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Beijing Life
Most Recent Beijing Life Articles:
10 Tips on how to bargain in China
This entry was posted in Beijing Life, China Travel, CPG Blog, Expat Living and tagged Bargaining, Haggling, negotiating in China. Bookmark the permalink. | Date posted: March 13, 2013 |
10 Tips on how to bargain in China Once in China, a lot of foreigners have to get used to the bargaining practices that are needed at a market place. It speaks for itself that it would be a wise move to take along a Chinese acquaintance when strolling a market for the first time. However, if you decide to dive into the deep all by yourself, this blog offers some tips and tricks that are evident for Chinese market shopping. Tip 1: Do not bark to a horse A first problem a foreigner might encounter in bargaining is the language. Although a fraction of the vendors will be able to count in English, they will only display this skill when it is in their advantage. Therefore, make sure that you are able to count in Mandarin. If this sounds too ambitious, it is useful to use your phone/calculator to …
China’s restrictions when sourcing rare earth elements
This entry was posted in Beijing Life, CPG Blog, Sourcing Tips and tagged environmental damages, rare earth elements, rare earth metals, restrictions. Bookmark the permalink. | Date posted: March 12, 2013 |
China’s restrictions when sourcing rare earth elements Have you ever heard about rare earth elements before? Most people do not know what they are but they are really important elements in many hi-technology products. China is the major producer of rare earth elements in the world, however, the Chinese government enforced restrictions on exporting them. This blog is going to explain what rare earth elements are and restrictions exist when it comes to exporting. China supplies approximately 95 percent of the world’s rare earth metal consumptions. This natural resource can be exploited in Northern China, which is close to Mongolia. Rare earths are a group of 17 chemically similar elements that are crucial to the manufacture of many hi-tech products. The following table is a list of REEs and some of their most common applications. Element Used in/for HEAVY Yttrium TV screens Europium Flat-screen displays, lasers Gadolinium Computer memory, CDs, …
First Impression: Pizza Hut in China
This entry was posted in Beijing Life, CPG Blog, Expat Living and tagged abroad, china, company, expats, food, living, pizza, pizza hut. Bookmark the permalink. | Date posted: March 8, 2013 |
Pizza Hut in China This weekend, I was with two friends and we decideded to visit Pizza Hut where we will have dinner, because we were tired of noodles and rice. I said to myself, a pizza after two weeks of eating just Chinese food, why not! I know this American chain and thought the pizza should not be as bad as some other western food that I have tried in Asia. When we were getting closer to the restaurant I was in shock. The difference compared with the American and Mexican locals that I had seen was huge. I won’t say it was too elegant or fancy, but I was on shock. The first thing that struck me was that we had to wait for a table because the restaurant was crowded and of course they had a hostess who handed us the menu and put our name on …
The History of Starbucks in China: How to make a name in a tea-drinking culture?
This entry was posted in Beijing Life, China Business, General and tagged china, starbucks, tea culture. Bookmark the permalink. | Date posted: February 18, 2013 |
If we think about China’s favourite beverage, tea is probably the first and unique word that comes to our mind. The dominance of this devotion makes it difficult to find another option. However, since the entrance of Starbucks in 1998, the supremacy has been attenuated. The American company has been able to integrate another hot drink to their list, coffee. Before that date, it would have been unbelievable that China is the most important market for Starbucks outside North America. Nowadays, Chinese recognize them as the best coffee maker, but also as a sign of progressing and transforming modern Chinese cities. When and where did everything start? The first Chinese Starbucks store was opened in Taiwan in March 1998. Followed by the first store opening in Mainland China at the China World Trade Building in Beijing in January 1999. After that, the string of store openings continued with the first …
First Impression: Chinese Karaoke (KTV)
This entry was posted in Beijing Life, China Performance Group, Chinese Traditions, CPG Life and tagged buffet, china, chinese food, Chinese songs, English songs, KTV. Bookmark the permalink. | Date posted: January 30, 2013 |
Chinese Karaoke (KTV) After working at CPG for a week, the company organized a KTV evening after work. At first I didn’t understand what KTV was, but soon it became clear that we were going to Chinese Karaoke. I was very excited although I was not confident to sing songs in front of many people. We finished work and hopped in a bus all together. I did not know where we were supposed to get off so I just followed my Chinese colleagues. We arrived at the destination safely and our KTV evening started. Since it was a Friday night, there were a lot of business people, families, and groups of friends at KTV. I could understand how popular it is in China. The KTV place was really neat and clean. The room we used was big enough and there was a mirror ball. It was pretty much like a …
First impression: Chinese foot massage
This entry was posted in Beijing Life, Chinese Traditions and tagged Chinese medicine, chinese traditions, first impressions, foot massage. Bookmark the permalink. | Date posted: January 23, 2013 |
I had already spent a few days in Beijing before getting my first approach to Chinese medicine. It happened when I was walking through Wangfujin’s cold winter street with a friend who has been living for six years in this country. After an exhausting shopping afternoon, he told me: “Let’s have a massage, it’s really pleasant”. Instantly, the image of some nice Chinese girls wearing traditional clothes came to my mind. I imagined myself in a warm room that relieved me from the inclement weather lying on a comfortable massage bed. Their silky hands giving me a kind and soft massage while I listened to some calm music. When we arrived at the massage parlour, a boy and girl wearing jeans received us into a cool room. To my desolation, there were four sofas that did not look as agreeable as a massage bed. My companion started to talk in …
Popular Chinese Leisure Activities You Probably Did Not Know About
This entry was posted in Beijing Life, Chinese Traditions and tagged calligraphy, jianzi, sport, tai chi, tuo luo, yo yo. Bookmark the permalink. | Date posted: January 18, 2013 |
Popular Chinese Leisure Activities A walk in the park in China is not just any walk in the park. The Chinese parks are often times equivalent to pleasure and amusement, the place to socialize, interact, and exercise. This blog is an attempt to illustrate some of the popular Chinese leisure activities that you can experience when you go for a stroll in a Chinese park. Jianzi – Chinese Hacky Sack 毽子 In the traditional game, Jianzi, the players keep a shuttlecock in the air by using feet and other parts of the body. However, they are not allowed to use hands. The jianzi – or shuttlecock, with the English term “hacky sack”, usually has feathers fixed into a rubber sole or plastic disc. At the formal game, people play it on badminton or volleyball courts but oftentimes you will see that a group of players simply just circle around the …
