November 8, 2021 • 22 mins
Do you know why Chinese politicians have lustrous black hair? Do you know why you wouldn’t write '1,000,000' in China? And do you know why pandas do handstands? If the answer to any of those question is ‘no’, then you should definitely listen to this week’s compilation episode, where we listen to the favourite China-related facts from all 30 guests of the last season. Chapters 00:00 - Trailer & Intro 00:43 - Main 21:44 - Outro Subscribe to the PREMIUM version, see the visuals, and/or follow the full transcript for this episode at https://mosaicofchina.com/season-02-compilation-04-china-facts.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
[Trailer]Noxolo BHENGU: Ice cream was discovered in
China…OF: That's for real?
NB (00:06):
That's for real, for real. Look it up guys.
[Intro]OF: Welcome to Mosaic of China, a podcast
about people who are making their mark inChina. I’m your host, Oscar Fuchs.
OK, this is the fourth special compilationepisode from Season 02, and this time we're
listening to how all 30 of the guests fromthe season answered the question: "What is
(00:30):
your favourite China-related fact?” So ifyou want to impress your friends with deep,
deep knowledge about vibrating peppercorns,black hair dye, and urinating pandas, you’re
in the right place.
[Main][Voiceover]
OF (00:45):
Sean Harmon, the beer company CEO from Episode 09.
[Clip]SH: My favourite China related fact… There
are so many. The easiest thing is to do withthe scale of the country. This is maybe less
true today after COVID. But a few years ago,China's economy was growing at the pace of
(01:05):
one Australian economy every year.OF: Oh wow, yeah. It's always interesting
when you make that like-for-like comparison,you know.
SH (01:10):
Yeah. OF
the scale.SH: Yeah. “What does GDP growth mean?”
OF (01:14):
No, exactly. SH
Yeah, it's a bit like when they say “Oh this is, like, five football fields’ worth.”
SH (01:20):
Yeah, you can conceptualise it a little bit. Yeah, exactly.
OF (01:25):
Australia-size…. [Voiceover]
Vittorio Franzese, the lawyer from Episode 27.
[Clip]VF: So I was in a compound in Beijing. And
I realised that in that compound, there musthave been more people than in my hometown,
related to the amount of people that can bein a compound or a district of a big city
(01:46):
like Beijing or Shanghai. My hometown is calledTrani, it’s on the east coast of Puglia.
So it's very nice old town with a cathedralon the sea, but no more than 50,000 people.
So it was kind of hard for me to imagine theamount of people that I would have faced here.
[Voiceover]OF: Katherine Wong, the Peruvian healer from
(02:08):
Episode 04.[Clip]
KW (02:10):
There is a temple of my ancestors somewhere in 广东 [Guǎngdōng]. So for me, that was
very interesting.OF: And it's specifically your clan?
I believe so, I believe Wongs, they all come only from one line.
[Voiceover]OF: Michelle Qu, the improvisational comedian
(02:31):
from Episode 20.[Clip]
MQ (02:32):
I think the most impressive fact about China is that China is extremely colourful.
And extremely big. For example, 广东 [Guǎngdōng]Province, and Mongolia Province…
OF (02:45):
Inner Mongolia, right? MQ
like outside The Great Wall. But in 广东[Guǎngdōng] Province, life there is quite
different.[Voiceover]
Chang Chihyun, the humanities professor from Episode 03.
[Clip]CC: The variety in China is little. Because
(03:06):
I know it is diverse, but compared to thesize of continental Europe, it should be as
diverse. But the truth is it’s not. Yeah.[Voiceover]
Björn Dahlman, the Swedish clown from Episode 17.
[Clip]BD: The fact that you can walk in a park,
(03:26):
and you can meet old men and women who actuallyhave amazing Kung Fu skills. I have this 70-something-year-old
teacher in Shanghai, he was teaching me spearfighting, this long three-metre spear. And
he showed me and a bunch of other 30-somethingguys, “OK, so this is how you hold the spear
in one hand”. And four of us, we couldn'tlift the spear, it was too heavy. And this
(03:50):
teacher, without an effort, just takes itup with one hand, holds the very edge of it,
and balances it perfectly. And you see thesethings happening all the time. And it's like
“Yes, ‘Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon’fairytale China is still alive.”
[Voiceover]OF: Jamie Barys, the street food expert from
(04:12):
Episode 02.[Clip]
JB (04:13):
So this one's about Sichuan peppercorn, Sichuan peppercorn actually gives you paresthesia
in your mouth. So it feels like your tongueand your lips are vibrating, which is cool
in and of itself. But they've actually donestudies to see at what frequency it's vibrating.
And it turns out, it's 50Hz, which is thesame frequency as the Shanghai power grid.
(04:35):
[Voiceover]OF: Noxolo Bhengu, the African community organiser
from Episode 14.[Clip]
NB (04:42):
Ice cream was discovered in China… OF
NB… But perfected by the Italians.OF: Wow, that's for real?
That's for real, for real. Look it up guys.
[Voiceover]OF: Seth Harvey, the education coach from
Episode 19.[Clip]
SH (04:59):
The sport of football - soccer - was actually invented in China. England takes credit for
it, but it actually predates England, andfootball is a Chinese sport.
OF (05:10):
That's a good one. I think the English, we are the ones who invented the rules. So
we like to invent rules, and plant flags,and stuff like that. Yeah.
