14 October 2015

Gentlefolk,

This post is about our trip to Zoucheng, Jining Prefecture in Shandong Province, 28 September to 1 October 2015.

This year Mid-Autumn Festival (holiday) was on Sunday 27 September, and the National Day holidays from 1 - 7 October.  Our university decided to combine the two holidays rather than split them.  So we had off from Sunday 27 September to Sunday 4 October and teaching resumed on Monday 5 October.

One of our colleagues, Steven, is married to a local girl.  His wife Amy is pregnant (for mid-November) and is now staying with her family in Zoucheng.  Steve was going to see his wife and we decided to accompany him.

The other reason for wanting to visit Zoucheng  was because it is the home-town of Mencius (often referred to as "The 2nd Sage", Confucius being the 1st Sage).  It is located about 30 km south of Qufu, the home-town of Confucius.

Zoucheng and Qufu are located in Jining Prefecture, south of the Provincial capital Jinan and not far from famous Mount Tai (Tai shan).

As the crow flies, Zoucheng is about 300km from Qingdao but there is no direct route.  Trains go via the provincial capital Jinan and the most convenient highway goes via Rizhao.

The fast train from Qingdao to Zoucheng was sold out, so we took a sleeper berths on the slow train ($24 each).  It took almost 8 hours (11am - 6.45pm), but we could sleep and read and it was quite comfortable.  We decided to take the bus back - a 5 hour trip via Rizhao.

It was good to see Amy again - she was looking very big with only 6 weeks to go.

On the first day we visited the Mencius Temple (where he taught) and Mencius Mansion (where he lived).  We also visited the Zoucheng Museum (impressive building, but not much inside), had lunch with Amy's family, looked around the city centre and Steve & Amy's apartment in a relatively new complex on the Western edge of the city.

The following day we all took a bus to Jining City, the main urban area in this Prefecture.

Mencius (Chinese: Meng zi; 孟子)

Popularly known as "China's 2nd Sage" (Confucius is the "1st Sage"), Mencius promoted Confucian philosophy.  But while the Confucian Analects contain short, pithy, self-contained statements, Mencius' writings (collected in a book just called "Mencius") were longer, in-depth and analytical.

Mencius believed that human nature was basically good. He said that kings should rule through persuasion rather than force and if they became too "self-seeking" then revolution was justified.

Mencius's mother is often held up as an exemplary female figure in Chinese culture. A well-known traditional Chinese four-character idiom is 孟母三遷 (mèng mǔ sān qiān; literal translation: "Mencius's mother, three moves").

This saying refers to the legend that Mencius's mother (his father died when he was young and she faced hardships bringing him up on her own) moved house three times before finding a location that was suitable for the child's upbringing. As an expression, the idiom refers to the importance of finding the proper environment for raising children.

When his mother died, Mencius took leave for 3 years from his official post, which is regarded as a example of great filial piety.

Here are some pictures of our trip:

We stayed at the Green Tree Inn (there are three in Zoucheng). Nice room for $22 per night (including breakfast).

A view from the 5th floor breakfast room. The blue room covers a huge market.  Amy said that she often went there with school-mates.  But it is quiet now, having been overtaken by shops and malls.

Confucius (Kong Zi), popularly known as "China's First Sage" (551 - 479 BC). His home town was Qufu, about 30 km north of Zoucheng.  Don't you love his eyebrows and his buck-teeth!

Mencius (or Meng Zi) regarded as "China's Second Sage" 372 - 289 BC.   He lived 100 years later, but was a keen follower of Confucius and propagated his ideas.

Another depiction of the two Sages, leader and follower.

The cover of a scholarly book on Mencius.

The main gate of the Mencius Temple in Zoucheng. Entry cost $6.50. Unfortunately there were no English-speaking guides available, so we hired the audio guide.  

Amy, Steven, and Vera at the entrance of the Mencius Temple.

One of the halls in the grounds of the Mencius Temple.  Lots of cypress trees - some said to be more than 800 years old.

The Mencius Family Mansion included an activities area for visitors.  Here is Steven showing off his archery prowess (10 arrows for $1.60).

