I can't help but stifle a laugh when I step out of the subway, on to the streets, as I make my way to work on a rainy morning in metropolitan Shanghai.

Mobs of commuters clutching umbrellas push through the busy intersection by Huangpi Nan Lu station.

It is a very ordinary scene. Yet, I am rather amused by the sea of patterned and plain umbrellas dotting the streets.

Umbrellas are well used in China.

On a hot summer day, they offer instant shade. Better yet, for those Chinese afraid of the sun's harmful rays, umbrellas help protect their seemingly ageless skin from darkening.

Most people in China, particularly women, are quite preoccupied with acquiring a "white" skin - the whiter the better. Walk into any store that sells skincare products and among the lotions and face washes, you will find a plethora of skin-whitening products guaranteed to give yellow-toned Asian skin a milky white sheen.

I don't dare touch the products for fear of the unknown chemicals in them. I mean, if the stuff is meant to alter the color of your skin, I figure it can't be good for you. I don't need any scientific proof of this as there are enough reports out there.

When I see ladies who spend their days applying mounds of whitening solutions to their faces, I can't understand what all the fuss is about.

I recognize that whiter skin has traditionally been a symbol of class. Only the wealthy could afford to stay inside and out of the sun while the poor were left to roast in the rice fields.

But China today is very different. It has developed and modernized at a rapid pace. Why do the Chinese continue to adhere to such antiquated standards of beauty?

Having whiter skin doesn't make one more beautiful - and it certainly shouldn't make women more desirable. Yet, such beliefs are commonplace. Countless opinion polls continue to confirm this to be a dominant sentiment in Asia.

It's a shame that Chinese women rub dangerous levels of mercury-based creams into their skin in the pursuit of beauty.

When a girlfriend invites me to spend a day at the beach in Beidaihe, just a two-hour train ride from the Chinese capital, I jump at it. I look forward to lazing around in the sand and working on my tan.

Parasols and big blue umbrellas dot the shoreline, but we just sprawl out under the sun. I generously lathered on sunscreen before throwing on a hat and shades. I want to protect my skin from sunburn. It doesn't take me long to nod off under the warm sun.

A while later I wake up feeling rather rested - but not without a very obvious tan line across my chest. I hadn't noticed my tank top slipping while I was snoozing.

My efforts to bronze perfectly fail, to my slight annoyance. But, I can't complain for a little healthy glow has never hurt anyone. Besides, my funny-looking tan is already starting to fade.

(China Daily 09/03/2008 page20)