang Yang market. As usual, we were having a good time haggling with the shopkeeper. Then, we went for our lunch at the nearby department store. Lunch was a rather normal Thai meal. The bill came up to over RMB60. We paid with one fifty and a twenty note. We chatted as we waited for the change. Then, the waitress came back with our fifty note and uttered some sentences in Chinese. What I could gather was there was something wrong with the note. The waitress could not explain in English so, we called the restaurant manager. True enough, the fifty note was a counterfeit!
We scrutinized the note carefully. None of us could tell the difference. So, the cashier compared it to a real note. We held the notes in the air. Both had a watermark.
“Aahhh…., it must be genuine, right?”
I always thought that the watermark was an indication of genuinity. Apparently, it’s not.
The restaurant manager asked us to feel the paper quality of both notes. To lay persons like us, we could hardly tell the difference. But, there is a slight difference if one took the time to look closely. He further demonstrated to us the final test- waving the note in the air and listening to the sound of the paper. There was a slight difference, if you really allow your imagination to run.
Photo: Can you tell the difference? Answer below.
Since being here, I always wonder why the storekeeper, supermarket cashier and stalls at the market scrutinise each of the notes I pass them in the air. It was a bit insulting…as if I will use counterfeit notes. Now, we know why. I guess we would need to check for watermark, feel the paper quality and listen to the sound of the notes carefully.
So, the good bargains received in the morning were not so good after all!
Chinese Way of Life
Trend setter or Fashion victim?
A Photo moment in China.
Lesson 33 in The art of Tai Tai hood
"Sometimes, you need to listen to the sound of money. This is how a ten bill sounds like....and this, a twenty..."
Answer: The top note is real. The bottom one is a counterfeit.
Monday, February 16, 2004
Love is in the air
What happened on Valentine's Day
Three girls in a strange city
unexpectedly single
shopping spree, not candlelight dinner
Man with a bouquet of roses in the metro
At the park
young boy with flowers waits anxiously
Holding hands on the busy street
Woman sells flowers on the street
A couple sneaks a kiss in the train
Girl affectionately rests her head on her partner’s shoulders
One dozen yellow tulips!
Photos: Valentine's day in Shanghai
Location: Central Huaihai Road, Shanghai
I read a funny article in the papers this weekend.
What would the married man say…
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
We stay in tonight
Because of bird flu
What would the two-timer say…
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Sugar is sweet,
And I love you two
…Four weeks into a relationship…
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Your smile is my sunshine,
Je t’aime beaucoup
…Four years into a relationship…
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Blah, blah, blah, blah
And so are you
What would the stalker say?
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Look out the window,
I am waiting in the bushes for you!
Chinese Way of Life
Toilet report for the week
What else happened on V-Day?
This week's entry in Beeworks Ceramics.
Lesson 32 in The art of Tai Tai hood
"Be it a contractual (marriage), two-timing, stalking, old or new love.........love should be in the air everyday of the year."
Your say? [ comment(s)]
What happened on Valentine's Day
Three girls in a strange city
unexpectedly single
shopping spree, not candlelight dinner
Man with a bouquet of roses in the metro
At the park
young boy with flowers waits anxiously
Holding hands on the busy street
Woman sells flowers on the street
A couple sneaks a kiss in the train
Girl affectionately rests her head on her partner’s shoulders
One dozen yellow tulips!
Photos: Valentine's day in Shanghai
Location: Central Huaihai Road, Shanghai
I read a funny article in the papers this weekend.
What would the married man say…
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
We stay in tonight
Because of bird flu
What would the two-timer say…
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Sugar is sweet,
And I love you two
…Four weeks into a relationship…
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Your smile is my sunshine,
Je t’aime beaucoup
…Four years into a relationship…
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Blah, blah, blah, blah
And so are you
What would the stalker say?
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Look out the window,
I am waiting in the bushes for you!
Chinese Way of Life
Toilet report for the week
What else happened on V-Day?
This week's entry in Beeworks Ceramics.
Lesson 32 in The art of Tai Tai hood
"Be it a contractual (marriage), two-timing, stalking, old or new love.........love should be in the air everyday of the year."
Monday, February 09, 2004
Airing one’s dirty laundry of Shanghai
Caution: Best read on a fully-digested stomach!
I have been in Shanghai safe but cold for a week now. It’s been an eye-opener. In the one week, I managed to see two women without their underwear.