[Voiceover]OF: Ajay Jain, the car designer from Episode
21.[Clip]
AJ (05:26):
This one's interesting, because it's kind of related to India. By India banging into
China, it means all the water flows southand all the rivers flow south. So India has
got plenty of land, and arable land, and rivers,and fertile plains of the Ganges, and what
have you. And they've got the luxury of beingvegetarians, and then living off the land.
(05:50):
Whereas China's got to find arable land. Andonly 2% of the world's arable land is consumed
by 20% of the world's population. So thatmeans the Chinese people are super resourceful,
whether they cut steps into mountains, theyeat different things. And I think that is
also what makes them intrinsically programmedfor innovation. Survival is their innovation.
(06:18):
[Voiceover]OF: Murray King, the public affairs leader
from Episode 29.[Clip]
MK (06:24):
The word ‘Shanghai’ means ‘up from the ocean’. 上 [Shàng] means ‘up’,
and 海 [hǎi] means ‘ocean’.OF: Yeah.
And I think many people use that name without ever stopping and thinking "Why is
it called Shanghai?” So this is one bigriver delta. It's just silt deposit over hundreds
and thousands of years. And we're about maybea metre or less above sea level. So literally,
(06:49):
this is a city which hasn't just risen verticallyin the last 20 years - as we see the beautiful
skyline of 陆家嘴 [Lùjiāzuǐ] - it'sa physical creation that has risen up from
the ocean. It's still being created. If you'veever seen those… Maybe when you land at
浦东 [Pǔdōng] airport and looked out atthat coastline, there are mud flats that just
stretch out into infinity. And the water isa very brown colour, it's silt coming down
(07:13):
the Yangtse river and being deposited in theEast China Sea. So Shanghai is continuing
to be created.[Voiceover]
OF (07:21):
DJ BO, the DJ from Episode 23. [Clip]
BO (07:27):
In the 1930s, Shanghai was the fifth biggest city in the world. And if you were a foreign
person in the concessions, the rules of Chinadid not apply to you. Shanghai has a great
history of jazz, opium and whores. And I hopeto be keeping up that tradition, if not specifically,
at least in spirit. You know, in America youhave what's called ‘the old weird America’,
(07:53):
but Shanghai has an ‘old weird’ past aswell. And I hope to manifest that in what
I do.[Voiceover]
OF (08:00):
Jovana Zhang, the handicrafts designer from Episode 08.
[Clip]JZ: The fascinating thing about China for
me is the length of the history. The guysdidn't change even the the writing since ancient
times. It's the persistence of the Chineseway, it’s fascinating for me.
(08:21):
[Voiceover]OF: Cassandra Chen, the heavy metal bar owner
from Episode 16.[Clip]
CC (08:27):
I really admire the first Empress in the 唐 [Táng] Dynasty, who was the only Empress
in Chinese history.OF: Ah, 武則天 [Wǔ Zétiān], right?
Yes. OF
She was fighting from the bottom to the top of her life. And running the country,
and making it strong. So as a woman at thattime, it's very impressive.
(08:51):
[Voiceover]OF: Vladimir Djurovic, the brand naming expert
from Episode 13.[Clip]
VD (08:58):
I was reopening 孫子 [Sūnzǐ]’s Art of War. It's a teaching material for kings
and lords. And when I was reading it, I wasstill getting a lot of ideas that are so contemporary.
And one of the principles was the 道 [dào]for example: the ethics, the road, the purpose.
(09:20):
I was quite happy to see the 孫子 [Sūnzǐ]precepts of the best way to win a war and
to build your team is to work on your 道[dào], which is I think, part of what a brand
does. So I was like “Hmm”. This fact ofhow much it applies to today's world. And
it relates, in a way, to what I do. So I feltlike this fact is something that's very memorable
(09:42):
for me.OF: Nice. And I like it how you can distil
3,000 years of Daoism into branding.VD: Of course.
[Voiceover]OF: Jiyoung, the transgender teacher from
Episode 30.[Clip]
J (09:56):
It will be something that I've recently discovered, which is that in 福建 [Fújiàn]
Province there is a rabbit deity that's dedicatedto homosexuals. And I think that's amazing,
that in Chinese mythology there is a deitythat's actually dedicated to gay relations.
OF (10:14):
Why a rabbit? J
[Voiceover]OF: Casey Hall, the fashion journalist from
Episode 22.[Clip]
CH (10:26):
Big numbers in China. I think as a Chinese language learner - I don't know whether you've
had the same thing, but - big numbers arethe hardest thing for me.
OF (10:34):
Yeah. CH
numbers is by tens of thousands, and thenby hundreds of millions, which is not a natural
thing for an English speaker to be able totranslate directly. So I will write down a
number - and have to put all the zeros, andthen count back, and do a comma after every
(10:56):
three zeros - in order to be able to do it.And my Chinese friends do the same thing when
they hear English big numbers.OF: Yes.
CH (11:01):
But they have to do a comma after every four zeros…
OF (11:03):
Yes CH
[Voiceover]OF: Louise Roy, the childbirth and lactation
specialist from Episode 06.[Clip]
LR (11:14):
Male pandas can do a handstand and then pee. So that they can mark trees higher. Can
you imagine a panda doing a handstand at all,and then peeing, just so they can mark a tree
higher? That's not in the guidebooks, is it?OF: No.
