China restricts entry from Hong Kong

by Iva Skoch on

This is an interesting development. It appears that the Chinese government has mysteriously stopped issuing multiple-entry visas. The new rule has hit those traveling to and from Hong Kong especially hard because businessmen travel back and forth all the time. Based on this Time Magazine article, Beijing’s security concerns over the Olympics are probably behind the new measures.

Applicants are being forced to proffer both return tickets and hotel vouchers, a new requirement that makes planning for contingencies or traveling on the fly virtually impossible. Hong Kong’s many foreign Chambers of Commerce have lodged complaints with the Chinese Foreign Ministry office in the city, but no clear explanation has yet to be given for the restrictions, or any word on how long they might last.

When I went to China, I entered mainland through Kong Kong and it was a piece of cake. No hassle whatsoever. It’s a shame they are making it harder.

World’s longest sea bridge opens today near Shanghai

by Iva Skoch on

Here is another one to add to the list of China’s Best, Longest, Tallest and Who-Knows-What-Else.

This afternoon, the 20-mile Bay Bridge started trial operation as a motorcade of 180 sedans and 22 buses drove across the world’s longest sea bridge, Shanghai Daily reports. The bridge begins at Jiaxing, near Shanghai, and ends at Cixi, about 40 miles from Ningbo, Zhejiang Province. It will reduce the 250-mile drive between Ningbo and Shanghai by 80 miles and shave about one hour off the trip. Time is money, even in China.

With a design life of 100 years, the 11.8-billion-yuan (US$1.69 billion) bridge has six lanes with a designed speed of up to 60 miles per hour. The bridge is expected to help boost economic development in the Yangtze Delta Region.

I want know is how the heck they managed to shoot the area with blue skies? The colors of the sky I remember from Shanghai were the same color as the river.

Japan needs a panda

by Jamie Rhein on

A beloved treasure of the Ueno Zoo in Tokyo died yesterday. Ling Ling, the panda who became an ambassador of goodwill of sorts, and a world traveler looking for a mate had heart failure. In human years, Ling Ling was 70. In panda years, 22.

Now the zoo is without a panda, and Ling Ling was without offspring. He was flown to Mexico three times to give him a chance to procreate. He also spent spent some time in the National Zoo in Washington, D.C according to this Smithsonian magazine article, I found. Most importantly, he was part of the peace agreement with China in 1972. People in Tokyo are broken up over the news and are leaving flowers and notes at Ling Ling’s cage.

The Ueno Zoo is hoping to get pandas on loan at least. Unfortunatly, it’s not like there are many pandas to go around–only 1,600 of them live outside of zoos. Their native environment is in China in Sichuan and Shaanxi provinces. [see AP article]

Devra G. Kleiman, the author of the Smithsonian article, spent a long time studying pandas, both in the wild and in zoos, and provides a detailed account of their habits and habitat, including mating habits which may explain why Ling Ling never got lucky in love with pandas. In people love, he hit pay dirt.

Free Tibet flag factory discovered — in China

by Grant Martin on

What happens when you mix a rapidly growing manufacturing economy, unbridled entrepreneurial enthusiasm and uneducated workers? Sweet mistakes like what happened this week in China.

Police in Guangdong, China just raided a factory that was apparently manufacturing “Free Tibet” flags, the same ones that protesters have been flying across the world, at Olympic events and in the face of frustrated Chinese bureaucrats.

Apparently the workers initially didn’t know what kind of flags they were making, they just thought that they were making colorful, fun flags for export. After finally getting suspicious, they found out what the Snow Lion flag meant and notified authorities.

Who has the gall to try to manufacture something like that in a communist country? The workers can plead ignorance all they want, but someone had to authorize the order.

Awwwwwkward.

Photo of the Day (04/28/08)

by Iva Skoch on

This shot reminded me of walking through the streets of China and having people staring at me and yelling ‘laowei’ (foreigner). I didn’t mind it. It was funny. I like villages, where the old folks still hang out outside–be it in China, Greece or Eastern Europe–and carefully examine everyone who is “not one of them.”

It seems that StrudelMonkey had a similar experience when he taking this shot in Suzhou-Dongshan, China earlier this month. I love it!

***To have your photo considered for the Gadling Photo of the Day, go over to the Gadling Flickr Pool and post it. Make sure it is not copyrighted, otherwise we can’t post it here.***