Surfing in Beijing

If you're reading this on the Internet, and you're in China, it might be a matter of luck

By Bruce Kennedy CNN Interactive

BEIJING (CNN) -- I recently went to one of Beijing's cyber-cafes to respond to an e-mail I'd neglected, and see what I could see on the Web.

It was a fun place, well lighted with a good selection of hard and soft beverages to help its clients while away their moments in front of the computer screens.

A second attempt to access cnn.com from Beijing led to this message

The employees were friendly, and they all spoke English well. About half of the patrons were Chinese, the rest non-Chinese.

After catching up on the home front, I decided to test the Internet access. There have been various reports that the Chinese government has been blocking sensitive sites -- especially in advance of the 50th anniversary celebrations this week. People had suggested ways to make an end-run around such obstacles, but I wanted to try the direct approach.

I first checked cnn.com. After a two-and-a-half minute wait, it came on the screen. I could even see my own work glowing back at me from the monitor. A good start.

Did the competition get equal treatment? The sites for abcnews.com and msnbc.com each came up in a matter of moments.

How about U.S. government sites? I had no problem accessing the official U.S. State Department site.

I checked behind me to see two people engrossed in what sounded like some shoot-'em-up game. Then I tried the CIA site. Sure enough, up popped "The Company's" shield and bald eagle insignia -- along with a prompt on employment opportunities.

September 20, 1999 China's new spirituality Returning to a Beijing transformed September 21, 1999 A visit to the Ming Tombs September 22, 1999 Tiananmen Square preps up for the big day September 23, 1999 Is China's health care system heading for a crisis? September 24, 1999 A virtual tour of China's Aviation Museum A contemplation of the so-called Americanization of China September 27, 1999 Surfing in Beijing September 28, 1999 Railway journeys: On the Red-Eye to Shanghai September 29, 1999 Sunday in the Park with Lu Xun September 30, 1999 A visit to the Jade Buddha Temple October 1, 1999 Watching China's celebrations...from the sidelines October 4, 1999 Window-Shopping on Nanjing Donglu October 5, 1999 Royal Real Estate

All right, how about we get sexy, bay-bee? (Sorry; I watched "Austin Powers 2" on the flight over.) I typed in playboy.com, and got my first "no connection" box. Same for penthouse.com. Perhaps something a little less salacious. I went to Jennicam -- and there she was, the Internet's live webcam pioneer and patron saint of voyeurs, tucked in and fast asleep in the pre-dawn.

I then turned to the political.

Yahoo Taiwan, a customized site, popped up without a problem. The Taiwan Government's Y2K site did not. Amnesty International? No. Students for a Free Tibet? No. Keeping Tibet in mind, I shifted gears and tried something Richard Gere-ish.

"Richard Gere Online" timed out after a five-minute delay, but I had no problem getting into "Adonis of the XX Century: Richard Gere."

I was most surprised that I could access dalailama.com, the official site of Tibet's spiritual leader. Soon he was before me, in a montage of photographs showing him as a child, as a young man, and as he looks today.

As I was preparing to leave, I realized I should take a picture -- just to prove I had accessed cnn.com. This time, however, the "no connection" box popped up.

Had my first time been a matter of luck? Was someone finally catching up on my traffic? Feeling rather vulnerable, I paid my fee and headed for dinner.

Bruce Kennedy was a Chinese history major at Bowdoin College in Maine. He worked for Visnews, the international television news agency, for five years before joining CNN in 1988. After a stint at CNN International, he began work at CNN Interactive. Kennedy has extensive experience in East Asian affairs, having studied and worked in the region.