Crowds after the acrobatics show
Acrobatics had always fascinated me, but this was something else. Remembering a cultural delight (although not politically correct in the slightest) by the Russians in St. Petersburg of a circus on ice involving Polar Bears on ice skates I had high standards for any circus act.
Yet the Chinese surpassed my expectations with astonishing death-defying acrobatics involving flames, rotating giant rings, body contortion and youths flipping through spinning hoops. We were forbidden from taking photographs but I was not surprised – a quick flash could be the difference between life and death. As two heavier boys jumped from a height onto a see-saw with another boy balancing on a long pogo stick at the other end – I had my hand in my mouth as the ramp swung and the pogo-boy did a double-back flip onto a landing pad held aloft by two helpers. To finish the event off seven men and one woman on motorbikes wowed the (mature) crowd with racing motorbikes around inside a spherical cage.
The future of commerce
After the show – we walked towards a new shopping district, laid out like a mini village with triple-deck flats containing more designer brands in flashing shops than I recognised. This really was the future – flashing lights and designer shops still open at 10pm on a Sunday night for scores of youthful Chinese attaining “moderate prosperity” to spend their cash. On the metro back to South Xangshi Road I noticed yet more shoppers returning after a successful day by the looks of it – armed with full bags from designer stores from the illuminated Huanhai Road.
Starbucks
Mandarin characters replaced Starbucks and McDonalds sings where English letters usually rested – perhaps showing how even these foreign brands were becoming Manderised (as opposed to Anglicised) although many of the billboards along the high street were still showing white models as the ideal.
I took an afternoon stroll away from the hum of the main streets to find some evidence for the real Shangahi – which is not seen in the commercial centre. I found some evidence of what standard living conditions could be like, a row of terraced flats hidden behind by bars and cafes were less polished as a woman sat outside her home with a dirtied bra hanging from a piece of cord. Men played chequers near a much-out-of-place-lawn while others, while a policeman was shouting and pointing a crowd of bystanders after a car had collided with a motorbike – so it seems social harmony doesn’t always prevail.
Off the beaten track
I use the phrase “Social Harmony” because, just as the propaganda film I have just finished watching on CCTV 9 – an English speaking channel which contains programmes about China – has introduced me to the concept. “Social harmony” is the ideology of the CPC the Communist Party of China, something which has been furthered by educational and cultural programmes, with lower cost social housing made available in 2005 according to the programme.
Towards the close of the day we ate at an Italian restaurant – not unusual for Shanghai – from where we could hear the beats of the bar/club upstairs. It was a Sunday, but that didn’t stop the party. It made me question…does China have the same concept of a weekend like in Europe? We discussed the hard-working nature of the Chinese people. The perception at least was a sharp contrast to the laziness and self indulgence apparent in Unionist culture in Northern Ireland and indeed in many places in England I have been to or read about. I was almost ashamed of my own culture. Here (at least so far) polite, co-operative, private and unhurried Chinese put my home culture to shame. It was much less frantic than London, although the road junctions were somewhat of a mystery – while a footpath is often mounted by a cyclist or motorcyclist.
The roads are notoriously dangerous – Shangahi daily reported bus drivers were dying at the wheel because of stress. I’m not too sure I could believe that headline, but it is true that driving here is not recommended!
China as it Changes 