 Image: ap |
In the past few decades it has transformed from a sleepy farming town to a surreal version of utopia where every person is entitled to free healthcare and education, a luxurious home, and cooking oil.
It is home to a "World Park" filled with replicas of the world's most iconic landmarks, from the Statue of Liberty to the Arc de Triomphe.
And it's putting the finishing touches on a glossy green skyscraper, set to become the world's 15th tallest building.
Of course, life in this idyllic town comes at a cost. Residents work seven days a week, often in Huaxi's industrial plants, and if you leave, you lose it all.
Thanks to photographer Bert van Dijk, who was kind enough to share some snapshots with us.
And also, you can't travel outside the village, otherwise you'll lose all your benefits(the nice car, house, free healthcare, education and so on). So that's why they decided to build a replica of every important monument in the world.
The pictures don't look all that good if you look carefully. Some are obviously not maintained. Some are deserted. It's all for the show. The high-rise hotel will become a giant burden on their backs. There is zero chance it can be cash-flow positive.
The Google headquarters?
Microsoft has a $227B market cap and 90K employees, each employee's average is $2.5M.
Huaxi Village is formed like an employee owned corporation, a net worth of $100K per family isn't much to brag about.
Good for China!
1. I'm not jealous in the least, frankly I looked at those photos and forget the pollution, as a westerner I know for a fact I'd be in that town for twenty minutes before I'd go completely insane. I can still hear the car horns from Shanghai and I've not been there since February 2009! Something tells me that place will be just as bad for noise. (And don't even get me started on a lack of personal space, I like my privacy.)
2. Why do I just know every building in that town from far away looks nice, but up close there will be cracks in the walls?
3. Seven day work week, no vacation, so the difference between this Chinese factory town and any other is the goofy knock offs?
I don't think I'd go insane on second thought, I'd shoot myself to escape the misery. Sorry I know, I sound horribly bitter, but there's a reason I don't go to China anymore. That town embodies everything about that country that drove me crazy.
What ever happened to all those indenture servants that built the Beijing Olympics facilities anyway? Did they become construction material?
Yes, utopia like in H.G. Wells The Time Machine.
Nothing is free. This is paid for with the blood and oppression of millions of Chinamen.
Hey guys - THAT is where you get your free (and worthless) education!! GO OVER THERE !! NOW !! TRUST ME !!
You didn't think of it because you can't see past your own shadow let alone 10-20 years down the road. Instead of accusing the Chinese of not understanding simple economics, why don't you try to think of a few possible reasons why the Chinese would want to start building clean, modern, western looking cities NOW, equipped with business centers, malls, museums, lakes, etc...
Why? Can you think of a possible reason? Do you think the average American is going to want to live in the US 10 years from now? Where do you think they are going to want to go? But wait, there's a problem. China is clearly too dirty for westerners to live in. I love it here, but the average westerner doesn't. Solution? Can anyone here think of a solution? Are you starting to see the picture develop here?
So why now? Hmm... China needs future westernized cities, and they need to stimulate their economy. Well, they could do it US Style and have endless QE's. Or, they could kill 2 birds with one stone and start stimulating with infrastructure projects they need to build anyway. Sort of like how they killed 2 birds with one stone when they used US Dollar reserves they don't want to be holding in the future to allow companies like PetroChina to go on a spending spree buying up future oil and gas reserves. You see, China didn't lock down their future energy needs through Wars like the US did, they did it with their brain.
The Chinese are always 10 steps ahead of you...
But there are problems with this approach. (1) Depreciation; (2) Cost of maintenance; (3) Misalignment to future needs.
But more importantly, these infrastructure properties are owned by the elite and riches. Utilization will mean distribution of the wealth from the riches to the poor. The houses will be occupied only if the poor can afford them. Can this happen in the future, without systemic change of the economic model? Will the riches consent to give up their holdings and accept the reduction of wealth gap that are huge at present? I don't think so.
Of course there is another potential outcome. That is the continuing surge of the quality of workforce. Highly productive workforce means high-paying jobs, and better living standards. China has lifted hundreds of millions from poverty in the past 30 years. Can China continue the miracle by producing hundreds of millions of highly skilled engineers, scientists, and so on, that collectively generate superior output than rest of the world? If so these houses will surely be filled with these people, while the riches will get even richer.
If that happens, America and Europe will be in big trouble. You may see Chinese men ordering brides from Greece, for example.