2002-11-29 - 2:02 a.m.

Italian dinner in Nanjing

Nanjing, Nov. 13

Damn. I just remembered a whole bunch of stuff that happened before we got on the train to Beijing. So this entry happens just before the end of the LAST entry. I'll try to avoid more confusing stuff like this.

After we got my ill-fated pack at the Night Market, we went to meet Lily's classmates S and A at an Italian restaurant in downtown Nanjing. When we left Lily's University the streets seemed incredibly busy and traffic was especially was this what a Chinese rush hour was like?

We hailed a taxi but after we got in we got a little surprise. After we named where we wanted to go the driver refused to take us there! He immediately pulled over and let us out again.

The reason for the tumult was the fact that there was a rock concert (!!) going on downtown and traffic was totally snarled, and this taxi driver didn't want to have any part of it. It was annoying, but I could understand why he wouldn't want to take us - the meters on Chinese taxis only count miles, not minutes, so while the driver is sitting in traffic, he is making no money.

This was frustrating for us, and we considered bailing on the dinner, but we decided to try another taxi instead. This guy agreed to take us where we wanted to go, but I think he regretted it very soon afterwards.

The rock concert was at (I think) the People's Stadium and featured the Chinese pop group F4. If you want to see what they look like, you can check out this Chinese website. Dig that crazy URL: comicfamily.mymuch.com! Oh wait, I found a website with a little more English in it: here. Aren't they just the cutest bunch of Chinese boys you ever did see? They're dreamy! However I don't think all of them are actually native Chinese: I think one of them was born in California. Which makes them even MORE sexy!

Ahem. Everywhere we went in China we saw ads for these guys. Obviously they're China's answer to the Backstreet Boys, and just like a lot of American popstars, they're sponsored by Pepsi-Cola. Probably all the posters we saw of them were just ads for Pepsi, but they seemed to be omnipresent no matter which Chinese city we were in.

While we were sitting in the cab, creeping through traffic, we had time to contemplate the wonder that is city driving in China. From some web sites that I'd read prior to the trip I'd gotten the impression that Chinese drivers were all lunatics, but the reality wasn't nearly as bad as I feared although Chinese taxi drivers certainly were willing to bend the law when they could and they seemed more willing to take terrifying chances than their counterparts in the States. Many times during the many rides we took we had close calls as other vehicles whizzed past with only an inch or so to spare. Rather than getting all wound up about it, I just assumed that whoever was driving was a professional and knew what they were doing, and I busied myself looking at the Chinese scenery.

The main traffic hazard in China is something that I'm going to call (for lack of a better word) the Creeping Seizure of the Right of Way or CSROW for short. It's basically how pedestrians and bicyclists cross crowded streets and how cars enter busy streams of traffic. Basically what you do is slowly inch your way into the road until the stream of traffic is forced to stop and you either enter the stream of traffic or continue the process forcing the NEXT lane of traffic to stop and let you by or in.

What's so terribly dangerous about this is until the process of CSROW stops the lane of traffic, cars will swerve around you causing all sorts of hairsbreadth escapes with other vehicles. It's quite nerve-wracking, and I would never consider driving in China. In fact, I think that there is some Chinese law that states that if a foreigner is involved in a traffic accident, they have to pay for it whether it's their fault or not. This sounds like an unfair way to separate foreigners from their money, but it really is just common sense: foreigners should not be driving in China! The public transportation works just fine! Use it!

People in China are also more than willing to cut each other off and do all sorts of other rude traffic no-nos, but the big advantage that they have over U.S. drivers is that nobody takes anything personally. In spite of some pretty outrageous traffic maneuvers I saw no examples of Chinese Road Rage. The biggest expression of emotion I saw from any taxi drivers we dealt with was the occasional exasperated sigh or a rare annoyed clicking of the tongue, as if to say: "Aren't YOU a naughty driver?"

There was a lot of sighing from our driver on the way to the Italian restaurant in Nanjing, as he realized that he was going to be spending a lot of time sitting in traffic for a not very big fare. I gave him a little tip after he dropped us off, which I hoped made him feel better.

Hey here's another China fact: nobody tips! In restaurants there is a 15% gratuity attached to the bill, so tipping is unnecessary. As far as I could see that was the norm everywhere else to, which only goes to show: CHINA IS A CHEAPSKATE'S PARADISE!!

When we got into the Italian restaurant we found A and S waiting for us, but they hadn't been waiting very long. We were afraid that the hideous traffic might have caused them to give up and pull a no-show.

I immediately liked A and S. S seemed worldly and knowledgeable while A was just plain crazy, but very funny and entertaining. Crazy A was a nonstop talker and I can't imagine anything too outrageous for her to say. She was also rather good-looking: imagine a younger, blonder version of Laura San Giacomo.

The food was pretty good, but not quite "Italian." Oh well, what do you expect for Nanjing? Dinner was a little rushed because we were on a deadline: we had to finish packing then get ourselves to the train station. However I looked forward to talking with both of them when we got back. They also gave us some tips about what to expect on the train to Beijing.

Thankfully the concert was under way by the time we left the restaurant so traffic had calmed down somewhat. As we were packing in Lily's room, the music of the F4 concert was drifting in the open window. The acoustics were terrible - the sound was so distorted I couldn't tell one song from another. Then again, I'm not exactly a connoisseur of Chinese pop music.

There! Now I can continue with the story of the train trip to Beijing, next entry.