Millions of Chinese are venturing to the beach for the first time
China’s beach culture is a microcosm of society
A man with a giant tattoo of a carp jumping over a dragon is making a video of himself standing in the water, a green inflatable ring around his waist. As he films, waves move up the shore and catch the black flip-flops he has left on the sand. He grabs at one, but the water pulls the other out of reach. It is 7am and the competition is on, selfie versus shoe. The sandal floats out into the South China Sea.
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This article appeared in the Christmas Specials section of the print edition under the headline “Beside the seaside”
Christmas Specials December 23rd 2023
- On safari in South Sudan, one of the world’s most dangerous countries
- Many Trump supporters believe God has chosen him to rule
- Global warming is changing wine (not yet for the worse)
- How five Ukrainian cities are coping, despite Putin’s war
- A tale of penguins and prejudice is a parable of modern America
- What the journey of a pair of shoes reveals about capitalism
- A short history of tractors in English
- Millions of Chinese are venturing to the beach for the first time
From the December 23rd 2023 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
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Inside the last true political machine in America
What a town is like when one family runs everything
AI is stalking the last lions of Hollywood
The first actors to lose their jobs to artificial intelligence are four-legged
The truth about the passenger jet Putin’s men shot down
Investigating MH17, the crime that presaged the war in Ukraine
Meet the boffins and buccaneers drilling for hydrogen
The search is on for a clean fuel that could one day replace oil
The best sailors in the world
Why the vaka, vehicle for the extraordinary story of the peopling of Oceania, is enjoying a revival
Oceania’s wayfinding skills
The art of getting a vessel and its occupants from one place on a vast ocean to another