We visited the Zoucheng Museum, built 12 years ago for about $6 million.  A big, impressive building, but unfortunately not many exhibits inside. Entry is free.

Waiting for a bus in the downtown area of Zoucheng. We had surprisingly good pizza at Margritta Pizza ($2 per slice; they had a promotion "buy one, get one free" which effectively made it $1 per slice). 

Amy and Steven have a nice 2 bedroom apartment, which cost about $60,000. Zoucheng is a relatively small, inland city and everything is significantly cheaper here than in big cities such as Qingdao and Jinan.

Amy & Steven's apartment is in the complex at the back.  Now some high-rise towers are being built along the main road to Jining City.  But construction seems to have slowed down - perhaps the developer is in financial trouble?

A short, but interesting visit.  It was good to get away from the campus for a few days.  We have now seen both Qufu (Confucius) and Zoucheng (Mencius) - there is no doubt that Qufu is bigger, livelier and on-the-whole more interesting.

...

That's it for this post.

Best wishes, Stay well and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah

English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao

www.upc.edu.cn

Wednesday, 14 October 2015.

9 October 2015

Gentlefolk

As you know, I compile a monthly summary of news items, with a focus on news on China.  

There is so much competition within Western media outlets that usually only the unusual, sensational, or bizarre gets a mention. Hopefully this summary will give you a better idea of some of the things happening in China.

The events/items included are not necessarily the headlines, but rather things which caught my eye.

The second list, international events reported in China, is basically for me.  There are so many things happening around the world (information overload!), that I find it useful to have such a list to look back at. 

These news items were sourced from the China Daily newspaper 1 – 30 September 2015. 

Actual events usually occurred a day or two before they appeared in the China Daily newspaper. 

Currency shown is US$, and the exchange rate used this month is US$1 = Yuan 6.3.

Remember: the China Daily is a government newspaper whose main purpose in life is to make the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese Government look good.  But if you strip away the propaganda, there is still quite a lot of interesting stuff in the paper. 

I can’t guarantee the accuracy of the information. I am aware that in the last few weeks a number of Western commentators have begun to question the accuracy of Chinese economic data.  An old joke does the rounds here: The Premier asks the head of the National Statistics Office “What was GDP growth last quarter?” The reply: “What do you want it to be?”  I don’t think manipulation of statistics is nearly as bad now as in the ‘old days’.

