Perky Stuff About Shanghai/China:
-A lot of girls really DO like to "tilda" everything they type~~ (sometimes twice~~)
-Foreigners teaching English here are REALLY well rewarded. I think everyone should come be a teacher for a bit, earn some money, visit China, and earn some good resume experience. A lot of places provide you furnished room and board, compensate your plane ticket, and provide you bonuses for completing the contract.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Saturday, May 2, 2009
A Note on Supermarkets in Shanghai
What I Dislike About These Supermarkets
-You have to pay for grocery bags.... Or you can always bring your own.
-
-
-
-
What I Love About These Supermarkets
-There are all these pretty cute/hot ladies working there, either for free samples (mostly yogurt) or in the health products section. :D
-They have some of the craziest things for sale! You know those chicken feet for dim sum? They sell it in snack packs!
-They're so big that they have many different levels!
-
-
...Crud, I don't remember anymore.
-You have to pay for grocery bags.... Or you can always bring your own.
-
-
-
-
What I Love About These Supermarkets
-There are all these pretty cute/hot ladies working there, either for free samples (mostly yogurt) or in the health products section. :D
-They have some of the craziest things for sale! You know those chicken feet for dim sum? They sell it in snack packs!
-They're so big that they have many different levels!
-
-
...Crud, I don't remember anymore.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Some Interesting Stuff I've Heard/Picked Up Around Shanghai
You know how they say "a picture's worth a thousand words?" Well, this one sure has its own story to tell. Ok, maybe not, my parents had to tell me the story. If they didn't, I'd have never expected this to be so interesting.
Anything special about this picture? Not really, except the lady's kind of hot ;P.
Anyhow, that's not the point. The statues look ordinary and not particularly special or anything, you'd never expect this to be the victim of theft.
That's right, kiddies, theft. Apparently, the boy or a different, 3rd statue used to hold a cellphone in hand. Up until someone decided they'd like to add a bronze cellphone to their own twisted collection, so they chipped it off the statue. I guess the statue was replaced with a tennis racket instead.
Anything special about this picture? Not really, except the lady's kind of hot ;P.
Anyhow, that's not the point. The statues look ordinary and not particularly special or anything, you'd never expect this to be the victim of theft.
That's right, kiddies, theft. Apparently, the boy or a different, 3rd statue used to hold a cellphone in hand. Up until someone decided they'd like to add a bronze cellphone to their own twisted collection, so they chipped it off the statue. I guess the statue was replaced with a tennis racket instead.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Still Not Enough
It's been a bit over 2 weeks since I moved to Shanghai, and though I must say I've been a little bit more active in learning Chinese and looking for a job, it really still isn't enough. The more I look into a job, the more I see how seemingly futile and pointless it is to find anything in the sea of candidates and positions. It really drives a sense of despair that is making me question whether there is anymore point to searching for a job. My hopes of being fluent in English does not have as much value here as I hoped it would. Searching through jobs has made me wonder if I should just take whatever positions I can find or actually look for something I want to do. Even with potential feedback, interviews must still be conquered through to have any chance of getting a job. I have not even received any hint of reply back from anyone since I started applying (except from that one scam).
But I guess this is the crucial point that separates the winners from the losers, the doers from the quitters. Will I have enough strength to keep going, to persist through this task that seems to bear no fruit? Just got to redouble my efforts and hope something comes out of all this. Got to do everything with more frequency and intensity: study Chinese, study Economics, study Shanghai, study China, study how the real life workplace works, research industries, and all that good stuff.
Ok, better stop goofing off and get back to studying Chinese right now.
But I guess this is the crucial point that separates the winners from the losers, the doers from the quitters. Will I have enough strength to keep going, to persist through this task that seems to bear no fruit? Just got to redouble my efforts and hope something comes out of all this. Got to do everything with more frequency and intensity: study Chinese, study Economics, study Shanghai, study China, study how the real life workplace works, research industries, and all that good stuff.
Ok, better stop goofing off and get back to studying Chinese right now.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Random Thoughts
-I was pretty surprised that a lot of people here have 3-character names. I used to think everyone in China miraculously only had 2-character names, as in 1 character for a surname, and 1 for their name.
-Also, I was surprised that a lot of Chinese people here don't have a really hard to understand accent. I thought everyone spoke with a heavy, "curled-tongue" accent. Was I wrong!
-I didn't find the po-jay-chou chips in the supermarket near my house, but I DID find Jay Chou drinks! Hahaha, it never stops. Also, the store was having a Jay Chou marathon since it only played Jay Chou songs.
