River Roots: Don't play with knives or sharp objects

One thing I didn’t expect was the level of security here in China (which seems obvious now, but when you come from the Yukon, you don’t really think about these things). In Beijing there are security checks around every corner. Every time you get on the metro and at the entrance to every tourist site is a security check. In particular, these security checks are supposed to verify any liquids (there have been cases of people lighting themselves on fire on public transport) and make sure you aren’t carrying any sharp objects that could be used as a weapon (a few months ago there was an attack on the metro where several people were stabbed to death).

My first few days in Beijing I made it through the security checks alright, mainly, I believe, because I am a foreigner and the security guards couldn’t be bothered to try to explain to me that they wanted to verify the contents of my purse (which contained both liquids and my leatherman). On the third day, however, I was stopped twice because I was with my Chinese friend who could act as a translator, but I was allowed to keep my knife because it is small (and I think the pliers confused them).

The real problem came when it was time to leave Beijing. I had planned to travel by train through China without knowing that you can’t take sharp objects with you onto trains either. This means that when I tried to go through security at the train station, I was stopped because I was traveling with my paddling gear, including my safety knife that is strapped to my lifejacket. A gentleman was called over and graciously acted as my translator as best as he could as I tried to explain to the security guards who spoke no English whatsoever why I was carrying a big knife and why they should let me keep it…Eventually, they allowed me to mail my knife to myself. Luckily, I had printed out my hotel address in Chinese before leaving so with only a little confusion we were able to figure everything out. However, this still leaves me with the dilemma of how I am going to get my knife from Hangzhou to Kathmandu if I can’t travel with it. Apparently, carrying knives isn’t really a thing in some countries…

Update: I managed to hang on to my knife throughout China and bring it to Nepal where the authorities are way to disorganized to have any kind of security checks so no one bothers with my knife.

Blue skies - I was lucky enough to be in Beijing at the same time as the APEC conference so factories were shut down and traffic was limited to give a good impression.