Good Lord Rex, you are hopelessly out of date with your thinking. China, especially, is a country overflowing with food, so much so much of it is imported into Hastings for Watties to can.

Poorly resourced? The cities are growing at an astounding rate as is the infrastructure. In many respects they are many years ahead of New Zealand and the UK. The people have three things drummed into them from birth, the need to work hard, the necessity of saving money and waste nothing.

Public transport is second to none. The metro is world class with a fare of two yuan to reach your destination, two yuan is also the cost of catching a bus. two yuan at today exchange rate is fifty cents. I have no idea what it cost to catch a Hastings bus but I am confident it will cost more than fifty cents. I forgot to say that is the only bus and metro fare regardless of where you get on or off.

The Chinese are extremely hard working people. food is very cheap, accommodation unbelievably cheap and good quality clothing is at almost giveaway prices. The people are always dressed well, the family concept is the strongest I have seen anywhere.

Work is available, there is no unemployment, if you haven't got a job you will be given a broom and a long handled dustpan, plus one hundred metres of road and told to go and keep it clean. For this you will be given an absolute minimal wage but enough to buy food and pay rent. You can eat quite well $3.00 a day and that will buy three meals. It's surprising how this encourages the person to find proper employment.

You suggest the Chinese are desperate to come to New Zealand, what they are desperate for is a house and garden. Chinese are natural farmers and tenders of land but the housing in China is all high rise apartment blocks ... no gardens.

What you have written is exactly how western propaganda would have you believe and nothing could be further from the truth. The roads are full of cars, mostly Lexus, BMW, Mercs, Audi, Ferrari, in fact most of the top of the range vehicles. The shops are full of top quality goods. not the crap the likes of Briscoes and The Warehouse import. The Chinese make goods to the standard the western buyer wants ... dirt cheap. All the clothes I purchased to bring home with me are real quality and extremely well priced.

China is a powerhouse, the second most affluent in the world and it is widely believed the world's currency will soon be measured against the Yuan, not the American dollar.

Those are the good things but I do not wear rose tinted glasses. I disliked the Asian toilets, I despise the disgusting habit of spitting and I would never grow accustomed to the noise. However, the Chinese people are a different matter altogether, kind, friendly, happy, very approachable and helpful and for some inexplicable reason have great respect for westerners.

I should have mentioned excellent health care at very affordable prices. I needed a doctor, I had a consultation, and examination and five items on prescription, the pharmacy is in the surgery. Total cost 65 Yuan, in our money $16.00 all up. In Auckland you can pay $50.00 just to get an appointment at your doctor.

There is no doubt we have got it right and in China it is all wrong. According to the Tui advert ... Yeah ... Right!!!

These are not the observations of a ten day tourist, I have lived in China for for five of the last ten months: the country is simply fabulous ... other than the heat. It was thirty-six degrees when I left there on Wednesday and at my age I struggled with those temperatures.

I didn't know Jerry was away, what name does he post under?