The three weeks are up! It's been a fantastic time. Here are a few more observations I've made from walking around Shanghai ...
1. Lights! Bright & light colors! The advertisements and lighting here is very often light or neon, and tends to be very bright. It's almost ... too happy (and reminds me of George Carlin's commentary on being "more than happy").
2. Shanghai is a lot like New York city in that it has buildings/places that range in age, function and form, crammed together. Just walking a few minutes from the hotel in any direction, you can find: a gymnastics center on top of a massive grocery store; a construction site next to old high-rise buildings; skyscrapers, subway transportation and touristy areas; local and American food, along with street food vendors using rusty portable BBQs; signs in both English and Mandarin symbols ... just to name a few. It's an incredibly complex place, and at the same time, enormous. It's a mix of buildings, cultures and styles in every direction, as far as you can see, seemingly no matter where you are.
3. Shanghai is an industrial city, and according to our Chinese colleagues, is much dirtier than other cities in China. I've heard/read it may be one of the dirtiest urban centers in the world. I have no idea if that's true, but it's worth mentioning because in our collective experiences, it's very dirty/unpolished here (I haven't had a single person disagree with that assessment, and some would take the statement much further I think). With few exceptions, even the nicest places - clubs, restaurants, tourist attractions - that we've been to had some aspect that was oddly unkempt or unclean. Many of the older places would definitely be uninhabitable in the U.S., and some structures are just falling apart. The air is thick - a combination of humidity and smog that caused some people to have respiratory problems, especially when working out - and the sun rarely shines through the clouds, even though it hasn't rained much.
4. This brings up another point ... there is a HUGE economic and social divide in this city, and you can see it. Whether it's simply walking the street, enjoying the clubs, restaurants, clothing shops, or visiting neighborhoods ... it's very obvious that you either live well (or extremely well), or you live poorly (or barely survive). I don't like to generalize, but in all our collective experiences and based on discussions with our Chinese colleagues, this appears to be very accurate. It's really sad.
Walking to the mall, I walk through a busy shopping center; pass a homeless person sleeping and a few old street vendors; proceed past a modern-looking hospital and your usual shops (ie. China Mobile); followed by an abandoned building and some poor housing, which is across the street from some modern skyscrapers; stroll by a large, abandoned, walled-off park ... to a station for a bullet train that runs faster than any we have in the entire U.S.; and finally, walk into the mall.
5. "Better City, Better Life" is the slogan for the forced shutdown and reconstruction in areas of Shanghai to prepare it for the 2010 World Expo. I can't help but recall Nineteen Eighty-Four when I read that slogan.
6. I walked into the Cloud Nine Mall, which is a 10-minute walk from the hotel, on the second day of the trip. I have never seen anything like it: 12 stories of escalators (10 high, 2 basement), in a fish-bowl structure designed almost like the Guggenheim. I couldn't even get all the floors in a picture because the angle was so vertically acute.
Speaking of the mall, there were a ton of designer clothes shops, but what really caught my eyes were the models. They were hot ... no, just kidding. What caught my attention was that you rarely saw anyone of Asian descent. It was all whites (no blacks unfortunately), and the styles of the outfits themselves were also very American.
7. At a local park, street vendors were selling birds in tiny cages.
8. Vendors in the markets are very persistent. They'll chase after you, pull at you and even yell at you (in Chinese or English). They're not the only persistent ones too ... in areas where people clearly have money - tourist attractions, restaurants and bars/clubs - you tend to find flocks of beggars. I've had beggars - whose guess-timated ages range from 5 to 70 - pull my clothes, pinch me, force things in my face, hit me, push me ... anything to violate my personal space and get my attention. For the most part, if you show any sign of paying attention, you'd better start running, because that person is going to follow you for blocks.
9. Bikes. Lot's and lot's of bikes on the roads.
10. Here are my favorite places during my stay:
- 2 different all you can eat, all you can drink Japanese food restaurants ... for $20 per person. One of these places forced you to cook your own food on a mini stove, which was very fun.
