Liuzhou Meet & Learn

I'll be the first to admit that I am probably not the most suitable person to be writing this post, due primarily to my advancing years and fading memories of youthful nights spent at Bagley's and Camden Palace. Incidentally, when your reference points for a night out are warehouse raves that were closed down more than a decade ago, you're probably not in a position of authority to talk about the modern EDM scene. The Chinese call outdated references such as these 暴露年纪 which means they "expose your age". Regardless, here I am. The nightclub scene in Liuzhou is a big part of the lives of some of our members, and many of the local people here, so who am I to dismiss it? The undoubted king of nightclubs in Liuzhou is 上上 "Song & Song" which is open every evening until the early hours. Serving up a music selection that varies from EDM to EDM via a bit more EDM, it is rammed every night of the week, in contrast to many other late night establishm

On a normal weekend, as I sit forlorn watching yet another disappointing Chelsea performance, I am literally the only person in the pub showing any interest in football whatsoever. However, these last two weeks have seen an explosion of interest in football and wall-to-wall media coverage; although China has not gone to the World Cup, World Cup fever has definitely come to China. Every single BBQ restaurant and bar has dug out their projector and set themselves up as a venue for watching the World Cup, Chinese fans inexplicably cheer excitedly at random incidents on screen, and get unreasonably angry at the diving and playacting to which seasoned watchers of the Premier League have become accustomed. Sitting outside and being able to eat great BBQ food among the excitement and noise has definitely been a highlight of this World Cup for me, as England are yet to give us much to cheer about. [Edit: this was written before the 6-1 victory over Panama!] There is a somewhat d

Despite a majority of Chinese people having zero interest in football, Liuzhou is currently in a state of world cup fever. This was somewhat confusing, until it was pointed out that, whilst the locals aren't interested in football as such, they do like betting money on it. The world cup sweepstake seems to take place in every single British workplace at this time every four years so, in keeping with the local passion for gambling, we decided to bring this very British tradition to the south west of China. In the absence of a Chinese presence at the finals, and for a modest 10元 (£1.17), the people of Liuzhou can have a stake in this world cup and, just possibly, something to cheer about. The prize for the champions is 200元 (£23.50) with 120元 (£14) going to the runner up. We drew lots at our regular Saturday evening meeting on 16th June. I wasn't overly happy with getting Mexico but, after their wonderful win over Germany on Sunday, things are looking more positive. Come o

If you ask a young person in China what they're doing after class, they might tell you they're going to 吃鸡 or "eat chicken" - contrary to what you might be thinking, this actually means they're going to be playing video games, such as Crossfire or PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG), which are huge among Chinese gamers. Counter Strike (CS) was one of the first shooting games to get a foothold here and, around the same time, real life shooting games such as paintball, BB shooting or laser quest also became popular. The Chinese call these physical games 真人CS or "Real Person CS". Played in small arenas, often in underground spaces such as disused car parks, the experience is like being part of a real life video game. After visiting last month, we knew that this had to become a regular event for Liuzhou Meet & Learn. This time, we took three teams of six players. The format is simple: like a squad based Battle Royale video game (the Chinese c