Zaijian

Today is my penultimate day in China. I'm surrounded by the accumulated remnants of my time in Dalian. It's chaotic, but gradually becoming more organised as I get brutal and throw out/give away even more of my stuff. Soon I'll have very little left, but it will still be more than enough. The value of travelling light is not truly appreciated until you find yourself comfortably and easily transporting your luggage from airport to train station, ferry to bus stop, without breaking sweat, viciously kicking the suitcase, or slipping a disc. I get a smug feeling of being an experienced and smart traveller when I can move my own luggage with ease. I bought a new suitcase yesterday to replace the old black behemoth with the dodgy wheels. That thing is so cumbersome and really makes me mad every time I have to deal with it. It will be staying in China this time.

As the time of departure draws nearer, I'm feeling quite sad and am thinking of my favourite places in Dalian, thinking that it's the last time I'll see them. Leaving friends behind is even worse, especially Chinese friends who can't easily travel and visit me in Belgium or elsewhere.

Part 2:
The last day in Dalian has been and gone. I said goodbye to the last of my friends, packed up the remains of the apartment and handed the keys back to the landlord. There's one person I'll especially miss, but he'll be going to my country soon and may even be there when I arrive home. This melancholy feeling about leaving people/places behind seems to increase as I get older, this semi-transient lifestyle is painful at times, but I know that I'm happier this way than I would be with some of the alternatives. I've been very lucky to meet some fascinating people and live in some great places. That's going to continue for a few more years yet!

I'm off to Korea on a ship.

Early Riser

After reading Steve Pavlina's blog posts on the benefits of early rising, I've been trying to incorporate this idea into my life. Needless to say, I haven't been totally successful. Steve suggests that 5am is a good time to aim for.
But it's haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrd! I'm not really a fan of staying in bed late, but 5am was just a step too far. Today, though, I was awake at 5 without even trying. Deciding to make the most of this, I got up, put on some running gear and headed for Labour Park with my camera. The day was already warm, and quite a lot of people were out on the streets. In the park, groups of elderly people were strolling around, dancing in formation, doing tai chi, stretching out their limbs and exercising their lungs by yelling loudly. A few joggers were doing laps of the park, and I followed in their wake. Running meant I missed the chance to observe my surroundings more closely, so I soon gave up and relaxed into a walk, taking in all the activity buzzing in the park. Just inside the entrance to the park was a large display to commemorate this year, 2009, as the 50th birthday of the People's Republic of China.
October 1st will be the real time for celebrations, as on this day in 1949 Mao Zedong stood in Tian'anmen Square and declared the country a communist People's Republic. This isn't the only event in Chinese history for which 2009 marks a significant anniversary; 20 years ago, Tian'anmen Square became infamous as a scene of chaos, terror and bloodshed. In the Western world, most of us know what happened, so I don't need to discuss further here (Big Brother may be lurking... ;)
There may also be an important Tibet-related anniversary, but I'm not certain. So far this year, Tibet has been closed to foreign travellers because of ‘security issues’ (read: fear of protests and chaos making China look bad). I heard it will reopen soon, or has already done so.
I digress...

Back to Labour Park, I hiked up to the viewing station and looked out over downtown Dalian. The view includes the giant football that signifies Dalian's past as a national football champ. There is a whole fairground incorporated into the park, with random rides scattered around the place and a cable car that goes up the hill to a place I have never been. An important feature is the rollercoaster that seems to be dormant at the moment, but will come to life in the summer months, when crazy people ride on it. Not forgetting the Ferris wheel, just like the one I once saw across the Yalu River on the North Korean shore - but much better used...
At one point I tried to take a short cut to get out of the park, but found myself stuck behind a spiky iron fence. China certainly likes to keep its citizens under control, not too much free roaming for us. Jackie Chan recently got in trouble for saying that 'Chinese people need to be controlled', but it seems the remark was taken out of context and he was actually referring solely to the entertainment industry. With the iron fisted government approach, I don't think we presently need to worry TOO much about lack of control.

LBH Power Tripping

Ah, the famous LBHs. They can be found just about everywhere in China, especially if that place is home to lots of young, willing local girls with visual impairment. For those not in the know, LBH stands for "Loser Back Home" and is used to refer to rather unpleasant Western men who, having trouble getting laid back home, come to Asia to behave like kings and have young women falling at their feet.

Urbandictionary.com defines the term as follows:

-Short for "Loser Back Home". -Refers to expatriates (Usually hailing from North America or Europe) with low standards who create a completely different persona in their new country to cover for the fact that they are seen as complete douchebags back home. -The LBH are increasing in number in many Asian countries, specifically Japan and China. -They usually prey on Asian girls with low self esteem to compensate for never getting laid back in their home countries. Native: "Look at that LBH, trying to take all of our women..." Expat with sense: "I'm ashamed for all Westerners..."

LHT: a new phrase has been just coined. LHT = "Loser Here Too" Thank you Andrew for amazing literary input.

Check out this post for a second opinion, it's pretty straight to the point...
http://chinadirt.blogspot.com/2007/01/lbh-loser-back-home.html