- A traditional hot stove restaurant. A piping hot urn is placed in the middle of the table, and surrounded with water that immediately boils from the heat. You're then served spices, sauces and raw meats and vegetables, family style. You drop your food into the heated water, in a ladle. While it cooks, you make your own sauce and spices to dip your cooking food in, and when you're ready, it's time to eat!
- Bar Rouge, a bar that has an outdoor view to the river and all of downtown Shanghai.
- Babyface, a hilarious/crazy bar.
- Windows, a Sports bar in a basement ... with no windows.
- The Piano Bar/KTV we found across from another favorite M2.
- KTV franchises in general
- Yu Gardens & the World Financial Tower
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Just Crossing the Street is an EVENT
Seriously, I wish I had filmed some of our attempts to cross the streets here.
Imagine crossing the street in New York City without a red light. That's very often what it's like, because nobody yields to pedestrians, and everybody wants to drive as aggressively as possible. Since the police in China are somewhat less than helpful with regard to traffic enforcement, you have to be defensively aggressive in crossing the streets yourself.
In fact, crossing the street in Shanghai is a lot like driving: you have to protect yourself, you have to be as alert/aware as you can be, and you can't take any other driver's behaviors for granted. For example, just because the light is red, doesn't mean someone won't attempt to pull up and block the intersection while you're crossing, just to get ahead for the next left turn.
Here's my favorite quote about crossing the street:
Imagine crossing the street in New York City without a red light. That's very often what it's like, because nobody yields to pedestrians, and everybody wants to drive as aggressively as possible. Since the police in China are somewhat less than helpful with regard to traffic enforcement, you have to be defensively aggressive in crossing the streets yourself.
In fact, crossing the street in Shanghai is a lot like driving: you have to protect yourself, you have to be as alert/aware as you can be, and you can't take any other driver's behaviors for granted. For example, just because the light is red, doesn't mean someone won't attempt to pull up and block the intersection while you're crossing, just to get ahead for the next left turn.
Here's my favorite quote about crossing the street:
Even on a one-way street, you have to look both ways!
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Censorship
Movies and the internet are two of the most noticeably censored things here.
Movies are chopped up a bit, and at seemingly random places: there's no consistency about which vulgarities, language, etc ... are inappropriate. For example, in the movie Get Smart, the only scene that's cut is the end when Steve Carell exposes himself.
Social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Blogger - yes, the very site you're reading - are BLOCKED. The only way to access them are through VPNs and other proxies/tunnels that most people in the US can't or don't know how to access, so I imagine the situation is similar in China.
I have to go through the GE VPN just to post this story ... very annoying for us, but imagine living your whole life this way!
Movies are chopped up a bit, and at seemingly random places: there's no consistency about which vulgarities, language, etc ... are inappropriate. For example, in the movie Get Smart, the only scene that's cut is the end when Steve Carell exposes himself.
Social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Blogger - yes, the very site you're reading - are BLOCKED. The only way to access them are through VPNs and other proxies/tunnels that most people in the US can't or don't know how to access, so I imagine the situation is similar in China.
I have to go through the GE VPN just to post this story ... very annoying for us, but imagine living your whole life this way!
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Pizza, Ni Hao
Ni Hao means "Hello!" Roughly translated, it means "you good." Today, we tried to order pizza at Papa John's ... and let's just say some things got lost in translation. Although I must admit, the stuffed crust cheesse pizza was delicious, no, that's not what I came to China to eat. Still, Shanghai has a bunch of those, and when you're sick of hotel food, they suddenly seem quite appealing.
It's a little surprising how many American-style restaurants are here, and it's interesting to see how they've changed them for the culture. For example, Papa John's, Domino's, etc... are nice sit-down restaurants. They have large menus, great service, etc ... and they have some normal mixed with some weird toppings choices.
Yes, the service here is great, even though there's no tipping. Can you imagine how hard your waiter or waitress would work if you didn't tip in the US? Well here, there's no tipping allowed at meals, in cabs, etc ... it's not even part of the thought process.
