See-through bathrooms and No-show VIPs
I was in Hangzhou overnight for business but rather than stay by the lake I stayed at a hotel/resort in the nearby mountains. This was not a resort operated by an international hotel management company but it was lavish. The design was Californiaesque, adobe-colored, large pool, clean. But they apparently weren't looking for international tourists. There were close to 50 cable channels but all were in Chinese. The buffet, the only eatery in the resort, was strictly Chinese. Greasy fried bread soaked in soymilk is not my idea of a hearty breakfast.
After staying in quite a few Chinese hotels I have two observations to offer. The beds are uniformly uncomfortable - turgidly hard. I can't sleep on them. The other odd thing is that modern Chinese hotels have a weird obsession with glass-walled bathrooms in the rooms. The last four I've stayed in afforded no privacy whatsoever. This has got to be awkward for a family but convenient for exhibitionists.
One interesting tidbit I came across was told to me by a driver that pointed out the uniformity of the windows on apartments running the length of one of Hangzhou's widest boulevards. "Those hundreds of windows were put in at government expense back in the 90s when President Clinton was supposed to visit Hangzhou. But then after the government put in hundreds of new windows Clinton decided not to come. The government wasn't happy but Clinton is still a hero along this street."
Another person told me of a similar case in Anhui Province a few years ago. But this time it was a leader from Beijing that was due to pay a visit to a poor village in this, one of China's poorest provinces. Local officials, determined not to look bad in front of the Beijing visitor, bought furniture for the dirt-poor residents of the village. When that official also failed to show up (that happens a lot) the local government tried to take back the furniture but the village people resisted successfully.
So now I understand why Chinese love to have VIPs visit - even if they don't show up.
After staying in quite a few Chinese hotels I have two observations to offer. The beds are uniformly uncomfortable - turgidly hard. I can't sleep on them. The other odd thing is that modern Chinese hotels have a weird obsession with glass-walled bathrooms in the rooms. The last four I've stayed in afforded no privacy whatsoever. This has got to be awkward for a family but convenient for exhibitionists.
One interesting tidbit I came across was told to me by a driver that pointed out the uniformity of the windows on apartments running the length of one of Hangzhou's widest boulevards. "Those hundreds of windows were put in at government expense back in the 90s when President Clinton was supposed to visit Hangzhou. But then after the government put in hundreds of new windows Clinton decided not to come. The government wasn't happy but Clinton is still a hero along this street."
Another person told me of a similar case in Anhui Province a few years ago. But this time it was a leader from Beijing that was due to pay a visit to a poor village in this, one of China's poorest provinces. Local officials, determined not to look bad in front of the Beijing visitor, bought furniture for the dirt-poor residents of the village. When that official also failed to show up (that happens a lot) the local government tried to take back the furniture but the village people resisted successfully.
So now I understand why Chinese love to have VIPs visit - even if they don't show up.
posted by Kevcham at 6:14 AM
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