SamuZai
SerpentZA

SerpentZA

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SerpentZA posts

An honest review of Beijing coming up!

Beijing, the last time I was there was in 2008 and things have changed somewhat since then. Last time Beijing made a mixed impression, I liked and disliked it all at the same time, finally I can share my experience and videos about what Beijing is really like, the video should be up early next week!

Stay Awesome!


- SerpentZA

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Setting the record straight.

So recently my 2011 video "Are Chinese Girls Easy?" went viral on Chinese social media, this was a good and bad thing, I got lots of great comments and support from I would say the majority of people who watched and commented on it (it has gone viral here before, but years and years ago), this time however although there were good neutral and downright nice ar...

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Scams can really ruin your holiday (or life)

Just a quick one, my Beijing scams video is now up, there's a reason why I make these videos and it's not to be overly negative or try and paint Beijing (or China for that matter) in a bad light... China is a very interesting place, full of adventure, amazing food and of course opportunity to make good friends and have an overly positive experience... that is unless the rot...

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Beijing: Awesome and Awful

I've just got back to Shenzhen after a week long stint in Beijing and it certainly had its ups and downs. I was up there to record some voice-overs for my upcoming documentary and C-milk came up a few days into the trip to join me. I got some really good footage for several upcoming videos, the first will be a Beijing Scams video since every popular scam was trie...

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A bit of a laugh, but it's absurd..

If I record a video in public, I'll always draw attention from curious onlookers, it's usually harmless curiosity (although sometimes it's a little uneasy if a crowd starts  to form and the police or security guards get  involved). Last night I was filming a China, How it is about privacy and this old guy literally stuck his head an inch from my face...

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Going to Beijing

Shenzhen, pictured above is the city I love best in China, yes I may be biased since it's the first city I came to and the reason I fell in love with China all those years ago, but honestly every time I travel in China I am always seriously disappointed by just how much more developing and also how worse other cities are, Shanghai is stuck up and mo...

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Autographs Seriously?

It just hit me as I was going through some old photos on my phone that there is an absurd truth out there that there were in fact quite a few people who wanted my autograph during our big adventure last year, not just the students we met in Kunming (pictured above) but a Chinese biker gang asked me to sign their helmets and write a message on their clubhouse wall, I obliged of course but was taken...

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A Patreon supporter comes to visit!

After asking my patreons for suggestions on videos, I got a message from Stefan (one of my patreons) who said that although he didn't have any ideas, he wondered if it would be possible to come out and ride with me and C-milk when he came to visit China (his first time out of Australia), I owe a lot to each and every one of you that support me here (be it ...

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A big shout out to you all!

This is a message to all of you who help support me here on Patreon!

I know that my Japan series isn't the most popular on my channel (the views attest  to that), but I'm really enjoying getting them out there, it was such an awesome adventure and one that I've wanted to have  for most of my adult life. I want you all to know that I feel confident  maki...

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So it's out

I finally released the video I've been wanting to do for ages, it  was  really difficult as I had to be pretty careful about what I said, anyone who's ever lived this side of the world will understand just how tense relationships are between China and Japan, I'm pretty happy with the outcome though and I've had  very few bad comments and in ...

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Back from Japan!

Was it all I hoped and expected it to be? Yes, in fact Japan did not disappoint in any way or form. If you've been following my videos, you'll know that I was uploading whilst in Japan, I managed to get  3 short episodes out, I desperately tried to get more out, but all the exploring, meeting old friends, excessive drinking and eating got out of hand and I c...

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Another Adventure Awaits!

Truth be told, Japan was my goal, that's where  I  wanted  to end up working  and living but I ended up in China on the  way there and never left, in fact I found in China something that I was hoping to find in Japan, but actually even more! I was hoping to have an exotic adventure in Japan and discover new and interesting things w...

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The problem with Chinese TV

There is a problem with being a foreigner on Chinese TV, a problem that I have so far managed to avoid (and hope to continue to avoid). Firstly it's an honour to think that anyone would be interested enough to want me to appear on TV so please don't take this post as me being big headed or self important, quite the opposite, I'm extremely humbled and lucky to ha...

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Exciting new series!

Firstly, you may have noticed that my Patreon pledge amount is off the charts! An incredibly generous subscriber made a massive once off pledge as a wedding/honeymoon gift for Sasha and I (we're  getting married very soon! I'll update you all on the channel closer to the time), you know who you are, and you have my sincere gratitude, but of cou...

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Sneak Peek - Taiwan vs. Mainland

This is probably one of the most challenging videos I've done yet and there's a reason I've put doing it off for so long. It's almost impossible to mention Taiwan without a political flame war erupting over here in Mainland China, and the same goes for mentioning Mainland China in Taiwan.... I'm just not sure how I'll be able to keep the comments section of this video from eru...

