Chongqing

[zboy1]

Hey guys, I'm in Chongqing visiting Baoning and other HA members living there. I'll give you a more in-depth review in the near future.

So far, I guess I'm going to have to respectfully disagree with Everdred when he mentioned how unimpressed he was with the girls there. I've seen some really attractive girls here so far...

Anyway, I've got a new girlfriend now, and I think it's becoming somewhat serious now...(Don't worry Winston, it's not that girl).

The one thing I do agree with Everdred was when he mentioned how stressful the city is; it kind of reminds of Shanghai in that regard.

[zboy1]

The one thing about Chongqing is that nobody here can understand my Chinese: even simple words or phrases they can't seem to understand, whereas Guangdong people have no problems when I speak basic phrases. WTF?

Can someone explain to me why that is? Is there a local dialect here that makes people unable to understand me?

[Ghost]

-----

[Rock]

The one thing about Chongqing is that nobody here can understand my Chinese: even simple words or phrases they can't seem to understand, whereas Guangdong people have no problems when I speak basic phrases. WTF?

Can someone explain to me why that is? Is there a local dialect here that makes people unable to understand me?

Presumably, you learned a lot of your Chinese in Guangdong (you've been living in Dongguan for quite awhile right)? So the style and accent you've been taught there plus the daily reinforcements on what is and is not habitually used in the way they speak Mandarin there may have influenced your habitual speaking style to fit that environment. Plus, Guangdong attracts so many outside people that more regular Mandarin may be more commonly used there. Now in predominantly Mandarin speaking areas up north, they might be able to understand you as well. But in a place like Chongqing or to a lessor extent Chengdu, they speak a dialect which kind of sounds like very distorted and harsh Mandarin. So the pronunciation habits from that dialect translate over how they speak Mandarin and many are used to that style when they listen too. Chongqing does not have as as high a percentage of outsiders as Shenzhen and Dongguan.

[zboy1]

The one thing about Chongqing is that nobody here can understand my Chinese: even simple words or phrases they can't seem to understand, whereas Guangdong people have no problems when I speak basic phrases. WTF?

Can someone explain to me why that is? Is there a local dialect here that makes people unable to understand me?

Presumably, you learned a lot of your Chinese in Guangdong (you've been living in Dongguan for quite awhile right)? So the style and accent you've been taught there plus the daily reinforcements on what is and is not habitually used in the way they speak Mandarin there may have influenced your habitual speaking style to fit that environment. Plus, Guangdong attracts so many outside people that more regular Mandarin may be more commonly used there. Now in predominantly Mandarin speaking areas up north, they might be able to understand you as well. But in a place like Chongqing or to a lessor extent Chengdu, they speak a dialect which kind of sounds like very distorted and harsh Mandarin. So the pronunciation habits from that dialect translate over how they speak Mandarin and many are used to that style when they listen too. Chongqing does not have as as high a percentage of outsiders as Shenzhen and Dongguan.

Yes, one of my students said the same thing: she said Guangdong people speak 'rubbish' Mandarin, due to Cantonese being the main language, so maybe that has rubbed off on me?

[zboy1]

One of my major pet peeves here in Chongqing is how rude taxi drivers are. Sh*t! Some of them are rude as f**k. I came close to socking one guy in the mouth for the way he spoke to me. LOL.

[zboy1]

One piece of advice: don't visit CiQiKou--as it's a major tourist trap with little shops selling useless things--and not much else to see.

The women are beautiful here, though, no doubt about it. I guess it's true about the Chinese saying about how women from this region are the most attractive in China. I can't confirm that, as I've only been to some parts of China, but the women in this region definitely catch my eye.

[droid]

I'll give you a more in-depth review in the near future.

In-depth review and, god forbid, pictures from zboy1?
I won't hold my breath...

[momopi]

take...photos...!

[celery2010]

yeah i was a bit puzzled by everdred's analysis of chongqing. granted i've only been to chengdu.

But it sounds like the detroit or birmingham (uk) of china, but in sichuan.

I also found sichuan accents a bit difficult to decipher.

[Winston]

@yick

I don't get something. How come Winston Serpentza had problems renewing his visa in China but you don't? He is a high profile person so wouldn't he have gotten preferential treatment in China? Did he do something wrong to cause his visa problems? How come you have no problems?

Btw is this video driving through Chongqing a real video or a video game? The people on Matt McKinley's channel debated it and many of them thought it is a video game because they couldn't believe how clean the streets are and how nice the city looks. It looks huge yet clean and safe. Wow. lol



I posted this in the comments:

"Matt, here's something odd about China that no one talks about that could be a reality breakdown. If you go to China in real life, you will see that it is much much NICER and BETTER than what Americans imagine. It is clean and safe and has no violence or guns, and there is no martial law or social credit system like truthers and alt media imagine. No soldiers or cops are harassing anyone there. Ask any honest local or expat in China and you will find this out. I spent almost a year in China so I know all this firsthand from direct experience. I emailed you an album with 1300 photos of my trips to China remember Matt?

