Back from China but still So Busy

It's been nearly 6 months since I last blog, perhaps more than that. Through no fault of mine, I'm not allowed to blog and neither am I allowed to access other people's blog when I was in China (Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin & HongKong).
I'm so glad that I can finally access my blog. However, I'm still so busy. So please, bear with me till I manage to copy and paste some of my old emails to family and friends about my travels. For now, I'll just give a little bit of a synopsis. ;)

Difference in China (quick guide)
please take note that this is according to my observation only. So there's a possibility that it might not be the general population, but just within the bubble that I was surrounded with. I still love my experience in China and I wouldn't hesitate to travel in China back again. :)

1. HongKong is part of China.
People in HongKong don't think so. :P

2. Old Men(more than old women) still spit everywhere they go in China
I still have a phobia as I really hate the sound of them clearing up their throat before they start spitting. Urgh. and this, despite the Govt's effort to fine them if they are caught spitting! :(

3. Ladies (and I'm sure even the Men) in China don't shave their armpits
To see this in action, you have to see during other seasons apart from Winter. I only realize about this when they started using sleeveless shirts/blouse.

4. They don't sell Deodorants, Clear Facial Wash (not the milky type) & Face Moisturizers
i couldn't even get them in Watsons. Thank god I had some extras left and it was in the middle of winter when I left.

5. Beijing doesn't have an English bookstore.
But they do have a foreign language bookstore which is way cooler in my opinion. You can get books in different languages; English, French, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian...etc.

6. If you're an aspiring artist, go to 798 road!
It's a must and I highly recommend it. It's also known as the art district/road in Beijing. The exhibitions are not only from China but from all over the world.

7. The Chinese is not biased.
Although of course, it's *ahem* illegal, you can get pirated stuff from foreign films/songs to even their own local products. Which, when I think about it, even I wouldn't want to pay RMB80 (that's about USD11 or RM40 more at this time of writing) for a cinema ticket. Come on, if you're earning in RMB, would you really spend so much for a cinema ticket when you can buy more than 8 meals with that kind of money? Perhaps when the entertainment industry lowers their rate, then people would appreciate it better.

8. The blonder you are, the more the locals wanna take pictures with you.
More of the local tourists actually. Don't ask me why. But they just love it. Perhaps it is true. Blonds have more fun?

9. If you don't speak Mandarin/Chinese, go get a guide.
This is true for at least Beijing and Tianjin. However, I do believe that you only need to give China a few more years. Perhaps 5 years or 10 years, the locals in China (or at least Beijing, with some of the specific Foreign Language Universities that they have) will be able to converse with you in your native tongue!