[Voiceover]OF: Danma Jyid, the Tibetan social enterprise
(11:37):
leader from Episode 10.[Clip]
DJ (11:38):
I would say my hometown. That whole area, the region is very famous for white yaks.
So our yaks are all white, and no other Tibetanareas have that. So sometimes they just try
to take some white yaks to their areas.OF: I’ve seen them! I saw a white yak in
(12:01):
northern Y云南 [Yúnnán] Province.DJ: Yeah.
OF (12:04):
But that was probably from your area. DJ
[Voiceover]OF: Alex Shoer, the clean energy entrepreneur
from Episode 11.[Clip]
AS (12:14):
So my favourite China-related fact is actually something I learned when I went to
大理 [Dàlǐ] in 云南 [Yúnnán] Province,one of the most beautiful cities I've been
to. I went there, and I took this overnighttrain from 昆明 [Kūnmíng] to 大理 [Dàlǐ],
it was a 12 hour journey. I mean, it was…we were going up mountains, and down mountains,
and stopping, and changing tracks. It feltlike the most intense train ride I've ever
(12:37):
been on. And then I get there, and they'relike “Oh, you took the train?” I'm like
“Yeah”. “Like, why didn't you just takethe bus?” I’m like “Oh OK, isn’t the
train faster?” They’re like “No, thebus takes three hours, and you can be here
in no time”. And so anyway, one of the mostfascinating things is how the train can take
twelve hours, but the bus can take three.[Voiceover]
OF (12:58):
Michael Kinsey, the fire engineer from Episode 25.
[Clip]MK: So my favourite China-related fact is
to do with the Three Gorges Dam.OF: Oh, yeah.
MK (13:08):
In 湖北 [Húběi] Province. It's a massive hydroelectric dam. It's the biggest in the
world. And it displaces large amounts of water.And NASA have done a study and demonstrated
it displaces so much water that it actuallyslows the rotation of the Earth by a few decimals
of a microsecond. So it actually slows downtime.
OF (13:28):
What? MK
look it up on the NASA website. It's true.It's amazing.
Gosh, OK. Do you remember that Superman movie where he…
MK (13:38):
…Goes around so fast. Yeah, yeah, he goes around so fast, yeah.
OF (13:42):
And then he reverses time. I think it must be to do with that.
MK (13:45):
He should have gone to 湖北 [Húběi], you know.
[Voiceover]OF: Douglon Tse, the island businessman from
Episode 15.[Clip]
DT (13:54):
Coming from 嵊泗 [Shèngsì] island, one of my favourite facts is that 嵊泗 [Shèngsì]
used to be part of Shanghai, and I think it'sbeen seven or eight times now that 嵊泗
[Shèngsì] has applied to be part of Shanghaiagain, to return to the fold.
OF (14:06):
Oh wait, so they are being quite open about wanting to leave 浙江 [Zhèjiāng]
province?DT: They applied to Beijing. All the time.
Oh. Right. DT
This is the kind of cross-provincial competition that the everyday person wouldn't really be
aware of, right?DT: Yeah. 浙江 [Zhèjiāng], which is a
very strong and wealthy province, they get50% of what Shanghai makes from the cargoes,
for all the shipments.OF: Because there are no deep ports in Shanghai,
(14:30):
it's all the ones around, like on 嵊泗 [Shèngsì]island…
DT (14:32):
Well they get transferred to smaller boats, which is what you guys see on the 黄埔 [Huángpù]
river.OF: Right. So the big ones come to your island,
and then it gets… it's a transshipment port.DT: I'm just one of many islands.
[Voiceover]OF: Salome Chen, the investor and developer
from Episode 24.[Clip]
SC (14:51):
江南 [Jiāngnán], which we use to refer to the 长江 [‘Yangtze’] Delta region.
It arouses this nostalgic feeling. Yeah.OF: So 江南 [Jiāngnán], what is that area?
Shanghai and maybe part of 浙江 [Zhèjiāng] Province and the south part of 江苏 [Jiāngsū]
Province. Yeah.OF: They are culturally, they're historically,
connected, aren’t they.SC: Yeah.
OF (15:11):
Because we don't use really ‘江南 [Jiāngnán]’ very often, do we? Or do you
hear that a lot?SC: When we talk, when you speak, you don't
use it that much. But when you write, it'sstill very poetic. People use it a lot, a
lot.[Voiceover]
Zhang Yuan, the performance art exhibitor from Episode 07.
[Clip]ZY: In a way, our society is more like a performative
(15:33):
society. If you really calm yourself down,as an observer or as someone outside, then
you observe what is going on these days inChina. It’s theatre. Particularly when you
go outside of China, how they see you as aChinese and how they see what is happening
(15:53):
in China, then you would feel much more aboutthis.
[Voiceover]OF: Wendy Saunders, the architect from Episode
12.[Clip]
WS (16:05):
I was convinced that Chinese people, their hair never goes grey. After a while, I realised
that actually everybody dyes their hair. Andeven the men. And all the politicians and
everybody, they all dye their hair black.OF: Especially the men.
And the men! I mean, the women, OK, they dye their hair already for ages, everybody
does it. But the men. And this kind of fearof looking old, it was something that really
(16:31):
surprised me so much. Because on the otherhand, in China they respect the old so much
more than we do in the West. So I really can'tunderstand that duality of it, I still don't
understand it.[Voiceover]
OF (16:44):
Zhao Huiling, the Africa travel vlogger from Episode 28.
