Keeps going? I've been avoiding it for decades and I can see it from my porch.
Last time I visited the customs office emptied out into a literal ghetto. Like, an entire 4 blocks of ought-to-be-condemned housing with rusted out patchwork wrecks abandoned in yards and on the street (or worse following behind you). The corner gas station had more security features than most prisons in Canada, and every street sign had numerous bullet holes. That was their welcome mat 2 decades ago. F that shithole country.
The other easiest option is to marry a citizen of another country and move there together. But good luck with that.
It has to be a real marriage tho, like you have to be actually in love and not just doing it for the sole purpose of immigration benefits (otherwise it could be considered fraud).
So much conservatism, patriarchy, toxic masculinity, ableism especially against people with mental illness or intellectual disabilities, even if the condition was mild.
Massive government corruption, inadequate safety regulations, when it come to the internet and press, those get censored, can't even have fun watching foreign media.
Complete lack of understanding for people suffering with depression nobody take it seriously, spritualism is applied to medical issues.
Hukou system limiting the very little rights you have. (I had a rural Hukou and that sucks)
To top it all off, this is a country that have rejected me for being the 2nd child born in my family (during the One Child Policy). Legal papers were denied, the government effectively refused to ackowledge my existence and demanded/extorted a large amount of money, a "fine" they call it. My parent's didn't have it so it took several years of saving up for it, before I could get legal papers and legal recognition of my existence. (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heihaizi)
When I was a kid, I didn't know it at the time, but when my mother explained my origins, I feel like society basically just rejected me. An outcast, an anomoly, something that shouldn't have existed. All for the sin of existing without a government permission-slip.
US, got here in 2010s. Then, the ironic twist of fate, we got the 2017-2021 authoritarian test run, and now the 2025-ongoing shitshow lolol. Out of one hell, into another 🫠. Autocracy, here we go again!
I have hopes tho, Americans are rebellious and the recent protests keeps me hopeful. At least its not total apathy as with people in mainland China.
I've been considering moving to: Canada, Australia, and maybe Singapore; these have high levels of ethnic Chinese, which make intergration a lot easier, if I ever decide to try it, its all English speaking countries. (Thought about Taiwan, I can speak Mandarin, a bit, haven't spoken it for over a decade; traditional Chinese is harder to read, I'd have to re-learn the language; but the biggest problem is that it's a potential warzone so nope, don't wanna get bombarded within like a decade)
But, anyways: Too depressed and tired to actually do the whole learning about a country from scratch thing again. Moving to another country is just an idea, the acual exexution takes a lot of energy, a lot of paperwork, it drains your brainpower. Probably just sit and wait this out, hopefully the spirit of American rebellion doesn't die out. Need this flame to keep going.
You are a miracle. Bless you for existing. Mother Earth knows no borders, she knows only life and rebirth. You are life. You are her. Together, we are the Earth. ❤️ You are not unwanted.
Why do people shit on the sick and disabled, but revere doctors?
When the former is the only reason for doctors to exist in the first place. Shouldn't we laud sick/disabled people in a sense for allowing an entire respected field to exist?
If you're going to shit on them, then shit on the people who are trying to help them, too. Be consistent.
For example, even tho I was born in Guangzhou, I was still treated as though I was born in my father's village in terms of Hukou (the actual place of birth on the birh certificate would be with Guangzhou as the birthplace, but that doesn't matter to Hukou).
Even though my parents work in Guangzhou (广州), I couldn't attend public school in Guangzhou, and my parents have to pay for a separate, privately-run "school", which according to my mother, was worse than the officially government run public schools. But they still had the same "patriotic education" (This "patriotic education" would be considered indoctriction by most westerners). Same with my older brother.
If my family hadn't left China, my mother told me I was gonna have to go back to somewhere in Taishan (That's 台山，not 泰山) to continue beyond primary school because of there was supposely problems with getting enrolled in a Guangzhou middle school / highschool or something.
So like you're basically treated as immigrants... sort of...
(I don't know all the details of Hukou, I might ask my parents about it later.)
But even in the US, for example, even undocumented immigrant children (at least before the current admin, idk about now) could still enroll in public school, meanwhile China is denying their own citizens from attending public school, just because their ancestry is different. You could be born in Guangzhou and live your entire life there, and still have problems with your rights. It's like countries within a country.
P.S. I remember my mother said she was a teacher before giving birth to me, but becuase she violated the One Child Policy, she can't ever get any government-related jobs ever again, that includes being a teacher, or possibly even working at state-owned factory/warehouse.
Before 邓小平 (Deng Xiaoping)'s 开放改革 (Opening up and Reforms), you are not allowed to move outside of your Hukou. The Hukou we had was in 台山 (Taishan), so you were basically stuck there before, unless you have official matters or something.
After the 开放改革, people were allowed to move to cities. 广州 (Guangzhou) was the capital city of 广东 (Guangdong), so thats where a lot of people, my mother amongst them, moved to, for economic opportunities. All the rural places have is farming, farmed sucked, there were no machines at the time, unlike American farmers. As for the education thing, she said if we hadn't immigrated to the US, that was gonna be a problem. We'd have to go back to Taishan for Highschool, because the 高考 (Gaokao, similar to SAT/ACT but like 10x harder) has to be taken where your Hukou is. And Hukou is also for social benefits, if your Hukou is rural, you get less of any social benefits you might have (which was barely anything to begin with).
And, although Hukou transfers existed, Guangzhou did not do them, so it was impossible.
I asked: "So its like being a permanent 2nd class resident?", and she said Yes.
As messed up this administration is, at least naturalization still exists, my maternal grandmother just got approved for naturalization, the oath ceremony is next month. I know its weird, jumping from one burning pot to another, but a lot of our relatives are here, so... it is what it is. People say "Move to Canada, EU, etc...", but, as my mother say, (paraphrased) "you can move to a lot of places, but can you find money there?"