It's a little surprising how many American-style restaurants are here, and it's interesting to see how they've changed them for the culture. For example, Papa John's, Domino's, etc... are nice sit-down restaurants. They have large menus, great service, etc ... and they have some normal mixed with some weird toppings choices.
Yes, the service here is great, even though there's no tipping. Can you imagine how hard your waiter or waitress would work if you didn't tip in the US? Well here, there's no tipping allowed at meals, in cabs, etc ... it's not even part of the thought process.
KTV, or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Karaoke
In China, Karaoke is a common activity: they have entire chains of stores devoted to it. So with the help of our local Chinese business colleagues, about 50 of us went out to do Karaoke at a business solely devoted to it. This is commonly called a KTV.
We arrived at a mall and took the elevator to one of these KTV establishments. Walking in, there was a grocery store right in front that was mostly comprised of beer, liquor and food. Essentially, you buy whatever you want, then go to your room and sing. We got the biggest room they had ... and it sure was fun.
First, the room was enormous. We all fit (barely), which means we weren't a huge crowd by any stretch. Second, the room was luxurious and it had 2 levels. The front was the lower level, and it had a bunch of TVs and mics to do the Karaoke, a chair and a set of large couches. The back had a number of tables/chairs and couches to sit on, a few more mics and a piano. Third, we had basically every mainstream song you'd want to request, be it from the US or China. Finally, the room was dark but had all kinds of lights for any mood ...
All in all, it was a great time, and certainly a new cultural experience.
We arrived at a mall and took the elevator to one of these KTV establishments. Walking in, there was a grocery store right in front that was mostly comprised of beer, liquor and food. Essentially, you buy whatever you want, then go to your room and sing. We got the biggest room they had ... and it sure was fun.
First, the room was enormous. We all fit (barely), which means we weren't a huge crowd by any stretch. Second, the room was luxurious and it had 2 levels. The front was the lower level, and it had a bunch of TVs and mics to do the Karaoke, a chair and a set of large couches. The back had a number of tables/chairs and couches to sit on, a few more mics and a piano. Third, we had basically every mainstream song you'd want to request, be it from the US or China. Finally, the room was dark but had all kinds of lights for any mood ...
All in all, it was a great time, and certainly a new cultural experience.
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Driving in Shanghai
According to our guide yesterday, there are three things you need to drive in Shanghai:
Driving in Shanghai is an interesting experience. People seemingly do whatever they want - sometimes they even ignore lights - and are extremely aggressive. The cab drivers in particular can also be very ... interesting.
Today, ours appeared to be zoning out at the wheel, almost completely stopped at every exit, swerved between lanes, slowed down in open roads and sped up in traffic, and appeared to be falling asleep at the wheel. All in all, it was a memorable drive.
We got out of the cab as soon as we got off the highway.
Good reactions, good brakes and good luck.
Driving in Shanghai is an interesting experience. People seemingly do whatever they want - sometimes they even ignore lights - and are extremely aggressive. The cab drivers in particular can also be very ... interesting.
Today, ours appeared to be zoning out at the wheel, almost completely stopped at every exit, swerved between lanes, slowed down in open roads and sped up in traffic, and appeared to be falling asleep at the wheel. All in all, it was a memorable drive.
We got out of the cab as soon as we got off the highway.
Tour of Shanghai
I had a tour around Shanghai yesterday.
Before I wade into the significant cultural sites, take a look at this picture. No words of mine can accurately depict the size of this city. There are buildings, even skyskrapers, as far as you can see into the hazy distance. Every direction is like this. It's remarkable ... I've never seen anything like it.
First, we visited the Jade Buddha Temple, which has some fascinating iconography, from Buddha statues to inscriptions.
View Larger Map
For me, one of the defining aspects of the experience is not the temple's treasures, but the scenery that contrasts it. The city that expands into the horizon in every direction was made that way by development on a monumental scale over the last 20 years. Looking around at the beauties, mysticism and serenity of the temple, I can't help but notice the background from which it contrasts, and to me, the scene and experience was a reflection of the modern age of China.
Our tour guide, who was awesome, by the way.
As another aside, here's a McDonald's. We've found lots of "western" "restaurants" here, including KFC, Papa John's, Pizza Hut and Dairy Queen.
