Donuts China Style

I have commented before on how Western companies, such as McDonald's, KFC, and Dairy Queen, have localized their products for China's market. Writing for Reuters Eveline Danubrata reports about a another food localization:

Pork donuts may not be palatable to Americans or Europeans, but the parent company of Dunkin' Donuts and the Baskin-Robbins ice cream chains is catering to local tastes in China, where it aims to open another 100 stores in the next two to three years...

"Donuts are a very flexible product. You can do savory donuts, you can do donuts with shredded pork -- that's in China," Chief Executive Officer Nigel Travis told Reuters in an interview.

"We also have a range of other savory products that we have been testing and introducing country by country."

Danubrata also notes that pork donuts probably would not work well is Muslim countries due to religious rules forbidding the eating of pork. In that light, I suspect Dunkin' Donuts is not planning to introduce them in Israel as well.

In The Washington Post Keith B. Richburg also commented on donut localizations in his article about the "doughnut wars" in Shanghai:

...Chinese customers seem more interested in the drinks than the sugary doughnuts. And following the lessons of other American retailers, the doughnut shops are finding that some of their best-sellers would be barely recognizable back home, like Dunkin’s dried pork and seaweed doughnut, or the doughnut made with dried Bonito fish...

Dunkin’, like some of the other chains, is discovering that coffee and other drink offerings, including jasmine green tea and lichi green tea, are more popular than doughnuts.

Krispy Kreme, meanwhile, is offering its quarters, with easy chairs and quiet surroundings, as a place to relax, surf the Web and enjoy a huge variety of cream-filled doughnuts at a more leisurely pace.

“People stay a long time,” Lim said. Here in Shanghai, he said, “we position ourselves differently than in the West.”

However, he also questions whether donuts are a good fit for China:

But what isn’t at all clear is whether Chinese consumers particularly like doughnuts.

The average Chinese breakfast might consist of congee, or rice porridge, maybe some soybean milk, sometimes fried noodle, or perhaps a dry roll or bun. The idea of something as sweet as a glazed or cream-filled doughnut in the morning would seem an anathema to many local palates.

Based on my own food explorations I am not as skeptical about the future of donuts in China. Here is one reason why:

A pile of deliciousness

These tasty objects are called xián jiānbing (咸煎饼) and roughly equivalent to a large bagel in size. I am not aware of a English translation (and a literal character by character translation does not seem to do the trick) so I will call them Chinese donuts. They go especially well with a tasty bowl of congee (a Chinese rice porridge) but can be happily enjoyed on their own. The Chinese donuts cost less than US 50 cents each, are much denser than typical Western donuts, and are very filling. The ones above are from a simple but wonderful local restaurant -- Wuzhanji (伍湛记). I would list the restaurant as a must visit for foodies (they also have excellent steamed rice-flour rolls) and is perfect for a morning meal. Based on the crowds I regularly saw at Wuzhanji, they certainly have no problem selling plenty of Chinese donuts.

Of particular relevance is that these Chinese donuts are not very sweet and instead fit more in the "savory" category. Based on it and many other similar foods I have had in China, when I read about the localized products at Dunkin' Donuts I was not at all surprised (I have yet to try any of them though). I think the Chinese donuts provides a useful example of how understanding what is available in China can provide some hints to foreign companies about how they can best localize their offerings in China or how some offerings may not require any changes (see here for a similar discussion about mobile phones).

I should point out that you cannot find Wuzhanji and its special Chinese donuts in just any city in China. As far as I know it only exists around Guangzhou -- a city where the density of Western donut shops currently appears to be far less than Shanghai. But I suspect Wuzhanji and its Chinese donuts could fare well in Shanghai. If Wuzhanji opens branches in Shanghai there could be yet another twist in China's donut wars.

