Things I’ve learned in China so far
scobleizer.com
scobleizer.com
For decades, there is no emerging startups with solid and independent business ideas. Even some startups I know have a profound background in technology, things they do are not new. Shang Mail, a copy of Blackberry push mail have a solid tech team. Ucweb, copy of Opera mobile in China was invested by Lei Jun, someone can be compared to Paul Alan in China.
There are some reasons for this.
1. New ideas have no tech or patent barriers. Due to the mess patent applying process and all the people to review applications are not professional. The quality of China patents are very low. It is hard to find valuable patent and sue someone with that. You can find all kind of patents in the database, from perpetual motion machine to how to compile linux kernel.
2. Due to No.1, new ideas can be copied by large companies. Tencent copied twitter model, Sina and Netease copied blog model. Merely startups survived in the battle field with large companies.
3. Chinese investors are conservative. That is good thing from some perspectives, they value the cash flow beyond everything else. Thus, if you don't have a persuasive revenue model, you can not raise any money. A most persuasive model is a copycat of successful service in other countries.
It's a bit sad actually, there are really fresh perspectives to be had there.
If my purpose in going is to start a business or see the sights, then there is no reason to get down in the muck. If my purpose is to write a novel about the life of the Chinese, then I should thoroughly investigate it. It all depends on your purpose for visiting.
To me, it seems to be a waste. Why travel to a new country with a new culture, and take your old culture with you?
And quite beside that, I find this attitude of the expat upper class a bit elitist, and it goes against the things I believe in. I believe that if one lives in a country, one should attempt to understand and interact with the local culture and traditions, and not create a society that totally ignores these norms.
Well that's unavoidable really. The question is how much you let local culture in on top of the culture you bring with you.
Why they do it is probably because culture is not what brought them to The States. That is an argument I have heard made against refuge intake & discouragement of economic migration.
Your example is also a little off; immigrants band together out of necessity and survival. That's why there are Chinatowns and Indiantowns, etc. It's in their best interest.
Side note: expats tend to flock to other expats due to several reasons, but one is also survival. It's much easier to find friends or business partners with other expats because there less ulterior motives. As an expat, whenever you meet a native Chinese, you're not sure they're nice because you're an expat and they need something, or what. In fact, most Chinese people are very regionalist and are not 'nice'. They're only nice because they think you have money.
I have lived in Shanghai for over 8 years (I'm a white male from the U.S.). I live in the nicest part of town and my office is a comfortable 5 blocks walk from home. I pay dearly for this comfort. And I'm not naive about what the high cost differential is buying me. I do know how the locals live. I'm married to a local Chinese lady and we have a family together where I deal with issues of raising a child according to multi-cultural values.
Do not confuse the simple fact that many expats are willing to pay for whatever comforts of home they can with the fact that most of us that have been here a while are aware of the difference.
If you are young and ready for an adventure, come to China and live like the local poor for a while. It will be a great life experience. After that, you should have enough perspective to use what money you have to live with what comforts you find most desirable.
The internet censorship isn't intended to change the attitudes of the upper class -- the government figures that anyone who can understand English enough to read foreign news is already lost. And they don't care about foreigners circumventing the filter for personal use, as long as you aren't actively spreading subversion. Definitely don't spread subversion.
They want to keep the common person ignorant and the censorship helps. If the momentum of the people ever shifted, things could change, so there is enormous reason for the government to maintain the status quo. The protectionism is incidental (but is a nice perk0, the censorship of ideas is why they do it.
In my experience the taste is nothing special, but the texture is notable (the skin is fairly rubbery). More than anything, though, they are hard to eat; not much meat and not really worth the effort.
China is heaven for true meat appreciators.
two words: stinky tofu.