Flaunting the fancy-free foreigner perks

It's not something to be proud of, but it is commonly acknowledged that there is a certain level of leniency towards foreigners in Beijing. In other words, we can often get away with more just because we look different. This doesn't mean we want to abuse our "privilege" of being foreigners in China, but we do happen to benefit in instances ranging from better service experiences to wanton, illegal acts.

One would not be sympathetic to a friend of mine who got pulled over by the police while driving without a license and got away with a slap on the wrist. "Don't do it again or you'll go to prison for 15 days," warned the police officer. There's little doubt that the officer couldn't handle the frustration of dealing with somebody who spoke (or at least pretended to speak) no Chinese whatsoever. At the same time, many of my friends take for granted marching into a five-star hotel or an upscale restaurant just to use a nice, clean, non-squat toilet. Such a rare luxury in Beijing only exists in one's imagination outside of such establishments, even in the most Western-friendly neighborhoods of the capital.

The idea is to draw the line at where we actually start abusing the gullibility of the local service staff, and this isn't such an easy task.

A couple of weeks ago on a nice sunny Sunday, I decided to look for an indoor swimming pool. One of my friends suggested getting health club membership at a five-star hotel located within walking distance from my apartment, just inside the Fifth Ring Road. I decided it was worth checking out. As soon as my girlfriend, her young daughter and I entered the lobby, we were treated like royalty. I asked if there was a pool and, rather than blowing my cover, I was promptly directed to the third floor.

As soon as we left the elevator and before I could ask any questions, a nice, English-speaking employee led us to separate doors. "Men here, women there," he gestured at the clearly marked dressing rooms.

Just before stepping through the door, the attendant had one last thing to say. "Sir, just sign your name and your room number in the register," he instructed, handing me a clipboard. The angel of my conscious implored me to come clean and tell him I wasn't a guest at the hotel nor member of the club, however the devil's voice was stronger and more tempting. "McLovin, room No.1407," I scribbled onto the register.

The pool had some of the best facilities I'd ever seen. It was a great afternoon, if not for the paranoia of being publicly dragged out of the water by hotel staff and forced to buy health club membership worth thousands of yuan. The public embarrassment, I knew, would come as part of the package. Police involvement would probably be optional, depending on the mood of the shift supervisor.

On the way out I couldn't help but realize how lucky I was to get away with something that I knew was not a good idea from the beginning. I am convinced I wouldn't try something like that again.

Having said that, I will still use the toilet at the Swissotel Hotel whenever I ride Subway Line 2, even if I don't really need to go.