Now here's the question: If the West is full of lies regarding China, then why doesn't the Chinese government or media put out videos and documentaries and press releases in English to debunk all these lies and show the real China? China has a lot of money so they could easily hire people like me to make documentaries debunking all the many lies about China in the West. But it doesn't even bother to try. You would think that no one wants lies to be told about them. But China doesn't seem to mind that Western media lies about them. It's as if China is an actor being paid to play the role of the bad guy or boogie man. And following some script where it's the bad guy and so it plays along with it. That's the odd thing I don't get that no one talks about."

"Matt, I've been to China. People drive faster than that and cars are closer to each other than that. This looks like a video game or something. Also Matt, the women in China are much more down to earth and approachable and not paranoid of strangers as women are in America. So it's very refreshing to be able to talk to girls there without feeling like it's taboo."

[Winston]

Btw @yick can you comment on whether China has a social credit system or not? Many Americans think they do, and the truth movement and alt media use it all the time to demonize China and warn that American may adopt the same system. But the people in China told me there's no such thing. However, Zboy1 and Ghost said that China does have a version of the social credit system but only in certain cities, so the claim is partially true. What do you think?

[yick]

Btw @yick can you comment on whether China has a social credit system or not? Many Americans think they do, and the truth movement and alt media use it all the time to demonize China and warn that American may adopt the same system. But the people in China told me there's no such thing. However, Zboy1 and Ghost said that China does have a version of the social credit system but only in certain cities, so the claim is partially true. What do you think?

A social credit system is in place regards getting a passport and going abroad - the Chinese are now careful about monitoring who goes abroad after that mainlander was caught taking a shit on the platform of the subway in Singapore ten years ago or whenever it was, China is very sensitive on how their citizens act abroad so they're not going to let the worst behaved of them get a passport and besmirch their name overseas. As for the monitoring their citizens, they do that openly anyway, everything is bought and paid for by online apps such as wechat and alipay so the government knows what their citizens are spending their money on and Chinese people seem to be happy with it. Overall, it's a happy country as you know, they don't let these kind of things infringe on their happiness.

[yick]

@yick

I don't get something. How come Winston Serpentza had problems renewing his visa in China but you don't? He is a high profile person so wouldn't he have gotten preferential treatment in China? Did he do something wrong to cause his visa problems? How come you have no problems?

Btw is this video driving through Chongqing a real video or a video game? The people on Matt McKinley's channel debated it and many of them thought it is a video game because they couldn't believe how clean the streets are and how nice the city looks. It looks huge yet clean and safe. Wow. lol



I posted this in the comments:

"Matt, here's something odd about China that no one talks about that could be a reality breakdown. If you go to China in real life, you will see that it is much much NICER and BETTER than what Americans imagine. It is clean and safe and has no violence or guns, and there is no martial law or social credit system like truthers and alt media imagine. No soldiers or cops are harassing anyone there. Ask any honest local or expat in China and you will find this out. I spent almost a year in China so I know all this firsthand from direct experience. I emailed you an album with 1300 photos of my trips to China remember Matt?

Now here's the question: If the West is full of lies regarding China, then why doesn't the Chinese government or media put out videos and documentaries and press releases in English to debunk all these lies and show the real China? China has a lot of money so they could easily hire people like me to make documentaries debunking all the many lies about China in the West. But it doesn't even bother to try. You would think that no one wants lies to be told about them. But China doesn't seem to mind that Western media lies about them. It's as if China is an actor being paid to play the role of the bad guy or boogie man. And following some script where it's the bad guy and so it plays along with it. That's the odd thing I don't get that no one talks about."

"Matt, I've been to China. People drive faster than that and cars are closer to each other than that. This looks like a video game or something. Also Matt, the women in China are much more down to earth and approachable and not paranoid of strangers as women are in America. So it's very refreshing to be able to talk to girls there without feeling like it's taboo."

I think there is an actual social credit system which exists in the states - some Americans who are or have been felons are denied the chance of getting a passport which is the same in China. If you owe child support in the states you are going to be denied a passport - that isn't too dissimilar to what happens in China, it is surprising what Americans are criticising about China happens in their own country.

https://www.uspassporthelpguide.com/wha ... -passport/

China isn't a police state in the same way our countries are, you never see police bullying or harrassing members of the public. Everything is monitored though, for example, all the gates to get in and out of my school is done by facial recognition, I would be naive to think they're not using that technology to keep (very low level) tabs on me.

[kangarunner]

"If you go to China in real life, you will see that it is much much NICER and BETTER than what Americans imagine. It is clean and safe and has no violence or guns, and there is no martial law or social credit system like truthers and alt media imagine. No soldiers or cops are harassing anyone there. Ask any honest local or expat in China and you will find this out. I spent almost a year in China so I know all this firsthand from direct experience. I emailed you an album with 1300 photos of my trips to China remember Matt?

@Winston Asian people are much more social with each other. There's no metaphorical "breaking the ice" or barrier like there is in the West. Here in Vietnam, you will see outside food vendors where people will congregate together and eat at the same table. At my previous apartment where I lived with my girlfriend, every single night there would be a big crowd at an outdoor restaurant. They're mostly young people and all talking very loud. The thing about Vietnam is....their flag is one star because they're one people. You mess with one of them, you mess with all of them. There's some super hot girls here. I just wish I came here in my early 20s because now it's harder to get them because I look older. I don't think the VN men realize how good they have it with their women here.