From Nail Shop to Factory Life in China

When I was last in Shenyang, Liaoning province, I visited a large underground shopping mall popular with many youth. While there I had the opportunity to speak with this young woman working at a nail shop:

Selling fake nails with a variety of designs

As we talked I got to learn about some of her life. And I tried to understand some of the decisions she had recently made, including the choice of her mobile phone:

However, it was another decision that I found most striking. When I asked about her hopes for the future she said without hesitation that she planned to the leave the nail shop and work at a factory in Yantai, Shandong province -- over 12 hours from Shenyang by road and ferry or longer without the ferry. She had already moved from her home in a village several hours away to work in Shenyang and was prepared to move even further to an unfamiliar city just based on the encouraging words of a friend who had done the same. In the young woman's eyes working in a factory would be an important step up in her life.

Her story in part resembled others I have heard when interviewing youth in China. It also seemed straight out of a book I had recently read - Factory Girls by Leslie T. Chang. If you enjoyed reading my earlier posts about Xiaoxin's first payday or first vegetarian lunch in Shanghai, you may also enjoy Chang's book. The stories she shares help capture the realities for many in China as they strive to improve their own and their family's lives.

Recently, I came across a video excerpt capturing some similar issues regarding factory life in China (H/T to Tricia Wang) . In the excerpt workers' express their hopes and their impressions of life at Foxconn -- the company which is the focus of much Western media attention due to its important role manufacturing goods for Apple, Sony, and many other well-known companies. The video also includes scenes reminiscent of many others I have seen that are more a part of everyday life for many in China than modern architectural marvels or high speed trains. While what is shown in the video is just the surface of some very deep issues and I do not believe all is as clear as it may seem, it helps show a side of China that is often missed or glossed over in typical news reports.

One young man in the video mentions that he chose Foxconn because its conditions are much better than other factories in China. I would not be surprised to discover that Foxconn's conditions are also much better than the factory where the young woman above may now be working.

You can watch the video here:

        Dreamwork China from Cineresie.

Bailian Dong Park in Zhuhai, Guangdong

Today, I visited Bailian Dong Park in Zhuhai, Guangdong province. It can also go by the names Bailian Cave Park or White Lotus Cave Park. I see them all being used on English web sites. But in Chinese there is no confusion. It is simply 白莲洞公园 (in pinyin with tones: báilián dòng gōngyuán).

The park and the several temples on its grounds provided me a much needed change of pace. For the same purpose I will share a few photos here.

Park lake

Photo opportunity

Man displaying his nunchaku skills to the rest of his group

Roller skating

Stairway to the temples: the character 福 (fu) can be translated as "blessing"

Placing incense sticks

Looking at lotus flower shaped candles

Incense sticks burning

More Than 3 Standard Deviations Above the Mean: Lactivism In Memory of Susan Eitelman Dean

Several days ago I found out that a friend of mine, Susan, had suffered a "major embolic stroke that occluded 2 major arteries in her brain". Much of my graduate work and some additional later research was in the area of cognitive neuropsychology -- I studied what brain damage could tell us about how the undamaged brain works. I knew, as a friend had written, that this was likely "bad, bad, bad".

A wonderful web site tracking her progress was quickly set up and her close friends provided regular updates. I first read that doctors were using medication to reduce the pressure in her brain. Then they decided surgery was neccessary. Then there were reports that the swelling continued and was potentially causing more damage. Her friends expressed that any recovery could take from months to years. I knew in cases like this, though, that "recovery" can truly mean "as recovered as possible".

But there will be no recovery of any length. Earlier today I read Susan had died.

Susan was married and in her early 30's. She had a 2 year old boy. She was very health conscious.

My heart goes out to her child, her husband, her parents, and everyone else who was close to her.

Reading the stories and comments others left on the web site and her Facebook page was both uplifting and sad. I think one of the comments on her Facebook page says so much:

I love you more than 3 standard deviations above the mean!!

Her friend wrote that just days before Susan's stroke. It highlights both the feelings many genuinly had for Susan and the dorkiness Susan proudly displayed.

