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As I think Tom Symkownedski put it, baijiu is vodka that has been filtered zero times. It's the local liquor of choice. The most prized and expensive brands have the highest methanol content, with tells you just about exactly as much as you need to know about baijiu. If someone offers you white wine say no. Especially if they have a poo poo-eating grin on their face which seems incongruous with an offer of inoffensive 10% ABV chardonnay.
Arglebargle III fucked around with this message at 15:13 on Dec 21, 2013 |
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Dec 21, 2013 15:02
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You can also buy 5 litres of the stuff for like 40RMB
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Dec 21, 2013 15:05
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For good drinking value, Er Guo Tou is like 55% and maybe 5 rmb for enough to make you blind drunk. Look for it. (no don't). It's like Baijiu but there's more self-hatred.
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Dec 21, 2013 15:10
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Ceciltron posted:For good drinking value, Er Guo Tou is like 55% and maybe 5 rmb for enough to make you blind drunk. Look for it. (no don't). All this talk about baijiu is making me want to go out and get some(because I hate myself), but the True Winter has arrived and I'm afraid to leave my nice warm apartment. Anyway, drink baijiu, facepalm ranger. Everyone will act all impressed if you show any sign of not being intimidated/disgusted by it.
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Dec 21, 2013 15:54
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I cannot stop laughing at this. Well-played.
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Dec 21, 2013 15:57
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Jimmy Little Balls posted:Expat = Expatriate, someone not living in their country of origin. http://ell.stackexchange.com/questions/300/difference-between-expat-and-migrant-worker quote:For migrant worker has a UN definition of: The term expat, short for expatriate, has different meanings, but can be: quote:its broadest sense, an expatriate is any person living in a different country from where he is a citizen. In common usage, the term is often used in the context of professionals sent abroad by their companies, as opposed to locally hired staff. The differentiation found in common usage usually comes down to socio-economic factors, so skilled professionals working in another country are described as expatriates, whereas a manual labourer who has moved to another country to earn more money might be labelled an 'immigrant'. There is no set definition and usage does vary depending on context and individual preferences and prejudices. Summary: White people don't like thinking of themselves as "migrant" or "guest" workers so they adopted another word for it. "True" expats get expat packages, send their kids to private schools on the company's dime, live in large homes with servants and drivers on the company's dime and can support a bubble-existence without even thinking about it. They are not coming for the money, they are coming because their company needed them wherever to oversee or setup whatever.
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Dec 21, 2013 16:11
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Minus1Minus1 posted:All this talk about baijiu is making me want to go out and get some(because I hate myself), but the True Winter has arrived and I'm afraid to leave my nice warm apartment. Will all the cool kids like me? I had to drink a lot chinese wine to impress my gf's cop uncle. It worked.
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Dec 21, 2013 16:12
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Facepalm Ranger posted:Will all the cool kids like me? And baijiu's pretty awesome stuff once you get used to it and learn what the good stuff is.
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Dec 21, 2013 16:14
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Arglebargle III posted:As I think Tom Symkownedski put it, baijiu is vodka that has been filtered zero times. It's the local liquor of choice. The most prized and expensive brands have the highest methanol content, with tells you just about exactly as much as you need to know about baijiu. If someone offers you white wine say no. Especially if they have a poo poo-eating grin on their face which seems incongruous with an offer of inoffensive 10% ABV chardonnay. Don't listen to this guy. Baijiu is fine. If you can handle slamming back a shot of crappy whiskey then you'll be right at home and maybe like it. I assume most of the people that vocally dislike baijiu don't normally drink anything but beer, wine, or cocktails.
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Dec 21, 2013 16:33
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MeramJert posted:Don't listen to this guy. Baijiu is fine. If you can handle slamming back a shot of crappy whiskey then you'll be right at home and maybe like it. I assume most of the people that vocally dislike baijiu don't normally drink anything but beer, wine, or cocktails. The secret to Baijiu is to have a taste of the cheap crap, and once you can take no more, you trade up for the good stuff. So much smoother, no burning sensation, your throat doesn't have to be tricked into forcing it to swallow, no real hangover to speak of, etc. etc. If you're a cocktail or beer guy who has never done straight shots, then yea, you'll probably never like Baijiu anyways.