The next stop was the Yu Garden.
View Larger Map
The walk leading up to the Garden was a significant tourist attraction, but it did have some very interesting cultural highlights. The architecture of the buildings was very interesting. So was interacting with the street vendors/beggers, many of them selling all kinds of random toys, and many of them grabbing and following you in an effort to attract your interest. As an aside, there are many poor beggers in these areas, and I could definitely devote a post - and may still - to the economic and lifestyle disparities I've seen throughout the city of Shanghai. Here are some pictures of the walk to the Gardens:
The Yu Gardens were beautiful, and quite serene. Apparently, there are four keys to making a good Chinese garden: natural rocks, water, plants and architecture. That last element refers to the inclusion of man-made housing/structures into gardens, which I think is really cool.
We also spent some time there drinking different types of Chinese teas. We got a view of the city around the garden from the roof of the tea place too.
Finally, we went to the top of the man-made world ... well almost. We visited the World Financial Tower, which has the second highest observation deck in the world, and took a series of elevators and escalators to the very top. There's no bigger structure in the US or China, and looking down on two buildings that are also among the 10 tallest in the world is a pretty surreal experience.
(The image in Google maps shows it under construction, but it was completed about 2 years ago.)
View Larger Map
I was able to walk around a few floors from the top, but as hard as I tried, I could not convince myself to stick around very long at the top level, which had a partially glass floor. I managed to let someone else take those photos for me, and got some photos from the few floors below (along with the ground level).
I had someone take a movie on the top floor for me:
Here's a movie of the elevator ride down from Floor 94, over 1500 feet off the ground (the tower overall is measured at 492 meters, or 1614+ feet).
I'll have another update or two soon!
Wow.
The city is really interesting. There's a rich, diverse history here that seems to permeate all parts of life, and I took some pictures reflecting what I experienced.Before I wade into the significant cultural sites, take a look at this picture. No words of mine can accurately depict the size of this city. There are buildings, even skyskrapers, as far as you can see into the hazy distance. Every direction is like this. It's remarkable ... I've never seen anything like it.
First, we visited the Jade Buddha Temple, which has some fascinating iconography, from Buddha statues to inscriptions.
View Larger Map
For me, one of the defining aspects of the experience is not the temple's treasures, but the scenery that contrasts it. The city that expands into the horizon in every direction was made that way by development on a monumental scale over the last 20 years. Looking around at the beauties, mysticism and serenity of the temple, I can't help but notice the background from which it contrasts, and to me, the scene and experience was a reflection of the modern age of China.
Our tour guide, who was awesome, by the way.
As another aside, here's a McDonald's. We've found lots of "western" "restaurants" here, including KFC, Papa John's, Pizza Hut and Dairy Queen.
The next stop was the Yu Garden.
View Larger Map
The walk leading up to the Garden was a significant tourist attraction, but it did have some very interesting cultural highlights. The architecture of the buildings was very interesting. So was interacting with the street vendors/beggers, many of them selling all kinds of random toys, and many of them grabbing and following you in an effort to attract your interest. As an aside, there are many poor beggers in these areas, and I could definitely devote a post - and may still - to the economic and lifestyle disparities I've seen throughout the city of Shanghai. Here are some pictures of the walk to the Gardens:
The Yu Gardens were beautiful, and quite serene. Apparently, there are four keys to making a good Chinese garden: natural rocks, water, plants and architecture. That last element refers to the inclusion of man-made housing/structures into gardens, which I think is really cool.
We also spent some time there drinking different types of Chinese teas. We got a view of the city around the garden from the roof of the tea place too.
Finally, we went to the top of the man-made world ... well almost. We visited the World Financial Tower, which has the second highest observation deck in the world, and took a series of elevators and escalators to the very top. There's no bigger structure in the US or China, and looking down on two buildings that are also among the 10 tallest in the world is a pretty surreal experience.
(The image in Google maps shows it under construction, but it was completed about 2 years ago.)
