When we are not riding our bike we resort to public transport which is actually very efficient and inexpensive. Yesterday we dediced to show two UWA exchange students directions to one of several wholesale clothes markets. These are huge multi storey shops divided into 3 metre x 3 metre cubicles selling a vast range of clothes ( all size 4 with more "bling" than material). After spending about one hour there we decide to take the bus to SiJiQing , the largest clothes market in Hangzhou , there are about 40 of these multi story buildings , creating a huge area of shops and shoppers.. most are wholesale and we tread carefully down the narrow aisles as trolleys laden with monstrous bags trundle past us, there is no slowing of speed as the "trolley drivers" yell out some sort of warning ["get out of my way you stupid foreigners" is what they could be saying for all we know] Anyhow actually buying is another story, before we even begin our market journey I need to relay the bus travelling experience.
The bus to the first market takes about 3/4 of an hour this was uneventful as we get on at the bus terminal, we are first on the bus and there is plenty of seats so this trip e get to sit down.We always sit near houmen ( back door) as you can only exit from the back.. The buses in China are very frequent, very reliable because bus drivers have a schedule to work to they are also. very cheap usually about 1yuan. although the prices on all buses went up to 2 yuan on the 1st December (officially Winter) because the heaters are now operating. the buses only accepts coins as payment , deposited into a steel tray adjacent the driver , we try to use the copious amount of 1 cent coins we seems to have ( 1mao) . We notice that even when the buses become crowded as more and more passenger get on ,everyone makes a seat available for oldies. There is often a battle with Christine and older Chinese women , each determined to allow the other a seat ,thus proving who is the older. Christine always takes the seat , the poor old Chinese lady smiles triumphantly. SHE HAS WON .
Waiting for a bus is interesting, everyone keeps stepping out onto the road checking its arrival , despite there being and electronic notice displaying arrival times. as there are limited seats , as soon as the bus stops ( perhaps even before it stops) there is a mad scramble to get on , first on gets the remaining seat, despite the bus being full people still crush the doorway. One neat trick we have discovered is slyly sticking one hand into the doorway and dropping some coins into the metal box announcing I`VE PAID SO YOU MUST LET ME ON !! Very resourceful people the Chinese.
The bus finally arrives and we are almost the last to get on ( we have this bad western society idea of being polite and letting other people on first). Before the bus even starts to move there is a huge commotion , someone claims his wallet has been stolen, within 2 minutes 20 peole are having a loud discussion on how he lost his wallet. Both the victim and the driver phone the police. Were not going anywhere and to prove this point the driver closes the doors. We are now stuck inside with barely room to breath let alone stand , people want to get off THEY DIDN'T STEAL HIS WALLET. Passengers at the back surge forward trying to exit , those at the front ( us) try to tell them the doors are closed , arguments with each other and the driver ensue. Very quickly the police arrive only to find that the theft victim had been locked outside when the doors closed and has now left the scene .Many of us exit the bus just so we can breath, after some discussion between the driver and police we all get back on insisting that we have already paid, so you must let us on ,. hahha We leave the bus stop and head towards our next destination , the driver seems unperturbed by the recent events.However that is about to change . There is now more room at the front of the bus and I'm trying out my Chinese with the driver. Not much success there so i give up and turn to talk with Christine, as i do i spot a puppy straining its head to see out of a shopping bag , others notice and begin to pat the cute dog. This comes to the drivers attention and she quickly tell the passenger seated behind her, that dogs are not allowed on bus and she has to get off at the next stop. I suggest to the driver its only a small ( and cute ) puppy , she said ITS STILL A DOG!! , and tells the passenger she or the dog is bad ( i couldn't quite understand which one she meant) At the next traffic lights the passenger and dog ( inside the recyclable shopping bag exit the bus , as she does a man waiting for his bus almost falls over laughing as he sees the dog. Our driver then delays us for a few minutes longer as she enters into a discussion with this complete stranger about dogs and buses.The words meiyou ( not have ) and buhao ( not good ) are mentioned a lot. Christine and I are laughing so much at this, the driver finally decides to continue our journey. Ten minutes later we are at SijiQing markets having enjoyed ( endured) another travel experience.
Posted by Wayne
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The Collective Consciousness of the Chinese
I found this in a Surviving China magazine and it is exactly what we have experienced but the writer has put in into words for us. The next exciting episode is about train transport.
In my infinatemins late. I truly believed that it was as packed as it possibly could be. Alas, at the next station another dozen people got on. At the next stop two got off and ten stepped on.. The passengers squeezed and elbowed their way down the crammed aisle. The ruthless ME-FIRST mentality that generally seems to dominate entry and exit procedures on any kind of transportation in China was reaching new and unbearable heights.. "seriously" I thought to myself , "why not show a little bit of consideration".
The passengers were swaying and wobbling in involuntary unison, like one single organism, and in the midst of our little 'centipede' a father and his little son had to get off. What had just a moment ago seemed like pure selfishness turned into subconscious collaboration; the teenager behind me took one little ant step to the right, I squeezed into the minimal hole he left open and the women in front pressed up against me. Thus, inch by inch, with elbows unintentionally bumping into faces and people squealing with discomfort, a narrow walkway appeared to let the father and son through.
I reckoned it was the presence of the child that bought about the goodwill of the passengers. But as I looked around i saw the same pattern repeated station after station. All of a sudden I realized that the shoving and accidental head butting was not a bad case of "ME FIRST " mentality. Rather the collective consciousness of the bus organism that sent out a signal
Saying " this person needs to get off, make it happen!" and all at once every passenger was shuffling and huffing to get out of one another's way.
So just remember that you are just two legs in a jostling centipede. And at that, a centepede whose only intention is to get everybody with somewhere to go onto the bus, and guarantee that everyone can actually get off when they reach their destination. So PUSH AWAY.
By Alex Hoe berg
Survive China October. 2011
Posted by Chris