We already have investments here almost everyone is already a US citizen, relatives are also US citizens, like what other options are there? In EU, for example, you gotta learn another language, have zero knowledge of where everything is, how thing work, income, zero relative to ask to borrow money if thing are dire, etc.... All assets have to be liquidated, so... yeah... its unrealistic.
Not the best home ever, but its the one we have, it has been home for over a decade for us, its a home to 5 million of the Chinese diaspora, and its a diverse country, people aren't as hostile as some other places in the world, like even Europe is pretty much a homogenous white society with not much diversity. So... this is home, the best that we can have given the circumstances. Lets hope 2028 election goes well and the constitutional order in the US is restored.
And god forbid, please no fucking USA-China conflicts, I don't wanna get targeted by both governments (China would target me of being "Han-Traitor", and the US would try to do the "Internment Camps" again), it would be the worst timeline ever.
The United States. I have zero interest in going to a country where I could get kidnapped by masked goons or have my phone stolen by the government for sharing memes they don't like. I have no interest in going to a country where I could get shot and killed randomly by some whacko who had a bad day and decided to shoot up the place. I have no interest in going to a country where I could be charged thousands of dollars for getting hurt. And I have absolutely zero interest in giving my money to a fascist country that regularly threatens my country's sovereignty and whose economy is on the brink of total collapse. That dumpster fire can stay down south, thank you very much.
Every time I look at the United States and everything that's been going on there, it only makes me more proud to be Canadian and ever more vigilant to prevent the same from happening to us. We have our problems, sure, but at least we have actual healthcare, no mass shootings, and no fascism.
I have no interest in going to a country where I could be charged thousands of dollars for getting hurt.
Tbf, you can go to like half of the countries in the world and the heathcare is just as horrible, and the locals always try to scam you, so its not unique to the US.
America. I visited maybe 15 years ago and felt like I was a criminal in the passport control. Super-authoritive people, iris scanning, fingerprint scanning, photography...
I think it's worth saying that security theater isn't pointless. Criminals tend not to be the brightest, and they tend to like to go for low hanging fruit. That makes even the pretense of security somewhat of a preventative, even when security doesn't work. Same way a fake security camera helps.
The trouble is that they have a ridiculous amount of rights to be racist to people, abuse their power, and screw people over. Basic xray machines and security guards by itself would be reasonable, even as security theater
It was fine. Lots of people spoke English and there was lots to do and everyone was nice.
But after being in Seoul for two hours I was like: "oh".
It felt just like America with more statues. I'm sure there is lots more to do and see that is more essentially Korean than Seoul was, and while I don't have anything against it, I just couldn't see making the effort to go back again given how familiar it all felt being from North America.
I don't have a single bad thing to say about the country or my time there, but there are so many places in the world I'd love to see I don't think I'd make the effort again.
I don't have any "never again" countries because something bad happened. However, I find that a lot of Caribbean countries/destinations are pretty one and done for me.
Australia. Not that it was wholly terrible. It just wasn't what I expected and I overcooked it by staying for 2 years.
To be fair, it could never have lived up to the super-positive stereotype it has here in the UK.
We think of Aussies as fun-living, friendly, witty, laid-back beautiful people who are down to earth yet somehow savvy and open-minded. They love a drink and a BBQ and have a 'live and let live', inclusive attitude. Basically everything we Brits would love to be if we weren't so repressed.
I think this cliche comes from a cross between Crocodile Dundee and through meeting the thousands of charming Aussies who end up working behind bars when they visit the UK in their youth.
Also, with the British weather being what it is, we imagine anywhere with a sunny climate would encourage people with a similarly sunny disposition.
Anyway, I'll spare you the details, but having travelled extensively throughout Australia - well beyond Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane - I found little of the stereotype I'd expected and quite a lot of the opposite.
I did meet some great people, but they were mainly Irish 🤣
Yeah I mean, we've been heavily influenced by the US and UK historically, so we have a deeply racist disposition. Our treatment of Indigenous Australians is as much of a blight on our history as it is for other English-speaking nations like the US, Canada and South Africa. I do still strongly believe we're doing better in a lot of ways, for example we've started using indigenous place names, acknowledging traditional land ownership and other steps. But we're far from perfect, and if you come here with that conceptualisation then you'll definitely be disappointed.
Yeah the cut the tall poppy syndrome is rampant there.
They celebrate alcoholism.
It’s still legal to hit children in certain states
In fact domestic violence was pretty normalized and women in droves die per year to it.
And they think the rest of the world is going soft by trying to be more inclusive in minority rights. Women in particular.
I mean it has some appeal with the beaches but yea, the people are still 1970s -1980s chauvinistic crowd.
I will give them this though: they do look after people with disabilities a heck of a lot better than another countries I’ve seen. Never mind ‘the elevator broke.’. That shit doesnt fly there not even for a second. And they did stomp down the classism way more than UK attempted to.
I don’t have a desire to go back to the UK. Don’t have anything against the place, there isn’t anything there that entices me. Of all the European countries I visited I found it the most boring.
I don’t know what more too say to you. Nothing entices about going to the UK. If I am going to spend the resources to go to another country it won’t spend those resources on a UK trip.
France
Italy
Mediterranean Sea Cruise
Germany
Are the European areas I would spend time and money seeing.
I live in the US so I don’t know what to say to you about that.
As somebody from the UK I understand your original comment but putting Germany on this list is interesting -- I find German and UK culture to be very similar.
There isn't one. If I had to pick the one I want to revisit the least, I guess it would be Belgium. Nothing against Belgium, but Bruges aside it isn't really the most interesting place to visit.
I went to four different cities in China and at least a significant proportion of people seemed very selfish and out for themselves across the board, I'm not going to say never but it's definitely at the bottom of my list of places to return to.
