The performance took place next to the Haikou Century Bridge in Haikou, where Chen Luozhen showed off her moves after just six months of training with support from her mother.

With pole dancing having its roots in strip clubs, some people object to children participating in it. However, with there being no strip clubs in China, pole dancing does not carry the same negative connotations it does in the west. In fact, the introduction of pole dancing has become so positively regarded in the country that the China Daily said pole dancing has “shake(n) off its ill repute in China”.

Everyone is doing it: even the elderly. Dai Dali is 70. “I like pole dance because I enjoy the feeling of gyrating on air,” she said.

Likewise, Chinese children have been known to engage in the art of mid-air choreography.

Last October, the national pole dancing competition of China featured children as young as six years-old (seen above). In 2014, a video of a “super cute” young girl using a handrail on the subway to “pole dance” went viral on the Chinese internet.

Nonetheless, some stigma over pole dancing still remains, and controversies over the activity have happened before in China.

In 2012, a Wuhan kindergarten teacher was criticized for pole dancing on a Chinese television show (seen above). Netizens weren’t upset at her performance, but that she worked as a kindergarten teacher. One person wrote, “If children from her class happened to watch the show, wouldn’t this negatively impact the children?”

China’s most recent pole dancing development was of a expat woman who pole danced on the Tianjin Metro as other commuters watched.

The post 5 Year-Old Girl Celebrates Children’s Day with Controversial Pole Dancing Performance appeared first on The Nanfang.

A Weibo user named “The Story of Little Poo and the Soaring God” posted pictures of herself wearing a police uniform… without the pants. Bearing the designation “Z121022”, the uniform was prominently seen in the photographs as the woman poses with a kissing face.

Netizens took offence to the selfies, particularly a Weibo user named “The King of Selling Lights”, who criticized the officer for losing sight of her professional obligations:

Miss, you are very pretty. What’s more, what you publish on your own Weibo account is none of my concern. However, I just have one request for you: Can you please refrain from posting such photographs of your yourself while wearing a police uniform? Additionally, is it suitable for you to put on such heavy make-up after having just graduated in a three-striped police uniform? Are there many fellow students at the Liaoning Police Academy that like to pose in police uniforms this way? Can somebody take control of this issue?

Other people didn’t think the selfies were all that bad. One person wrote, “From the looks of the background, this photograph looks to have been taken at home and not at work. There’s nothing indecent revealed… And now that she’s been fired, how is this a benefit to you? Are you happy now?”

The Liaoning Police Academy confirmed on its Weibo account that the person seen in the selfies was a student from last year’s graduating class. Named Wang, the new police officer had been dispatched to the Zhenxing police sub-station in Dandong, Liaoning. However, due to the “evil influence” of the photos in question, Wang was terminated from her job.

Weibo user “The Story of Little Poo and the Soaring God” has since deleted all of her Weibo posts.

The post Lesson: Don’t Post Sexy Photos Online When You’re a Cop appeared first on The Nanfang.

The rules are simple: participants successfully pass the test if they are able to suspend a pencil underneath their breast by its weight alone. No bras or hand support are allowed.

According to Chinese media, Japan is responsible for inspiring the fad, allegedly based on the Luxembourg physiologist R. Chigur’s infamous “pencil experiment”. The experiment, which has nothing to do with beauty, was designed to determine whether or not a woman required a bra with underwire. If the breast can hold a pencil underneath it, then the woman requires a bra with more support.

In any event, while a number of the “pencil trick” selfies come from Japan, Chinese women are now getting involved.

This woman writes, “If this is what it takes to be a woman, then I proudly am one”:

Like previous Chinese “beauty standard tests”, some Chinese women have taken to hiding their identities:

Last year saw a number of Chinese “beauty test” memes. It started with women reaching behind their backs to touch their own belly buttons in the “belly button test”. Then, escalating to putting a roll of coins on your collar bone to prove your thinness; folding your hands behind your back, and most recently culminating in the “grope-your-own-breast” selfie.