Events which made the news in China in September 2015

(a) Domestic (in China) events and news

4 Sept	Big parade in Beijing yesterday to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the defeat of Japan which ended the Sino-Japanese War (1937 – 1945) and WW2. Peoples Liberation Army (PLA): 12,000 troops marched; 500 pieces of the latest hardware such as tanks and rockets on display; 200 aircraft.  1,000 foreign troops from 17 countries participated, most from countries which had little to do with Japan in WW2, such as Russia; Belarus; Kazakhastan; Afghanistan; Mexico; Cuba; Venezuela; Fiji; Laos; Cambodia. 30 foreign leaders attended, notably Vladimir Putin (Russia) and Park Geun Hye (South Korea). Most Western countries were represented by their Ambassadors. President Xi Jin Ping announced plans to reduce the size of the PLA by 300,000 to make it more efficient.
	China consumed about 70,000 tonnes of cheese in 2014, 94% imported.
	Steel output in the first 7 months of 2015 totalled 476 million tonnes, down 2% on same period in 2014. Steel exports in the first 8 months totalled 72 million tonnes (up 27% on same period in 2014).
	China exported tea valued at $1.3 billion in 2014 (8% less than 2013).
5	Chinese airlines handled 210 million passengers in January – June 2015 (up 12% on same period in 2014).  Lower oil prices boosted profits.  Air China said its profit for the first half of 2015 was $550 million largely due to a 30% fall in fuel costs.
7	Some netizens criticised Taiwanese singer Fan Wei Qi (Fan Fan) for showing a lack of respect when she posted happy photos of her twins on her Weibo account on 3 September, the day China commemorated the end of the Sino-Japanese War. She is hugely popular in China, with 47 million Weibo followers.
	An explosion at a chemical factory in Dongying, Shandong Province: 13 dead, 11 injured.
8	Li Qing Gui, Party Chief of Xin Xiang, Henan Province, was demoted for failing to control corrupt subordinates.
	The Mayor of Jining, Shandong Province, Mei Yong Hong, resigned to join a local insurance company. He will earn 3 times his former salary of about $900 per month.
	The Shanghai Composite Index (the main share-market index) has had a bad time.  On 12 June it was 5,166; on 8 July 3,507; on 26 August 2,927; and on 7 Sept 3,080.
9	International trade in August 2015: exports totalled $189 billion; imports totalled $131 billion.
	In 2011 China started ‘trial’ emission trading markets in seven major cities.  The Govt has announced that a nationwide system will be introduced in 2017, and be fully operational by 2020.
10	The National Statistics Office announced that it will adopt the IMF’s approach.  In future, GDP will be based on a single quarter’s data (previously calculated on cumulative figures).
	Since the end of 2012, 125,000 members of the CPC have been disciplined.
11	24 year old Guo Mei Mei was sentenced to 5 years in prison and fined $8,000 for “operating gambling houses” during the 2014 Soccer World Cup.
	The Nissan joint-venture, Dongfang Nissan, was fined $19m for ‘violating anti-trust laws’ by fixing car prices (Mercedes Benz was earlier fined $55m and Audi $39m).
	The World Leisure Games were held in Qingdao, 12 – 21 September.  Contests included: rock climbing; roller skating; street dancing; dragon boat racing; martial arts.  About 15,000 contestants participated.
	The Ministry of Finance reported that Apple under-paid tax of $71 million in 2013.  Apple paid the $71m and incurred a ‘late fee’ of $10m. In the 2nd Quarter of 2015 Apple sold 120 million iPhones in China – represented 11% of China’s smartphone market. The iPhone 6S and 6S Plus and the iPad Pro were launched in the US yesterday.
