Since the first ‘Postcard from…’ was published in the Daily Sceptic (then Lockdown Sceptics) in 2020 it has been my ambition to contribute the first Postcard from China. I thought it might be a few weeks or even months before I would have my slot. In fact, it is three and a half years since I set foot in China, and four years since I met my new employers at Southwest Medical University in Luzhou in the heart of Sichuan Province. In the meantime, I had to satisfy myself with contributing a few postcards from Turkey, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Croatia, the United States and Slovenia. But here, at last, is my postcard from China.
Entry requirements
For anyone who has not been to China, here’s how it goes. Whereas many years ago a Chinese visa could be obtained by post, it has long only been possible by making a visit in person to a CVSC (China Visa Service Centre) of which there are only three in the U.K. in London, Manchester and Edinburgh. They claim to be an ‘independent’ service but are always suspiciously co-located with other Chinese Government departments.
Most of the process takes place online but, in true Chinese luddite fashion the application has to be printed off and taken to the CVSC. During the online process you must upload a photograph, the dimensions and quality of which have to be so precise that this is the rate-limiting step in the process. In addition — although not specified anywhere online — you must bring a hard copy passport photograph with you (I only know from bitter experience of losing my place in the queue when I was unaware of this requirement). Once you arrive at the CVSC you have a photograph taken at reception and another by the person who processes your application. This is in addition to the photograph that is taken when you enter China. Belt, braces and overkill are hallmarks of all administrative processes, especially those related to immigration, in the low-trust culture that characterises China.
And then fingerprinting. You are asked to indicate if you have ever been fingerprinted for entry to China during the application process. I have many times, and this generates a permanent record related to your passport number obviating the need to have fingerprints taken at the CVSC. They take them again anyway. On arrival in China your first port of call is the fingerprint booth where you scan your passport, place the fingers indicated by the machine on a scanner and have a fingerprint certificate issued. Mine worked but my wife’s — who has also been to China before — did not. The point of the certificate is that you present it to the police officer at immigration, who scans it, and you are exempt from fingerprinting at the passport booth. Both my wife and I were fingerprinted again.
And then COVID-19 regulations. Travel advice on the U.K. Government webpage reflects the Chinese Government requirements which are only that you take a rapid antigen test (RAT) within 24 hours of departure and that this “may” be checked at customs on entry to China. I guessed it wouldn’t be. However, over a month since the Chinese Government changed its entry requirements (April 29th) with our flight out on June 17th, British Airways (BA) had not caught up and this was not the first time I have had a run in with its staff over their Covid requirements. BA was still insisting that you uploaded your vaccination status (my wife has none), health declaration and the result of your Covid test before allowing you to check in. I uploaded our (homemade) RAT certificates and, in fact, that seemed to do the trick. I contacted BA on Twitter — absolutely the only way to do it — and its reply was that it was simply following the Government guidelines. I replied saying that “I am looking at the Government guidelines right now and I can assure you, you are not”. In the queue for the Business Class cabin, everyone was complaining about BA’s tardiness in updating its check-in procedure. We were required to download the Chinese Government Customs app and make a health declaration there which generated a QR code for scanning in the approach to immigration. Much to our surprise, that worked and as predicted, nobody asked to see our RAT certificate. After an inordinate length of time at the immigration booth during which my wife was nearly collapsing with jet lag, we were in…
…and relax
Once in, China seems just the same. Richard Clayderman’s dreadful Ballad for Adeline (you know the one) was still playing in the lift in our hotel, just like it was in 2013 when I first stayed here.
There are far fewer signs that there was ever a ‘pandemic’ than there are on the streets in the U.K. Very few people are wearing masks, despite the Chinese predilection for doing so. I did witness one old fellow with a face mask coughing up a fur ball and removing his mask before expectorating a fluorescent green glob of sputum on the pavement, before replacing his mask. I guess he was not a retired infectious diseases specialist. ‘Gobbing’ noisily in the street is still very prominent in mainland China, having been effectively outlawed in Hong Kong after the SARS outbreak in 2003.
Mostly it is the preserve of men. But I was once jogging in Shanghai and a beautiful, young, professional woman, hair swept back with shades, suited and carrying a brief case, walking in the other direction deposited an impressive glob of sputum on the ground somewhere between us. A colleague with more Far East experience than I have said that she may have reserved that one especially for me; some Chinese do not like Westerners, especially if they think you are American. Which they all do.