On the first day, I decided to go down to check out the hotel pool. Now, this pool is a very special one. It’s not only indoors and heated. It turned out to be a wave pool by default ….. or rather, “design” default. It's basically a big hole dug from the ground and tiled up. Normally, there is a drain that runs around the inside of pool.
So imagine, I am in the pool with a family of four. The "husband" decides to show his butterfly skills. This leaves me choking from the waves on the slow lane. Luckily, the family stayed for about 15 minutes. I could swim in peace again. Later, I walked into the naked "wife" in the changing room. I was rather shocked but remained cool. She went about her merry naked way oblivious to the fact that I was in the room. As for me, I dared not look more than I initially glanced……a stark naked woman’s body with her bushy pubic hair.
Now, I have heard stories about low cubicles with squatting toilets in China a long time ago. You do your business. After which, you have to stand up naked in full view of others to zip up your pants again. I never imagine that it still happens in this current day and age.
In the weekend, we spent the day at Nanjing Road at downtown Shanghai. My survival mind is always at a lookout for decent toilets. The golden rule is....
“If you find a good one, it’s better go then than never.”
So, there I was in a pretty large and decent-looking bookstore. I see the toilet sign and decided to check it out.
"Good....it had several high-wall cubicles."
So far, it's quite promising. I looked further inside the cubicle.
"Gross….it’s a open drain."
Still, I decided to gather my courage to execute.
"When in China, do what the Chinese do!"
"Ok, I can do this. Just don't look down!"
I took my cubicle door and realized that the occupant next door decided to use my door to shield her cubicle. I caught her with her undies down. Another naked bottom!
I had the toilet door in my hand. Be brave. I walked closer into the cubicle. From my quick glance, it had water flowing in it and what look like brown stools (possibly from the woman next door).
Ok, that is too much for me to take. Plan abandoned. Washed my hands and was out of there in a jiffy.
Despite the modernity of the city, I guess some things have not changed.
A Photo Moment in China.
This week's entry in Beeworks Ceramics.
Lesson 31 in The Art of Tai Tai hood
"When nature calls, go to the nearest hotel toilet. If in China, make it at least a 4-star hotel toilet!"
Your say? [ comment(s)]
Caution: Best read on a fully-digested stomach!
I have been in Shanghai safe but cold for a week now. It’s been an eye-opener. In the one week, I managed to see two women without their underwear.
On the first day, I decided to go down to check out the hotel pool. Now, this pool is a very special one. It’s not only indoors and heated. It turned out to be a wave pool by default ….. or rather, “design” default. It's basically a big hole dug from the ground and tiled up. Normally, there is a drain that runs around the inside of pool.
So imagine, I am in the pool with a family of four. The "husband" decides to show his butterfly skills. This leaves me choking from the waves on the slow lane. Luckily, the family stayed for about 15 minutes. I could swim in peace again. Later, I walked into the naked "wife" in the changing room. I was rather shocked but remained cool. She went about her merry naked way oblivious to the fact that I was in the room. As for me, I dared not look more than I initially glanced……a stark naked woman’s body with her bushy pubic hair.
Now, I have heard stories about low cubicles with squatting toilets in China a long time ago. You do your business. After which, you have to stand up naked in full view of others to zip up your pants again. I never imagine that it still happens in this current day and age.
In the weekend, we spent the day at Nanjing Road at downtown Shanghai. My survival mind is always at a lookout for decent toilets. The golden rule is....
“If you find a good one, it’s better go then than never.”
So, there I was in a pretty large and decent-looking bookstore. I see the toilet sign and decided to check it out.
"Good....it had several high-wall cubicles."
So far, it's quite promising. I looked further inside the cubicle.
"Gross….it’s a open drain."
Still, I decided to gather my courage to execute.
"When in China, do what the Chinese do!"
"Ok, I can do this. Just don't look down!"
I took my cubicle door and realized that the occupant next door decided to use my door to shield her cubicle. I caught her with her undies down. Another naked bottom!
I had the toilet door in my hand. Be brave. I walked closer into the cubicle. From my quick glance, it had water flowing in it and what look like brown stools (possibly from the woman next door).
Ok, that is too much for me to take. Plan abandoned. Washed my hands and was out of there in a jiffy.
Despite the modernity of the city, I guess some things have not changed.
A Photo Moment in China.
This week's entry in Beeworks Ceramics.
Lesson 31 in The Art of Tai Tai hood
"When nature calls, go to the nearest hotel toilet. If in China, make it at least a 4-star hotel toilet!"