[Clip]ZH: So my favourite thing about China is safety.
Before moving back to Shanghai, I was livingin New York. So coming back to Shanghai, going
back home at any hour of the day I want, itwas such a luxury to me.
(17:04):
That's right. ZH
And it's funny because New York has improved. It used to be much more dangerous, right?
ZH (17:09):
Yes, yes. OF
It definitely got its edge. OF
[Voiceover]OF: Stéphane Wilmet, the head of consumer
insights at L'Oreal from Episode 01.[Clip]
SW (17:23):
I think my all-time favourite China-related piece of trivia is this foreign policy anecdote
that everybody knows. It’s the story ofthe Chinese Premier, 周恩来 [Zhōu Ēnlái],
the Premier of Chairman Mao, this is the early1970s when Nixon and Kissinger are engaging
in direct talks with the PRC. And 周恩来[Zhōu Ēnlái] is asked by Kissinger to assess
(17:47):
the impact of the French Revolution. And asthe story goes, Premiere 周恩来 [Zhōu
Ēnlái] responds, “it's too early to tell”.But what is interesting is what lies behind
the story. Because in China, there's alwayslayers to decode. Actually one of the translators
(18:11):
for Kissinger, a few years ago, maybe 3-4years ago, came out to say that this was a
miss-told story. What really took place, accordingto him, is that Prime Minister 周 [Zhōu]
misunderstood the question, and rather thanbeing asked to give his point of view on the
impact of the French Revolution of those eventsof 1789, he thought he was being asked about
(18:34):
the student protests that hit Paris in 1968.So you see, in this context 周恩来 [Zhōu
Ēnlái]’s answer was very sensible. Takenout of its context, with the years having
polished the story into almost a myth, it'stotally different. It became an example of
the patient and farsighted nature of Chineseleaders who think in increments of centuries.
(19:01):
But in recalling the exchange, this one translatorsaid “there was a misunderstanding that
was too delicious to invite correction”.And as it happens, this example, to me, reveals
the difference between a story that is true,and one that contains a good deal of truth.
[Voiceover]OF: Crystyl Mo, the fine dining expert from
(19:25):
Episode 26.[Clip]
CM (19:27):
My favourite China-related fact is, the longer you stay in China, the more you realise
how little you know about China.OF: Because you have been in China now how
many years?CM: 23 or 24.
OF (19:41):
Ach, is that all? CM
And were you the kind of person who at the beginning were the super expert, and you
thought that you knew everything? Or did youalways have that humility from the start?
CM (19:52):
I never thought about how much I know or don't know. But when I first came to China,
I thought that the U.S. was perfect. And socoming to China and hearing another perspective
on the U.S. - seeing global geopolitics fromoutside the U.S. - was a very big ‘aha moment’.
OF (20:12):
Yes, this is when American exceptionalism clashes with China exceptionalism.
[Voiceover]OF: Cocosanti, the drag performer from Episode
05.[Clip]
C (20:26):
Um, I don't have a China-related fact. Only because, here's the thing, the facts
that I knew about China keep changing. Solike, sometimes I'll come here and I'll be
like “Oh, that's an interesting fact". Andthen I find out a new piece of information,
and I’m like “What the hell?”OF: Yes.
“I learned it a different way. That's not… That doesn't work out at all for me,”
(20:48):
So I don't have one.OF: Oh that's a good one.
Yeah. [Voiceover]
OF (20:54):
Jo McFarland, the product sourcing leader from Episode 18.
[Clip]JM: 风水 [Fēngshuǐ]. So we have to make
sure that we get that right in the office.So everything's got to be facing south, for
the best position. And it will keep evil away.OF: In general, southern Chinaseems to be
(21:18):
more into 风水 [fēngshuǐ] than Shanghaiand northern China, wouldn’t you say? Or
you would say differently?JM: No, I know a fair few local friends who've
moved apartments and they get the 风水 [fēngshuǐ]guy around to check it out before they move
in.OF: There you go.
JM (21:32):
Oscar, have you not had your apartment ‘风水 [fēngshuǐ]’ed?
OF (21:34):
I have not. And that would explain why I've lost so much money… doing this bloody
thing.
[Outro]OF: And there you have it. I hope that some
of those facts resonated with you. For me,I couldn’t help but think about what Murray
King said about Shanghai being a low-lyingmetropolis, only slightly above sea level.
(21:59):
That reminded me of the importance of thediscussions that have been taking place over
the last week about climate change and therising sea levels. Since it’s a fact that
Shanghai means ‘above the sea’, it wouldbe nice if we could keep it that way in the
future, wouldn’t it?
Mosaic of China is me, Oscar Fuchs, with artworkby Denny Newell. Speaking of Shanghai, the
(22:20):
temperature here has just dropped 10 degreesCelsius, and 'Mr. Fragile' here has immediately
caught a cold. So I’ll keep this short andget back to my regime of herbals teas, so
that I can be back again in a couple of weeksfor the next compilation episode.
[Clips]SW: Thank you very much.
JB (22:39):
Thank you, it’s been a pleasure. CC
KW (22:42):
Thank you so much. C
LR (22:44):
Thank you very much. ZY
JZ (22:46):
Thank you. SH
DJ (22:48):
Thank you. AS
WS (22:49):
Thank you. VD
NB (22:51):
Thank you. DT
CC (22:52):
Thank you. BD
JM (22:54):
Thank you very much. SH
MQ (22:57):
Thank you. AJ
CH (22:58):
Thank you. BO
SC (22:59):
Thank you. MK
CM (23:00):
Thank you. VF
ZH (23:02):
Thank you for having me. MK
J (23:04):
Thank you so much.
