Driving in Shanghai in 2007

One do not need a car to survive in Shanghai as taxis are relatively cheap and plentiful, besides the subway system is new and clean, while more subways are under construction to make the traffic more efficient. Yet a determined few are willing to take the expensive and complex route involved in buying and running a private vehicle in order to feel that sense of freedom and satisfaction that driving can bring, in today’s case, which means going through the arduous trouble of bidding in an auction for a restricted number of license plates.

License plates in Shanghai

In a way to curb traffic jams and pollution, the city has restricted the number of license plates it issues each year since 1986 and has priced cars as a luxury item for the local population.

Rising personal income and the mania for driving has dramatically increased the price of a license each month. The average winning bid rose RMB 1,230 to RMB 44,853 from April, while the lowest bid was recorded at 44,500, an increase of 1,200 RMB from last month, according to Shanghai International Commodity Auction Co. The license, as some joke, may have become the most expensive metal product in the world.

The monthly auction

The Saturday bidding is held once a month at an auction house in Anting, an hour west of Shanghai. To participate, you must register at one of several places in Shanghai and pay a RMB 1,000 deposit. The bids can also be placed by phone or on the Internet between 9 am and 3 pm, but most people prefer to go to the site to size up the competition and enter their bid in the computer themselves. Then they’ll wait nervously to see whether the amount they offered was above the cut-off line.

“We participated in May’s auction,” said Marc van der Chijs, a Dutch entrepreneur in Shanghai who purchased a Buick Lacrosse, “Because I did not want to run the risk of not getting a plate, our dealer helped us to estimate the winning price.” He got the plate at the price of 45,200, RMB 700 over the lowest winning bid.

“This time I got very close!” said Zhang Yupin, a bank clerk who had lost in the last two auctions, “only RMB 200 below the lowest winning bid. Yet I am running out of chances, next time I have to get my plate, otherwise my car couldn’t hit on road.”

Other than Shanghai license plate

Many Shanghai residents opted to turn to agencies which can manage to license their cars in neighboring cities such as Suzhou and Hangzhou. Despite various restrictions on cars licensed outside Shanghai, these licenses have become a big lure to Shanghai people because the cost is mere peanuts compared to that of the local licenses.

It is estimated that there are at least 50,000 cars owned by Shanghai residents have been licensed in the neighboring towns. For each of these cars, Shanghai loses about RMB 12,000 in road tolls and other charges each year.

“We don’t have other choices,” said Xu Lin, who licensed her QQ in Suzhou, “because it makes little sense to buy a cheap car and spend more than half the purchase price to acquire a plate.”

Licensing in neighbor cities requires driving all the way to that city to have its annual examination, though considered as a liability; many private car owners choose this after a thorough thought, saying the money that could be saved worth the trouble.

However, one way or another, people couldn’t help but noticed that Shanghai is the only city carrying out the system in China. As the price of a license plate keeps soaring, more and more car owners like Marc and Zhang begin to wonder: “Is license auctioning legal? ”

Voices: License auction violates rights

The puzzle was highlighted by Assistant Minister of Commerce Huang Hai last year, who said the auction of automobile license plates violates the Law on the Safety of Road Traffic, and suggested that local government review the practice.

He stated that although the policy was designed to curb excessive growth in private car numbers and prevent traffic jams, the effect has run counter to the purpose for public good as only a minority of car users can afford to procure license plates.

It also in a sense makes driving a privilege of relatively wealthy citizens, which is unfair as every taxpayer is supposed to have equal right to use the road.

 "The auction of license plates is equivalent to creating extra-law obligations for car users," said Hu Zhengxiao, a lawyer from Shanghai Shengli Law Office.

Shanghai's license plate auction is authorized by a local vehicle administration regulation passed by the city's congress a decade ago. But China's legislation code stipulates that any articles in a local regulation are void if they contradict existing national laws or decrees made by the central government.

The legislation conflict has thrown the legitimacy of Shanghai's long-standing auction system into question.

Hu Zhengxiao also said the license auction is a passive method that has curbed private consumption, whereas the local government should review its administration in the planning and management of the road system.

"The auction is by no means a sustainable practice," he said.

However, Shanghai's dilemma may have underlined a question troubling almost every major city in the country: Is there a way to maintain a balance between car consumption and smooth traffic?

Why is Shanghai License so Expensive?

Ever since Shanghai has stepping into the automobile age, its traffic condition is dubbed as chaos, meaning unmanageable traffic and unbearable pollution.

