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Tuesday, October 6, 2015

People in Zhongshan Without Patriotic Flags on National Day

On China's National Day I saw a number of people displaying Chinese flags, some upside-down, in Zhongshan, Guangdong. Most people didn't have any flags with them though. So below are twenty National Day photos of people not displaying Chinese flags in areas of Zhongshan similar to those in the earlier posts. The photos show a little more of how some people in China spent their time during a big holiday.

Some people I saw ate cotton candy.

girl eating cotton candy in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some ate ice cream.

girl and mother eating ice cream in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some ate noodles.

little girl and boy eating noodle soup outdoors in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some collected recyclable trash.

woman collecting recyclable material in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some wore cosplay costumes.

three females wearing cosplay costumes in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some wore shades.

girl and woman wearing sunglasses riding a scooter in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some paid for shade.

people buying umbrellas in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some paid for hair clips with fake sprouts.

young women buying fake sprouts hairpins in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some didn't want to pay.

female wearing a shirt with "LOVE DON'T PAY THE BILLS"


Some jumped.

girl jumping on trampoline in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some drove.

boy playing a moving car arcade game


Some floated.

children riding plastic bumper boats


Some rode at the back of a scooter.

girl facing backwards riding on the back of a scooter


Some rode at the front of a scooter.

two small children riding a scooter in front of the man who is driving in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some road alone.

man riding a Segway-like vehicle in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some received a ride.

man pushing a girl in a stroller in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some waited to give a ride.

auto-rickshaw driver waiting for passengers in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some walked with family.

girl walking with parents in Zhongshan, Guangdong


Some walked alone.

man walking up stairs for a pedestrian bridge in Zhongshan, Guangdong


And finally, although not carrying a flag, some wore clothing with a flag-inspired design, just not the Chinese flag.

young woman wearing a skirt with a U.S. flag design

Monday, October 5, 2015

Why Did a Person Display an Upside-Down Chinese Flag in Zhongshan?

A sharp-eyed reader asked a question about this photo from a post featuring people in Zhongshan displaying Chinese flags on National Day:

young man on electric bike with an upside-down Chinese flag

The person is flying the flag upside-down. Does it have any significance there as it does here in the US? Or does it not really matter there?
Similarly, not too far away I saw a street vendor who also had an upside-down Chinese flag. Both cases were atypical. In a more famous case, as captured in a photo shared by the Chinese news agency Xinhua, an upside-down Chinese flag appeared during the opening ceremony for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

photo of boy with upside-down Chinese flag walking with Yao Ming during the opening ceremony for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing

Xinhua's caption to the photo:
Basketball star and flag-bearer of Chinese Delegation Yao Ming and nine-year-old Lin Hao, a pupil fron quake-hit area in southwest China's Sichuan province, parade into the National Stadium at the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, Aug. 8, 2008. According to media reports, when the May 12 tremor struck, Lin Hao risked his life and suffered multiple injuries for rescuing his schoolmates from the collapsed buildings. He was later awarded the title of "Teenage Hero in Earthquake Rescue and Relief." (Xinhua/Liu Dawei)
Some may question how a nine-year-old could qualify as a "Teenage Hero". It may simply reflect an imperfect translation of the Chinese word "qīngshàonián" (青少年) which can refer to a broader age range, such as 10 to 19 years-old, and can also be translated as "adolescent". More people may question how an upside-down Chinese flag could have escaped people's attention during a meticulously planned opening ceremony.

But the biggest question was, similar to the examples I saw in Zhongshan, whether the upside-down flag reflected a simple mistake or a deliberate act, since it can be a sign of distress or political protest. Even if the boy didn't intend to communicate anything negative, perhaps the person who gave him the flag did.

In all of the cases, I don't know the true intentions. However, similar manufacturing/assembly mistakes are not uncommon in China. And the difference between a normal and upside-down Chinese flag doesn't appear to be as visually salient as it is for other flags, such as the flag for the U.S. So people may be less likely to notice or to care. Also, if it were an act of negative expression and widely interpreted as such, all of these people would be taking a huge risk. A recent example of publicly raising an upside-down China flag in protest possibly occurred in Hong Kong, but people can more freely express themselves there.

Personally, without evidence showing otherwise, I would assume the person in the photo from Zhongshan was not boldly expressing himself. I wouldn't say it is impossible he was though.

China should be aware that others make similar mistakes. Not long ago the U.K. government prominently placed two flags at the signing of a trade agreement with China. They correctly oriented China's flag. But they weren't so lucky with their own flag, something which was described as "a terribly British thing to do".

