Comments on: The Chinese Siesta

By: Jude

Jude — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 03:47:26 +0000

I’m just looking for thick bamboo stalks/tubes, preferably with the top section removed. Thinking of using it as a cooking vessel. Thanks. I’ll check out those places you mentioned.

By: Benjamin Ross

Benjamin Ross — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 00:18:21 +0000

@Jude

I’m not sure exactly what you’re referring to. Any chance you know the Chinese name? Mayflower does carry fresh bamboo from time to time (Chinatown market seems to have it more regularly), and I find myself occasionally making a special trip to Chinatown just to pick it up…lots of fun to cook with. Although, I’m not sure whether or not this is what you are referring to.

By: Jude

Jude — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 16:25:00 +0000

Does Mayflower carry fresh bamboo tubes for cooking things inside it? I\’ve been looking for this forever in Chicago.

By: Nicholas MacDonald

Nicholas MacDonald — Mon, 05 May 2008 01:39:43 +0000

‘Seeing as how my adult students came from literally all over China to study at my school in Guangdong…the richest of Chinese provinces…then my very unscientific survey says….”NO!” ‘

Though it seems to be next to nonexistent here in Shanghai.

Then again, this might not be an “urban/rural” divide- this may be a “Shanghai/everywhere else in China” divide- which I’ve noticed tends to be fairly common. Shanghai doesn’t exactly roll like the rest of this country (nor does it roll much like anywhere, including other major cities in America or East Asia… it’s kind of it’s own place…)

By: canrun

canrun — Sun, 04 May 2008 18:33:28 +0000

“Actually, the ‘nap’ thing never exists in the big cities.”

So all those fold-away beds in the corners of (albeit government) offices in Shenzhen- one of the fastest-moving cities in all of China-were all a figment of my imagination?

Ben, you have some ‘face-saving’ answers being given to you, IMHO.

By: Grace

Grace — Sat, 03 May 2008 21:16:04 +0000

Could the xiuxi be more of a rural custom that tends to fade away as people migrate to the cities?

For me, the answer is Yes. Actually, the ‘nap’ thing never exists in the big cities. Anyone need to work/study hard to make a living.

By: canrun

canrun — Fri, 02 May 2008 21:41:24 +0000

“Could the xiuxi be more of a rural custom that tends to fade away as people migrate to the cities?”

Seeing as how my adult students came from literally all over China to study at my school in Guangdong…the richest of Chinese provinces…then my very unscientific survey says….”NO!”

No relationship at all…Jack Germond!

By: KyleY

KyleY — Fri, 02 May 2008 18:28:35 +0000

Ben, there is an interesting story about Ordos, Inner Mongolia on New York Times. Search for this article: “In Inner Mongolia, Pushing Architecture’s Outer Limits”. I’ve never heard of this city/county in China before but apparently it has the second highest per capital income level in China after Shanghai. (Ordos means “palace” in mongolian.)

By: KyleY

KyleY — Fri, 02 May 2008 18:22:35 +0000

When I worked at a software company in Hefei, Anhui, everybody went to take a nap after lunch. Also, when I attended national technology meetings in China, delegates, most of them from national universities and state companies, didn’t take a nap during the lunch break but they drank a lot of tea and seemed to be less active after the lunch break. I would think most of these delegates have nap time if not attending the meeting.

By: Benjamin Ross

Benjamin Ross — Fri, 02 May 2008 16:52:23 +0000

@ Grace

Do you think this is more of a rural/urban divide thing? At my university, 99% of the teachers and students came from rural areas. Also, I do remember in my time spent in Shanghai and other big cities noticing the migrant workers napping, but not so much from the locals. Could the xiuxi be more of a rural custom that tends to fade away as people migrate to the cities?