Author Archives: haonowshaokao

Forgotten 90s bands – Phantom Pregnancies

Posted on 04/08/2011 by haonowshaokao

The third in an intermittent series. Just found a stash of ripped 7″ singles, so may be more of these soon In 1996 I was in the habit of going into Magpie Records in Worcester* and buying anything that looked … Continue reading →

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Les Rougon-Macquart #3 – Le Ventre de Paris (1873)

Posted on 02/08/2011 by haonowshaokao

AKA “The Belly Of Paris” or “The Fat and The Thin” As I began to read this I thought it was the third in the Rougon-Macquart series – and it is, in a sense. It’s the third to be written, … Continue reading →

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Spa

Posted on 01/08/2011 by haonowshaokao

V’s gugu (father’s younger sister), biao di (father’s younger sister’s son) and tang di (father’s younger brother’s son) have come to visit for the week, so as per tradition we went to the “Korean spa” yesterday. This involved getting up … Continue reading →

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July update

Posted on 25/07/2011 by haonowshaokao

Change is in the air this week, literally and figuratively. A month ago it was pleasantly warm and dry, and I was working a gruelling 54-hour week. Now I’m down to 12 hours, and outside it’s been alternating between stultifying, … Continue reading →

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Fermented (“stinky”) tofu

Posted on 21/07/2011 by haonowshaokao

One night during my first months in China, I noticed a strange smell coming from the night market. At first I thought it was the smell of an improperly maintained sewer, festering in the summer humidity – the sickly-sweet odour … Continue reading →

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Storm

Posted on 14/07/2011 by haonowshaokao
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How to get married in China in 24 easy steps

Posted on 07/07/2011 by haonowshaokao

1. Go to the British consulate with all necessary documents and pay 50 quid, write names on piece of paper which is pinned up on the bulletin board. 2. Come back ten days later to pick up “certificate of single … Continue reading →

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Things in China

Posted on 29/06/2011 by haonowshaokao

Now that I’ve successfully combined all my blogs I’m predictably going to start making new ones. To that end, here’s ‘Things in China’, a brief distraction daily photo thing, since that seems to be the done thing these days – … Continue reading →

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Chinese food, one week

Posted on 20/06/2011 by haonowshaokao

I’ve decided that I’d like to write about Chinese food, mainly because nobody else seems to be. People from the UK sometimes ask me if I “eat Chinese food all the time.” Well, yes, most of the time, but what … Continue reading →

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I’ve got a bike

Posted on 15/06/2011 by haonowshaokao

Beijing is not a good city for transport. The subway is rammed full at all hours, the roads are gridlocked for good chunks of the day, and bus lanes and queuing don’t seem to have caught on. The only reliable … Continue reading →

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