Woodworker travel in China

[Roger Feeley]

My company is sending me to Shanghai in June. My wife is going along and we are going to do a bit of touring. I was just wondering if there are any woodworker type places to visit.

Suggestions?

[Jim Matthews]

I lived in NorthEast China from 1989-1992.

Things have changed, undoubtedly.
Shanghai is hell-bent on outpacing Hong Kong, so construction has displaced longterm residents.

I would search a little further North, in Qingdao if you can get there.

I would NOT recommend Beijing in Summer, if you can avoid it. The air pollution inland is horrific.
Galoot-Tools has a contact page (http://suggestions@chinesewoodworker.com) that maybe helpful in your search.

[Dwayne Watt]

The traditional tourist places like Forbidden City (Beijing) and various other old town areas are the few places that even have much wood remaining in Chinese cities. The work is fascinating (dragon carvings, fancy corbels, etc). Virtually everything that is new is concrete and stone in China. Buildings and infrastructure are being produced at such a feverish pace that not a lot of attention is given to details. Older buildings (some not so old) are simply deteriorating because maintenance is not a priority. Like previously stated, air pollution is very bad year round due to unregulated (sometimes unenforced) emissions from smokestacks and cars. Enjoy your trip to China. It can be a real eye-opener for certain.

[HANK METZ]

Just a nod to the sensibilities of the wife, wander too far afield and pit toilets are the norm- so I have been told by reliable sources- not trying to China bash either, just the way things are in some countries.

[Ben Martin]

Just a nod to the sensibilities of the wife, wander too far afield and pit toilets are the norm- so I have been told by reliable sources- not trying to China bash either, just the way things are in some countries.

Hank,

"Pit toilets" or squatters as they are referred to are used in most of Asia and are common to half the worlds population. I spent half of last year in China and luckily avoided them!

Roger,

I travel to China about every month, an hour or so outside of Shanghai in Suzhou. How long are you going to be there? Given that information I can help you, but woodworking would probably take a back seat to everything else unless you are there a long time. My guys always talked about taking me to a woodworking shop but haven't made it yet, our hobby is very very uncommon to most Chinese. Contrary to common thought, most Chinese made items are actually more expensive in China than buying them in the US...

[Matt Meiser]

Maybe you can tour the factories where all our stuff is made :(

[julian abram]

Yeah, I think you'll have a difficult time finding much woodworker type places in China. I'm certainly no China expert but went in 2002 and back in 2005 adopting a couple baby girls. We traveled to several cities and visited areas where craftsmen were making pottery, silk garments, porcelain, cloisonne, jade jewelry, vase, etc. Did not see products related to woodworking. China's forests were harvested long ago, I would guess they import most of their wood products. This may be changing, but what I saw the general population was too poor to have hobbies. I appreciated the US before the trips to China, but I appreciated it a whole lot more after returning. America is a blessed nation. Enjoy your adventure!
Here are a couple photos of a child's wooden baby stroller at my daughter's orphanage. I wondered who made these and how many years ago, notice the wood axles & wheels.
229030229031

[Roger Feeley]

Ben,

Most of the tours we've looked at so far start out in Beijing and end up in Shanghai but they can be modified. I don't view Shanghai as much of a destination unless you want to do a lot of shopping. I planned to ask the agent about substituting Suzhou for Shanghai. It seems to me that Suzhou would be a better cultural destination. Your thoughts?

Keep in mind that I come from a pretty geeky family. My mother found an Alaskan cruise on the only passenger boat with a library instead of a casino.

[HANK METZ]

Hank,

"Pit toilets" or squatters as they are referred to are used in most of Asia and are common to half the worlds population. I spent half of last year in China and luckily avoided them!
...

Ben, I’m familiar with the breed. As a kid in the Navy on his first cruise to the Med, I was in a bar in Greece and had to use “the head”. The barkeep pointed out back to a little shed and off I went. I entered the dimly lit shack and looked around for the urinal or toilet bowl, but couldn’t find it so I went back and asked again and was pointed to the same structure. By this time I was looking for the nearest wall, I didn’t much care and all those rum and cokes had me a bit fuzzy so back I went. I finally got it when on the floor at the far wall was this porcelain pan that reminded me of mom’s dish drying pan that was under the wire basket and draining into the sink. Big difference though was the two footrests projecting up and a hole about 4” in diameter at the far end. Welcome to the real world kid, you ain’t in Kansas anymore. And then there was the Philippines, but that’s another story. :)

- Beachside Hank