Probably Egypt. Went to Hurghada and from the first moment I got there I was being scammed. The aggressiveness and directness of the scamming is something I've never seen and I've been almost everywhere. Only Morrocco comes close to it. I usually take it easy, but there one cap driver had me literally screaming at him for some fucking humanity. 75% of the people there see you as nothing more than a walking and breathing sac of money to be squeezed.
"Never again" is stronger than I'd put it but we probably won't be vacationing in France again because god forbid a guy doesn't want to eat animals.
Edit: for some positivity, I loved every trip to Germany and also Austria, the latter so much in fact that we went to live in Vienna for a short time. If not for my partner I'd move right back.
Kuwait. Got stuck there by taking Kuwait airways and being turned around due to a snowstorm at the scheduled stopover at Stansted. I swear in 2012 you could still see damage in the airport from the gulf war.
Food was good, interesting looking place, but might be the least helpful people if you are a woman. They also wanted to confiscate our passports while we were there- no thanks.
You seem to be under the impression that this post is about travel experiences, which is reasonable but incorrect. The commentor you're replying to has correctly deduced that this post is an opportunity for everyone to engage in the America Bad ritual and signal their tribal loyalty.
Malaysia. It's so oppressive and incredibly dull. Every time I go there I'm looking to cut my trip short as it's just so incredibly boring. I hadn't visited the islands though which I've heard are actually a bit more free so I'd make an exception.
Same goes for Singapore - so incredibly dull and boring. The only redeeming feature is the universal theme park and the waterworld show in particular. Get an express ticket on low season and it's one of the best theme parks in Asia.
Russia would be another one. It's just fundamentally failed country and while nature can be incredible (shoutout to Kamchatka) it's culturally dead and I'm never associating with it in any way.
Malaysia is a hard nut to crack, but I worked there for a number of years and eventually came to appreciate it because I learned where the locals go and the interesting parts of the country. They require a car though, so tough to access as a tourist.
Yes I've heard the nature can be quite beautiful but at the same time you can go to any other SEA country for similar experience with better everything else so it would be at the bottom of my list of choices just because competition is very compelling here.
The food is the main draw, and it's unique mix is better than anywhere else in my opinion. The food is mostly what locals do when they travel somewhere it seems. The other thing I like about Malaysia is that once you are away from petaling street in KL, you don't really get treated like a tourist and people don't really try to give you tourist prices. Much different compared to neighboring countries, and I say this as a university level Thai speaker who worked in Thailand and still felt tourist-hassled in much of Thailand.
A population with collective brain drain on par with Russia after the 2022 Invasion of Ukraine
Weather, wildlife, and pollution almost built to make you miserable/kill you
Probably one of the most "MAGA" states in the country, so you may not even be able to exist there without getting harassed by the citizenry or law enforcement
Alligator Auschwitz (Need I say more?)
Disney World and Universal make the shitty traffic and pollution worse on a regular basis, on top of being financial tar pits
I'm hoping to never go to Russia again, but I may have to if I want to finally cancel my citizenship.. absolute shithole, even if you ignore the current political situation.
Nope, the paperwork to cancel a citizenship needs to be filled out in person exactly at the office in the town you were last registered in. At least that's what my older sister had to do when she canceled hers a few years ago.
Your comment is a bit weird. Like saying, "I would never go back to the US again, I have no interest in it whatsoever. Although, NYC on the otherhand..."
Surely then it would make more sense to say, "I wouldn't go back to Florida" or, "I wouldn't do back to England / Wales / Northern Ireland"
To take you one further, it's like saying, "I'd never go to Europe again -- except France. I like France."
Makes more sense to specifically name the countries you wouldn't visit because for all we know you've never been to Wales.
My boss and I wrote a paper that got us invited to an international conference, that took place in Palermo, Sicily.
It wasn't high on my list of places I want to visit, but free overseas work trip to Sicily!
It was pretty disappointing in many ways. The whole time I was there I constantly felt like I was about to be robbed or scammed.
The taxi drivers are nuts, we were sure we were going to die multiple times just on the ride from the airport to the hotel.
The accommodation in the city was pretty cheap but most places had awful reviews, so we splurged and chose a 5 star hotel near the conference venue. It ended up being the equivalent of a 2 star back home. Mold in the bathroom, paint peeling off walls in the bedroom, exposed wires poking out of every electrical outlet. The hot water didn't work in the shower for 2 of the 4 nights we were there. At the buffet breakfast they served cold toast, warm yoghurt, and spoiled milk. You couldn't make it up. And that was the best accommodation in the city.
When we walked from the hotel to the conference centre, we were walking past piles of garbage that people just dump on the streets. Apparently that's a normal thing. There's nowhere else for garbage to go. Sometimes it gets picked up by the city collectors, usually it doesn't.
There were no pedestrian crossings, and cars don't stop at red lights. So the traffic is constantly flowing at full speed on all the roads. Often the only way to get to where you need to go is to walk out in front of traffic, don't make eye contact with any driver, look straight ahead, clench hard, walk sure, and change your underpants when you get to the other side.
It wasn't all bad. The food at the restaurants was amazing. I had some very good authentic Sicilian pizza. They serve cheap pints of Heineken at every restaurant and bar.
If you like oily fish such as sardines, pilchards and anchovies, you're in heaven because it's their staple, they serve them on everything.
The locals love cannolis and eat them like crack. They were served for desert at the conference, at the gala dinner, and at every restaurant we went to. I wasn't a fan of them.
I liked the novelty of being in a different country for the first time, but I wouldn't go back to Sicily again.
Huh, interesting. I've been to Sicily on a student exchange. My experience was totally different, but it's maybe because I didn't stay in Palermo. I've been to Taormina and other smaller towns. It was beautiful, both the towns themselves, the nature, the weather and the view of the sea. These local towns are old and mafe for pedestrians, so almost no cars. All the local shops are run by mom and pop and everybody knows each other. They invite whoever is walking by the shop to eat lunch together. We took the bus from my host's home to the neares town and we drove through lavender fields, it was amazing.