[Trailer]Noxolo BHENGU: Ice cream was discovered in
China…OF: That's for real?
NB (00:06):
That's for real, for real. Look it up guys.
[Intro]OF: Welcome to Mosaic of China, a podcast
about people who are making their mark inChina. I’m your host, Oscar Fuchs.
OK, this is the fourth special compilationepisode from Season 02, and this time we're
listening to how all 30 of the guests fromthe season answered the question: "What is
(00:30):
your favourite China-related fact?” So ifyou want to impress your friends with deep,
deep knowledge about vibrating peppercorns,black hair dye, and urinating pandas, you’re
in the right place.
[Main][Voiceover]
OF (00:45):
Sean Harmon, the beer company CEO from Episode 09.
[Clip]SH: My favourite China related fact… There
are so many. The easiest thing is to do withthe scale of the country. This is maybe less
true today after COVID. But a few years ago,China's economy was growing at the pace of
(01:05):
one Australian economy every year.OF: Oh wow, yeah. It's always interesting
when you make that like-for-like comparison,you know.
SH (01:10):
Yeah. OF
the scale.SH: Yeah. “What does GDP growth mean?”
OF (01:14):
No, exactly. SH
Yeah, it's a bit like when they say “Oh this is, like, five football fields’ worth.”
SH (01:20):
Yeah, you can conceptualise it a little bit. Yeah, exactly.
OF (01:25):
Australia-size…. [Voiceover]
Vittorio Franzese, the lawyer from Episode 27.
[Clip]VF: So I was in a compound in Beijing. And
I realised that in that compound, there musthave been more people than in my hometown,
related to the amount of people that can bein a compound or a district of a big city
(01:46):
like Beijing or Shanghai. My hometown is calledTrani, it’s on the east coast of Puglia.
So it's very nice old town with a cathedralon the sea, but no more than 50,000 people.
So it was kind of hard for me to imagine theamount of people that I would have faced here.
[Voiceover]OF: Katherine Wong, the Peruvian healer from
(02:08):
Episode 04.[Clip]
KW (02:10):
There is a temple of my ancestors somewhere in 广东 [Guǎngdōng]. So for me, that was
very interesting.OF: And it's specifically your clan?
I believe so, I believe Wongs, they all come only from one line.
[Voiceover]OF: Michelle Qu, the improvisational comedian
(02:31):
from Episode 20.[Clip]
MQ (02:32):
I think the most impressive fact about China is that China is extremely colourful.
And extremely big. For example, 广东 [Guǎngdōng]Province, and Mongolia Province…
OF (02:45):
Inner Mongolia, right? MQ
like outside The Great Wall. But in 广东[Guǎngdōng] Province, life there is quite
different.[Voiceover]
Chang Chihyun, the humanities professor from Episode 03.
[Clip]CC: The variety in China is little. Because
(03:06):
I know it is diverse, but compared to thesize of continental Europe, it should be as
diverse. But the truth is it’s not. Yeah.[Voiceover]
Björn Dahlman, the Swedish clown from Episode 17.
[Clip]BD: The fact that you can walk in a park,
(03:26):
and you can meet old men and women who actuallyhave amazing Kung Fu skills. I have this 70-something-year-old
teacher in Shanghai, he was teaching me spearfighting, this long three-metre spear. And
he showed me and a bunch of other 30-somethingguys, “OK, so this is how you hold the spear
in one hand”. And four of us, we couldn'tlift the spear, it was too heavy. And this
(03:50):
teacher, without an effort, just takes itup with one hand, holds the very edge of it,
and balances it perfectly. And you see thesethings happening all the time. And it's like
“Yes, ‘Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon’fairytale China is still alive.”
[Voiceover]OF: Jamie Barys, the street food expert from
(04:12):
Episode 02.[Clip]
JB (04:13):
So this one's about Sichuan peppercorn, Sichuan peppercorn actually gives you paresthesia
in your mouth. So it feels like your tongueand your lips are vibrating, which is cool
in and of itself. But they've actually donestudies to see at what frequency it's vibrating.
And it turns out, it's 50Hz, which is thesame frequency as the Shanghai power grid.
(04:35):
[Voiceover]OF: Noxolo Bhengu, the African community organiser
from Episode 14.[Clip]
NB (04:42):
Ice cream was discovered in China… OF
NB… But perfected by the Italians.OF: Wow, that's for real?
That's for real, for real. Look it up guys.
[Voiceover]OF: Seth Harvey, the education coach from
Episode 19.[Clip]
SH (04:59):
The sport of football - soccer - was actually invented in China. England takes credit for
it, but it actually predates England, andfootball is a Chinese sport.
OF (05:10):
That's a good one. I think the English, we are the ones who invented the rules. So
we like to invent rules, and plant flags,and stuff like that. Yeah.
[Voiceover]OF: Ajay Jain, the car designer from Episode
21.[Clip]
AJ (05:26):
This one's interesting, because it's kind of related to India. By India banging into
China, it means all the water flows southand all the rivers flow south. So India has
got plenty of land, and arable land, and rivers,and fertile plains of the Ganges, and what
have you. And they've got the luxury of beingvegetarians, and then living off the land.