View Larger Map
I was able to walk around a few floors from the top, but as hard as I tried, I could not convince myself to stick around very long at the top level, which had a partially glass floor. I managed to let someone else take those photos for me, and got some photos from the few floors below (along with the ground level).
I had someone take a movie on the top floor for me:
Here's a movie of the elevator ride down from Floor 94, over 1500 feet off the ground (the tower overall is measured at 492 meters, or 1614+ feet).
I'll have another update or two soon!
Monday, August 17, 2009
A Tour de Food
Yesterday, we (all 89 of us!) went to a traditional Chinese restaurant. We were all exhausted from the night before, but we woke up pretty quickly when we got off the bus to go into the restaurant. Looming above us was the Pearl Tower, the third-tallest building in the world. It's a really interesting structure because of the tripod base and the "Space Needle" at the top, but especially because of the lights at night.
(The whole area is amazing to see at night).
The restaurant seated us in a room with massive windows overlooking the water, which provided a great view of the skyline and river. But that was not the main attraction of this trip ...
The food was very interesting, to say the least. Yes, I tried everything (except the duck tongue), and most of it tasted good. Here's the rundown:
Duck Tongue
(The whole area is amazing to see at night).
The restaurant seated us in a room with massive windows overlooking the water, which provided a great view of the skyline and river. But that was not the main attraction of this trip ...
The food was very interesting, to say the least. Yes, I tried everything (except the duck tongue), and most of it tasted good. Here's the rundown:
Duck (whole)
Deep-Fried Breaded Octopus
Jellyfish
Mushrooms
Baked Octopus
Duck Tongue
Tripe
Whole Chicken
And when a whole chicken comes out, you know that means someone has to mess with the head ...
Traffic & Weather Together, on The 8s...
This is a marketing campaign used by WCBS 880 NY radio. I'm using it because it creates a nice outline for this post:
There's a lot of it here. And as I mentioned before, the roads are anarchical. I compare most places to NYC, and continuing that with Shanghai, this is a more aggressive NYC without pedestrian right-of-way. Cars cut one another off (forget about signaling) and barrel though walk lights without regard for pedestrians. The pedestrians are equally aggressive, but are clearly aware that no vehicle - bus, truck, car or bike - will stop for them.
There are a lot of bikes here, and some small bike lanes. The trains run above the roads and are as modern, if not moreso, than U.S. trains (which is no surprise). I don't have any pictures for this post, so I'll save a discussion of the roadways and buildings for a day when I have pictures. I went to a mall and a park the other day, so I'll try to get those pictures from someone else since I didn't have my camera. If you're into shopping, that post will be for you.
So far, We've had one sunny, one cloudy and one rainy day. It has been in the 70s or 80s morning through night, and it is very humid. Not Amazon humid I'm sure, but it's bad enough that even the hotel sheets and air are a little damp, and outside - even in the cooler areas - it can be very difficult to bare. The notion of walking around without sweating is pretty laughable to us all at this point.
The number 8 is similar to a Chinese word for "goodbye," but more importantly, apparently the number is good luck. In fact, phone numbers cost more to buy when they have more 8s in them! The opposite is true of the number 4, since that number is associated with death.
8!
Traffic
There's a lot of it here. And as I mentioned before, the roads are anarchical. I compare most places to NYC, and continuing that with Shanghai, this is a more aggressive NYC without pedestrian right-of-way. Cars cut one another off (forget about signaling) and barrel though walk lights without regard for pedestrians. The pedestrians are equally aggressive, but are clearly aware that no vehicle - bus, truck, car or bike - will stop for them.
There are a lot of bikes here, and some small bike lanes. The trains run above the roads and are as modern, if not moreso, than U.S. trains (which is no surprise). I don't have any pictures for this post, so I'll save a discussion of the roadways and buildings for a day when I have pictures. I went to a mall and a park the other day, so I'll try to get those pictures from someone else since I didn't have my camera. If you're into shopping, that post will be for you.
Weather
So far, We've had one sunny, one cloudy and one rainy day. It has been in the 70s or 80s morning through night, and it is very humid. Not Amazon humid I'm sure, but it's bad enough that even the hotel sheets and air are a little damp, and outside - even in the cooler areas - it can be very difficult to bare. The notion of walking around without sweating is pretty laughable to us all at this point.