I could go on and on about how years ago a work colleague and I recruited Susan fresh after she graduated from Carnegie Mellon and how she proved to be such a great work colleague and friend. Or how she was so helpful when I needed to make a long distance move. Or how she semi-randomly thanked me last month for the used knife set I gave her over 10 years ago -- it solved a minor but long unsolved mystery for me since I had forgotten giving it to her.

Instead, I will share one of the issues dear to Susan: breast feeding. She considered herself a lactivist -- someone who promotes breast feeding. This is not limited to simply encouraging women to nurse their children. In American society, some women are made to feel as if they are doing something wrong by simply feeding their child in public -- as if it is something that needs to be hidden away. That something so incredibly natural, healthy, wondrous, and loving as breastfeeding even needs advocates boggles my mind.

Just days before her stroke I shared with Susan a recent news report that caught my attention:

Nirvana Jennette, a mom of four from Camden County, Georgia says she was forced out of church for breastfeeding her baby. Church leaders asked her to breastfeed in the bathroom and implied they could have arrested her for “lewd behavior.” The most egregious statement? She told news station WSAV that her pastor compared her breastfeeding to a stripper performing.

How breast feeding is "lewd" or like a "stripper performing" is beyond me. Sometimes, the same people who can be charmed by watching puppies suckle can without hesitation criticize a woman for nursing her own child in public. Whatever the cause for such feelings, I have yet to hear a good reason for banning public breastfeeding. If you do not like to look at it, tough. I do not like to listen to people in the supposedly free U.S. whine about public breastfeeding. But I will be the first to protect your right do so.

Fortunately, in Georgia the law allows women to nurse anywhere they and their child have permission to be. Now, there is a movement to add an enforcement provision to the law. The article also mentions nurse-in protests in reaction to several other incidents.

In response to the article Susan commented:

Thanks for sharing this Brian! I love how some of my guy friends are becoming lactivists too!! Even from as far as China! I'd love to hear your thoughts on how breastfeeding is viewed over there... :)

I was hoping to more carefully consider the issue of breastfeeding in China when I had the chance and get back to Susan later. Sometimes, later does not work.

In the spirit of Susan's lactivism I want to pass on some relevant links Susan recently shared:

• An article "Why you should breastfeed your toddler"
• Lactivist shirts for sale
• An effort to convince Google to do a Google Doodle promoting breastfeeding
• An online store offering breastfeeding solutions

I must admit I had no plans to do a post on breastfeeding, but I share Susan's feelings on this topic. I am happy on this very sad day to help spread Susan's concerns about an issue that was particularly important to her.

Finally, just a few weeks ago Susan shared a post of this photo:

It is a collage of photos telling the story of a couple who married despite the bride being in the midst of a very difficult fight against cancer. She died 5 days after the wedding. Like me, Susan is careful about checking out such stories and included a link to Snopes indicating the story about the photos was indeed true.

And she left a brief comment on her post that seems so apt now:

Life is short, and delicate. Handle carefully.

Sometimes, it is much too short.

Susan and her son Andrew at a Kindermusik class last week (thanks to Holly Lesnick)

Conan Copies the Chinese Copier

I have previously commented on various examples of potential copyright or trademark problems in China -- whether mobile phones, Apple Stores, computers, or ice cream. However, these are certainly not the only cases. One question many foreign companies ask is "What can we do about it?"

American talk show host Conan O'Brien has taken his own path to answering that question after he discovered a show produced by Sohu in China had copied his own show's opening sequence. I do not know whether any legal action has been taken or is even possible, but O'Brien may have done something even more effective: he publicly mocked Sohu's show. And just as important, the key excerpt has been posted and is currently available on Sohu's video sharing service in China:

[Update: If video is not appearing you can find it on Sohu here]

While I and several of my Chinese friends find the excerpt humorous, I think there is a deeper point to be made. Fan Huang on the Shanghaiist commented on the potential impact:

The internet now makes former boundaries porous to an incredible extent yadda yadda, and we feel like the current moment is when a previously solid cultural bubble separating China and the rest of the world has been pierced...