12	Casualties continue to rise from the huge explosions at a warehouse storing hazardous chemicals in Tianjin on 12 August: now 165 dead (including 99 firemen and 11 policemen). Eight persons still unaccounted for - will probably be added to the ‘deaths’.  239 injured are still in hospital. The Govt has announced families of dead will receive compensation of $360,000 each.  The Govt will also buy badly damaged apartments for 30% above the previous market price.
	Five large stockbrokers were fined a total of $28 million for “illegal trading activities” which aggravated the recent stock market crash.
14	Starbucks has 1,400 outlets in China; it plans to have 3,400 by 2020.
	A Chinese shipbuilder has delivered the largest-ever container ship (capacity of 18,000 standard containers equivalent) to a French buyer.
	An investigation of the China State Construction Engineering Corporation found that 24 senior managers were ‘naked officials’ (ie, their wives and/or children were living permanently abroad). One decided to bring his family back, the others were demoted.
	August was the 4th month of declining sales of Passenger Motor Vehicles. 15 m units were sold in the first 8 months of 2015.
16	Universal Studios announced plans to joint-venture with 4 State Owned Companies to build a $8 billion theme park in Beijing.
	The number of Chinese visitors to the US totalled 2.2 million in 2014 (up from 397,000 in 2007). The average stay was 14 days and they spent an estimated $23 billion. In November 2014 the US introduced 10-year multiple-entry visas for Chinese which is expected to boost visits even more. There are 274,439 Chinese students studying in the US (31% of all foreign students).  They contribute an estimated $22 billion to the US economy.
17	Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, won the bid to host the 2022 Asian Games (Beijing was the host in 1990, and Guangzhou in 2010).
	Three internet giants, Alibaba, Baidu, and Tencent, all establish film/movie subsidiaries.
	China’s annual 3 month fishing ban ended yesterday.
19	Futer Energy’s coal-to-oil project ($2.2 billion) started in Yulin.  1st phase capacity is 1.1 million tonnes per annum; 2nd phase may increase to 10 mtpa. But recent low oil prices make this project uncompetitive and the 2nd phase will likely be postponed.
	Average price of new apartments rose in August 2015 in 35 of 70 largest cities; average price up 1.7% over August 2014 (Tier One cities saw larger increases: Shenzhen up 30%, Beijing up 14%, Shanghai up 7% on a year ago).
21	Yesterday’s Beijing Marathon had 30,000 runners (65,000 applied).  No shorter distances were included this year.  Pollution level PM2.5 @ 160 for the race was “medium". Kipchumba (Kenya) won the Mens in 2h 11m; Cherrenet (Ethiopia) won the Womens in 2h 27m.
	State Owned Enterprises (SOEs). There are 111 SOEs under the National Govt, and about 25,000 under Provincial and Local Govts. Profits of National SOEs fell by 3.1% in the first half of 2015.  Reforms in the pipeline.
24	Currently an estimated 12% of Beijing residents commute by bicycle (down from 38% in 2000). The Municipal Govt is trying to promote cycling. By the end of 2015 it will have 50,000 bikes-for-hire around Beijing and ‘no-parking’ by cars in bicycle lanes will be strictly enforced.
	In 2014 China attracted Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) of $129 billion.
26	Popular children’s author Du Hong died of cancer.  She spent $120,000 to have her brain cryo-preserved in the USA (kept in liquid nitrogen at minus 196C) in the hope that future technology will enable her to “return”.
	SOE coal miner Heilongjiang Longmay announced 100,000 job cuts.  It produced 50 million tonnes of coal in 2014 but suffered losses of $815 million.
	Molson Coors announced that it is pulling out of the Chinese market – too much competition.
29	Tianjin University announced that it will run an elective course on 'dating'.
	Celebrations of the 2,566th anniversary of Confucius birth.
	Groundwater in China is being over-extracted by an estimated 17 billion cubic meters per annum. New plan being formulated to restrict the extraction of groundwater.