8s ... and 4s
The number 8 is similar to a Chinese word for "goodbye," but more importantly, apparently the number is good luck. In fact, phone numbers cost more to buy when they have more 8s in them! The opposite is true of the number 4, since that number is associated with death.
8!
Visiting the Market
The first place I explored was the store next to the hotel, Tesco. Tesco (UK origin) is popular around the world, and is essentially a Wal-Mart. Of course, this is Shanghai, not the US, so there are some differences ...
The location of the store is under a gymnastics center. This is very telling for two reasons: Shanghai is a complete conglomeration of buildings/structures and functions, very much like NYC; and yes, gymnastics is popular in China.
Inside, the store was pretty chaotic. Much like any other store, you grab a cart and walk down the organized aisles. Good luck finding these easily noticeable items in Wal-Mart though:
And that's just the food. This store also has a Sports-Authority-like section, a section of scooters, a Toys-'R-Us-like section and an electronics section, among others. One interesting note about the electronics section is that it's really easy to buy cell phones here. You can just walk up to the counter, buy a phone, and immediately connect to the China Mobile network, which is a state-run monopoly of the cell phone service. Verizon service works here too, by the way.
That leads me to two of my favorite things about being in China.
First, the knock-offs. Fake iPod. Fake Wii. If it's popular, there's a fake-out-China version.
Second, the exchange rate and pricing. The exchange rate here is roughly 7-to-1, and on top of that, among the small sample of items I've seen, prices are roughly 20-40 percent cheaper than in the U.S. ... even after adjusting for the exchange rate.
Sweet.
The location of the store is under a gymnastics center. This is very telling for two reasons: Shanghai is a complete conglomeration of buildings/structures and functions, very much like NYC; and yes, gymnastics is popular in China.
Inside, the store was pretty chaotic. Much like any other store, you grab a cart and walk down the organized aisles. Good luck finding these easily noticeable items in Wal-Mart though:
- Lays Potato Chips: Italian Red Meat flavor
- Pigs feet
- Whole chickens
- Cow's stomach
- A meat/poulry section that's not behind glass, and open to all consumers to pick through
And that's just the food. This store also has a Sports-Authority-like section, a section of scooters, a Toys-'R-Us-like section and an electronics section, among others. One interesting note about the electronics section is that it's really easy to buy cell phones here. You can just walk up to the counter, buy a phone, and immediately connect to the China Mobile network, which is a state-run monopoly of the cell phone service. Verizon service works here too, by the way.
That leads me to two of my favorite things about being in China.
First, the knock-offs. Fake iPod. Fake Wii. If it's popular, there's a fake-out-China version.
Second, the exchange rate and pricing. The exchange rate here is roughly 7-to-1, and on top of that, among the small sample of items I've seen, prices are roughly 20-40 percent cheaper than in the U.S. ... even after adjusting for the exchange rate.
Sweet.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
23 Hours Later ...
After 23 hours of travel, I finally arrived at the hotel last night. I'll make my next post about my first day of exploration. I'll stick to the trip itself for this one ...
I am now 12 hours ahead. So, if you're reading this at 1:30pm ET, it's 1:30am, the next day, in Shanghai.
The flying parts of the trip were easier than I anticipated. If movies and books occupy you, than you can survive without much trouble. Just make sure you can sleep on the plane, because I couldn't, and consequently, after 24 hours without sleep and only a few hours of sleep the night before, I was pretty exhausted when I got to my room. I watched the new Star Trek and Wolverine movies, read, and watched the live footage of a really cool camera that showed a bird's eye view - on demand - from the plane looking down, as well as a front-facing view when the plane was taking off and landing.
I flew Japan Airlines for both trips, and revceived good service and good food. There wasn't much assistance for non-Japanese speakers, but that wasn't a big deal. What was a big deal - at least at the time - was that there were a few health scares with other passengers on both plane rides (I won't elaborate here). I'm happy to report, however, that my whole class arrived healthy and without quarantine issues.