Not to say your experience wasn't genuine, but it sounds like it's Palermo that wasn't very pleasant, not Sicily in general. I would definitely recommend the smaller towns.
Yeah. You have a good point. My experience was only of Palermo. I understand other parts of Sicily are quite different.
We did a short half day trip to the Trapani salt pans, it was nice to get out of the city but still very touristy.
My favourite part honestly was driving through the small stretches of rural areas between towns.
I don't have such a country. If I had to strech it I would say Portugal, because Portuguese sounds to me like someone is trying to speak Spanish, while chewing on a very chewy, chunk of meat.
Might wanna get another citizenship instead of relying on "visa hopping". The US can pull the dictator moves and just revoke your passport and leave you stranded (remember: Snowden?), also, if you run into issues with local laws, you have no consular protection (I assume you wouldn't want the US intervening, so that's effectively no consular protection)
Yeah, working on that, some of us werent born rich or lucky enough to qualify for other passports.
And yeah if that happens and im somehow left stateless that'll suck, but it'll suck less than living in a dying fascist empire. Like infinitely less. I'm not the right color to just pretend to be normal and get a pass like most white liberals are planning to.
You gotta define those words for it to be true. The CPC certainly doesn't care if you 'go against them', nor do any of the constituent parties making it up that rarely fully agree on anything.
Most citizens certainly dont, well to be specific most dont care. At all. They're enjoying the fruits of their and their parents labor and trust their local elections.
98 Comments
slazer2au@lemmy.world · 81 pts · 314d
If shit keeps going the way it is, the US.
Cephalotrocity@biglemmowski.win · 15 pts · 313d
Keeps going? I've been avoiding it for decades and I can see it from my porch.
Last time I visited the customs office emptied out into a literal ghetto. Like, an entire 4 blocks of ought-to-be-condemned housing with rusted out patchwork wrecks abandoned in yards and on the street (or worse following behind you). The corner gas station had more security features than most prisons in Canada, and every street sign had numerous bullet holes. That was their welcome mat 2 decades ago. F that shithole country.
krooklochurm@lemmy.ca · 10 pts · 313d
Buffalo? Sounds like crossing the bridge into buffalo.
Cephalotrocity@biglemmowski.win · 7 pts · 313d
Detroit
krooklochurm@lemmy.ca · 5 pts · 313d
Ahhh Detroit.
That scans.
victorz@lemmy.world · 12 pts · 313d
It's been the US for me for over a decade. Never going back there, most likely. And I was only visiting.
HubertManne@piefed.social · 7 pts · 313d
came to say if I ever leave the us I aint comin back.
Truscape@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 4 pts · 313d
Any good places for a dual citizenship application outside of the US? Asking for a friend.
vateso5074@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 313d
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 5 pts · 313d
It has to be a real marriage tho, like you have to be actually in love and not just doing it for the sole purpose of immigration benefits (otherwise it could be considered fraud).
CanadaPlus@lemmy.sdf.org · 4 pts · 313d
I was thinking they were all fine enough, but actually you're right. At least in the short term it doesn't seem remotely worth it.
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 71 pts · 313d
People's Republic of China.
Was born there, probably ain't ever going back.
So much conservatism, patriarchy, toxic masculinity, ableism especially against people with mental illness or intellectual disabilities, even if the condition was mild.
Massive government corruption, inadequate safety regulations, when it come to the internet and press, those get censored, can't even have fun watching foreign media.
Complete lack of understanding for people suffering with depression nobody take it seriously, spritualism is applied to medical issues.
Hukou system limiting the very little rights you have. (I had a rural Hukou and that sucks)
To top it all off, this is a country that have rejected me for being the 2nd child born in my family (during the One Child Policy). Legal papers were denied, the government effectively refused to ackowledge my existence and demanded/extorted a large amount of money, a "fine" they call it. My parent's didn't have it so it took several years of saving up for it, before I could get legal papers and legal recognition of my existence. (See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heihaizi)
When I was a kid, I didn't know it at the time, but when my mother explained my origins, I feel like society basically just rejected me. An outcast, an anomoly, something that shouldn't have existed. All for the sin of existing without a government permission-slip.
stoy@lemmy.zip · 7 pts · 313d
That is terrible, I am glad you got out, where do you live now?
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 15 pts · 313d
US, got here in 2010s. Then, the ironic twist of fate, we got the 2017-2021 authoritarian test run, and now the 2025-ongoing shitshow lolol. Out of one hell, into another 🫠. Autocracy, here we go again!
I have hopes tho, Americans are rebellious and the recent protests keeps me hopeful. At least its not total apathy as with people in mainland China.
I've been considering moving to: Canada, Australia, and maybe Singapore; these have high levels of ethnic Chinese, which make intergration a lot easier, if I ever decide to try it, its all English speaking countries. (Thought about Taiwan, I can speak Mandarin, a bit, haven't spoken it for over a decade; traditional Chinese is harder to read, I'd have to re-learn the language; but the biggest problem is that it's a potential warzone so nope, don't wanna get bombarded within like a decade)
But, anyways: Too depressed and tired to actually do the whole learning about a country from scratch thing again. Moving to another country is just an idea, the acual exexution takes a lot of energy, a lot of paperwork, it drains your brainpower. Probably just sit and wait this out, hopefully the spirit of American rebellion doesn't die out. Need this flame to keep going.
victorz@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 313d
You are a miracle. Bless you for existing. Mother Earth knows no borders, she knows only life and rebirth. You are life. You are her. Together, we are the Earth. ❤️ You are not unwanted.