We hope incidents like the Conan smackdown contribute to a new notion in China that wantonly appropriating other people's names/designs/tv show opening sequences is no longer okay, because the specter of losing face is now possible on a global scale.

Face is indeed an important concept in China and understanding it can help companies better address a variety of issues. Conan's aim may have been more about producing fresh humor than causing Sina's show to change its opening sequence, but I believe this illustrates how best responding to copying in China can be aided by a better understanding of Chinese culture and some more creativity.

Great Firewall Update: Google+ Blocked Again

Last month I explored a variety of web sites to see whether they were freely accessible in China. In short, from my location in Guangzhou I found that:

• Facebook, Twitter, Vimeo, and YouTube were all completely blocked.

• Amazon China, eBay, MSN, NPR, and Windows Live loaded without apparent problem.

• Amazon.com, Bing, CNN, Gmail, Google+, Yahoo!, and this blog had a variety of problems but were not completely blocked.

For more details see here.

Recently, there have been reports of Google+ being accessible in China and that it led to an outburst of Chinese language comments on President Barack Obama's Google+ page (see here for a news report that includes some of Jeremy Goldkorn's insights on the Chinese language comments). I was surprised numerous reports claimed that Google+ had only recently become accessible since I was able to access it last month in Guangzhou.

In light of the news, a few hours ago I did a quick check of some of the sites I tested last time. I conducted the tests on two different operating systems from my location in Zhuhai, Guangdong province. The tests were conducted while while using a non-local DNS server and without a VPN (for details on what that means see the earlier post). The results on the two operating systems were the same. It is possible some of the results would have been worse with a local DNS. It seems unlikely any would have been better. This is what I found (changes from previous testing in bold):

• Facebook, Google+, Twitter, and YouTube were all blocked.

• Amazon.com, Gmail, Windows Live, and Yahoo! loaded without apparent problem.

• This blog loaded with the same problems as described before.

So, while Amazon, Gmail, and Yahoo! all fared better than last time, Google+ is now blocked.

For me. In Zhuhai. Today.

My understanding is that I am now not the only one being blocked from accessing Google+. It is also worth noting that my VPN is working just fine. When I want to "get through" the Great Firewall I can do so without problem.

My guess at the moment is that the Great Firewall underwent some recent updates and that there were a few bugs in the rollout. However, there are some peculiar aspects regarding the reported recent accessibility of Google+ that make me wonder if there is more to the story.

But for now, I will return to trying to get that video to work.

Seeing What is "Out of Sight"

In the "About Me" section of this blog I wrote "I'm fascinated by the similarities and differences in how people 'see' the world around them." And in a previous post I shared how following a dog led me to some interesting discoveries in Yuli, Taiwan. In that spirit, here is a short animation made by three graduates of the National Taiwan University of the Arts about what a little girl "sees" while searching for her very helpful dog (no Chinese required and thanks to a Taiwanese friend for introducing it to me):

Update: For those who cannot watch YouTube due to the Great Firewall here is a version on Tudou (possibly not the same quality):

[Update 2: the Tudou version no longer loads so it has been removed. If you are here now, the Great Firewall likely isn't a big factor for you now anyway.]

The "Out of Sight" website  can be found here: http://evaty.main.jp/oos/

Beach Inconveniences in Hong Kong

Two signs I saw last November at a Cheung Chau (長洲) beach in Hong Kong:

Note: 01-11-2011 in Hong Kong format is 1 November, 2011.

Despite it being a warm and sunny day, I did not go in the water.

From Video Mishaps to Hong Kong, Open Plan Offices, and Text Messaging Legal Woes

I had hoped to have a post today about the parade in Taiwan I mentioned here. However, I am having some bizarre problems creating the video. It looks completely fine in the edited preview, but in the final version some sections get stuck rapidly alternating between just a few frames. Other sections are fine, though. I will give it a whirl again this weekend. If all goes well I will put up the post on Monday. Otherwise, maybe I can just add some techno music to the video, and it will go viral.