(05:50):
Whereas China's got to find arable land. Andonly 2% of the world's arable land is consumed
by 20% of the world's population. So thatmeans the Chinese people are super resourceful,
whether they cut steps into mountains, theyeat different things. And I think that is
also what makes them intrinsically programmedfor innovation. Survival is their innovation.
(06:18):
[Voiceover]OF: Murray King, the public affairs leader
from Episode 29.[Clip]
MK (06:24):
The word ‘Shanghai’ means ‘up from the ocean’. 上 [Shàng] means ‘up’,
and 海 [hǎi] means ‘ocean’.OF: Yeah.
And I think many people use that name without ever stopping and thinking "Why is
it called Shanghai?” So this is one bigriver delta. It's just silt deposit over hundreds
and thousands of years. And we're about maybea metre or less above sea level. So literally,
(06:49):
this is a city which hasn't just risen verticallyin the last 20 years - as we see the beautiful
skyline of 陆家嘴 [Lùjiāzuǐ] - it'sa physical creation that has risen up from
the ocean. It's still being created. If you'veever seen those… Maybe when you land at
浦东 [Pǔdōng] airport and looked out atthat coastline, there are mud flats that just
stretch out into infinity. And the water isa very brown colour, it's silt coming down
(07:13):
the Yangtse river and being deposited in theEast China Sea. So Shanghai is continuing
to be created.[Voiceover]
OF (07:21):
DJ BO, the DJ from Episode 23. [Clip]
BO (07:27):
In the 1930s, Shanghai was the fifth biggest city in the world. And if you were a foreign
person in the concessions, the rules of Chinadid not apply to you. Shanghai has a great
history of jazz, opium and whores. And I hopeto be keeping up that tradition, if not specifically,
at least in spirit. You know, in America youhave what's called ‘the old weird America’,
(07:53):
but Shanghai has an ‘old weird’ past aswell. And I hope to manifest that in what
I do.[Voiceover]
OF (08:00):
Jovana Zhang, the handicrafts designer from Episode 08.
[Clip]JZ: The fascinating thing about China for
me is the length of the history. The guysdidn't change even the the writing since ancient
times. It's the persistence of the Chineseway, it’s fascinating for me.
(08:21):
[Voiceover]OF: Cassandra Chen, the heavy metal bar owner
from Episode 16.[Clip]
CC (08:27):
I really admire the first Empress in the 唐 [Táng] Dynasty, who was the only Empress
in Chinese history.OF: Ah, 武則天 [Wǔ Zétiān], right?
Yes. OF
She was fighting from the bottom to the top of her life. And running the country,
and making it strong. So as a woman at thattime, it's very impressive.
(08:51):
[Voiceover]OF: Vladimir Djurovic, the brand naming expert
from Episode 13.[Clip]
VD (08:58):
I was reopening 孫子 [Sūnzǐ]’s Art of War. It's a teaching material for kings
and lords. And when I was reading it, I wasstill getting a lot of ideas that are so contemporary.
And one of the principles was the 道 [dào]for example: the ethics, the road, the purpose.
(09:20):
I was quite happy to see the 孫子 [Sūnzǐ]precepts of the best way to win a war and
to build your team is to work on your 道[dào], which is I think, part of what a brand
does. So I was like “Hmm”. This fact ofhow much it applies to today's world. And
it relates, in a way, to what I do. So I feltlike this fact is something that's very memorable
(09:42):
for me.OF: Nice. And I like it how you can distil
3,000 years of Daoism into branding.VD: Of course.
[Voiceover]OF: Jiyoung, the transgender teacher from
Episode 30.[Clip]
J (09:56):
It will be something that I've recently discovered, which is that in 福建 [Fújiàn]
Province there is a rabbit deity that's dedicatedto homosexuals. And I think that's amazing,
that in Chinese mythology there is a deitythat's actually dedicated to gay relations.
OF (10:14):
Why a rabbit? J
[Voiceover]OF: Casey Hall, the fashion journalist from
Episode 22.[Clip]
CH (10:26):
Big numbers in China. I think as a Chinese language learner - I don't know whether you've
had the same thing, but - big numbers arethe hardest thing for me.
OF (10:34):
Yeah. CH
numbers is by tens of thousands, and thenby hundreds of millions, which is not a natural
thing for an English speaker to be able totranslate directly. So I will write down a
number - and have to put all the zeros, andthen count back, and do a comma after every
(10:56):
three zeros - in order to be able to do it.And my Chinese friends do the same thing when
they hear English big numbers.OF: Yes.
CH (11:01):
But they have to do a comma after every four zeros…
OF (11:03):
Yes CH
[Voiceover]OF: Louise Roy, the childbirth and lactation
specialist from Episode 06.[Clip]
LR (11:14):
Male pandas can do a handstand and then pee. So that they can mark trees higher. Can
you imagine a panda doing a handstand at all,and then peeing, just so they can mark a tree
higher? That's not in the guidebooks, is it?OF: No.
[Voiceover]OF: Danma Jyid, the Tibetan social enterprise
(11:37):
leader from Episode 10.[Clip]
DJ (11:38):
I would say my hometown. That whole area, the region is very famous for white yaks.
So our yaks are all white, and no other Tibetanareas have that. So sometimes they just try
to take some white yaks to their areas.OF: I’ve seen them! I saw a white yak in
(12:01):
northern Y云南 [Yúnnán] Province.DJ: Yeah.