Effects of lockdown
While I was teaching, my wife did try to elicit information from the students with whom she was working about lockdown. But they were tight-lipped, as were my colleagues. One senior nurse told me she never wore a face mask during the restrictions. Many did but it was not compulsory, so even here in the belly of the Covid beast, they were spared that particular part of Covid theatre.
There were two unexpected outcomes of the Covid restrictions, especially the travel ban. My colleagues — some my former PhD students — were genuinely struggling with English. Where once they had been fluent, they were making constant reference to translation apps for the most mundane words. The other entirely unexpected effect was the increased curiosity about Westerners — that was us — in the streets, especially from young children. Luzhou is not a place frequented by Westerners. In coming here regularly since 2012 I have only seen two other Westerners, and they were a couple. Many older people said ‘hello’ politely, but children were ultra-curious, running after us and shouting “foreigners”, sometimes in Chinese (wàiguó rén) and sometimes in English. It struck us that while many of these children were probably born pre-Covid they had never knowingly seen a westerner. I took, Ace Ventura Call of the Wild style, to shouting “White Devil, White Devil” whenever we encountered a group of curious Chinese people. I thought it was funny; my wife did not.
My assumption is that leaving China will be unproblematic. If it is problematic, you will be among the first to know.
Dr. Roger Watson is Academic Dean of Nursing at Southwest Medical University, China. He has a PhD in biochemistry. He writes in a personal capacity.
To join in with the discussion please make a donation to The Daily Sceptic.
Profanity and abuse will be removed and may lead to a permanent ban.
These idiots are fast approaching my debanking/defunding list. We are members, but I am sick of their morbid stupidity, endless simpleton wokisms, racisms, and climate bollocks. Just take care of the god damn buildings and heritage sites and shut the hell up. Or watch your membership dwindle.
Ferd I’m amazed you haven’t left yet. The NT has always frozen their property in aspic, a form of living death.
The problem is, whether or not I remain a member, The National Trust does own large swathes of coastline in the South West and it is this National Trust coastline that keeps us a members, otherwise I think I would leave.
I did not renew my membership after purchasing one of their leaflets describing walks around Hawkshead in the lake district.
In the leaflet they described Vikings as Scandinavian refugees.That was the last straw for me.Even the kids asked what on earth are they on about?
Presumably, that’s because they believe the refugees of today are repeating what the Vikings did in the past.
:->
Yep———-Ironically the Swedes today are now paying for their multicultural dogma as 20 times more sexual crimes are committed by the latter day rapists than by indigenous Swedes. —-But so determined are they that this isn’t true that they make it a crime to talk about it.
Yes I believe the Vikings were put up in castles at taxpayers expense, and I had always thought they were rapists and pillagers. Sorry I now admit I was wrong and that we should pay money for past injustices to all red haired people.
The NT has set its course and there is no rowing back for them now despite your displeasure or any number of members displeasure. There is no way that their proscribed agenda will be allowed to be perceived by the public to have been overturned by a members revolt. Money will be found either from lottery, government or billionaire funding sources to ensure that a popular revolt of this kind fails – God forbid, the people may apply the same democratic principle to all manner of things.
“Patrick Begg, outdoors and natural resources director at the trust”
Who the F. thinks these job titles up? Doubtless another waster on a couple of hundred grand a year. He belongs in the bottom block. A complete Next Tuesday.
Probably a relation of the useless lefty economist David Begg. He was one of the crazies desperate to bounce UK in to the euro. Essentially a useful idiot. Once yr in the woke aristocracy these sinecures become rather easier to obtain.
Thanks
I think there should be a competition for the most ridiculous job titles in the wake of the climate alarm, HP.
You are right Aethelred.
Former member of NT here. The main threat to ‘their’ properties is haemorrhaging support. They keep telling us about the slave-owning history of the builders and owners of the houses – so why don’t they burn them down to demonstrate their contempt more fully?
A Minister for Management of Civilisational Decline would be more useful.
Congratulations Minister. Yours is the only department to achieve its targets.
The Ministry for Silly Talks?
I suggest a Minister for Deaeration of Woke Windbags.
Thanks for then new word.
Maybe the droughts and wildfires will be offset by the floods. It just needs a longer term perspective than most marketing plans.
Make no mistake, this is marketing and not true concern for environments that have suffered all these “hazards” in past years.