Whether or not the “trick” is pulled off, one common theme of the viral memes is that they all involve Chinese women showing off their bodies. Does the “pencil trick” finally cross the line? Here are some more examples, though we can’t be sure if they are all from China:

The post China’s Latest Selfie Craze: The Underboob Pencil Trick appeared first on The Nanfang.

In less than a decade, it has drastically evolved. In fact, an unidentified bar in Shenyang, Liaoning distanced itself from the shopping and romance by providing a writhing dancer in a bikini for its patrons to freely pour beer upon.

Maybe it’s slowly becoming China’s version of the popular US “Spring Break”?

“Dancing in a wading pool covered in beer” isn’t normally a popular activity in China, a country known for its conservative attitudes towards sexuality, and was not well-received by netizens online. One person said, “Vulgarity without limits.” Another person wrote, “Despicable. This isn’t a promotion for a (bar), this is flat-out prostitution! People nowadays really have no restraints holding them back.”

Yet another person took the opportunity to point out: “I can see a police car outside the window (in the last picture).”

With this latest salvo shot in the War on Singles’ Day, who can say if November 11 will become the future date for wet T-shirt competitions and beer bong consumption in what will potentially be China’s own Spring Break festival.

The post Celebrate Single’s Day by Pouring Beer on a Bar Girl in a Bikini appeared first on The Nanfang.

As with many of the events held last week, the show was another Singles’ Day event. And in staying true to the Day’s focus on consumerism, the event showcased the models carrying a number of handbags.

Bizarrely, this is not the first time China has attempted to draw a connection between bikinis and Peking Opera. In 2012, the 37th Annual Miss Bikini International Contest outfitted contestants in Peking Opera headdresses while performing in bikinis. Needless to say, the Chinese public was not impressed with the trivialization of traditional Chinese culture, and the event drew public condemnation (video here).

And yet, somehow, “bikinis and Peking Opera” remains a mainstay of fashion shows and beauty pageants. This past August, Jinan was again the scene of a “Peking Opera-themed bikini show” in which contestants wore bikinis along with Peking Opera-styled headdresses (seen below):

The post East And West Fashion Collide As Bikini Models Share Stage With Peking Opera appeared first on The Nanfang.

A promotion for a new dating app had several young women dressed in bikinis walking the streets of downtown Beijing this past Tuesday morning.

Decked out in black thong bikinis and matching high heels, not only did the models have the name of the dating app written onto their skin (Neishenme, 内什么), but the words “use me” were visible upon their backs along with a scanable QR code imprinted upon each butt cheek.

The group of about 20 models arrived at a square at Jianwei SOHO, but were eventually told to leave by security guards. Police are now said to be conducting an investigation into the incident.

Many bystanders took pictures of the models, but none were brave enough to take a scan of the buttock-mounted QR code.

This incident follows a similar promotion this past July in which some two dozen men dressed up as the bare-chested “Spartans” from the movie 300 as a way to promote Beijing-based Sweetie Salad restaurant.

Even though the “Spartans” were just as effective as these QR-branded bikini models in attracting attention, they were met with a much different reaction from law enforcement. As they walked over a pedestrian bridge on their way to the center of Sanlitun, they were forcibly arrested by police, who accused them of violating public order.

Although both incidents feature people in states of undress as a way to promote a product, the two situations aren’t quite the same, at least by appearances. The “Spartans” were made up of a group of all expat men who happened to be “armed” with cans of food as part of their promotion.

With no police presence initially involved in this week’s cheeky bikini promotion, the “Spartans” may feel betrayed by the double standard shown towards the models and their bumper stickers. However, the enlightened among them may just view these angels of advertising and say, “There, but for the grace of God, go I.”

Here’s a news video of the incident:

The post Bikini Babes Take Over Downtown Beijing in Scandalous Promotion appeared first on The Nanfang.

Last week saw the rise of the “touch your belly button to see if you’re fat” meme on the Chinese internet, but that was last week. Now there’s a new phenomenon to hit the web: selfies of coins balanced on your collarbone.

As with many memes, there’s no clear point to it besides that everyone else is doing it. Even though the number of coins varies with each submission, this meme isn’t a competition to see who can fit the most coins since no one ever mentions the amount when they post them.