OF (12:04):
But that was probably from your area. DJ
[Voiceover]OF: Alex Shoer, the clean energy entrepreneur
from Episode 11.[Clip]
AS (12:14):
So my favourite China-related fact is actually something I learned when I went to
大理 [Dàlǐ] in 云南 [Yúnnán] Province,one of the most beautiful cities I've been
to. I went there, and I took this overnighttrain from 昆明 [Kūnmíng] to 大理 [Dàlǐ],
it was a 12 hour journey. I mean, it was…we were going up mountains, and down mountains,
and stopping, and changing tracks. It feltlike the most intense train ride I've ever
(12:37):
been on. And then I get there, and they'relike “Oh, you took the train?” I'm like
“Yeah”. “Like, why didn't you just takethe bus?” I’m like “Oh OK, isn’t the
train faster?” They’re like “No, thebus takes three hours, and you can be here
in no time”. And so anyway, one of the mostfascinating things is how the train can take
twelve hours, but the bus can take three.[Voiceover]
OF (12:58):
Michael Kinsey, the fire engineer from Episode 25.
[Clip]MK: So my favourite China-related fact is
to do with the Three Gorges Dam.OF: Oh, yeah.
MK (13:08):
In 湖北 [Húběi] Province. It's a massive hydroelectric dam. It's the biggest in the
world. And it displaces large amounts of water.And NASA have done a study and demonstrated
it displaces so much water that it actuallyslows the rotation of the Earth by a few decimals
of a microsecond. So it actually slows downtime.
OF (13:28):
What? MK
look it up on the NASA website. It's true.It's amazing.
Gosh, OK. Do you remember that Superman movie where he…
MK (13:38):
…Goes around so fast. Yeah, yeah, he goes around so fast, yeah.
OF (13:42):
And then he reverses time. I think it must be to do with that.
MK (13:45):
He should have gone to 湖北 [Húběi], you know.
[Voiceover]OF: Douglon Tse, the island businessman from
Episode 15.[Clip]
DT (13:54):
Coming from 嵊泗 [Shèngsì] island, one of my favourite facts is that 嵊泗 [Shèngsì]
used to be part of Shanghai, and I think it'sbeen seven or eight times now that 嵊泗
[Shèngsì] has applied to be part of Shanghaiagain, to return to the fold.
OF (14:06):
Oh wait, so they are being quite open about wanting to leave 浙江 [Zhèjiāng]
province?DT: They applied to Beijing. All the time.
Oh. Right. DT
This is the kind of cross-provincial competition that the everyday person wouldn't really be
aware of, right?DT: Yeah. 浙江 [Zhèjiāng], which is a
very strong and wealthy province, they get50% of what Shanghai makes from the cargoes,
for all the shipments.OF: Because there are no deep ports in Shanghai,
(14:30):
it's all the ones around, like on 嵊泗 [Shèngsì]island…
DT (14:32):
Well they get transferred to smaller boats, which is what you guys see on the 黄埔 [Huángpù]
river.OF: Right. So the big ones come to your island,
and then it gets… it's a transshipment port.DT: I'm just one of many islands.
[Voiceover]OF: Salome Chen, the investor and developer
from Episode 24.[Clip]
SC (14:51):
江南 [Jiāngnán], which we use to refer to the 长江 [‘Yangtze’] Delta region.
It arouses this nostalgic feeling. Yeah.OF: So 江南 [Jiāngnán], what is that area?
Shanghai and maybe part of 浙江 [Zhèjiāng] Province and the south part of 江苏 [Jiāngsū]
Province. Yeah.OF: They are culturally, they're historically,
connected, aren’t they.SC: Yeah.
OF (15:11):
Because we don't use really ‘江南 [Jiāngnán]’ very often, do we? Or do you
hear that a lot?SC: When we talk, when you speak, you don't
use it that much. But when you write, it'sstill very poetic. People use it a lot, a
lot.[Voiceover]
Zhang Yuan, the performance art exhibitor from Episode 07.
[Clip]ZY: In a way, our society is more like a performative
(15:33):
society. If you really calm yourself down,as an observer or as someone outside, then
you observe what is going on these days inChina. It’s theatre. Particularly when you
go outside of China, how they see you as aChinese and how they see what is happening
(15:53):
in China, then you would feel much more aboutthis.
[Voiceover]OF: Wendy Saunders, the architect from Episode
12.[Clip]
WS (16:05):
I was convinced that Chinese people, their hair never goes grey. After a while, I realised
that actually everybody dyes their hair. Andeven the men. And all the politicians and
everybody, they all dye their hair black.OF: Especially the men.
And the men! I mean, the women, OK, they dye their hair already for ages, everybody
does it. But the men. And this kind of fearof looking old, it was something that really
(16:31):
surprised me so much. Because on the otherhand, in China they respect the old so much
more than we do in the West. So I really can'tunderstand that duality of it, I still don't
understand it.[Voiceover]
OF (16:44):
Zhao Huiling, the Africa travel vlogger from Episode 28.
[Clip]ZH: So my favourite thing about China is safety.
Before moving back to Shanghai, I was livingin New York. So coming back to Shanghai, going
back home at any hour of the day I want, itwas such a luxury to me.
(17:04):
That's right. ZH
And it's funny because New York has improved. It used to be much more dangerous, right?
