Shanghai

[j.sabourn]

#4 Used to be 200 yen for a big bottle of Asahi or Nippon beer in the Girlie Bars. Was less than half that in the Japanese bars, these were mostly Japanese only, and as far as I know still are. How did they get away with that. that was apartheid in reverse. Suntory and Tory whiskey was a cheap imitation of Scottish whiskey, but has got better over the years and am quite comfortable drinking it, if it is cheaper. I was taken a few times with Japanese as their guest into Japanese bars they were the ones I think with the red light outside which seems a bit odd as should have been the other way round. Cheers JS

[John Arton]

Strange thing about the bars in some Japanese ports. We were dry docked in Mizushima for 2 months and every morning on turning to the Japanese manager would ask how we enjoyed our night out in such and such bar. After a while we twigged that as soon as we entered a bar the mamasan would dive out the back and phone the yard to let them know we were in her bar. This was in order so the manager could make polite conversation with us the next day and also I guess to report that we were still in the prefecture.
After that it became a game whereby we would search out Japanese bars that only the locals used, just to see the look on the managers face after he had asked us "good sleep last night, you no go ashore", to which we would reply that indeed we had been ashore last night and had a very good night drinking in bars where the beer was very cheap. Used to cause him no amount of consternation as I think he was worried about loss of face.
rgds
JA

[John Arton]

Strange thing about the bars in some Japanese ports. We were dry docked in Mizushima for 2 months and every morning on turning to the Japanese manager would ask how we enjoyed our night out in such and such bar. After a while we twigged that as soon as we entered a bar the mamasan would dive out the back and phone the yard to let them know we were in her bar. This was in order so the manager could make polite conversation with us the next day and also I guess to report that we were still in the prefecture.
After that it became a game whereby we would search out Japanese bars that only the locals used, just to see the look on the managers face after he had asked us "good sleep last night, you no go ashore", to which we would reply that indeed we had been ashore last night and had a very good night drinking in bars where the beer was very cheap. Used to cause him no amount of consternation as I think he was worried about loss of face.
rgds
JA

[Peter F Chard]

Early in 1958 we took a full load of fertilizer from Antwerp to Shanghai on the " Somali ". We were chartered by the Chinese government and the charter conditions were 15 knots maximum or 75 tonnes of fuel per day maximum fuel burn and to go nonstop all the way. The ship was so full of this fertilizer that we were below our marks and had to pump fresh water out to get back to our marks. Three days out and we started to run low on water so the old man had to issue beer to the Europeans amongst the crew, 2 cans per man per day but 6 cans per day for watchkeeping engineers. The Asian crew got some water but not much. We took on water from a barge at Malta and bunkers in Aden and from there it was nonstop to Shanghai. We arrived in late January and the Chinese took us up the river as far as we could go, the ship was now almost as wide as the river !! They then left us there for three weeks but the ba..tards would have unannounced crew musters at 2 am about every third day whilst they searched the ship to make sure all the crew were present or that we had no stowaways on board, we had to stand on deck in our night clothes for up to three hours in temperatures of about minus 10'C -- not nice at all. Eventually we were ordered to Shanghai to discharge, which took weeks, no crane grabs, just hundreds of labourers using shovels to fill big tubs which were swung ashore using the derricks. We could go ashore but our cameras were taken from us for the duration of the stay and returned on departure, the only place to drink was at the old Shanghai Jockey Club, Tsingtao beer, a shilling for a quart bottle, this stuff was dynamite, about 14 % alcohol. And we had to account for every last cent of Chinese money we had not spent -- they knew exactly how much money each and every one of us had spent and thus how much we had to return. Any souvenirs we had bought ashore were delivered just before the ship sailed and our cameras were returned when the pilot boat came alongside to collect the pilot on departure. Interesting times, regards Peter in NZ.

[j.sabourn]

Wasn't too much different in the early 70"s either Peter. Then all of a sudden in later years things seemed to change. Think it was out with the old guard and in with the new. Have a friend who goes up to China quite often buying old metal etc. for re smeltering. He has quite often chinese businessmen staying at his house who have taken quite easy to the change of lifestyle then and now. Is a funny old world. Cheers John S

[Peter F Chard]

John, Further north, almost as far as the border with Manchuria it was as if there had been no civil war - The British India Shipping line had ships stationed on that stretch of the coast and the UK officers lived the life of Riley -- plenty of bars and bawdy houses and no problems living ashore with whoever took your fancy. The mates and engineers were on a three year contract and believe it or not the company had problems getting these guys to go back to the UK for leave, they were having too much fun out there !! Regards Peter in NZ.

[Ivan Cloherty]

#14, remember it well Peter, did numerous ports in China in that era, all the same attitude every time for nearly two years, nothing to commend them at all

[j.sabourn]

Knew people who went with BI. Always tried to change the Walport Films with any BI ships in port. Always used to like the Far East. Was going out to Hong Kong at one time but got stopped at the starting line. Think I could of fallen into the life style no problem. Would still be wallowing in Testerone. One lifetime is too short. Cheers John S.

[cappy]

cappy im having trouble getting on site and cannot when i hit the more get any reactionhad this yesterday but thought it might clear overnite any suggestions ....will some body chuck a boy .....i mean a lifebuoy

[j.sabourn]

Cappy have been getting the same problem. You have a Safeway supermarket in South Shields try them. Safeway or something similar keeps on coming up. Will do anything to advertise these people. I'M getting the semaphore flags out, can you see me, Im just in front of the belisha beacon. You may need your brass telescope. Cheers John S.