Truscape@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 4 pts · 313d
Hope you are living better wherever you moved to. I'd buy you a drink if I could.
chunes@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 313d
Why do people shit on the sick and disabled, but revere doctors?
When the former is the only reason for doctors to exist in the first place. Shouldn't we laud sick/disabled people in a sense for allowing an entire respected field to exist?
If you're going to shit on them, then shit on the people who are trying to help them, too. Be consistent.
Flax_vert@feddit.uk · 1 pts · 313d
Did the rural Hukou mean you cannot move into a city?
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 7 pts · 313d
You can, but there are rights being limited.
For example, even tho I was born in Guangzhou, I was still treated as though I was born in my father's village in terms of Hukou (the actual place of birth on the birh certificate would be with Guangzhou as the birthplace, but that doesn't matter to Hukou).
Even though my parents work in Guangzhou (广州), I couldn't attend public school in Guangzhou, and my parents have to pay for a separate, privately-run "school", which according to my mother, was worse than the officially government run public schools. But they still had the same "patriotic education" (This "patriotic education" would be considered indoctriction by most westerners). Same with my older brother.
If my family hadn't left China, my mother told me I was gonna have to go back to somewhere in Taishan (That's 台山，not 泰山) to continue beyond primary school because of there was supposely problems with getting enrolled in a Guangzhou middle school / highschool or something.
So like you're basically treated as immigrants... sort of...
(I don't know all the details of Hukou, I might ask my parents about it later.)
But even in the US, for example, even undocumented immigrant children (at least before the current admin, idk about now) could still enroll in public school, meanwhile China is denying their own citizens from attending public school, just because their ancestry is different. You could be born in Guangzhou and live your entire life there, and still have problems with your rights. It's like countries within a country.
P.S. I remember my mother said she was a teacher before giving birth to me, but becuase she violated the One Child Policy, she can't ever get any government-related jobs ever again, that includes being a teacher, or possibly even working at state-owned factory/warehouse.
Flax_vert@feddit.uk · 2 pts · 312d
That's very interesting. I heard it could be harder to change your hukou in some instances than it is to change citizenships.
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 310d
Okay so new update: I asked my mother about it:
Before 邓小平 (Deng Xiaoping)'s 开放改革 (Opening up and Reforms), you are not allowed to move outside of your Hukou. The Hukou we had was in 台山 (Taishan), so you were basically stuck there before, unless you have official matters or something.
After the 开放改革, people were allowed to move to cities. 广州 (Guangzhou) was the capital city of 广东 (Guangdong), so thats where a lot of people, my mother amongst them, moved to, for economic opportunities. All the rural places have is farming, farmed sucked, there were no machines at the time, unlike American farmers. As for the education thing, she said if we hadn't immigrated to the US, that was gonna be a problem. We'd have to go back to Taishan for Highschool, because the 高考 (Gaokao, similar to SAT/ACT but like 10x harder) has to be taken where your Hukou is. And Hukou is also for social benefits, if your Hukou is rural, you get less of any social benefits you might have (which was barely anything to begin with).
And, although Hukou transfers existed, Guangzhou did not do them, so it was impossible.
I asked: "So its like being a permanent 2nd class resident?", and she said Yes.
As messed up this administration is, at least naturalization still exists, my maternal grandmother just got approved for naturalization, the oath ceremony is next month. I know its weird, jumping from one burning pot to another, but a lot of our relatives are here, so... it is what it is. People say "Move to Canada, EU, etc...", but, as my mother say, (paraphrased) "you can move to a lot of places, but can you find money there?"
We already have investments here almost everyone is already a US citizen, relatives are also US citizens, like what other options are there? In EU, for example, you gotta learn another language, have zero knowledge of where everything is, how thing work, income, zero relative to ask to borrow money if thing are dire, etc.... All assets have to be liquidated, so... yeah... its unrealistic.
Not the best home ever, but its the one we have, it has been home for over a decade for us, its a home to 5 million of the Chinese diaspora, and its a diverse country, people aren't as hostile as some other places in the world, like even Europe is pretty much a homogenous white society with not much diversity. So... this is home, the best that we can have given the circumstances. Lets hope 2028 election goes well and the constitutional order in the US is restored.
And god forbid, please no fucking USA-China conflicts, I don't wanna get targeted by both governments (China would target me of being "Han-Traitor", and the US would try to do the "Internment Camps" again), it would be the worst timeline ever.
bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works · 1 pts · 313d
Wow. I always thought if id been born in China that would be one of the worst developed places to be. Thats unfortunate but glad you got out
Flax_vert@feddit.uk · 2 pts · 313d
Would probably depend where in China. I think you're better in China than in a lot of African countries or North Korea.
magic_lobster_party@fedia.io · 33 pts · 313d
Vatican. Once you’ve visited it there’s not much reason to go back.
Snowpix@lemmy.ca · 33 pts · 313d
The United States. I have zero interest in going to a country where I could get kidnapped by masked goons or have my phone stolen by the government for sharing memes they don't like. I have no interest in going to a country where I could get shot and killed randomly by some whacko who had a bad day and decided to shoot up the place. I have no interest in going to a country where I could be charged thousands of dollars for getting hurt. And I have absolutely zero interest in giving my money to a fascist country that regularly threatens my country's sovereignty and whose economy is on the brink of total collapse. That dumpster fire can stay down south, thank you very much.
Every time I look at the United States and everything that's been going on there, it only makes me more proud to be Canadian and ever more vigilant to prevent the same from happening to us. We have our problems, sure, but at least we have actual healthcare, no mass shootings, and no fascism.
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 6 pts · 313d
Tbf, you can go to like half of the countries in the world and the heathcare is just as horrible, and the locals always try to scam you, so its not unique to the US.
(But I don't disagree with your other points)
1984@lemmy.today · 26 pts · 313d
America. I visited maybe 15 years ago and felt like I was a criminal in the passport control. Super-authoritive people, iris scanning, fingerprint scanning, photography...
