hangzhou

www.wantchinatimes.com — Hangzhou police have recently brought to justice a suspected 47-member burglary ring, leading to the arrest of one man and 46 women, including 22 pregnant women: the largest gang of pregnant thieves caught in the country.

xujianfeng.com — Despite its use of latest and expensive models, Hangzhou’s taxi service is notorious for scarcity in shift-changing hours, sulky drivers and their dangerous manoeuvres on the road, AND sloppy car sanitation. Yet, the city is determined to stay ahead of the country’s newly found enthusiasm for going green.

www.lostlaowai.com — Recent chatter on the sinoblogosphere has brought to my attention a rivalry of which I'd previously been unaware. Now living in Shanghai, I am all to familiar with the idea that there are two parts of China, namely Shanghai and then the countryside. And I also know there's much talk about whether

www.xujianfeng.com — Chinese local governments are invariably lavish spenders on image-enhancing projects. So no wonder repeat public works construction, especially the excess in road rennovation and repair, has long been a plague for Chinese cities.Hangzhou is the headline news again. The report on its obession with repeat road work appears today on the country’s major news websites.

www.speakingofchina.com — Do only Mandarin-speaking foreigners really feel like they belong in China? Or will foreigners always feel like outsiders, no matter how good our Chinese is?

That's the dilemma I encountered during an evening walk with a newly-arrived foreigner in Hangzhou.