China Trip - Part 2

Looking at this pic you might mistake it for any big city in the US...you would be wrong.

As for as you can see in any direction...apartments.  Thousands and thousands of them.

Because apartments are so small the people of China make use of every bit of space they have. Their decks are probably their most valuable asset. Many apartments are only 15x15 and will usually only be 3 small rooms. A living space, a tiny kitchen and a bedroom for everyone to sleep in.

And the building never stops. Everywhere we looked they were building more. Jenn told me they are tearing down 20 story buildings and put up 40 or 50 story buildings as fast as they can. I wish you could see it better, but all of the scaffolding you see is made out of bamboo poles...no metal at all!

This is just one small corner of Xiamen.  If I could have turned a complete circle this is all I would have seen in every direction.  The tall buildings you see in the background are the edge of the island. The majority of Xiamen is on the mainland, but downtown Xiamen is on an island. 

China's infrastructure is in bad shape. The island was only intended for about 500,000 residents but has over 1.3 million. There is no drinkable water in China. Everyone seems to have Culligan type water coolers in their house.   If they are forced to cook with it they are instructed to boil it a full 10 minutes first.

Because most of China's cities were built when the only vehicles were for public transportation purposes, there is NO parking at all! As a result people just park where they want to. The white, red and silver cars are all parked.

People even park on the sidewalk if they can fit...this causes another issue...broken and cracked sidewalks that were never built to withstand the weight of a car.

And just when you think your in New York you see things like this.

Or this...this guy was an electrician working outside a hospital. They were literally using a burning stick to bond two wires together!

And for every car you see there are 10 electric bikes weaving in and out of traffic. Some going the opposite way of the cars! They may be carrying a mom, dad and child or a giant load of styrofoam.

Another big problem in China is the trash. It's everywhere! People just throw their trash down and expect someone else to pick it up.

But in the midst of all the issues with water, sewers, trash, and overpopulation the government find the time and money to keep 100's of miles of perfectly manicured shrubs between lanes on the highway. It's not clear at all, but you can at least make out that it's perfectly maintained.

Well, that's all for today. Tomorrow I tell you all about one of our amazing Chinese feasts!