For now I will do something I have not done in a while -- a quick review of some random links I had been holding onto for potential deeper commentary. Since I may never get to them, here are a few in no particular order (previous post of assorted links here):

1. I have previously discussed (here, here, here, and here) the barriers mainland Chinese face visiting Macau and Hong Kong. Bo Gu of NBC News describes her own first visit to Hong Kong. Her story about how she obtained the necessary permit highlights both some of the challenges in obtaining a permit and provides a taste of how "official processes" can work in China.

2. An article by Julian Treasure on The Sound Agency website discusses research indicating that open plan offices can hurt work productivity, even when they have been designed in the hope they can promote "creative thinking and better problem solving". I have not yet had a chance to review the original research papers, so I do not want to comment specifically. I will just say that what is reported is consistent with other cognitive psychology research I have conducted/reviewed in the past.

3. A Reuters article by Patricia Reaney warns:

Couples who may be heading for a nasty break-up should be careful about texting because it could end up as evidence against them in divorce court.

I appreciate the concern from a legal perspective, but it strikes me as somewhat ironic. I am no relationship expert, but it would seem to be that if one wants to save a marriage that reducing lines of communication may not be in a couple's best interest. Also, the advice to not put anything in writing seems easy to follow -- just speak your thoughts. However, sometimes people are better able to express themselves through written means (and sometimes very specific forms of writing). I have conducted research that... well, I cannot share details so I will just say that I think there may be some opportunities for innovations here. And they will not necessarily only apply to troubled couples.

That is all for the links. Now hopefully I can sort out the video problem.

A Taiwanese Perspective on Michele Bachmann

Early last September when I was in Kaohsiung, Taiwan's second largest city, I spent an evening with a Taiwanese friend who lives there. While driving to a cafe for desserts my friend told me she was fascinated by Michele Bachmann and hoped she would continue her campaign to be the Republican nominee for the 2012 U.S. presidential election. I found it surprising that a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives and strong supporter of the Tea Party movement might not only be known to at least some people in Taiwan but also have some followers.

The ensuing conversation proved rather enlightening. I will share it here since it provides an example of how American politics are perceived in a part of the world that in recent decades has seen a variety of democratic reforms and last month had an important presidential election of its own. To be sure, my friend's opinion is just one voice out of many in Taiwan, and I make no claims as to whether it is representative.

I recently communicated with my friend and everything she wrote is consistent with my memory of our earlier conversation. So, I will simply provide her recent written responses. [I have made some very minor edits for clarity since my friend is not a native English speaker. I have also reorganized the text for better flow since some content is the result of requests for her to elaborate.]

How do you know Michele Bachmann and what is your opinion of her?

Michelle Bachmann is a public figure so it was hard to ignore her when all of the spotlights were on her. I first noticed her when she appeared on the cover of Newsweek. It seemed she was being bullied by some of the media so I started to wonder if people had been unfair to her. But it turned out she’s a very interesting individual.

She had my attention particularly for her very conservative speech as well as her ambition for the presidency. I understand ambition is sometimes a good thing. It’s the very same quality I see in Hillary Clinton, but she’s not like Clinton at all! I mean, it’s just hard for me to relate a “submissive” wife to also being an ambitious / calculating politician. That didn’t sound very convincing to me.

What also amazed me was that she seemed to have loads of followers/supporters. She won Iowa, right? [She did not. My friend may be thinking of the Ames Straw Poll] I don’t understand why people voted for her. I was confused and also curious. Later I decided to give up wondering why. Like I said, I enjoyed seeing her. Every time she was on the news I had so much fun, like I was enjoying a daytime soap opera. She’s not dull at all!

As a matter of fact, it’s not Bachmann that I am interested in. It’s the world politics that attracts me, and I am particularly fond of US politics because of all the conflicts between parties and all the ups and downs in the recent Republican primary. It brings me a lot of fun.

