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Skateboarding: Little Trouble In Big China
China, home of 1.37 billion people, four times the population of the United States and roughly 40 times the population of Canada. Imagine standing around right now but instantly having 40 people right there. Say good-bye to personal space. Now imagine how dirty Toronto or Vancouver is (which they really aren't) and triple that. It's a different world. No rules, unless you're Chinese. Maybe sprinkle in a bit of Internet censorship, Do what you will is the rule of las here (just don't spit in the subway.) But aside from the dense population, disgusting pollution (Shanghai mostly), harsh language barrier and strife living conditions for the majority of the people, China might have the best skateboard spots in the world.
BIG RED ROCKETS!
After the civil war in China 1949, Chairman Mao and the Communist Party of China kicked out the central government of the Republic of China. The ROC government fled to Taiwan and set up shop there. Finally, I figured out why they hate each other and why they have missiles pointed each way. I lost my board in the water there. Oh well, it worked out for the better cause I bought so many souvenirs my bag was over weight.
WHAT'S THE SYMBOL FOR CHICKEN BALLS?
Chinese is one of the hardest world languages to learn. Instead of a standard 26-letter alphabet like ours, the Chinese use thousands of symbols, each of which means something different. Also, there are several different dialects throughout the country. Basically, it's bloody hard as hell. I don't think some Chinese understand each other sometimes.
BEIJING'S CRAP IS CHEAPER THAN SHANGHAI'S
Shopping in China is a blast. You can find anything you want, and most likely it will be a knockoff. We must've been asked a thousand times to buy fake bags and watches. Down random alleys and into people's houses we would go to find the cheapest prices on fake Rolex and Breitling watches. It was so much fun haggling for lower prices. If you ever visit Shanghai, don't pay more than 50 Yuan for a fake Rolex. And remember: tell them Beijing is much cheaper than Shanghai. They hate that.
THOUGHT POLICE AND PING PONG PATROLS
The Chinese can be very strict. Try getting censored from going on MySpace... harsh. The interesting thing about green parks in Shanghai is that a lot of them don't allow you to do anything but walk or sit around. The park that this photo was shot at had a couple of security guards who would squash any sort of fun. Fun cops, if you will. On a walk through one day when we were scoping these marble pyramids, we saw a guard tell a small child to stop bouncing a ping-pong ball on the ground. I'm surprised we got enough time to shoot this.
A MILLION HANDS ON YOU
There are so many people in China. In Shanghai, there are roughly 19 million, and in Beijing there are 12 million. In those two cities alone you'll find Canada's population. Now imagine that many bikes, scooters and cars whipping around. It's chaos. Personal space became a real issue for me coming from the Great White North, where we are blessed with loads of room. If you think Toronto or Vancouver is busy, hang out in China for a while.
MMMM THAT'S GOOD DACHSHUND!
Before coming to China, with little or no knowledge of the place, I heard what a sketchy thing it would be to eat the food there. That they eat dog and cats and anything off the streets. Well, they do that, but I ate some of the most delicious found on our visit. Simple food. Dumplings, chicken and rice, lamb skewers from street vendors. So good! We met a great guy named Yu Ming( or John Gerio, as we nick named him) at a local restaurant off Hutai Lu that we referred to as the Dumpling Hut(or Science World). We ate there all the time and for so little. Amazing.
About the Author
Keith works for Specialty Sports, an Online Skateboard Store based out of New Jersey. If you're interested in more about skateboarding and travel keep checking back here or if you're interested in getting into skateboarding try our web site, we offer 100's of cheap complete skateboards for sale.
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