SubscribeAnyway, seems weird and somewhat claustrophobic. Not any of the frenetic pace of a real British city. Of course, no one lives there yet. But one thing that sticks out in my mind when I think of London is all of the advertisements, all the crowds and so on.The point isn't to accurately mimic a real British city. The point is to provide an exotic, Foreign-flavored slice of romantic, idyllic high-class life. If people in Shanghai want a frenetic pace, well... they can go just about anywhere in Shanghai. The pace of life there is probably equal to anywhere in the world. Instead, people who'd buy into this kind of project want to be able to go someplace relaxing, slow and classy when they go home. (And don't argue that it isn't classy -- you and I know that, but in their definition, having a statue of Winston Churchill downstairs is a source of Big Face, not kitsch.) Increasingly, they also want their home to be reminiscent of the places they lived when they studied or worked abroad.
You know a friend of mine from China was really shocked when she saw US Chinatowns. To her they were dirty and gross, and poor not at all like the China she'd grown up in, which was much more similar to the rest of the U.S.It sounds like she was quite rich in Chinese terms. Chinatowns in the US tend to be dirtier and less safe than big cities in China, but not by much. And the quality of life in most Chinatowns is still far, far better than what most Chinese people enjoy. (Why else do you think people will risk so much to live in them?) And, of course, not all Chinese people want to live in Chinatowns. A lot of them like hubbub, but plenty of Chinese folks like living in a big Western style house with 3.5 bathrooms and a two-car garage.
« Older Two weeks ago, the Small Business Administration p... | Harlem's in the house.... Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
posted by blue_beetle at 1:55 PM on July 6, 2006