Not yet another bloody government department about the climate alarm. We need that new Argentinian prez Javier Milei to do one of his – “Ministry of Climate Adaptation? OUT!” actions. Honestly, the NT are losing it…drought, heavy rain, wildfires? But not today or tomorrow but by 2060! For god’s sake, just get a deckchair and some wellies.
Why the hell are we worrying about 2060. The so-called Tory dupes have caused enough damage to this country these past fourteen years. It’s 2023, can we pay attention to NOW?
Apparently the planet might be a couple of degrees warmer by 2100. Well if anybody is still on this planet in 2100 lucky them, personally I would appreciate those two degrees NOW.
And I won’t be here in 2060 so actually I CGAF about effing global boiling, flooding, freezing or whatever other nonsense they come up with.
Today’s problems need today’s solutions. Tomorrow can look after itself.
https://documents.nationaltrust.org.uk/story/annual-report-2023/page/2/1
I haven’t had a good look yet but I am sure this will be interesting
Today’s problems need today’s solutions. Tomorrow can look after itself.
Tomorrow is something the people of tomorrow will have to deal with tomorrow. People who claim they are solving the problems of tomorrow by creating problems today just want to distract from the latter. They don’t know anything about the real problems of tomorrow and the people of tomorrow obviously haven’t appointed them as their representatives. Conveniently, they just cannot yet object to what’s supposedly being done in their name.
Excellent
It’s a shame that they appear to be jumping onto the bandwagon using “climate change” in lieu of normal extreme weather events and the need to maintain various structures, both old and new. I am actually a member of it. The original reason why I joined was doing the sums for parking at a number of their sites. In effect, paying up front, but less than non-members have to pay given the number of times I go to them.
I’ve often parked without paying. Don’t think their fines are enforcible anyway. I feel eternal shame that I belonged to this organisation for a couple of decades. I should be flayed like Henry the second was in Canterbury cathedral and be forced to sleep on the floor with no blanket.
..and lo the grift continues unabated.
….”“the single biggest threat” to the charity’s mission”, is your organisation’s woke-ism, Mr Begg.
I used to be a member. I looked at moving my subscription to the RSPB, but they’re almost as bad.
Do not support any of them.
I don’t. I want to support the wildlife, our heritage etc., but unfortunately, no organisation can be trusted it seems.
The charity […] said approximately 71% of the places it looks after could be at medium or high risk of climate hazards by 2060.
Attempt to translate this into English: Hazard means risk. Hence, the last bit is
climate risks in 37 years.
Combining this with the bit in front of it yields
above-average risk of climate risks in 37 years.
Then, we have the could, a subjunctive, ie, another risk. We’re now at
there’s a risk of above average risk of climate risks in 37 years
Filling in the last bit now gives the complete sentence:
Modelling has shown that there will be a risk of above average risk of climate risks for about 3/4 of the places the National Trust is currently administrating in 37 years.
What’s that’s supposed to mean – beyond No climate-related damage expected until at least 2060 – is anybody’s guess. Presumably, the point is to repeat risk combined with climate as often as possible to convey the impression of a serious danger. Someone demanding anything based on a statement like this should be unceremoniously shown door and told not to come back until he has at least managed to make up his mind about what he’s actually afraid of.
So far the evidence is the greatest danger to the fabric of the buildiungs and their contents arises from the incompetence of the NT which allows them to burn to the ground.
Interesting that they demand a minister for climate adaptation. In some ways I agreenm with adapting to changes in our environment. Stop wasting huge resources on trying to change the temperature, which is impossible but, as required, adapt to changes – which is what humans have always done. Is the National Trust finally bending to the obvious?
We need to “tackle” Climate change…..so give us some more money.
It’s hilarious how they use “adaptation” and not ‘mitigation’, as these clowns think we can control the weather.
Translation: Systems going well…. Send more money.
Where does this National trust gets its information from? ——-Do they ever question any of it? ——-Very unlikely. Rent seekers question nothing. After all if you need money for something, being alarmist about climate is a great way to get it. If you are a coral island in the pacific what better to get big sums of money from the eco socialist western world than claim you are going to vanish beneath the waves. If you are animal rights activists who think we should all eat vegetables and locusts, what better way to stop people killing animals for food than to claim the animals destroy the climate. If you build turbines or smart meters, what better way to farm all the subsidy than claim your products save the planet. etc etc etc………”Climate Change” —–The gift that keeps on giving. But the gifts are all paid for by us.——– And it is costing trillions.