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Dec 21, 2013 16:52
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Pro-PRC Laowai posted:And baijiu's pretty awesome stuff once you get used to it and learn what the good stuff is. You edit that like it was a privilege, when it was just family hazing, good ol fashioned family hazing.
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Dec 21, 2013 16:53
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Facepalm Ranger posted:You edit that like it was a privilege, when it was just family hazing, good ol fashioned family hazing. Been there done that, I've made some of my best friends and contacts here by being shitfaced drunk on god knows what... waking up wondering how I got home, why is my bathroom such a mess, where is my left sock, and who sent me all these dirty jokes on my phone. And of course the cat is just sitting there, staring at me... judging me silently. 
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Dec 21, 2013 17:01
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I really learned to love the stuff quickly, but then again, my first experiences were with gifted bottles/shots in Guiyang. I was really surprised at the negative response when I asked a few of the Urumqi foreigner crowd if they would mind if I brought a bottle to a get-together. They just don't like fun, I guess. E: yeah, why does one sock always come off and disappear????
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Dec 21, 2013 17:02
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Baijiu isn't that bad at all, usually smooth on the tongue, burn doesn't hit until it's in the back of your throat. Even the cheap crap. Just don't drink realgar and you'll be fine. Also maybe avoid the stuff with the dead reptiles in it. It will probably not be as good for your health as the locals will tell you it is.
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Dec 21, 2013 17:21
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I like baijiu, honestly. Like PPL says, the good stuff is really good. Not exactly something I'd like to drink casually or alone, but in the right social setting it's fantastic. The banquet dinners we have with our boss or whenever we're on business with the university are always a loving blast, largely because of the baijiu, heh.
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Dec 21, 2013 17:32
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MeramJert posted:Don't listen to this guy. Baijiu is fine. If you can handle slamming back a shot of crappy whiskey then you'll be right at home and maybe like it. I assume most of the people that vocally dislike baijiu don't normally drink anything but beer, wine, or cocktails. I'm drinking whiskey RIGHT NOW. Expensive baijiu can be good. I had a bottle of 800 yuan baijiu that was smooth with fruity and chocolatey notes. That was 800 yuan though. Sub 100 yuan I won't touch it. Under 40 yuan it tastes like alcolated vomit. Crappy baijiu is not like crappy whiskey, although I also don't drink crappy whiskey anymore. The level of terribleness you can tolerate is just a personal thing. I have been known to pour out imported American brand name liquor for being not good enough though so w/e.
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Dec 21, 2013 17:36
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I think even the cheap stuff is drinkable, but then again I've never felt like pouring anything out except one particularly bad beer.
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Dec 21, 2013 18:26
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Jimmy Little Balls posted:Expat = Expatriate, someone not living in their country of origin. There are like a zillion better places to go to in Chengdu than anywhere around Jiuyanqiao unless you just love hearing that techno remix of the ABCs and washing it down with fake whiskey and beer. Also it's Chengdu, you have to be looking for foreigners to find any.
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Dec 21, 2013 19:00
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Magna Kaser posted:Also it's Chengdu, you have to be looking for foreigners to find any. Buh?
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Dec 21, 2013 19:26
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Er Guo Tou sells a 70% baijiu that's a pretty good cheap starter if you don't have lighter fluid.
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Dec 22, 2013 03:14
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The number of non-Chinese people in a city like Chengdu is relatively small. I normally went weeks without seeing anyone non-Chinese who I didn't work with.
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Dec 22, 2013 06:12
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Magna Kaser posted:There are like a zillion better places to go to in Chengdu than anywhere around Jiuyanqiao unless you just love hearing that techno remix of the ABCs and washing it down with fake whiskey and beer. Where else is there? I'm still pretty new here so I only know Jiuyanqiao, whatever the Jellyfish area is called and a few random bars dotted about like Little Bar and Machu Picchu.