Ill stick to europe.
Snowpix@lemmy.ca · 16 pts · 313d
And it's all theatre. It's never actually stopped real criminals.
ILoveUnions@lemmy.world · 0 pts · 312d
I think it's worth saying that security theater isn't pointless. Criminals tend not to be the brightest, and they tend to like to go for low hanging fruit. That makes even the pretense of security somewhat of a preventative, even when security doesn't work. Same way a fake security camera helps.
The trouble is that they have a ridiculous amount of rights to be racist to people, abuse their power, and screw people over. Basic xray machines and security guards by itself would be reasonable, even as security theater
krooklochurm@lemmy.ca · 23 pts · 313d
South Korea.
It was fine. Lots of people spoke English and there was lots to do and everyone was nice.
But after being in Seoul for two hours I was like: "oh".
It felt just like America with more statues. I'm sure there is lots more to do and see that is more essentially Korean than Seoul was, and while I don't have anything against it, I just couldn't see making the effort to go back again given how familiar it all felt being from North America.
I don't have a single bad thing to say about the country or my time there, but there are so many places in the world I'd love to see I don't think I'd make the effort again.
Japan on the other hand.
HobbitFoot@thelemmy.club · 21 pts · 313d
I don't have any "never again" countries because something bad happened. However, I find that a lot of Caribbean countries/destinations are pretty one and done for me.
YeahIgotskills2@lemmy.world · 16 pts · 313d
Australia. Not that it was wholly terrible. It just wasn't what I expected and I overcooked it by staying for 2 years.
To be fair, it could never have lived up to the super-positive stereotype it has here in the UK.
We think of Aussies as fun-living, friendly, witty, laid-back beautiful people who are down to earth yet somehow savvy and open-minded. They love a drink and a BBQ and have a 'live and let live', inclusive attitude. Basically everything we Brits would love to be if we weren't so repressed.
I think this cliche comes from a cross between Crocodile Dundee and through meeting the thousands of charming Aussies who end up working behind bars when they visit the UK in their youth.
Also, with the British weather being what it is, we imagine anywhere with a sunny climate would encourage people with a similarly sunny disposition.
Anyway, I'll spare you the details, but having travelled extensively throughout Australia - well beyond Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane - I found little of the stereotype I'd expected and quite a lot of the opposite.
I did meet some great people, but they were mainly Irish 🤣
princessnorah@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 9 pts · 313d
Yeah I mean, we've been heavily influenced by the US and UK historically, so we have a deeply racist disposition. Our treatment of Indigenous Australians is as much of a blight on our history as it is for other English-speaking nations like the US, Canada and South Africa. I do still strongly believe we're doing better in a lot of ways, for example we've started using indigenous place names, acknowledging traditional land ownership and other steps. But we're far from perfect, and if you come here with that conceptualisation then you'll definitely be disappointed.
Smoogs@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 312d
Yeah the cut the tall poppy syndrome is rampant there.
They celebrate alcoholism.
It’s still legal to hit children in certain states
In fact domestic violence was pretty normalized and women in droves die per year to it.
And they think the rest of the world is going soft by trying to be more inclusive in minority rights. Women in particular.
I mean it has some appeal with the beaches but yea, the people are still 1970s -1980s chauvinistic crowd.
I will give them this though: they do look after people with disabilities a heck of a lot better than another countries I’ve seen. Never mind ‘the elevator broke.’. That shit doesnt fly there not even for a second. And they did stomp down the classism way more than UK attempted to.
thepompe@ttrpg.network · 1 pts · 313d
Understandable.
I know a few Australians and they are racist and nasty.
I know one who is kind, though.
IWW4@lemmy.zip · 16 pts · 314d
I don’t have a desire to go back to the UK. Don’t have anything against the place, there isn’t anything there that entices me. Of all the European countries I visited I found it the most boring.
rulu@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 0 pts · 313d
but how though why do people refuse to go back to the us or uk?
IWW4@lemmy.zip · 13 pts · 313d
I don’t know what more too say to you. Nothing entices about going to the UK. If I am going to spend the resources to go to another country it won’t spend those resources on a UK trip.
Are the European areas I would spend time and money seeing.
I live in the US so I don’t know what to say to you about that.
canofcam@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 313d
As somebody from the UK I understand your original comment but putting Germany on this list is interesting -- I find German and UK culture to be very similar.
IWW4@lemmy.zip · 3 pts · 313d
Culture isn’t a factor for me.
Why Germany is on my list:
canofcam@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 313d
All subjective and I'm not going to disagree with you. I hope if you ever do find yourself back in the UK that you have a more enjoyable time.
IWW4@lemmy.zip · -3 pts · 313d
All Subjective…
Of course the list of places that I want to visit is subjective…
canofcam@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 313d
I'm not looking for an argument, I was just commenting on the similarities of the cultures.
Vandals_handle@lemmy.world · 16 pts · 313d
Yugoslavia, can't, no longer exists.
PonyOfWar@pawb.social · 15 pts · 313d
There isn't one. If I had to pick the one I want to revisit the least, I guess it would be Belgium. Nothing against Belgium, but Bruges aside it isn't really the most interesting place to visit.
frank@sopuli.xyz · 12 pts · 313d
Big In Bruges energy
I thought Bruges was super fucking cool, but I love the idea of hating on it like the movie does
1rre@discuss.tchncs.de · 13 pts · 313d
I went to four different cities in China and at least a significant proportion of people seemed very selfish and out for themselves across the board, I'm not going to say never but it's definitely at the bottom of my list of places to return to.
