This video is nuts. Check out this horrific clip of a whirly-swing ride in Shanghai as it completely topples over. No idea if anyone was injured, although I have a feeling it would be too optimistic to expect that everyone escaped without a scratch.
Did I ever tell you about the time I saw the Dalian Mounted Police equestrian show? Well, all those police ladies were riding horses around a circuit, as one would expect from horse-riding police ladies. Me and a Chinese friend were up in the stands enjoying the show, when he turns to me and says:
“Hey Rick, have you mounted policewomen in Canada?”
And I says to him, “Sorry, I don’t kiss and tell.”
Furama Hotel Dalian joins World Hotels
The Furama has joined World Hotels as a new ‘Deluxe Collection affiliate’, whatever that means. I like the Furama a lot, and while I haven’t stayed in all the hotels in Dalian (not by a long shot), it seems to be among the best. A friend of mine who stays in the Shanggrila (which used to be widely believed to be the best) says that their service and quality is on the downslide.
Person of the Year move Dalian to tears
“Totally ten local people (or group) were granted the honor of the “Civilized Touch” Person of the Year 2009 in the coastal city of Dalian, January 14, 2010.” Forget the ‘Civilized Touch’, I want to see who won the ‘uncivilized touch’ award. That would be far more entertaining. Forget the ‘Civilized Touch’, I want to see who won the ‘uncivilized touch’ award. That would be far more entertaining. Read the rest of this entry »
Cold freezes sea-farmers’ income
“Fan Xinyuan, a resident of Jinzhou district, north of Dalian, Liaoning province, who raised 66.7 hectares of sea cucumber, told China Daily that if the temperature didn’t rise and ice continues to block the sea, there will be no sea cucumbers left.”
I hate sea cucumber. Good riddance…
Drowned sailors honoured
“North Korea has posthumously honoured sailors for rescuing portraits of the former and current leader from their sinking ship even as they were drowning, Pyongyang’s official media said on Friday.”
I don’t remember reading this story before, but that’s pretty hardcare.
AmCham-China Launches Dalian Chapter
“The American Chamber of Commerce in the People’s Republic of China (AmCham-China) today launched its third regional chapter nationwide, in Dalian, Liaoning Province. At the launch, Dalian Vice Mayor Dai Yuling and US Consul General for Shenyang Stephen Wickman were in attendance and made remarks welcoming the chamber’s expansion.”
Shopping meets tourism in Dalian
“Dalian residents see Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong as among their favoured travel destinations, with shopping at the top of the agenda. Conversely, shopping tours have become lucrative streams of sales for travel agents, with end-of-year and holiday destination offers snapped up.”
Just a quick note to point out a good talk on the whole Google/China mess from people who know. From New America, a good chat and debate featuring Rebecca MacKinnon, Evgeny Morozov and Tim Wu. I’ve put the Youtube video below, but if you’re in China you’ll obviously need to use a proxy or VPN.
Alternatively you can check out the mp3. I’ve also uploaded it to drop.io if you’d like to stream it here instead:
I was just reading a pretty fascinating article over on The Guardian’s website entitled How do I know China wrecked the Copenhagen deal? I was in the room. Whether China was actually at fault here, I can’t say for sure. I suspect they are, but of course I was not in the room.
The one thing that I did take notice of in this discussion was that the Chinese reportedly used a tactic that I had seen before many times when I worked in China. They imposed a delay:
The Chinese premier, Wen Jinbao, did not deign to attend the meetings personally, instead sending a second-tier official in the country’s foreign ministry to sit opposite Obama himself. The diplomatic snub was obvious and brutal, as was the practical implication: several times during the session, the world’s most powerful heads of state were forced to wait around as the Chinese delegate went off to make telephone calls to his “superiors”.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010 00:00 – 19:33 Or Guinness Day, will be on 17th March. I noticed that in Beijing they're celebrating by having a Guinness price war, with several bars cutting the 60 Yuan plus drink to 30 Yuan. That's about wholesale price when accounting for a little wastage. What's happening in Dalian? […]