Globetrottie
Realtor.Investor.Lifestylist.More.
China, Shen Zhen (深圳)
China, the place where money can buy you just about anything, at any time. Yes, you can order the most exotic dish (more gross than exotic), like crocodile balls, and with the right price, it can be served to you on a golden platter, within less than an hour. Shen Zhen has the craziest traffic, with every taxi ride almost like a roller coaster ride, swerving right and left without any warning. The city never sleeps. Unfortunately, we have to sleep, just that we happen to stay in a hotel beside a busy road- where cars kept horning till the light of dawn.
This is Shen Zhen. That is us. Clueless on our first day, right after we landed at 2am.
We travelled mostly not for ourselves, but for a friend who was going through some "strange obstacles" there and so we hoped that by being around he'd feel much better. Ah, the things we do for friends.
Generally I would say the cost of living in Shenzhen and probably many other cities of China, is seriously DIRT CHEAP. A train ride can be as low as 50 cents USD, and a taxi ride generally does not exceed $20 USD. Being unaccustomed to taking the train, since we drove in Singapore, I was pretty aversed to taking the train. Stories of pickpockets and molesters were pretty much scary to me. However, when I finally took the train, it was a very pleasant experience! It was well-organised, clean and nothing less than what we have in Singapore right now. Seriously, I was impressed! It was fast and smooth, and people generally minded their own business, which was perfect.
Most attractions like 世界之窗 (Window to the World) and 老街 (Old Street), plus all the other fancy parts of Shenzhen, can be accessed by train. However if you were to take a taxi, you may have to switch from a Green Cab (Bao'an Internal Cab Service) to a Red Cab which serves every part of Shenzhen.
The locals love China and believe in its real estate market. They genuinely believe that 70 year leasehold real estate will always have value because there will always be someone who would buy from them. So... they are believing in the buying demand of the local population then? One of the people we met said that the world should conform to the Chinese culture instead of Chinese conforming to western culture. And when we asked why, her reply was quick and direct- BECAUSE WE HAVE MORE PEOPLE! That was interesting. I guess if that were true, international business relations will be kind of chaotic. Just imagine our foreign trade ministers bargaining in the China way. lol.
Karaoke lounges, both the sleazy and non-sleazy ones, were open till late, and all kinds of seafood steamboat were readily available. May not be up to certain hygiene standards but it is ok. Just don't question what you are eating, chew it, swallow it, forget about it. You'll be happier this way. Overall it was a crazy fun experience. Old street is great for shopping and we had lots of fun there. Oh, if there is any "Western cafe" that does not have aircon, they probably serve fake Western cuisine. Order a sandwich and you will get two thin slices of low quality bread, with long-forgotten lettuce, some mushy tomato slices and dubious ham. The logic is this- If they scrimp on aircon bills, they probably compromise the quality of your food!
Take a trip down to Shenzhen and experience it yourself. No regrets for this trip! Bring a China girl home, if you will, at your own risk! Just let yourself go, cos at Shenzhen, no one really gives a damn.
