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There is a turkey farm out near Dujiangyan where you can go to choose and buy one. I was looking for the location and information for someone else but cannot locate it right now. If I dig it out I will post, unless someone else already knows where it is and posts first? But the farm is there – south of Dujiangyan.
This question also triggered something else, which I also just posted on the Brits In Chengdu group for information and may apply to citizens of other countries too: “It concerns British citizens who have spent time overseas (China in this case) then return to the UK and wish to find work. In some cases your new employer will ask for a Criminal Record Check from your previous host country. For us this can only be obtained from the PSB and has to be done in person. I am currently trying to assist one person who has returned to the UK and has discovered this problem. So please keep this in mind when its time to go home. There is a service in Beijing who can help remotely, if you lived there, but so far I have not found anyone here to do it. In Chengdu the PSB currently insist on the the requestor of such a check physically being present. There’s some information on this in the Living in China guide: https://www.gov.uk/living-in-china – see the second half of the Criminal Record Checks section.” If anyone on this forum knows of a Chengdu based service to help those already returned from China, please let me know.
I can say now though that there is very little chance of connecting you with an Entry Clearance officer. Consular activities are kept separate from visas completely these days. But I will make enquiries if you can fill me in with some outline information.
I’m here Richard. I am the Consular Warden for Chengdu – which means I can try to pass information on to the Consulate, especially after hours. Happy if you want to pm me here and I will try to do what I can. I take it you have not joined Wechat as I didn’t see any correspondence on Brits In Chengdu. If you are and want to contact me directly my Wechat id is Spannerman0162.
Very interesting discussion. I still use Uber as a preference when I can and need to. Psychologically I am already reaching for the app before even thinking about hailing a taxi these days. I’ve just loaded 一号专车 and initially not impressed by the stupid video that impedes access to the app itself – ho hum. Anyway my plan is to try it and see for myself. Right now near the office (south of Tianfu 4th street) there is nothing. However there are 6 Ubers, with the first one within two minutes, and even two black ones. I suppose if the drivers themselves dont adopt it then it will not succeed.
Assuming I can use one I will put some comments here on how it goes.
No pay for being shunted around an office all day pointing at meaningless features and tasteless artefacts….. Sounds awesome….. Even the shabbiest of Chinese video crews normally pays an hourly rate…. What kind of deal is this? Presumably they don’t actually want anyone to respond? Suppose I could put my kilt on for a laugh??? But my legs may put them off…..
I generally agree with Charlie’s last post, but I also have a little sympathy with the constraints of taxi drivers who do have rules to follow…. I’d have more sympathy if they bothered to follow the rules of the road too!!! However rules or not, what would it cost to keep the taxis clean? How about being polite to customers? Many are of course but too many experiences with grumpy, non-communicative taxi drivers here, and who set off and change their mind about going where you want because it may inconvenience them, or they might run out of gas, or they may not get a “return” fare…… This is where Uber is head and shoulders ahead. Clean taxis, polite drivers, safe driving in cars which are running properly…. so far anyway. Makes the customer experience so much better, and then the customer comes back.
All my recent Uber trips have been exemplary and all cheaper than normal taxi so I now tend towards using them first.
It would not be hard for the normal taxis to reach this standard, although I do admit proper vehicle servicing would add overhead,or detract from profit, but WOULD help pollution too.
I do genuinely hope the taxis raise their game.
I’m using my British TSB Visa debit card. Had no problems at all in using it on Uber, although the account address is my home here in Chengdu, even though the bank itself is in Scotland
I think you need to use the Black Car Uber for Audi A6. Three different vehicles picked me up on “people’s” Uber. Peugeot SUV, Buick saloon, etc. Another friend of mine used the Black Uber going from Jinsha in the west to Huayang in the south and that was 99RMB and obviously much more expensive than standard transport. However it was an E-class Mercedes long wheelbase. As Charlie says good for occasional airport pickups or impressing a lady perhaps?
Typical response times for Uber for me have been between 3 and 7 minutes, but, like DiDi DaChe you can see in advance where the vehicles are before deciding. The potential arrival times for your location are shown on the Uber map thought which is a good way to help decide. You do need a credit card to set it up, but once your journey is complete you almost instantly receive an email with the cost shown. Again no issue so far. For short journeys in town the “people’s” Uber cars have been around 2 or 3 RMB cheaper than the equivalent CD taxi fare. Longer journeys have been almost the same for cost. At the moment Uber has a 50 RMB incentive code which I can send to friends wanting to use it. So pm me if you feel like giving it a go for free. As I said before all my experiences so far have been good. Although one friend has had a driver decide not to pick up when he realised the passenger was going to be a foreigner. Nothing is perfect I suppose…..