What makes Michele Bachmann seem like a soap opera?

She's funny. She likes to put things in a dramatic/exaggerative way, and her talks are mostly odd, absurd and ridiculous… and I guess those are the crucial elements of soap opera?

Would you want Bachmann to be President of the U.S.?

NOOOOOOOOo I don’t want her to be the president of the US. I can’t imagine her being the leader of a super power. I think one good old Bush is good enough for all of us.

She and Bush are equally silly, only Bush is funnier (his choking on a pretzel or wiping his glasses on some poor woman’s clothes...). If she became the president, I am afraid the US would return to medieval times, gay rights would be banned, girls would not be allowed to wear bikinis, wives would have to be submissive to their hubbies....

So, Michele Bachmann may feel a little pride in knowing that her celebrity has spread all the way to Taiwan, although maybe not in the fashion she would likely prefer. And I assume my friend now has mixed feelings to know that Bachmann dropped out of the Republican primary after a poor performance in the Iowa caucuses.

I would be curious to hear what others think about my Taiwanese friend's views of Bachmann. In an upcoming post, I will share some photos (and probably video as well) of a large parade I saw in Taipei after I had left Kaohsiung. It highlights an issue that my friend fears would worsen in the U.S. if Bachmann became President. At the very least, I am pretty sure the people in the parade would not agree that they were celebrating, as Michele Bachmann has described it, "personal enslavement".

Cigarettes, Noodles, and Diapers: Profiting from China's Internal Borders

At Zhuhai's Gongbei Port (拱北口岸) in China's Guangdong province one can see a steady stream of people exiting immigration at the border between Macau and mainland China.

Numerous people pass through the border for a variety of purposes. One of those purposes is very pragmatic.

Sometimes it is apparent that many people are openly carrying at least one of several items. For example, these three women were each carrying a box of instant noodles and a box of cigarettes:

While some people may be bringing these items from Macau for themselves or to give away as gifts, it is clear many have another goal in mind -- selling them as part of a large grey market in mainland China.

For example, some people will sell their box of cigarettes to buyers on the other side of the street from Gongbei Port:

People with larger colored bags are just some of the buyers that can be found in this area.

Though at other times, people can sell their cigarettes immediately upon exiting the Gongbei Port building:

Buyers (in this case all have plaid-patterned bags) quickly clear out if people with the appropriate uniforms arrive.

Especially for selling other items, some walk a little further and head down an alley with a warehouse-like building including many individual "stores". The sales patterns can vary from day to day. On one day there was a store where people could sell a brand of Japanese instant noodles (出前一丁) without waiting in line. However, people carrying another item had to stand in a long line:

In Chinese I asked one of the men apparently working in the area, "What is this?"

He replied, "This is nothing."

I did not feel the need to continue the discussion since it was already clear that this "nothing" was in fact people selling a highly desired item in mainland China: Merries diapers from Japan.

Why do these items need to be brought from Macau? Due to their status as special administrative regions, both Macau and Hong Kong sell goods that for a variety of reasons are not available (or as easily available) through official channels in mainland China. However, in some cases a grey market sales network in mainland China exists as I previously described for the iPhone 4S. The border at Macau and Zhuhai is particularly convenient for transporting some of these goods since both cities have urban areas immediately adjacent to the border. Not surprisingly, many of the stores in Macau near the border sell the very items that are most desired by mainland Chinese.

There can be a variety of reasons as to why these goods are in particular demand. For some, such as the diapers, it is due to the perceived safety and quality of equivalent products made in mainland China. The article "What Chinese Shoppers are Buying Online" on Forbes discussed this issue:

Recalling the terrible fall 2008 mass poisoning incident when six Chinese babies died and hundreds of thousands of children were sickened by melamine-tainted milk, it is no surprise that Japanese-made infant powdered milk is among the top-selling products. Some Chinese believe that direct Internet sales and home deliveries of powdered milk products would ensure that the contents had not been altered...