Toward this end, huge sums were spent on spectacular bridges, elevated highways and a new subway system. But today, glance out the window around 6 p.m., when snarling masses of horn-honking cars tend to congeal in traffic jam, and it is hard to escape the impression that Shanghai, at least for now, is losing its bet.

4 years ago, the city government rushed up orders for the construction of a new, elevated loop expressway for central Shanghai, because other elevated expressways were already saturated at peak hours.

Meanwhile, the city is expanding its subway network well beyond the originally planned 500 kilometers of track. Two new lines are being added to the original 15, along with another 310 kilometers of track.

Local traffic administration's statistics show the length of roads in Shanghai has doubled over the past decade, while the number of automobiles, including private cars and vehicles purchased by public agencies, increased by 470 per cent.

"A new subway line will be completed to my neighborhood later this year, and I'm hoping many other people will ride it so that the traffic will get better," Zhang Yuping said. "I'll keep driving my car, though. It's more comfortable because I can listen to music, use the air conditioner, and it's not crowded."

Zhang then made a comment that sounded like a city planner's nightmare and a car salesman's dream. "No matter a Shanghai license plate or a neighboring one, owning a private is everyone’s dream," she said. "And I'm just one of them."

License plates in the future

“The city may no longer put private car license plates up for auction in 2008,” said an officer from Shanghai Vehicle Control House, “both Shanghai Public Security Bureau(SPSB) and Development and Reform Commission(DRC) are working on a new motion, featuring on how to release the traffic pressure once the auction is off the table.”

The possibilities of calling off the long-term auction system stir the seemingly tranquility over these years.

“This is absolutely not acceptable,” said Marc van der Chijs, “only if the thousands of money we spent on that golden metal could be refund, in which case it’s impossible to practice, otherwise it’s so unfair that we can’t let it happen.”

While Xu Lin, unlike Marc, says she will get a local plate as soon as the auction system no longer exists. “The whole system is groundless thus it should be long gone,” she said, “I am sure it will not survive until next year.”

So far no official spokesman has made comments on this issue.

“Canceling this system involves a series of changes and might brings about certain hostilities between whose who paid huge amount of money on the license plate and those who doesn’t,” a DRC officer claimed cautiously, “it’s still too early to tell.”

话说这个男人，既不高也不帅，身材也不怎么好
可那张嘴。。。实在是太能说了。。。
就是有办法让所有的女人都爱上他。。。终于明白什么叫做不倒的人格魅力。。。

这部我看了几集，感觉还不错，可惜似乎收视率不太好，已经被砍了。。。

You Don't Have a Boyfriend Because You are Too Busy

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You Are Most Like Charlotte!

You are the ultimate romantic idealist You've been hurt before, but that hasn't caused you to give up on love. If anything, your resolve to fall in love is stronger than ever. And it's this feminine optimism that men find most appealing about you. Romantic prediction: That guy you are seeing (or crushing on)? Could be very serious - if you play your cards right! Which Sex and the City Vixen Are You?

Your Kisses Are Medium-Hot

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You Are Pretty Happy Being Single

You have a full, fun life. And you definitely don't need love to be content. Of course, being single can get you down a little. Especially when you've been single for a while. But you know how to be patient and wait for the right person. You're life is too good to settle for anything! Are You Happy Being Single?

What Type of Beauty Are You?

You Are a Flawless Beauty!

When it comes to beauty, you spare no expense - and it shows You're the kind of woman a man would launch a thousand ships for It's hard for anyone to beat you in the beauty department But remember, it's okay to show a flaw or too - you've got plenty to spare What Type of Beauty Are You?

今天裸考GRE
大概没有人像我这么裸法的
填空和词汇做了极为有限的几套题，阅读几乎没碰过
只有数学花了点时间搞了一下
这次的数学还比预料得要难。。。最后一个section的那道面积题好像做错了。。。
倒是verbal的section 1做得满爽的，section 2的阅读就开始恶心了，来不及做。。。

anyway，小小总结一下
九点钟考试，我八点就到了
本以为肯定算早的，一下车发现全都是人
而且不愧是来考GRE的，大家都长得很学术
一看就是纯朴的努力的背着双肩包的好学生
为了崇高的理想奋斗着
于是我突然觉得很惭愧