As for DiDi DaChe I never managed to be picked up once. Despite being able to talk in simple Chinese terms to the drivers, and even using Chinese colleagues it has never worked, although all my attempts to use it were at peak times when CD taxi drivers can and do pick and choose. Charlie’s article is good on that and very informative but I think when demand exceeds supply it all goes haywire…..
I hope Uber cleans up whilst they are on strike!!! If we can add some balance to this discussion I think we should look at what the presence of Uber should cause the market to do (in normal circumstances). Of course I understand that the CD taxis are heavily subsidised but having lived in Chengdu for 7 years now I reckon there is a 50/50 chance of landing in a really crap, even dangerous and badly maintained taxi, driven by a complete lunatic….. Maybe I’m being extreme but I have no issue with these guys losing business. The easy way would be to shut down Uber of course, but why don’t the Chengdu taxis re-examine their own service, or lack of??? I have used Uber 5 times recently and my experience each time has been exemplary and timely. Excellent driving skills, clean vehicles and timely pickup and drop off. Directly to the right destination….and it was around the same price as a CD taxi. I felt safe and comfortable each time. Of course that may not be others’ experiences with Uber, but why not permit them to make an impact on the taxi business? One of my reasons for using Uber recently was because a CD taxi point blank refused to take me to my destination just outside the west 3rd ring road because it was too busy – having already taken me part of the way!!! And Uber is also a sensible choice from the HuaYang area too, where I now work.
As another thought, how many of you would take your infant child or elderly parents in a Chengdu taxi? Not many I bet. My own parents were horrified a couple of years ago when they travelled by Chengdu taxi. I think when we use the service regularly we become anaesthetised as to how poor it is. Just on Saturday I had a mercifully short run in a CD taxi with a chronic misfire, filthy seats and suspension that was well past its best – wonderful – not.
To me Chengdu taxi drivers as both a service, and theoretically as driving professionals, should set the standard for others to follow. Maybe if they were better drivers and more polite, other local drivers may follow. Let’s start by servicing the cars. Its actually testament to VW that they keep running for so long.
Who else has tried Uber? How about those who have already contributed to this column? I get the feeling you may not have done so yet…. Try it and feel the difference, before it does get banned, and despite my thoughts I’m sure banning is inevitable.
How to screw up a decent thread….. Well my suggestion would be to employ the services of a large husky like my previous dog with very large teeth and bright blue eyes – but was stealthy. So when he sneaked up on you and bit your arm off you wouldn’t even know. And he could run forever so your arm would be history…..Good luck potential robbers…… Now my alarm system is smaller, hairier and louder – with a “big” dog bark when intruders approach…. There is also no substitute for good locks on door and windows, and errrrr actually using them when you go out – remember some burglars can come from above on ropes…. Human error is also a big factor here. Alarm systems like this are also worth considering: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/505428730/blink-wire-free-hd-home-monitoring-and-alert-syste
Sadly you may not be able to rely on the wuguan in your area as on their meagre salaries it has even been known for them to be complicit in such crimes.
Be safe and eat well
The Bookworm Chengdu
Yujie East Road 2-7#, Ren min South Road 28# （玉洁东街2-7号，人民南路28号）
I finally managed to drive one Sunday past. Not a diamond encrusted one in sight and even the housing area used for the launch was not stratospherically priced. I took a few pictures and was able to have a really good look at the car. Extremely well made, excellent paint finish, well-fitted interior as you would expect for the price. Lots of bells and whistles to play with and the central “Tesla Pad” covers everything you could imagine.