After we gathered all our luggage (no issues there either, thankfully), we took a shuttle to the hotel in downtown Shanghai. Shanghai driving may require a post of its own, but the one word I would use to describe it is "lawless."
Here's a shot I took while we were driving through the middle of the city to the hotel. In my next post, I'll describe the city as I've seen it so far, but the sheer size is a sight to behold.
There are skyscrapers packed with houses as far as you can see in every direction, with shiny new buildings and run-down old ones crammed together. The highway system snakes throughout the city, anywhere from 30 to hundreds of feet off the ground, and it dominates the scene unlike any other I have ever seen in the US or Europe. (Again, I'll elaborate more on this in another post.)
I'm on the 20th floor of the hotel, and from here, you also get a sense of the disparity between the "old" city and the "new" one. Shanghai (wikipedia) has been under a historic amount of development for over a decade now, and it's easy to notice just by looking up from the street or out a window, since you won't have trouble finding a crane or construction site.
That's all for now. Today we went exploring for awhile, so I'll have a much more detailed post of the city as I've seen it, tomorrow, after the first day of training.
- New York, USA (JFK) - Tokyo, Japan (Narita)
- 1 Hour Driving
- 2.5 Hours Waiting
- 14 Hours Flying
- Tokyo, Japan (Narita) - Shanghai, China (Pudong)
- 1.5 Hours Waiting
- 3 Hours Flying
- Shanghai, China (Pudong) - Shanghai (Royalton Hotel)
- 1 Hour Driving
I am now 12 hours ahead. So, if you're reading this at 1:30pm ET, it's 1:30am, the next day, in Shanghai.
The flying parts of the trip were easier than I anticipated. If movies and books occupy you, than you can survive without much trouble. Just make sure you can sleep on the plane, because I couldn't, and consequently, after 24 hours without sleep and only a few hours of sleep the night before, I was pretty exhausted when I got to my room. I watched the new Star Trek and Wolverine movies, read, and watched the live footage of a really cool camera that showed a bird's eye view - on demand - from the plane looking down, as well as a front-facing view when the plane was taking off and landing.
I flew Japan Airlines for both trips, and revceived good service and good food. There wasn't much assistance for non-Japanese speakers, but that wasn't a big deal. What was a big deal - at least at the time - was that there were a few health scares with other passengers on both plane rides (I won't elaborate here). I'm happy to report, however, that my whole class arrived healthy and without quarantine issues.
After we gathered all our luggage (no issues there either, thankfully), we took a shuttle to the hotel in downtown Shanghai. Shanghai driving may require a post of its own, but the one word I would use to describe it is "lawless."
Here's a shot I took while we were driving through the middle of the city to the hotel. In my next post, I'll describe the city as I've seen it so far, but the sheer size is a sight to behold.
There are skyscrapers packed with houses as far as you can see in every direction, with shiny new buildings and run-down old ones crammed together. The highway system snakes throughout the city, anywhere from 30 to hundreds of feet off the ground, and it dominates the scene unlike any other I have ever seen in the US or Europe. (Again, I'll elaborate more on this in another post.)
I'm on the 20th floor of the hotel, and from here, you also get a sense of the disparity between the "old" city and the "new" one. Shanghai (wikipedia) has been under a historic amount of development for over a decade now, and it's easy to notice just by looking up from the street or out a window, since you won't have trouble finding a crane or construction site.
That's all for now. Today we went exploring for awhile, so I'll have a much more detailed post of the city as I've seen it, tomorrow, after the first day of training.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Welcome!
Hi everyone! Tomorrow, I'm leaving for Shanghai, China, and I'll be there for 3 weeks! I'm traveling "on business" with GE as part of my leadership training program.
I've had a lot of people ask me for updates and pictures, so I'll use this blog to share my trip with you. I'm updating it completely by request, so if you want pictures or descriptions of anything, just let me know!
I've had a lot of people ask me for updates and pictures, so I'll use this blog to share my trip with you. I'm updating it completely by request, so if you want pictures or descriptions of anything, just let me know!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)