正不知所措的时候
听到有人很亲切的叫：倩倩~
回头一看原来是Chloe和翠翠
她俩就像小夫妻一样手挽着手走来
Chloe一开口就批评我说你怎么穿得像是来度假的，一看就知道没有你旁边那个人考得好
我扭头一看，果然。。。人家表情凝重。。。不像我们。。。开考前还嘻嘻哈哈的
翠翠则一直抱怨着新买的手机实在太新，一个软件都下不到。。。等等
然后看到好多同学。。。校友。。。差不多可以搞一个小型同学聚会了。。。

等待进场的时候后面的女生说一定要两证才行
然后我发现我只带了身份证。。。当时那个汗滴啊。。。
明明通知上说只要ADMISSION TICKET就好啦
没办法只能让爸爸火速把驾照送过来，还好他没走远
赶在进场前最后一分钟登记，发现根本只要一个证件就好了嘛！！！
白白虚惊一场。。。

拿到卷子的第一件事
就是找到答题卷的反面
把cancel your score的那两个圆点涂黑
然后才开始安心答题^_^
两个小时的时间像飞一样
连喝水的时间都没有就结束了
想起今天是高考最后一天
几年前的今天我以为我再也不用考试了。。。却发现自己仍然坐在考场里。。。
真是应了一句话
生命不息，考试不止啊。。。

有没有这样一个人，代表了你生命中所错过的一切？

The Age of Innocence，译作《纯真年代》
19世纪七十年代的美国上流社会
看起来一片祥和，实际却是暗流涌动
扼杀人性纯真的年代



据说Martin Scorsese做了很多功课才最后决定把小说拍成电影
的确，即使不被胶片里纠结的爱情吸引
整部电影里高贵华美的道具也让人叹为观止
绚丽的色彩从开头就摧枯拉朽般的一直渲染下去
精致的银器，罕见的陶瓷，名贵的油画，古典的建筑，盛开的鲜花，还有衣着光鲜的绅士淑女
说着这个年代已经很少听到的词藻华丽句式工整的英文




我一直认为西方男人是更懂得欣赏女人成熟之美的
May是毫无疑问的最适合结婚的对象，婚前清纯可人，婚后端庄娴淑
而Ellen却赢在了眼波流转间的独有风韵
她就像一个谜，没人知道她的微笑底下是什么样的心情




Daniel Day-Lewis一直是我喜欢的演员
他拥有我见过最高贵的侧面，以及最迷人的眼神

他演的Newland在两个女人间挣扎
得不到自己爱的，却也离不开那个爱自己的
我喜欢他看着Ellen的时候
尽管一言不发，却已道尽万语千言

第一次见到她，是在剧院里，高高的看台上，他未婚妻May的身旁
她是他未婚妻的表姐，远嫁欧洲又落魄而归的女子，行为举止，遭她所处的上流社会所鄙视
然而她看起来依然很快乐，毫无顾忌的笑，主动伸出手来让他吻
反倒是他愣在原地，心里想着这是一个不守规矩的女子
却没有料到这也是会他将要爱一辈子的女人

从纽约到波士顿，从豪华古宅到乡间的小屋，Newland任由自己的爱情放纵驰骋
尽管换来一次又一次的痛苦和失望，但依然执着坚持着
很多的羁绊，是他无法抗拒的，正如Ellen所说
I cannot love you unless I give you up
于是他听从了Ellen的话和May结婚，而她则从此退出他的生活

剧中最荡气回肠的一幕
Newland婚后和妻子May去看望祖母，恰巧Ellen就住在祖母家，Newland知道后去海边找她
被阳光染成金色的海，波光鳞鳞
码头上，是撑着小阳伞长裙席地Ellen的背影，唯美到令人窒息，亦如莫奈的画
“如果帆船驶过灯塔前她回过头来，我就过去。”Newland决定给自己最后一次机会

 
她没有回头，他也没有走过去
她知道他在她身后，她知道他会来，所以才逃到海边
她没有回头，可心里早已回了千百次了

一段爱情。一个人的一生。
暮年的Newland坐在长椅上，小巷的天空飞舞着鸽子，随时间的溪流滔滔。阳光照着Ellen的窗
他知道他失去了某些东西：纯真年代
但是他也明白，那东西不仅根本得不到，而且也未必真有
如果因为失去它而不满，就好似因为抽签没有抽到头彩而绝望一样
所以想到Ellen，这个爱了一辈子的女人，他总是把她作为抽象的美好事物来追忆和缅怀
她代表了他生命中所错过的一切

Where are you now?
Repeatly I ask myself in the endless darkness, repeatly I answer myself in the forever-lasting misery.
Still I say to you, however, much love, baby.