LuigiMaoFrance@lemmy.ml · 11 pts · 312d
Israel
BenjiRenji@feddit.org · 10 pts · 312d
Probably Egypt. Went to Hurghada and from the first moment I got there I was being scammed. The aggressiveness and directness of the scamming is something I've never seen and I've been almost everywhere. Only Morrocco comes close to it. I usually take it easy, but there one cap driver had me literally screaming at him for some fucking humanity. 75% of the people there see you as nothing more than a walking and breathing sac of money to be squeezed.
Never again.
strlcpy@lemmy.sdf.org · 8 pts · 313d
"Never again" is stronger than I'd put it but we probably won't be vacationing in France again because god forbid a guy doesn't want to eat animals.
Edit: for some positivity, I loved every trip to Germany and also Austria, the latter so much in fact that we went to live in Vienna for a short time. If not for my partner I'd move right back.
lightnegative@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 313d
I'd go to France again but Paris: never again
acchariya@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 312d
Kuwait. Got stuck there by taking Kuwait airways and being turned around due to a snowstorm at the scheduled stopover at Stansted. I swear in 2012 you could still see damage in the airport from the gulf war.
Food was good, interesting looking place, but might be the least helpful people if you are a woman. They also wanted to confiscate our passports while we were there- no thanks.
TempermentalAnomaly@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 313d
Genuinely excited to visit the homeland. Then I saw this today. A little less excited.
Octavio@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 312d
capuccino@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 313d
Always has been the US. I've never been there, and I do not want to be there.
Phineaz@feddit.org · 25 pts · 313d
"again"
ThrowawayPermanente@sh.itjust.works · 2 pts · 312d
You seem to be under the impression that this post is about travel experiences, which is reasonable but incorrect. The commentor you're replying to has correctly deduced that this post is an opportunity for everyone to engage in the America Bad ritual and signal their tribal loyalty.
drmoose@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 312d
Malaysia. It's so oppressive and incredibly dull. Every time I go there I'm looking to cut my trip short as it's just so incredibly boring. I hadn't visited the islands though which I've heard are actually a bit more free so I'd make an exception.
Same goes for Singapore - so incredibly dull and boring. The only redeeming feature is the universal theme park and the waterworld show in particular. Get an express ticket on low season and it's one of the best theme parks in Asia.
Russia would be another one. It's just fundamentally failed country and while nature can be incredible (shoutout to Kamchatka) it's culturally dead and I'm never associating with it in any way.
acchariya@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 312d
Malaysia is a hard nut to crack, but I worked there for a number of years and eventually came to appreciate it because I learned where the locals go and the interesting parts of the country. They require a car though, so tough to access as a tourist.
drmoose@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 312d
Yes I've heard the nature can be quite beautiful but at the same time you can go to any other SEA country for similar experience with better everything else so it would be at the bottom of my list of choices just because competition is very compelling here.
acchariya@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 312d
The food is the main draw, and it's unique mix is better than anywhere else in my opinion. The food is mostly what locals do when they travel somewhere it seems. The other thing I like about Malaysia is that once you are away from petaling street in KL, you don't really get treated like a tourist and people don't really try to give you tourist prices. Much different compared to neighboring countries, and I say this as a university level Thai speaker who worked in Thailand and still felt tourist-hassled in much of Thailand.
AmericanEconomicThinkTank@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 313d
Generally? Haiti.
stinerman@midwest.social · 5 pts · 313d
NULL. Because I've been to 2 countries (US and Canada). I live in the US and I enjoyed Canada.
CybranM@feddit.nu · 5 pts · 313d
If you rephrase it to states instead of countries what would your answer be?
stinerman@midwest.social · 6 pts · 313d
Florida. My brother lives there though. However he moving back to the Midwest so maybe I don't have to go anymore.
CybranM@feddit.nu · 1 pts · 313d
Two answers for Florida haha. Is there something specific you can name or is it the general "vibe", I've never been there
Truscape@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 1 pts · 312d
Imagine combining this lovely soup of factors:
CybranM@feddit.nu · 1 pts · 312d
Ah, I see what you mean
Truscape@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 4 pts · 313d
As someone in a similar boat, Florida. 100%, Florida. Or Arizona.
prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 2 pts · 313d
I will never visit Florida ever again.
Kolanaki@pawb.social · 5 pts · 313d
Out of the places I have actually been, there are none I would say I would never want to go to again.
I do, currently, wish I was not in my home country though.
Jhex@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 313d
USA
TotallyNotSpezUpload@startrek.website · 4 pts · 313d
YeahIgotskills2@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 313d
Did you make it to Scotland? Edinburgh is lovely and the Highlands and Islands are definitely worth a visit.
TotallyNotSpezUpload@startrek.website · 1 pts · 312d
Truscape@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 1 pts · 313d
I've never visited Northern Ireland but I know some good online friends who live there, how's it to visit?
TotallyNotSpezUpload@startrek.website · 2 pts · 312d
lightnegative@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 313d
I went to Derry and Giants Causeway after watching the Derry Girls TV show ("foreigners fookin' love the Giants Causeway!")
It wasn't wrong, I greatly enjoyed my 3 days in Northern Ireland
python@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 312d
I'm hoping to never go to Russia again, but I may have to if I want to finally cancel my citizenship.. absolute shithole, even if you ignore the current political situation.
Truscape@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 2 pts · 312d
Can't you do that at a consulate? Or is that not possible for Russian citizenship holders?
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 5 pts · 312d
Eh, they might Jamal Khashoggi you either way
Truscape@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 3 pts · 312d
Shit, good point.
python@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 312d
Nope, the paperwork to cancel a citizenship needs to be filled out in person exactly at the office in the town you were last registered in. At least that's what my older sister had to do when she canceled hers a few years ago.
sharkfucker420@lemmy.ml · 4 pts · 313d
BritainEngland, it wasn't bad or anything just no desire to visit it again. Saw what I wanted to see. Wouldn't mind seeing Scotland again though.YeahIgotskills2@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 313d
As a Scot I'm always secretly pleased when we get a pass while the rest of the UK gets a 'meh'.