ZH (17:09):
Yes, yes. OF
It definitely got its edge. OF
[Voiceover]OF: Stéphane Wilmet, the head of consumer
insights at L'Oreal from Episode 01.[Clip]
SW (17:23):
I think my all-time favourite China-related piece of trivia is this foreign policy anecdote
that everybody knows. It’s the story ofthe Chinese Premier, 周恩来 [Zhōu Ēnlái],
the Premier of Chairman Mao, this is the early1970s when Nixon and Kissinger are engaging
in direct talks with the PRC. And 周恩来[Zhōu Ēnlái] is asked by Kissinger to assess
(17:47):
the impact of the French Revolution. And asthe story goes, Premiere 周恩来 [Zhōu
Ēnlái] responds, “it's too early to tell”.But what is interesting is what lies behind
the story. Because in China, there's alwayslayers to decode. Actually one of the translators
(18:11):
for Kissinger, a few years ago, maybe 3-4years ago, came out to say that this was a
miss-told story. What really took place, accordingto him, is that Prime Minister 周 [Zhōu]
misunderstood the question, and rather thanbeing asked to give his point of view on the
impact of the French Revolution of those eventsof 1789, he thought he was being asked about
(18:34):
the student protests that hit Paris in 1968.So you see, in this context 周恩来 [Zhōu
Ēnlái]’s answer was very sensible. Takenout of its context, with the years having
polished the story into almost a myth, it'stotally different. It became an example of
the patient and farsighted nature of Chineseleaders who think in increments of centuries.
(19:01):
But in recalling the exchange, this one translatorsaid “there was a misunderstanding that
was too delicious to invite correction”.And as it happens, this example, to me, reveals
the difference between a story that is true,and one that contains a good deal of truth.
[Voiceover]OF: Crystyl Mo, the fine dining expert from
(19:25):
Episode 26.[Clip]
CM (19:27):
My favourite China-related fact is, the longer you stay in China, the more you realise
how little you know about China.OF: Because you have been in China now how
many years?CM: 23 or 24.
OF (19:41):
Ach, is that all? CM
And were you the kind of person who at the beginning were the super expert, and you
thought that you knew everything? Or did youalways have that humility from the start?
CM (19:52):
I never thought about how much I know or don't know. But when I first came to China,
I thought that the U.S. was perfect. And socoming to China and hearing another perspective
on the U.S. - seeing global geopolitics fromoutside the U.S. - was a very big ‘aha moment’.
OF (20:12):
Yes, this is when American exceptionalism clashes with China exceptionalism.
[Voiceover]OF: Cocosanti, the drag performer from Episode
05.[Clip]
C (20:26):
Um, I don't have a China-related fact. Only because, here's the thing, the facts
that I knew about China keep changing. Solike, sometimes I'll come here and I'll be
like “Oh, that's an interesting fact". Andthen I find out a new piece of information,
and I’m like “What the hell?”OF: Yes.
“I learned it a different way. That's not… That doesn't work out at all for me,”
(20:48):
So I don't have one.OF: Oh that's a good one.
Yeah. [Voiceover]
OF (20:54):
Jo McFarland, the product sourcing leader from Episode 18.
[Clip]JM: 风水 [Fēngshuǐ]. So we have to make
sure that we get that right in the office.So everything's got to be facing south, for
the best position. And it will keep evil away.OF: In general, southern Chinaseems to be
(21:18):
more into 风水 [fēngshuǐ] than Shanghaiand northern China, wouldn’t you say? Or
you would say differently?JM: No, I know a fair few local friends who've
moved apartments and they get the 风水 [fēngshuǐ]guy around to check it out before they move
in.OF: There you go.
JM (21:32):
Oscar, have you not had your apartment ‘风水 [fēngshuǐ]’ed?
OF (21:34):
I have not. And that would explain why I've lost so much money… doing this bloody
thing.
[Outro]OF: And there you have it. I hope that some
of those facts resonated with you. For me,I couldn’t help but think about what Murray
King said about Shanghai being a low-lyingmetropolis, only slightly above sea level.
(21:59):
That reminded me of the importance of thediscussions that have been taking place over
the last week about climate change and therising sea levels. Since it’s a fact that
Shanghai means ‘above the sea’, it wouldbe nice if we could keep it that way in the
future, wouldn’t it?
Mosaic of China is me, Oscar Fuchs, with artworkby Denny Newell. Speaking of Shanghai, the
(22:20):
temperature here has just dropped 10 degreesCelsius, and 'Mr. Fragile' here has immediately
caught a cold. So I’ll keep this short andget back to my regime of herbals teas, so
that I can be back again in a couple of weeksfor the next compilation episode.
[Clips]SW: Thank you very much.
JB (22:39):
Thank you, it’s been a pleasure. CC
KW (22:42):
Thank you so much. C
LR (22:44):
Thank you very much. ZY
JZ (22:46):
Thank you. SH
DJ (22:48):
Thank you. AS
WS (22:49):
Thank you. VD
NB (22:51):
Thank you. DT
CC (22:52):
Thank you. BD
JM (22:54):
Thank you very much. SH
MQ (22:57):
Thank you. AJ
CH (22:58):
Thank you. BO
SC (22:59):
Thank you. MK
CM (23:00):
Thank you. VF
ZH (23:02):
Thank you for having me. MK
J (23:04):
Thank you so much.
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