The meme first appeared as early as 2013. At the time, it was more of a competition since netizens tried to outdo each other by putting more and more outrageous things there, including durians. Another difference is that the 2013 meme wasn’t an exclusive exhibition for female users to show off their bare necks and plunging necklines.

But we’ll spare you the rhetoric and just show you the latest trend on the Chinese internet. Here are some examples:

All these ways of taking photographs employ the use of a prop that people can use to diffuse attention away from themselves lest they not be seen as being humble enough. As such, the collarbone selfie provides a convenient way to focus on a subject’s chest in a photo, much the same way the bellybutton test provided an acceptable way to focus on one’s bare midriff.

And because some people need a change from all these coins, here’s some non-coin selfies:

The post China’s Sexiest New Internet Meme: A Roll of Coins On Your Collarbone appeared first on The Nanfang.

With the situation so dire that media reports are now calling cell phone addiction a disease, a solution is needed. That’s where this cartoon comes in.

This winner at the Central Art Academy is turning heads, even if it is turning them online and through a phone. Called “Living Life with Your Head Down”, this short animated video made by Xie Chenglin tells the story of how mobile phone addiction will eventually destroy the world. The video might be surprising to some with its violence and sexually suggestive themes.

Astute viewers will catch a real-life reference to how some opportunistic cell phone users used the scene of a accident as the background for their photographs.

Here’s the video:

The post Animated Video Shows Us How Mobile Phone Addiction Will Destroy the World appeared first on The Nanfang.

Many customers have complained that they are unable to relieve themselves while under the watchful eyes of the mannequins. Sun Kao, a 24-year-old patron, explained to a local television station, “I walked out when I saw the women there because I thought at first I was in the wrong place. When I realized I was in fact in the men’s room and I tried to relieve myself, it just didn’t work. It was very off putting having a good-looking woman, even if it was a plastic one, apparently staring at me as I tried to do my business.”

The report does not mention what, if anything, is featured in the adjoining women’s restroom.

The post Men’s Bathroom in China Has Some Rather Unique Urinals… appeared first on The Nanfang.

Based on initial feedback, male customers love it. To best serve passengers, flight attendants adopt a uniform kneeling stance: both feet on the ground, one knee up with the other down, back straight, and both hands in the lap, just like so:

Flight attendants are taught the stance in large classes, where they receive instruction as they practice together in a line:

The public can’t seem to get enough of it. To meet demand, pictorials shown on Caijing show flight attendants in the position.

Or stretching:

Or in this context, which just might be the beginning of a music video of a teen idol group, as directed by the late Stanley Kubrick:

“Kneeling service” has been noticed by many netizens, who have sounded off on the topic on Wiebo:

江南丑：
Upon seeing this, I have to cover my crotch.

山地情怀竹青：
Isn’t this to try to get them to show off their underwear? What’s good about this? Is this some kind of set deal you get at the airport with a bowl of beef noodles and a rice box? Take after the economical airlines (that offer competitive prices) and you will be king of the world…

南言-沚隐：
My gosh, these photographs are enticing. If only their blouses were opened just one button more, then that would be perfect…

囚笼里的小狼：
This is too artificial; bending at the waist should be enough. Are service personnel people as well? Don’t they need to be respected too?

咸鱼二两：
I’m not able to hold back upon seeing these photos. If they were to kneel for me right now, I’d…

非冰：
Are you sure these short skirts aren’t from a porn video?

TTC1994:
Long, white legs [lovestruck.emo]

做个僵尸好难：
Take a look at the fatties and matrons stewardesses of US airlines. Now, take a look again at our own airlines and the torture we put these young women through

路一直都在best：
I’ve taken the airlines over dozens of times, and have only encountered two pretty girls. [crytears.emo]

小妖妈妈咪呀：
Stewardesses work really hard; must they also must be tormented in this way as well?

We’ve heard from the male customers; but, we wonder what female customers think of “kneeling service”. Or, for that matter, what the flight attendants think.

Photos: Yang-Tse Evening Report, Caijing

The post Kneeling is the Hottest Trend in Chinese Customer Service appeared first on The Nanfang.