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Communication

I really enjoy taking street photos as a bit of a hobby on the side, but here in China it can be very frustrating, today while I was out filming some B-roll for my next intro (you know how I have random street scenes etc at the beginning of my videos), I noticed that the sky looked quite pretty, so I took out my DSLR and pointed it at the sky and took a...

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Respect

I wanted to very briefly talk about my subscriber meetup that happened this past Tuesday.

I've just uploaded a video talking about wearing a suit and that it's not wanting people to respect me, but to show respect to the people I know. 


I have gained an even greater respect for my subscribers after Tuesday's meet. Each and everyone ...

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Subscriber meet next Tuesday (23rd)

Hey there guys, I know that the majority of my subscribers don't live in China, but on the off chance that you're in Shenzhen on Tuesday the 23rd, please come and meet me at TAPS brewpub in Nanshan, C-milk will be joining us too, so if you  happen to be around, pop in and say hi! Also 10% off if you say "Stay Awesome" when paying for your beer :)
<...

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Year of the Monkey is here!



The Chinese new year madness has come and gone, the firecrackers still occasionally crackle off in the distance in the middle of the night, but it's time for everyone to get back to work and wake up from their dreamy dumpling-filled holidays and face the horrible reality that it's time to get back down to brass-tacks (that is if they're not stil...

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Never, ever travel during Chinese New Year!

Although shaky, I'm still able to access the internet sporadically (I suspect that the VPN issues will be sorted once the holiday is over, either that or they'll get  worse, I'll keep you all up to date).  I'm glad I made my little travel frustrations video before the big rush began, the chaos that is happening right now with millio...

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The struggles of vlogging in China



Just an FYI, there is a massive crackdown on all VPNs at the moment and it is

extremely difficult for anyone in China to access Facebook or YouTube/Gmail/Twitter/Patreon etc etc (80% of the internet to be fair), I am in the process of trying to get my next video uploaded but it's very difficult at th...

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Best video yet?

An Indian subscriber came to meet me in Shenzhen about two weeks ago, he was a fantastic fellow and brought me a German beer and some chocolates from Germany (before you wonder why, he has been studying in Germany for quite some time). He  knew that I had visited India and asked me if I could do a comparison video for him, he was very intereste...

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Fun and interesting

After seeing a 90s advert for this machine (on C-milk's video) it reminded me that I'd always wanted to check out one of these interesting covert Chinese computer/TV game devices, so after a lot of searching, I got my hands on a very good condition (still in the box) unit from a collector! (still with the original documentation etc). It was a lot of fun...

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A sneak peek for my Patreon Supporters!

First, before reading, here's the link to the unlisted sneak peek video! It's just the intro, but I want to give you guys a little tasteof what's to come: https://youtu.be/HhKwH0T3cUQ

This week I only managed to release one video (the money one) which is a bit of a disappointment, I really wanted t...

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The currency conundrum!

Hey there guys, I know that this video isn't the most exciting, but I honestly wish that I had known all of this information before coming to China, it really would have saved me a lot of trouble and actually a  lot of  money too (especially when I realised that all of the South African cash I had with me was worthless and I had  no choice but to go to  Hong Kong to change it.....

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You've all made it happen!

You, my supporters have now officially allowed me take a massive risk, and that is to focus almost entirely on my videos during the week! You're all incredibly generous and solid people! If you aren't already where you want to be in life, I know that you can be! We all have the potential to improve our situations in life  (granted  it's much...

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Opportunity is a risk!

Finally, the official trailer is out! 

The epic adventure that arguably cost me most of my work and almost my relationship (well not that bad.. but almost) is looking to be fantastic! This is one of those opportunities in life that only came around due to years of sticking to doing something even when I had no drive, energy or want. This is something that you, my sub...

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I'm safe! Happy holidays to you all!

Thank you to everyone who sent me messages asking me about the landslide! It happened very far away from where I live (Shenzhen is huge and that industrial area is about 1 and 1/2 hours drive away from the area I live  in),  it's such a terrible  and avoidable tragedy  (I'll get into it in my next what's happening in China video). That aside, I would like to wish all of you per...

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Surprise! I made it into the papers!



This is awesome! A while ago I was contacted by a reporter from the Shenzhen Evening news (a Chinese newspaper) who had seen some of my videos and was interested in the whole YouTube thing that I do. She interviewed me in a coffee shop and asked all sorts of questions (all in Chinese since she couldn't speak a lick of English). That was about a month ago, I hadn't heard a peep out of he...

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Meetup success!

The subscriber meetup was a complete success, over 50 people attended, everyone who turned up was interesting, genuine and positive. The wine flowed freely and was actually good Chilean wine (the subscriber who supplied it was incredibly generous as he just wanted everyone to have a good time and didn't even try to promote his business, simply said he didn't want anyone to be thirsty). The venue w...

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