Friday, October 2, 2015

People in Zhongshan with Patriotic Flags on National Day

Yesterday was the National Day of the People's Republic of China (PRC). For many it meant the beginning of a long holiday period. For many others, it meant the beginning of a busy period serving people on holiday. Whether due to travel or lack thereof, some Chinese are now in Zhongshan in Guangdong province, a city named after a famous person born in one of its villages. He happens to be the founding father of the Republic of China (ROC), which preceded the PRC and continues on in lands more commonly known as Taiwan. The whole ROC in Taiwan thing does not thrill most in the PRC, to say the least, but people here have positive views of Sun Zhongshan, also known as Sun Yat-sen.

While walking around Zhongshan (the city) yesterday, I saw some examples of people showing a bit of patriotic spirit with PRC flags, whether by carrying them around, placing them on their vehicle, or selling them. Not surprisingly, I didn't see any ROC flags. Below are photos of the examples I happened to notice and managed to photograph in the order I encountered them. The flags aren't always easily visible and one case involves non-living battery-powered individuals. Nonetheless, the photos capture some of the holiday spirit, people, and sights yesterday in Zhongshan. For those familiar with Zhongshan, all of the photos were taken at locations on either Yuelai Road, Fuhua Road, or the pedestrian street on Sun Wen West Road. For those less familiar with Chinese history, Sun Wen is yet another name for Sun Zhongshan. One can only imagine what he would say were he in Zhongshan city today.

young woman holding a PRC flag in Zhongshan, China

young girl with a PRC flag and Minions balloon in Zhongshan, China

army toy soldiers crawling with PRC flags in Zhongshan, China

young girl drinking a bottle of sweetened herbal tea and holding a PRC flag in Zhongshan, China

girl with a PRC flag rollerblading in Zhongshan, China

young woman with a PRC flag in Zhongshan, China

young woman with a PRC flag in Zhongshan, China

man selling PRC flags in Zhongshan, China

street vendor with a PRC flag in Zhongshan, China

man riding a scooter with a PRC flag in Zhongshan, China

two females on a scooter with a PRC flag in Zhongshan, China

young man riding an electric bicycle with a PRC flag in Zhongshan, China

Motor-rickshaw with a PRC flag in Zhongshan, China

young girl holding a meat kebab and a PRC flag in Zhongshan, China

Thursday, October 1, 2015

Scenes from the Three Lamps District in Macau

A few weeks ago an uncharged second battery meant I couldn't take any photos where I ended yet another day in Macau. Two days ago during the late afternoon I returned to the same streets, this time with ample stored electricity. Much remained the same, though more lanterns hung above due to the recent Mid-Autumn Festival. Metropolasia provides a description of the vibrant area in Freguesia de Santo António I was happy to visit yet again:
Rotunda de Carlos da Maia, at the heart of the historic "Three Lamps District", is not really a sightseeing spot as such, but it is one of Macau's most popular shopping areas and one of the best places to see how the locals live, and experience the city's day-to-day life in its most unpretentious form.

The roundabout and its offshoots are packed with small shops, boutiques and street vendors that specialize in inexpensive clothes, mostly surpluses and seconds of genuine brand-names, and there is also a decent choice of authentic eateries and street food vendors around, to take care of the culinary side.
After the first photo of the Rotunda de Carlos da Maia, the following photos appear in the order I took them. They capture some of the goods for sale, environment, and life in Macau's Three Lamps District — not far from the historic districts and casinos frequented by tourists.

Rotunda de Carlos da Maia in Macau's Three Lamps District

Rua de Manuel de Arriaga in Macau's Three Lamps District

person walking with a mobile phone across Rua da Restauracao in Macau's Three Lamps District

Sign for Fa Li Fashion in Macau's Three Lamps District

nail clippers for sail in Macau's Three Lamps District

pedestrian street in Macau's Three Lamps District

"bidadski" children clothing for sale in Macau's Three Lamps District

woman making a purchase from a street vendor in Macau's Three Lamps District

young girl walking on a pedestrian street in Macau's Three Lamps District

dried meats for sale in Macau's Three Lamps District

girl in stroller pushed by woman wearing a hijab in Macau's Three Lamps District

store sign with an umbrella in Macau's Three Lamps District

lanterns hanging over a pedestrian street in Macau's Three Lamps District

street in Macau's Three Lamps District

people waiting at a bus stop in Macau's Three Lamps District

Seoul Station store in Macau's Three Lamps District