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Dec 22, 2013 06:49
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Magna Kaser posted:The number of non-Chinese people in a city like Chengdu is relatively small. I normally went weeks without seeing anyone non-Chinese who I didn't work with. IIRC, there are about 20,000 foreigners (including Koreans, Japanese, HKers, Taiwanese, and other overseas Chinese), so you're probably looking at less than 10,000 gringos in a city of 14 million people. Pretty much all of us live between the greater Jiuyanqiao area, Tongzilin, and the 'true expat' hoods south of the city. The fact you can go to a shopping area as crowded as Chunxi Lu and not see a single foreigner is pretty remarkable.
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Dec 22, 2013 10:43
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Jimmy Little Balls posted:Where else is there? I'm still pretty new here so I only know Jiuyanqiao, whatever the Jellyfish area is called and a few random bars dotted about like Little Bar and Machu Picchu. Across the river in Lan Kwai Fong 兰桂坊. I've never been, but I've heard it's fun and expensive? Then there's Blue Caribbean 蓝色加勒比 with Jellyfish and Paname. Down the street a bit from there are some smaller regular bars and another expat bar, the Leg and Whistle (good for pool, soccer games, Scottish people, and decent pizza). Across the street from Blue Caribbean in the Soho building is another bar called Hakka Home that is pretty chill. The other big club area is Shao Ling Lu 少陵路 which has the older Muse, 88, and a few other clubs. Any given night it's a busy area, but on weekends after like 1am its crazy packed. Near the US Consulate (kinda, sorta) is Helen's and around the corner on Renmin Nan Lu is Shamrocks. Helen's is good, Shamrocks is full of old dudes and English people (and old English people). Down by the river near the Big Boat is another area with some (old) clubs and different bars. Jia Bar (Jah Bar?) and Carol's by the River on I think 黉门街 Hongmen Jie can be good places. The area by the actual Big Boat is more KTV bars and restaurants. And then all over there are random groupings of KTV bars or single bars because Chengdu has a fuckton of bars. Even Jinli Ancient Street has some bars that'll have shows at night. Most outside tea houses will have beer and baijiu, too. Like anywhere suddenly becomes a bar. There are Tibetan performance bars dotted about, too. Edit: I don't even go out much anymore so there's some newer places I don't know about or older places which I think are gone or are too lovely to mention.
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Dec 22, 2013 11:16
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Tom Smykowski posted:Across from all the clubs at Jiuyanqiao is like a bar street. Most of the bars there at some point in the night have live music and you have to buy like 13 beers at a time. It can be good depending on the music and who you go with. I liked this place. But it's mostly about who you are with. gently caress, I wanna go back to Chengdu
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Dec 22, 2013 11:34
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I usually have a good time there. If the weather is nice, sitting in the open by the river is goodtimes. I'm fixing to make one of those big GOON CITY posts about Chengdu before I leave next month. I think the older one by ProdigalSon is archived or dead (also old as gently caress).
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Dec 22, 2013 11:38
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Tom Smykowski posted:Across from all the clubs at Jiuyanqiao is like a bar street. Most of the bars there at some point in the night have live music and you have to buy like 13 beers at a time. It can be good depending on the music and who you go with. Cool thanks for this. Yeah the bar street next to Jiuyanqiao is where we usually go, I just count that as part of Jiuyanqiao. I really don't like Lan Kwai Fong, drinks are way overpriced and both times I've been there its just been full of groups of guys sitting around in poorly fitting suits smoking cigarettes and playing on their phones. I've Been to the Shamrock a couple of times and like you say it was just full of old western guys so not really my thing. Will give the big boat area a try next time I go out, a friend keeps wanting to go to Jah Bar anyway. We go to the Tibetan places quite often with our Tibetan friends, they're cool but no really somewhere we'd go without those guys.
