CHINA: Pancake vendor in China, said to bear an uncanny resemblance to Chinese President Xi Jinping, says he hopes to meet his country's leader one day

Record ID: 838437

  • Title: CHINA: Pancake vendor in China, said to bear an uncanny resemblance to Chinese President Xi Jinping, says he hopes to meet his country's leader one day
  • Date: 11th July 2014
  • Summary: CHANGSHA CITY, HUNAN PROVINCE, CHINA (JULY 8, 2014) (REUTERS) PEOPLE QUEUING AT PANCAKE STAND PANCAKE VENDOR AND XI JINPING LOOK ALIKE SHAO JIANHUA, PUTTING PANCAKE INTO PAPER BAG SHAO MAKING PANCAKE SHAO BRUSHING WATER ON DOUGH AND LIFTING DOUGH SHAO PUTTING PANCAKE INTO OVEN/ ASSISTANT CUSTOMERS QUEUING UP/ SHAO SERVING PANCAKE TO CUSTOMER SHAO LOOKING ON SHAO TAKING PANCAKE FROM OVEN WITH TONGS SHAO PUTTING PANCAKE IN PAPER BAG (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) PANCAKE VENDOR AND XI JINPING LOOK-ALIKE SHAO JIANHUA, SAYING: "This has always been my pancake stand since 2009. But now that Uncle Xi is President, they're all paying attention to Uncle Xi. Students walked past my booth everyday and one day a student said I look like Xi and took a photo. Word got out. That's how the story started. I've been here for years!" SHAO KNEADING DOUGH SHAO LOOKING ON SHAO FLATTENING DOUGH INTO PANCAKE WITH ROLLING PIN WOMAN TAKING PHOTO (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) PANCAKE VENDOR AND XI JINPING LOOK-ALIKE SHAO JIANHUA, SAYING: ""Everyone wants to meet President Xi. I hope that President Xi can come to my pancake booth and I can take photo with President Xi and he can also taste my pancakes. I hope next time when he is in Changsha, Hunan province, he can drop by at my pancake booth." VARIOUS OF 20-YEAR-OLD TOURIST FROM SOUTHERN GUANGXI PROVINCE, WU JIAZHEN, TASTING PANCAKE WOMEN EATING PANCAKE (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) 20-YEAR-OLD TOURIST FROM SOUTHERN GUANGXI PROVINCE, WU JIAZHEN, SAYING: "I think he really lo ks like him. When he smiles, the expression in his eyes makes him look like a younger Uncle Xi. But I think he doesn't look like Do Min-joon (South Korean TV drama character played by actor Kim Soo-hyun). Didn't the mother of the country (Xi's wife Peng Liyuan) once say Uncle Xi looked like Do Min-joon when he was young? But I don't think he (Shao) looks like Do Min-joon." VARIOUS OF 20-YEAR-OLD UNIVERSITY STUDENT, DENG YAN, TAKING PHOTOS WITH SHAO DENG'S FRIEND TAKING PHOTO (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) 20-YEAR-OLD UNIVERSITY STUDENT, DENG YAN, SAYING: "I think the bottom half of his face, such as his face shape and especially his mouth and his expression when he smiles, really resembles him (Xi). Actually, when someone resembles another person, it doesn't mean their features must look exactly the same, but if their expressions and mannerisms are alike, then they can become doppelgangers." PEOPLE GATHERING AT PANCAKE BOOTH SHAO SMILING DOG WITH SUNGLASSES IN FRONT OF PANCAKE BOOTH SHAO
  • Embargoed: 26th July 2014 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: China
  • City:
  • Country: China
  • Topics: Quirky,Politics,People,Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
  • Reuters ID: LVADM6I5SG7X7I0TPHLOGOCMMACE
  • Aspect Ratio:
  • Story Text: A pancake vendor in China has turned into a local celebrity for his uncanny resemblance to Chinese President Xi Jinping.
    Forty-four-year-old Shao Jianhua has said that he does not think he and Xi look that much alike, while he was cooking his signature pancakes with braised pork and preserved vegetables on Tuesday (July 8).
    But customers who queued not just to buy his 3.5 yuan (US$0.56) pancakes, but also to take photos with him, think otherwise.
    Shao said it all started when a university student posted his photo on the internet.
    "This has always been my pancake stand since 2009. But now that Uncle Xi is President, they're all paying attention to Uncle Xi. Students walked past my booth every day and one day a student said I look like Xi and took a photo. Word got out. That's how the story started. I've been here for years!" Shao said.
    Since then, Shao said his business increased by 10 percent and he is now selling about 1,000 pancakes daily.
    He said he has yet to meet the president and hopes one day Xi would come to his stall.
    "Everyone wants to meet President Xi. I hope that President Xi can come to my pancake booth and I can take photo with President Xi and he can also taste my pancake. I hope next time when he is in Changsha, Hunan province, he can drop by at my pancake booth," Shao said.
    Xi's wife Peng Liyuan once said Xi in his youth shared a resemblance to South Korean actor Kim Soo-hyun, who became a household name in Asia after taking the lead role as alien Do Min-joon in Korean TV drama My Love From the Star.
    One tourist agreed that Shao does look like Xi but not the Korean superstar.
    "I think he really looks like him. When he smiles, the expression in his eyes makes him look like a younger Uncle Xi. But I think he doesn't look like Do Min-joon (South Korean TV drama character played by actor Kim Soo-hyun). Didn't the mother of the country (Xi's wife Peng Liyuan) once say Uncle Xi looked like Do Min-joon when he was young? But I don't think he (Shao) looks like Do Min-joon," said 20-year-old tourist Wu Jiazhen from the neighbouring Guangxi province after buying a pancake.
    Another of Shao's customers, 20-year-old university student Deng Yan, said his expressions and mannerisms most resemble the Chinese president.
    "I think the bottom half of his face, such as his face shape and especially his mouth and his expression when he smiles, really resembles him (Xi). Actually, when someone resembles another person, it doesn't mean their features must look exactly the same, but if their expressions and mannerisms are alike, then they can become doppelgangers," Deng said.
    When asked if he would be interested in becoming a professional Xi doppelganger, Shao said he would not be confident doing it and would rather keep doing what he does best - making pancakes.
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