That said, the North of England, Cornwall and Brighton, and parts of Wales are definitely worth a visit.
canofcam@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 313d
Your comment is a bit weird. Like saying, "I would never go back to the US again, I have no interest in it whatsoever. Although, NYC on the otherhand..."
Surely then it would make more sense to say, "I wouldn't go back to Florida" or, "I wouldn't do back to England / Wales / Northern Ireland"
To take you one further, it's like saying, "I'd never go to Europe again -- except France. I like France."
Makes more sense to specifically name the countries you wouldn't visit because for all we know you've never been to Wales.
sharkfucker420@lemmy.ml · 3 pts · 313d
My bad I forget england and britain are not interchangeable terms
canofcam@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 312d
That's fair, we do have too many names for our small island.
flubba86@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 313d
I've only ever been out of the country one time.
My boss and I wrote a paper that got us invited to an international conference, that took place in Palermo, Sicily.
It wasn't high on my list of places I want to visit, but free overseas work trip to Sicily!
It was pretty disappointing in many ways. The whole time I was there I constantly felt like I was about to be robbed or scammed.
The taxi drivers are nuts, we were sure we were going to die multiple times just on the ride from the airport to the hotel.
The accommodation in the city was pretty cheap but most places had awful reviews, so we splurged and chose a 5 star hotel near the conference venue. It ended up being the equivalent of a 2 star back home. Mold in the bathroom, paint peeling off walls in the bedroom, exposed wires poking out of every electrical outlet. The hot water didn't work in the shower for 2 of the 4 nights we were there. At the buffet breakfast they served cold toast, warm yoghurt, and spoiled milk. You couldn't make it up. And that was the best accommodation in the city.
When we walked from the hotel to the conference centre, we were walking past piles of garbage that people just dump on the streets. Apparently that's a normal thing. There's nowhere else for garbage to go. Sometimes it gets picked up by the city collectors, usually it doesn't.
There were no pedestrian crossings, and cars don't stop at red lights. So the traffic is constantly flowing at full speed on all the roads. Often the only way to get to where you need to go is to walk out in front of traffic, don't make eye contact with any driver, look straight ahead, clench hard, walk sure, and change your underpants when you get to the other side.
It wasn't all bad. The food at the restaurants was amazing. I had some very good authentic Sicilian pizza. They serve cheap pints of Heineken at every restaurant and bar. If you like oily fish such as sardines, pilchards and anchovies, you're in heaven because it's their staple, they serve them on everything. The locals love cannolis and eat them like crack. They were served for desert at the conference, at the gala dinner, and at every restaurant we went to. I wasn't a fan of them.
I liked the novelty of being in a different country for the first time, but I wouldn't go back to Sicily again.
agavaa@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 312d
Huh, interesting. I've been to Sicily on a student exchange. My experience was totally different, but it's maybe because I didn't stay in Palermo. I've been to Taormina and other smaller towns. It was beautiful, both the towns themselves, the nature, the weather and the view of the sea. These local towns are old and mafe for pedestrians, so almost no cars. All the local shops are run by mom and pop and everybody knows each other. They invite whoever is walking by the shop to eat lunch together. We took the bus from my host's home to the neares town and we drove through lavender fields, it was amazing.
Not to say your experience wasn't genuine, but it sounds like it's Palermo that wasn't very pleasant, not Sicily in general. I would definitely recommend the smaller towns.
flubba86@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 312d
Yeah. You have a good point. My experience was only of Palermo. I understand other parts of Sicily are quite different. We did a short half day trip to the Trapani salt pans, it was nice to get out of the city but still very touristy. My favourite part honestly was driving through the small stretches of rural areas between towns.
Pipster@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 3 pts · 313d
At the very least for the next few years, the US.
Otherwise Honduras, not that I didnt like my visit there but I can't say I have a particularly compelling reason to return.
DioramaOfShit@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 311d
U.S.A. what a shit hole
Kennystillalive@feddit.org · 1 pts · 313d
I don't have such a country. If I had to strech it I would say Portugal, because Portuguese sounds to me like someone is trying to speak Spanish, while chewing on a very chewy, chunk of meat.
Akasazh@feddit.nl · 3 pts · 313d
That's weird, I find Portugese to be much more pleasing than Spanish. Not the weird 'b/v' and exaggerated 's' sounds and much more melodical.
superniceperson@sh.itjust.works · -2 pts · 313d
The US, left for China and I'm likely never going back.
If China ever refuses to renew my visa I'll be visa hopping in SEA like most broke american Travellers do.
I genuinely cant imagine ever living in an individualist society ever again. Theyre all so hateful.
DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works · 5 pts · 313d
Might wanna get another citizenship instead of relying on "visa hopping". The US can pull the dictator moves and just revoke your passport and leave you stranded (remember: Snowden?), also, if you run into issues with local laws, you have no consular protection (I assume you wouldn't want the US intervening, so that's effectively no consular protection)
superniceperson@sh.itjust.works · 0 pts · 313d
Yeah, working on that, some of us werent born rich or lucky enough to qualify for other passports.
And yeah if that happens and im somehow left stateless that'll suck, but it'll suck less than living in a dying fascist empire. Like infinitely less. I'm not the right color to just pretend to be normal and get a pass like most white liberals are planning to.
thepompe@ttrpg.network · 4 pts · 313d
I mean, Chinese society hates you for going against the CCP.
superniceperson@sh.itjust.works · -2 pts · 313d
You gotta define those words for it to be true. The CPC certainly doesn't care if you 'go against them', nor do any of the constituent parties making it up that rarely fully agree on anything.
Most citizens certainly dont, well to be specific most dont care. At all. They're enjoying the fruits of their and their parents labor and trust their local elections.