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Dec 22, 2013 11:51
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Today at the flea-market a woman blew the snot out of her nose and it landed on my pant-leg. Yup.
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Dec 22, 2013 14:10
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Smeef posted:IIRC, there are about 20,000 foreigners (including Koreans, Japanese, HKers, Taiwanese, and other overseas Chinese), so you're probably looking at less than 10,000 gringos in a city of 14 million people. Pretty much all of us live between the greater Jiuyanqiao area, Tongzilin, and the 'true expat' hoods south of the city. The fact you can go to a shopping area as crowded as Chunxi Lu and not see a single foreigner is pretty remarkable. I guess that's true, I did see a couple a week at Chunxi Lu.
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Dec 22, 2013 14:13
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I had major surgery a few years back and now I need to have injections every 3 months. I have the medication but no syringes. Can you buy syringes anywhere or if I take this to a hospital will they do it for me? In Thailand I could just go to any pharmacy and they would do it and then start trying to sell me either steroids, cialis or valium.
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Dec 22, 2013 15:08
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Jimmy Little Balls posted:I had major surgery a few years back and now I need to have injections every 3 months. I have the medication but no syringes. Can you buy syringes anywhere or if I take this to a hospital will they do it for me? In Thailand I could just go to any pharmacy and they would do it and then start trying to sell me either steroids, cialis or valium. I haven't had any trouble buying sealed hypodermics at decent pharmacies in Beijing, and they seem to have different sizes. I don't use them for medical purposes (refilling Copic markers with ink) so I can't speak to how decent they are. My friend also had no problem finding them to give shots to his dog. I'd recommend bringing a couple if you're unsure. Don't wanna take risks with your health.
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Dec 22, 2013 15:32
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Jimmy Little Balls posted:I had major surgery a few years back and now I need to have injections every 3 months. I have the medication but no syringes. Can you buy syringes anywhere or if I take this to a hospital will they do it for me? In Thailand I could just go to any pharmacy and they would do it and then start trying to sell me either steroids, cialis or valium. Syringes are standard fare at all of the pharmacies I've ever been to in my neck of the woods, but there is limited size availability. 5mL is the most common. They're definitely sterile. Pharmacies are easy to find, too.
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Dec 22, 2013 16:10
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Great, I only need a small one so that's not a worry. Thanks guys.
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Dec 22, 2013 16:29
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I've got a Fedex package sitting in customs. It was labeled personal toiletries but actually contains (uncontrolled) prescription medicine. As in not the kind of stuff you would get in trouble for having. They want me to identify myself and provide some kind of proof that the item is below 1000 rmb in cost, like a receipt or screen shot of thepurchasing site. It is under the amount. Should I just tell the truth or will it be seized for shipping prescription medication for some reason? I'm worried there may be some regulation that I'm not aware of. Anyone have experience with this type of situation?
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Dec 23, 2013 08:03
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Arglebargle III posted:...customs... Chinese customs doesn't have the same understanding of what "prescription" medication is as the US authorities do they? If the substance is uncontrolled in China then I wouldn't have thought there would be a problem bringing it in to the country.
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Dec 23, 2013 08:25
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I'm not sure why the package was held. Their questions seem more interested in the price which is in accordance with the law. I'm just worried giving them a real receipt that shows the package was mislabeled will somehow be a problem.
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Dec 23, 2013 08:33
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If you show its under 1000 RMB you better be ready to pay a bribe or something cause I doubt they would go through the trouble of actually doing their jobs without getting some more money for it
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Dec 23, 2013 08:43
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I was contacted by a Fedex rep in shenzhen, there's no conceivable scenario in which I could pay a bribe.
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Dec 23, 2013 08:52
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If I can get a visa with a fake plain text flight reservation, what's stopping you from faking a receipt?
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Dec 23, 2013 08:54
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Arglebargle III posted:I was contacted by a Fedex rep in shenzhen, there's no conceivable scenario in which I could pay a bribe. I'm sure China has e-Banking 
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