(b) International events

5 Sept	Hundreds of thousands ‘migrants’, primarily from Middle East and Africa, attempting to reach northern EU countries.
	China Railway Rolling-stock Corporation (CRRC) won contract to upgrade Boston Metro. CRRC is building a manufacturing plant in Springfield, Massachusetts (investment of $95m).
	Kentucky clerk Kim Davis jailed for refusing to marry gay couples.
	Judge Richard Berman overturned the NFL’s four-game ban on Tom Brady for allegedly using deflated balls during the Patriots – Colts game last January.
7	The Chinese Womens Volleyball team beat Japan in the finals to win the World Championships.  China gets automatic entry into the Rio Olympics next year.
10	Queen Elizabeth 2nd passed Queen Victoria’s record reign of 63 years.
	Wayne Rooney’s goal in England’s win against Switzerland brought his total to 50.  He passed Bobby Charlton’s 45 year old record of 49 goals to become England’s top scorer.
11	Election in Singapore: Lee Hsien Loong’s People Action Party won a resounding victory with 69% of vote.
	Anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the US.
12	A Pew Research Center survey found that 54% of Americans have an unfavourable opinion of China, while 38% have a favourable opinion.  Issues of most concern: huge US debt held by China; loss of manufacturing jobs to China; alleged cyber-attacks by China; China’s human rights record; huge US trade deficit with China; China’s pollution; China’s growing military power; disputes over islands in South China Sea.
	The United Nations voted 119 to 8 (45 abstentions) to allow the Palestinian flag to be flown at the UN headquarters.
14	Jeremy Corbyn was elected leader of the British Labour Party.
	A crane collapsed in Mecca’s Grand Mosque, killing 107 and injuring 200 Haj pilgrims.
	Floyd Mayweather beat Andre Berto to win his 49th professional fight (equalling Rocky Marciano’s record). Mayweather announced his retirement from boxing.  His winnings since 1996 total close to $1 billion.
	US Tennis Open: Flavia Pennetta beat Roberta Vinci (who beat Serena Williams in the semis). First all-Italian final. Novak Djokovic beat Roger Federer to win his 10th Grand Slam (Federer has won 17).
16	New Australian Prime Minister when Malcolm Turnbull beat Tony Abbott 54 – 44 in a Liberal Party leadership ballot.  Turnbull is Australia’s 29th PM (and 5th in 5 years).
	A subsidiary of SOE Bright Food Group will buy 50% of Silver Fern Farms, New Zealand’s biggest meat cooperative, for $197 million.
	Australian rugby league star Jarryd Hayne switched to the San Francisco 49ers American Football team. He fumbled his first catch, but SF went on to beat Minnesota 20 – 3.
17	In two separate incidents, two American-Chinese Sherry Chen and Professor Xi Xiao Xing, were accused of giving classified information to China.  After investigations, both have been released and all charges have been dropped.
	New documentary by director William Mundell “Better Angels” on Sino-US relations.
18	8.3 earthquake hit Chile; 12 dead, widespread damage.
	Didi Kuaidi invested $100 million in Lyft, Uber’s competitor.  Didi has 80% of Chinese market for car-hailing.
19	Wearables market, 2nd quarter 2015 top three: Fitbit sold 4.4 million units, Apple sold 3.6m, and Huanmi (Mi brand) sold 3.1m.
	China’s Biostime bought 83% of Australian Swisse Wellness Group for $989m.  There is strong demand in China for foreign nutritional products.
21	Japan’s Diet (Parliament) passed the new Security Law which will allow Japanese troops to fight overseas.
	Rugby World Cup in England.  Big upset when Japan beat South Africa 34 – 32. England was beaten by Wales and Australia, so is out of the competition.
22	President Xi Jin Ping started his visit to the USA today, accompanied by First Lady Peng Li Yuan. First stop Seattle for China – Governors Forum and Business Round Table.  He will tour the Boeing (Boeing has orders from China totalling $38 billion) and Microsoft Headquarters.  24 Sept official visit to Washington DC and meetings with President Obama.  26 Sept at United Nations in New York.  He pledged $1 billion to the “China-UN Peace & Development Fund”; $100 million to the African Union; $2 billion for South-South Cooperation; $10 m for the UN Women’s Group; training in China for 30,000 women from Developing Countries). Back to Beijing 29 Sept. This is President Xi’s 7th visit to the US since 1985, but his first official visit. A new book “The Xi Jin Ping Era” was published, edited by Professor James Hsiung of New York University.
	Visit to China by George Osborne, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer.
	Aussie Jason Day, 27, won the BMW Championship in Illinois and became the World #1 ranked golfer. It was his 4th win in 6 starts.  He shot impressive 61 and 63 in the first two rounds, and ended up winning by six strokes. (But 10 days later Jordan Spieth won the FedEx Championship and replaced Day as World #1).
	Smoke from fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan blanket Singapore and parts of Malaysia.  Singapore has closed schools.
26	A stampede of Haj pilgrims near Mecca results in 800+ deaths and thousands injured.
	VW admitted incorporating rogue software to improve emission standards in about 11 million diesel-engine cars.
28	Catalan separatists won in regional elections.
	Thai police say that the bombing at the Erawan Shrine on 17 August (20 killed, 120 injured) was in response to their crackdown on human trafficking syndicates.

September saw the start of the 2015-16 academic year, which will be our last in China as we intend to finish teaching in July 2016.

Best wishes to you all, keep well and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah

English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao

www.upc.edu.cn

Friday, 9 October 2015.

3 October 2015

Gentlefolk,

We are already in the 4th week of the new semester, and it's time I put pen to paper again.

This post is about my teaching schedule, and also features recent photos taken since the beginning of this semester.

Last week Vera & I did a short visit to Zoucheng, the home town of Mencius.  I'll do a separate post on that trip,

Teaching schedule

This semester I have 7 classes a week, as follows:

Mondays: 8 - 9.50am; International Trade classes 1403 + 1404; Oral English
Tuesdays: 2 - 3.50pm; English Major class 1502; Oral
Wednesdays:  7 - 8.50pm; Non Major class 283; Western Culture
Thursdays: 8 - 9.50am; EM1503; Oral.
                   7 - 8.50pm; NM284; Oral
Fridays: 7 - 8.50pm; NM145; Oral
Saturdays: 4.10 - 6pm; Double Major class 1401; Western Culture

The Wednesday night Culture class is being videoed for the University's new MOOC collection.

So, five Oral English classes and 2 Western Culture classes a week = 14 teaching hours. Pretty cruisy. But of course there is always lesson-preparation, which probably takes another 10 hours a week.