Also in the “baby” category are best-selling Japanese diapers, including the Kao “Merry” or Unicharm “Moony” brands (128 yuan/US$19)–again, priced higher compared to local brands. Chinese parents believe that the diapers contain no harmful chemicals that cause allergies or rash, and the materials are top-notch, preventing spillage.

And it is not just Chinese who are concerned. Some foreigners residing in mainland China have also turned to the Internet to purchase baby supplies produced elsewhere (see here for one perspective).

Based on what I saw, it appears that due to customs' restrictions people are very limited in the number of items they can bring to Zhuhai (I rarely saw people carrying more than one package of the above-mentioned items). However, last August Dan Harris on the China Law Blog commented that the situation was far more flexible at another border at that time:

An interesting thing is happening on the "border" between Hong Kong and China.

Nothing.

Let me explain.

Like virtually all countries, China has various limits and duties relating to what can be brought into the country. China is generally quite good at enforcing these limits and duties.

Except for quite some time now it has been looking the other way when it comes to food imports from Hong Kong. If you go to the border between Hong Kong and China, you will see what I mean. There you will see many, many people bringing back into China massive quantities of baby formula and the customs people are doing nothing. Nothing. The same is true for all sorts of other packaged foods being brought into China.

It is not uncommon for the various border "policies" to change (sometimes without official notice) so this difference comes as no great surprise.

There appear to be several other fascinating aspects of how the various grey markets seen at the Zhuhai-Macau border operate such as people being typically paid in Macanese currency, sellers reportedly making multiple trips in a day across the border, and variations on which items are "popular" from day to day. I will refrain from commenting on them, since I am still fuzzy on a number of issues. Regardless, it is striking that a grey market can apparently thrive for items such as instant noodles that need to be carried one by one across two immigration checkpoints.

So, like the Shanghainese reader who expressed an understanding for Macau's and Hong Kong's borders due to concerns over protecting cities' cultures, there are other mainland Chinese who may have their own reasons to appreciate the borders. While some mainland Chinese are not supportive of the policies which restrict their travel within China, for others the borders combined with special rules for Hong Kong and Macau provide an opportunity for profit.

Should Shanghai Have Borders?

Today, as I saw this scene of people in Zhuhai looking across the harbor (Qianshan Waterway) at Macau:

I recalled a scene from last summer in Shanghai of people looking across the river at Pudong district's modern skyline:

Despite the similarities in the two scenes, including a bit of smog, while mainland Chinese need a permit to enter Macau, no permit is required for them to enter Shanghai's Pudong district -- one of China's most developed areas. Regarding Shanghai, a Chinese reader from there responded to my post about Macau's border with mainland China with these comments [English slightly edited for clarity]:

I can understand why Macau and Hong Kong have these rules.

I don't want my own culture to be changed, even my own city [Shanghai] will be captured. Lots of people are too aggressive here. So many people come here but they actually don't like it. They condemn our city, our language, our rules, and they want to change things here. They hate Shanghainese.

In response to the title of this post, no, she does not feel that Shanghai should have borders separating it from the rest of China. And though she will need a permit to do so, she hopes to visit both Hong Kong and Macau someday.

The reader's comments provide much fodder for discussion. For now, I share them simply to highlight a mainland Chinese perspective on the borders that may not have been expected without a deeper understanding of China. I am sure there are a variety of other perspectives that could be found in China and Shanghai as well. In the post about Macau's border I wrote [emphasis added]:

Despite growing up in a cultural environment very different from most Chinese, I suspect I would be asking questions very similar to those that some people in China are now asking.

The "some" is of course very key in terms of appreciating the variety of views held by China's people. Additionally, there can be a diverse set of factors guiding these views. Just the comments above from a single person touch on several very important issues for China such as the rapid pace of change, the variety of cultures, and the divisions between certain groups of people. Even an issue that could seem so straightforward from the outside, the views of mainland Chinese on borders restricting their own travel within China, is full of complexities. Once again, there are many layers.