Chinese digital payment system

We have heard that China is a cashless society, and that our credit cards would not work in China.  The magic words are WeChat and Alipay, but to use them in China, you needed a Chinese bank account.

Apparently, about 6 months ago, China allowed the linking of foreign (ie us) cards to WeChat and Alipay.  Kin Mun duly signed up, but wasn't able to test it in Australia - it only worked in China.  So he was anxious, but aware that we had a guide who would help us.

On our first day, we went for a walk in a park in Foshan, and saw a vendor selling sweets, equipped with his own QR codes.  This was KM's first test of the digital payments, and with the guide's help, it worked!  We walked away with two packets of sweets.

Later on, at a supermarket, we had the big business version.

I didn't sign up.  So whenever I wanted to buy something, I had to call Kin Mun.  He was only too pleased to try the system again!  He is reassured to know that he can now travel independently in China.

What to make of this? For us, all went well.  Just don't forget your phone. Transactions go from one person's digital wallet to the other fellow's wallet.  No fees involved - mostly  But the bigger picture is beyond me.  Who benefits?  I don't know the answer to that.  Certainly the banks/card companies don't get the card fees as they do in Aus. so I can imagine they would find all sorts of reasons not to implement this system. 

The Great Firewall is a paper tiger ......but it costs.

We had heard all sorts of things about the Great Firewall of China, so Kin Mun duly arranged VPNs before leaving Australia.. 

But they didn't work either.

We stumbled on the solution - use our Telstra Global Roaming and you can access anything on your mobile, just like back in Aus.  Use your phone data to set up a hotspot, and you can link your laptop and your internet is just like home.

Our friends had an Optus account, and could do the same thing - for fewer  $$ than Telstra.

No doubt a concession for foreign visitors with an Aus account. But there is a cost in using Global Roaming.  The free hotel wifi was behind the Firewall.  You aren't actually told a site is blocked - just that  nothing happens.

China Southern (CZ)

Flying to Guangzhou was our first experience of long-haul on a Chinese airline.  We had heard tales, in the past, of brusque service, but none of that eventuated.  Staff were very professional.  We also flew CZ from Guangzhou to Singapore.

One feature of China Southern, at least, is that they don't muck around with under-cover air marshalls.  Both flights had very visible security officers in police-like attire.  The second fellow looked like a martial arts practitioner.  So, noisy passengers beware, let alone anyone trying to get to the cockpit.  For obvious reasons, there are no pics!

We were on the 737 MAX.  We survived.

This was the view of the Johore River (had to look it up on Flight Radar the next day) with bridge and highway visible.

It was a 3-4 hour flight.  There was a spare seat next to me, but Kin Mun couldn't sit there because it was reserved as a cockpit crew rest seat. I wasn't sure if something was lost in translation.  But sure enough, a young pilot-looking fellow came to sit there, his phone went off and he promptly fell asleep.  No chance of a chat.  I figured that if he was still there when we began our descent, I would panic.  He wasn't, so I moved over to the window seat, assuming he wouldn't be back!

The other surprise was that in Singapore, my suitcase appeared placed in a bin.  Never had that before, and wondered why, but collected it and we began to pass Customs and head for the Exit.  But we were stopped and were asked to come over and get our bags X-Rayed.  The fellow was interested in my case and wanted it opened.  I  asked why, he said there was a sharp object.  Oh, thought I, my tweezers perhaps?  He put his hand straight on a package in the middle and opened it up.  It was a couple of "whirly-gig", spinners that I had bought in a park in Foshan.  He had a good look, and then gave them back and said I could go.  I asked what was on the XRay. "Ninja" he replied.  So he wanted to check that my spinny things weren't a banned ninja weapon, and they had waited to see who picked up the offending suitcase, which had been marked by placing it in a bin. A seventy plus old lady carrying Ninja weapons? Could be the gangster's grandmother perhaps!

So beware if they seem to be taking extra care with your suitcase!

 

 

 

Final dinner in Guangzhou

Wonton noodles for Kay at a hole-in-wall noodle bar outside Guangzhou railway station.

More on today's lunch

The other dishes in the set menu K mentioned: congee, chicken feet, choi sun, and sieu mai dumplings. If course we could eat them all 

Free day in Guangzhou.

Today was a free day - so what do you do? Wander through a shopping centre, have lunch and then a supermarket.  Always fascinating.

Seen in the shopping centre:

An Australian brand!

German-Chinese combo?

Huawei make more than mobile phones. Now they make cars too.    

And the latest steering wheels are not circular.

 Our guide had told us that Huawei cars are sought after and very expensive - about AU$50,000 - which is ok, by Sydney standards.

We had to find our own lunch today.  Excellent food.  The first is cha siew (pork) pau (bun), but not like we know it.  The green one is mushroom dumplings with truffles. China produces truffles in Yunnan. Forgot to take photos of the rest.

In the supermarket we saw Aussie beef - and NZ lamb and food from everywhere.

Durians made not smelly and not prickly.  Vacuum packed and sealed. 

Kin Mun using the Chinese digital payment system, through We Chat, in the supermarket. He is only too happy when I want to buy something and he gets a chance to use it!  

And there are certainly more EVs in Guangzhou.  They are the ones with the green number plates.

 

Glittering corporate skyscrapers on Pearl River bank in Guangzhou

We went on a night river to view the lit up buildings of Guangzhou. The buildings on the south bank (above) include the HQs of well known technology giants like Alibaba and Tencent. These companies have their factories in GZ region including Shenzhen.

And our guide pointed out that Alibaba was well lit - to the left - and the one next to it had no lights - that was Tencent.  Donald Trump knows all about Tencent - the home of Bytedance and Tik Tok.

 

Village restaurant in Shunde

This restaurant is accessible via a narrow unsealed and unlit road.

 

You can see our driver (in the middle) and our guide (to the right, in brown top).  This is one of those hidden-away restaurants - I think called "home" restaurants that seem to be privately operating.  You need to know about it - there is no passing traffic!

From old houses to modern shops in Shunde

 

 

Think The Rocks in Sydney!

Food

This tour is a food tour of Cantonese cuisine.  Hunger trumps photography, but here are some notables from the last few days.  

Oysters! I don't eat them, but they were BIG.

Modern take on sweet and sour pork! We were shocked when our guide ordered it, but she reassured us it was a specialty of the restaurant.  The sweet part were blueberries and mango pieces scattered through the dish.  The batter remained crisp and warm.

 Suckling pig.  A bit confronting to see the little fellow, but the meat was good.

There were also prawns on a skewer, and I detected movement as they were put into the hotpot. Oh dear.

There is a system for queuing for a table.  A chair is provided, and sometimes sweets and a drink.

 Cooks in action

And black and white tofu.  The tofu is underneath the topping, and apparently black soybeans are a thing.