I have 3 night classes, 7 - 8.50pm on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.  These are tough as the students are usually tired after a long day of lectures (I well remember fighting losing battles to stay awake during night lectures at the ANU back in the 1960s). I see the night lectures as a challenge - to keep the students interested and participating and awake!

Actually, for the first 3 weeks of this semester I had an additional 3 Oral classes a week, for a special training group from China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC). That course has now finished.

Salary 

(Note: I use US$ in this blog, as the A$ has been so volatile)

The university has increased our salaries from this semester (first increase in at least 6 years).  We now get a base salary of $475 a month (up from $320) plus $9.50 for every teaching hour (up from $8).  So my 14 hours per week (56 hours per month) will pay me $532 per month, giving a total monthly salary of just over $1000.

I will have to pay some income tax, but should clear about $880 per month.

At the end of each academic year I also get an allowance of $1,250 towards overseas travel.

We certainly won't get rich on $220 per week, but our great little on-campus apartment is free, and my salary easily covers our day-to-day living costs (we have to dip into savings for our travel back to Australia twice a year).

Here are some recent photos:

In early September Qingdao hosted the Asian Rugby Sevens championship. Teams from Japan, Malaysia, UAE, etc; both men and women teams.  Never thought I'd see rugby played in China, but since Rugby 7s will be included in the Rio Olympics next year China has become interested.

Part of the (small) crowd watching the Rugby 7s championship,

I taught Oral English to the CNOOC trainees for three weeks in September. A fine group of young adults.  They had a busy schedule: 8 hours a day of English, Monday to Saturday for 12 weeks; I got involved at the end.  English names: Tony; Qi; Alex; Feddy; Mason; Charlie; Jeff; Lily; Jim; Danny; James; Neil; Mark; Will; Snake; Tom; Jerry; Kevin; Carl; Andy; William; Allen.

All foreign teachers are allocated a "Liaison Teacher" by the English Faculty to help us with any issues related to teaching.  My Liaison Teacher this semester is Zhang Qi (Carol).  She is super-helpful, friendly and efficient.  She married Dr Zhang Yong and we were invited to the wedding banquet at the Howard Johnson Hotel across from the North Gate of the campus, a grand affair.

I had the honour of proposing a toast to the newly-weds.

From left: Luan Zhu (a colleague of Carol's); newly-weds Zhang Yong and Zhang Qi; Vera and me.

All Freshmen students (over 4,000 in our university) do 17 days of military training when they first start College.  We attended the parade at the end of the training, always an impressive occasion held in front of the university's top leaders.

The Honour Guard got tangled up in the flag! But he didn't miss a beat.

Some of the students marching in the parade.

A close-up of some of the Freshmen students participating in the parade.

The girls looked good in their red berets.

These students demonstrated their unarmed-combat skills (here wielding knives).

Photo from our balcony, looking south-east across Tang Dao Wan Bay.  

Same photo as above, but using the zoom to highlight Ling Shan Dao Island in the distance.

This photo was taken three days ago.  It is full moon (a Super-moon this month) with very big ('king') tides.  This is low tide - most unusual to see to the water so low, and so much of the bottom of the Bay exposed.

This photo taken at same time as above - very low tide.  You could easily walk out to Cow Island in the middle of the bay.

Vera and I with Little Eddie in Hong Kong, early September 2015. He is 18 months old and very cute.

A Wallabies supporter!!  Hope we beat England tonight; fingers crossed.

Andrew stretching before going for a run - Little Eddie helping.

Caroline's furniture website is up-and-running (www.reddie.co) but only for deliveries in Hong Kong at this stage.  She is exhibiting some of her furniture in a special promotional area in Hong Kong.

More Reddie furniture on display.

Paul Milton with his three grand-kids, Eddie, Bea and Miles.  They were all in Bali in early September to celebrate Paul's 70th birthday.

...

That's all for this post.

As mentioned, I'll do a separate post describing our visit to Zoucheng last week.

Best wishes, keep well and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah
English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao
www.upc.edu.cn
Saturday 3 October 2015