Shanghai A to B

Imagine this: you’ve just popped out of Linping Road station Line 4 — to the tune of neighborhood karaoke. We’re not kidding you: open-air KTV parlors seem to be all the rage just outside Exit 2 at the stop. The crooning is well underway by 19:00 to 20:00, and sometimes won’t stop until way into the wee hours.

China’s known as a nation that loves to go mad in front of the mic ever since karaoke invaded the country around the start of the 1990s. The KTV madness is put on pause only when the heavens open up — and as soon as the heavens clear, the singing resumes almost immediately.

Affected by this, of course, are people — about 30 families are unable to sleep and a fair number of them have complained. We’re not sure if the underground system is ready for in-station KTV, but something has to be done about this mass crooning outside the Metro station. (Source: Page A7, Xinmin Evening News, August 6, 2009)