Archive for the ‘Claire Li’ Category

Wedding Goldmine

Wednesday, May 7th, 2008

Having been away from my hometown for four years, I have no idea how much money I should give for a good friend of mine who is getting married there. In the most expensive Chinese city, Shanghai, if a colleague invites you to their wedding, the hongbao, or red envelope full ...

I Love Taobao

Wednesday, April 2nd, 2008

Online spending in China last year totaled RMB 59.4 billion. Of that, 43.3 billion alone was spent on Chinese online retailer Taobao.com. For comparison, Taobao points out that gross profits for international grocery chain Carrefour last year were 24.8 billion – that is, people are spending more through an online ...

Paper Versus Coins

Tuesday, March 25th, 2008

During my last trip to Beijing, my wallet was surprisingly swollen with paper money of one jiao, five jiao, and one yuan denomination. This is totally different than in Shanghai, where I get one-yuan paper money now and then, rarely see paper one-jiao notes, and can’t even remember when ...

Passionate about Politics

Friday, March 21st, 2008

My Taiwanese friend who used to be based in Shanghai came up from Hong Kong, where she is now living, to visit me recently. She told me last night that all her Taiwanese friends in town are heading back to Taiwan for the vote this Saturday. “Wait, do they go back ...

21st Century Junk Peddlers

Friday, March 21st, 2008

Every week, I receive at least ten junk text messages offering me mortgages, cheap air tickets, and fake graduation diploma. Others notify me that I’ve just won some award, offer to kill my enemies or sell me guns. The latest one, which I received just 30 minutes ago, concerns a ...

Time to Confront an Aging City

Thursday, March 13th, 2008

Since March 10th, four Shanghai museums and memorials have been made free to the public. Visitors to the Shanghai Museum reached 5,900/day on the first day, double the previous level, and this weekend the Shanghai Museum is expected to see a record number or visitors. Most of the visitors on ...