I'm back

Okay guys, it has been a while. I was bombarded with work, midterms, and being sick. I had my first medical experience in China and it wasn't that bad. Other than getting crazy diagnostic (I went in with a fever and the doctor thought that I should have a CT scan), I was treated kindly, well by China's standard. One cool think I have to say about the hospital that I was at is that it gave all incoming patient a card. So when you see a doctor or completed a procedure, the doctor would scan the card and your chart info would load up on the computer. I think this was the coolest part of the night, watching my info loading up in seconds. This is way better than charts in the States.

Anyway, other than being sick I was also locked up in a room in order to complete two midterm essays. After half a semester of CIEE elective courses (China's International Relations and China's Economic Reform) and I'm grateful to be a student at UPS. The teachers in the CIEE program are great. They are all very knowledgeable, but they can't teach. They give unclear directions and their lectures put students to sleep. Other than the teaching methods, I'm learning about China beyond the textbook. Okay this is the nerdy stuff, please ignore if you're not interested. In terms of development, I discovered that China may not have a model yet, but it does have certain strategies. The policies of Reforms and Open ignited development in two areas the Pearl River Region and the Yangtze Delta Region. I live in Shanghai, which is the headquarter for the Yangtze Region. Within this region, small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) dominate the Zhejiang and Jiangsu providence, both of which surrounds Shanghai. There is talk of future investment in the Yangtze to increase the river transportation infrastructure. Currently, logistics is very costly in China. Additionally, coastal cities are facing a labor shortage and an increase in wages due to the new labor law that was passed in Jan of 2008. If SMEs and foreign enterprises could use the Yangtze to transport their goods efficiently, then jobs and further development will surged in the hinterland. The regional divided, in terms of income inequality and levels of development, between the hinterland and coastal cities could be lessen.

For the Pearl River Region, it replies heavily on companies in Hong Kong to export their goods to the international market. However, with the increase in wages and the possibily of moving secondary industry to the hinterland, SMEs in Pearl River Region may consider transforming their business plan and reduce their reliance on Hong Kong companies. If SMEs in the Guangdong invest more in R&D and move up the product cycle to provide technology/capital intensive goods and services, this region will lead the development of the hinterland.

Okay, I'm done being a nerd. Anyway, I'm still looking for reserach project ideas. If you have any, please post a comment. It's late. I can't procasinate any more. I have to get some homework done. I promise to write back soon.