A Word About China

My connection with China began a few years ago when I transferred offices and met a recent MBA graduate called Xiaoyu on an intern rotation. He was introduced once, but that wasn’t enough. I would need him to repeat his name each and every time we met at the elevator. Xiaoyu was such a foreign sound, so unusual to my ear, so forgettable. It sounds like sh-ow-you, the “ow” pronounced like the vowel of “cow”.

He accepted my forgetfulness without taking offense or mocking me. I would discover that it’s not the Chinese way to take away “face” from another. I tried harder. He helped me with my pronunciation and perhaps he found some encouragement in that I took it as a challenge to speak his name easily, without pause. I didn’t give up like my colleagues, who would shout down the hall, “Hey, “X-Man”.

Eventually, I became comfortable with the name. In fact, as my self confidence grew, I tutored others. Having mastered the delicate art of Xiaoyu, I felt empowered. My colleagues rolled their eyes.

I was surprised therefore when Xiaoyu’s fiancé suggested one day that if I wanted to give him a nice wedding gift, she would teach me how to pronounce his name correctly.

Chinese is a tonal language, variations in stress and rise and dips of a voice can change the meaning of a word, or a name. Pronounced one way, my friend’s name translated to “little rain”, and another way, it meant “small fish”. My husband Dan winced upon learning that his own name, mispronounced would translate to “egg”.

What I started to learn about China then was that nothing is easy.

So a few years after that, as part of our preparations for three months backpacking in China, we took some language training. After all, if we already had difficulty pronouncing a person’s name correctly, we needed serious help. We would discover later, though, that despite nearly a year of Mandarin study, we would never be able to order food in China. While we studied hard enough, there were enough variations of pronunciation between provinces, that ordering chicken in Chengdu would be understood differently in Kunming. Truth is though that we learned less Mandarin from our teacher than we would have hoped. Instead, we acquired through her painstaking efforts, and finally to her satisfaction, a fraction of fear she thought appropriate to our ambition. Our teacher’s parting words to us in Mandarin were “don’t go”.

So in China, none of our waiters were ever impressed by our language study. Nor could they appreciate – being rushed by the crush of diners waiting to order - our achievement in being able to say the name Xiaoyu like a native. A charitable waiter might raise a brow and question us further when, to his ear, we ordered engine oil. Although he may not have served many westerners, the common thinking was that a foreigner went for something stir fried.

Eventually however we could communicate enough to buy plane or train tickets, check into a hotel, and have a toilet fixed. And in the end, we learned that pointing to an aromatic, mouth-watering heaping plate on the next table was worth a thousand mispronounced words. (by C. Moisse at http://www.maturetraveler.blogspot.com/).

My Travel Recommendations (for getting around China on your own)

Restaurants
Eating at restaurants without English service nor English menus was always difficult outside of big cities on the east coast. In Suzhou, admittedly a common place for foreigners to visit just north of Shanghai, we found a restaurant that served western Italian food at very reasonable prices and offered friendly service in French, Italian, Spanish and Chinese. Notice I didn’t say English! Since we knew enough of those Latin-based languages to order a meal, especially from a well-illustrated menu, it felt comfortable, nevertheless. Mario's Pizza (1736 Renmin Road) is opposite the famous silk museum on 1736 Renmin Road. It provided authentic Italian dishes including a great Tirimazu and a strong list of Italian wines. The owner imports his cheeses and other key ingredients for authentic tastes. After two months of Chinese food, however exquisitely prepared and delicious, finding real Italian fare with parmesan cheese was a treat. Here's another review of it: http://www.helloningbo.com/forum/showthread.php?p=63

Accommodations
It was no problem at all to get English service in four star hotels catering to international tourists. It’s the smaller, cheaper hotels, typically used by travelling Chinese businessmen, where we may not find any English spoken. In both types of hotel, however, we could negotiate prices. Here’s a sample of some hotels that delighted us and the prices we paid.

Lijiang: Hua Ma Super 8 Motel. This low-rise, spacious modern hotel was approximately $26 per night Canadian after negotiation during the high season of the National Holiday. Lijiang has been over-built with hotels outside of the ancient centre so there are bargains in accommodation if you are willing to walk about fifteen minutes. No English service was available but my handy script written in characters helped a lot to get us in and out of such places. We left our suitcase at the train station and walked around the streets and negotiated a room price just walking in off the street. I've checked the Super 8 website and this particular hotel is not listed. Trip Advisor does not cover it.

Lanzhou: Lanzhou Eastern Hotel. This hotel is located close to the university and a city busride away from downtown (523 Tianshui South Road) . We found it by first seeking out a Rough Guide hotel recommendation and then walked the area nearby. This is our usual approach, using Lonely Planet or Rough Guide to identify an area and an address for a hotel. Then we will likley find a hotel a block away from the listed one. And it will be cheaper!

This one was approximately $42 per night Canadian. Some English is spoken. I have to say that it's a great ice breaker to try to speak Mandarin to hotel staff. After they stop laughing, they are frequently extra accommodating. We made this business hotel near the university our base for excursions into the region to visit a Tibetan monastery.  There are no Trip Advisories referring to this hotel.

Kashgar: Xin Long Hotel. This business hotel on Binhe Road offered large rooms although a little tired. We were lucky to get a room, negotiated at $40 Canadian per night, since the hotel at the time was taken over by the production crew and actors filming The Kite Runner at the time. The hotel is about fifteen minutes walk from the famous Kashgar bazaar. Some English is spoken.

Xi'an: Aurum International Hotel. Dan and I checked out several hotels within walking distance of each other before settling on the Aurum International Hotel at 30 Nanxin Street. This four-star hotel has the look and feel of a modern Holiday Inn. Although this is the kind of hotel that serves tour groups, from time to time we seek out the familiarity of something western just to give ourselves a rest in a one-bedroom suite. After the overnight train trip, we needed some pampering. The buffet breakfast was included and it offered a satisfying western option, buffet as well as a la carte. Website; http://www.auruminternationalhotelxian.cn/

Trip Advisor Reviews. Not everyone has had as good of an experience here as we did but people agree with us about the location. It’s an easy fifteen minute walk to the drum tower and the old market. Here’s the Trip Advisor Reviews: You can expect to pay around $60 Canadian per night for the standard room.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g298557-d504902-r55375797-Aurum_International-Xi_an_Shaanxi.html#CHECK_RATES_CONT

Macau: Hotel Royal.  English is spoken extensively in Macau. The Hotel Royal at $105 per night is four-star hotel, comfortable and quiet even though it was a big hotel with a casino nearby (but not inside the hotel) unlike many others in Macau. It’s an easy fifteen minute walk to the old city shopping, the market, and new development casinos. English is spoken everywhere. We booked this one over the web a few days ahead of arrival. Location: 2-4 Estrada Da Vitoria. http://hotelroyal.com.mo/  It also performs well on Trip Advisor at http://www.helloningbo.com/forum/showthread.php?p=63

Hangzhou: Lakeview Hotel is a restful, mid-size hotel that hosts domestic and international groups. English is spoken. We stayed three nights at about $65 Canadian per night. Located very close to West Lake, it’s an easy location to enjoy excursions on the lake or just walking around the lake to take in the beautiful landscapes of its gardens. Home website: http://www.lakeviewhotelhangzhou.cn/ Location: 2 Huancheng Xilu. Trip Advisor agrees with me. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g298559-d306851-Reviews-Lakeview_Hotel-Hangzhou_Zhejiang.html