Visually it looks better than the photos – sits very low and gives the impression of holding the road even when sitting still. I had no opportunity to try it on twisty toads but during the drive the steering gives a little feedback so I sense it will be fine. The disc brakes are huge; here’s why: The BIG thing was the acceleration!!!: for reasons known only to the organisers the test track was very short with a slight curve, and I suppose they were expecting lots of drivers so all I could really do was floor it and see. I think its possibly the fastest accelerating car I’ve driven and it’s quite relentless – pushing you back in your seat with no gears to worry about. I could only hold it for about 6 seconds before lifting off but could not check the speed as I was concentrating on other things as it was time to stop. My passengers could not tell me much either as they were also firmly pressed back in their seats. Extremely impressive but far too short to tell much else. I had a Ferrari 400GT a few years ago and I know it would be slower than the Tesla was; maybe comparable to a Space Shuttle?? I need to go back and try it for longer.
Internally it has lots of room including amazing boot/trunk storage in the front and rear. Also no spare wheel – Tesla say you should use sealant and a pump to get you home…. might be fun in some parts of China.. Only thing I really didn’t like was the size and shape of the back seat: way too short for larger folks like me and zero support under the back of your upper legs. I think it would be quite uncomfortable on a longer run.
Charging is going to be the big question/solution here. If you have a house then setting a station up should be easier. Bought and rented parking spaces present a bigger challenge depending on the nature of your management office and the wuguan . The most expensive model on show was the fully kitted out P85 Model S which was almost a million yuan, but prices start just under 600k RMB. The dealer is around the back of American Garden (not been yet so don’t know exactly where) and there is another unofficial trader with a shop just off the 3rd ring road near the Wuhou road (Taipingyuan Middle 3rd road). I want one – just don’t have that kind of spending power for now, but I see it as a great solution for daily runs around town, and plugging it in every night if required, like my phone. Batteries and power train are warranted for 8 years… And if all our electricity was renewable it really is the future of motoring…. Not perfect but a really useable proposition.
Excellent description. I have met Dr. Pinniger on a few occasions and the work she does is amazing. If you can, please come to The Spot to see what this is all about. Even better, go to the shop and buy something. Nice article Amir and so good of The Spot to host this.
Hi. I’ve had some success on chengduliving with selling camera gear but also had some items which failed. But why not advertise on here anyway? There’s also other ex-pat sites in Chengdu for selling…. For a guide to prices try the Taobao s/hand listings, but there is huge variety: Samyang 8mm: http://tinyurl.com/o2yf5v6 or Canon 7D: http://tinyurl.com/psvgzvv or Tamron 70-200: http://tinyurl.com/l22utfh or Tamron 17-50 2.8: http://tinyurl.com/o374nup In my experience you will probably have to sell individually unless someone wants to set-up with a camera and lens set from scratch. If they do I’d suggest a discount for buying the full set. At the end of the day the price is whatever anyone wants to pay – depending on how you feel and how badly you want to sell, plus of course the condition of the equipment.
I am contemplating re-advertising my own Nikon D7000 for example, along with some of the related DX format lenses. Might find some takers for it as its Christmas time. By the way is your Samyang 8mm a Canon mount or perhaps a Nikon? If Nikon I may be interested myself. Thanks.
I use Strong VPN and it works well on all my devices, except occasionally at home (China Unicom ISP) it refuses to connect on the hard-wired service so this must be some kind of block created by the ISP. Mobile, also Unicom, is always fine. Costs around $70US a year which I find good value, and you can change servers if you find performance is slowing. They have many. You can find them on StrongVPN dot net.
RIP Charlie’s VPN. 🙁 Never used it as I have my own, but what a sad and unoriginal way to go out…..I mean how the hell can there be anything new in the 16th “episode” of this genre? I’d like to say this really sucks, but that might be misconstrued by Mr Anonymous Oedipus ……
Sorry Charlie – you were trying to do a good thing here….
Re-Advertising:
I am selling an unmarked Nikon D90 complete with the “kit” f/3.5-5.6G ED VR 18-105mm zoom lens as well as an f1.8D 50mm lens. The D90 and the 18-105mm lens are brand new, and the 50mm prime is used but still in great condition. I’d bought the camera as a gift which did not work out so I decided to offer it here. I still have all the paperwork which came with it, but the box is stubbornly hiding. Bought from a Nikon dealer in Shenzhen. It takes amazing pictures – far superior to my old Olympus DSLR; but I have a D7000 of my own so no real need for the D90. Looking for around 5000RMB for the complete set including a camera bag – negotiable up to a point. Let me know if you want to take a look and we can meet. SMS on 18683611404 is best during working hours or call me in the evening. Or email me on [email protected]. Thanks.