-Chinese people are such craaaazy drivers that even shopping carts are 4-wheel drive! ;]
-Also, I was surprised that a lot of Chinese people here don't have a really hard to understand accent. I thought everyone spoke with a heavy, "curled-tongue" accent. Was I wrong!
-I didn't find the po-jay-chou chips in the supermarket near my house, but I DID find Jay Chou drinks! Hahaha, it never stops. Also, the store was having a Jay Chou marathon since it only played Jay Chou songs.
-Chinese people are such craaaazy drivers that even shopping carts are 4-wheel drive! ;]
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Too Much, Too Little
I've got so much I want to write about, but too little effort to write them. They just keep piling up, hahah.
1. First thing I'll mention is that I'm afraid of buying anything, because everything is so CHEAP relative to US prices. I'm even tempted to buy juice/tea/coffee/soda in those vending machines on the street just because they cost less than USD $.50 once you make the conversion.
Lesson in Economics: Well, not so much a lesson, but explaining a common mistake people may make. You can switch up the countries and conditions, but the idea's the same. If you go from the US to China, the dollar's exchange rate is currently about 6.8 RMB, so it'll seem like everything's cheaper in China when things cost only parts of what they did back in the US. For example, a can of soda may cost $.50 in the US and 2 RMB in China. If you convert 2 RMB into a USD amount, that's only about $.29, and the can of soda is thus "cheap".
Though TECHNICALLY this is true, you have to remember that the standards of living are different among both countries. Just because you get paid $500 a month in the US for some job doesn't mean you'll be paid the same here in China. It's kind of like converting the temperature from Fahrenheit to Celsius, then saying the height of the mercury on the resulting Celsius scale measures up to a low temperature on the Fahrenheit scale, so it must be cold.
2. There are SOOOOO many parks here; that was one of the first things I noticed when I was looking at the map of Shanghai from the airport. My parents said it's all part of China's going green program. Which also leads to the next point...
3. Bags in stores (supermarkets, shops, clothing, etc.) are all sold... Sure, they seem cheap, but they add up to a drink here and there. This is to help reduce the need to litter and increase awareness of taking care of the environment. I wish was implemented in the US already! Not that I'm such an environmentalist, but it's a pretty good idea. How hard is it to carry a bag to shop? You're going to need to carry it home, anyway.
4. Magic is really popular here. Liu Chien, a Taiwanese magician, apparently helped stir the interest in China. There's an "American Idol"-like show that judges street magicians and present them little gifts. Then there's another show which is more formal, and Liu Chien is among a panel of judges judging people's performances. Some of these performances weren't even magic tricks, and when criticized as such, the performers some times got ridiculously angry.
Among the two I remember, 1 was doing all kinds of crazy shuffling tricks with a deck of cards, but it wasn't anything along MAGIC tricks, and when Liu Chien said so, the guy got all angry and threw the entire deck of cards on the stage then walked off. As for the other case, this guy was dressed as a clown and doing tricks. When Liu Chien (and another magician judge) asked what does his outfit have to do with his act, the performer gave some answer they didn't like, and the performer went on to rant about how he saw through all of Liu Chien's magic tricks and went on to reveal ON STAGE how many tricks are done (all this was cut out by the show, though; they just fast-forwarded all that talk and typed words on the screen). Liu Chien then said it doesn't matter whether someone sees through his magic tricks, but anyone who dispells the magic of magic tricks has no right to be a magician. That seemed to make a lot of sense, even to me, someone who isn't a magician.
Anyhow, if you get a chance, go YouTube or find some way to watch Liu Chien; he's pretty good, alright. And a pretty funny guy.
5. On TV, there's this show (or shows) to help prevent scams. They interview "scammees" and "scammers", like this one guy who got tricked into paying "Shipping and Handling fees" for a "prize" he "won" on an online game. Turns out the link stating he won a prize wasn't from the game at all; it was just a scam that faked its ad to look similar to the game's webpage design. Pretty interesting show.
jay
6. There are Jay Chou potato chips here! I found it so amusing, I proceeded to call them "Po-jay-chou Chips!" Isn't that brilliant?!
1. First thing I'll mention is that I'm afraid of buying anything, because everything is so CHEAP relative to US prices. I'm even tempted to buy juice/tea/coffee/soda in those vending machines on the street just because they cost less than USD $.50 once you make the conversion.
Lesson in Economics: Well, not so much a lesson, but explaining a common mistake people may make. You can switch up the countries and conditions, but the idea's the same. If you go from the US to China, the dollar's exchange rate is currently about 6.8 RMB, so it'll seem like everything's cheaper in China when things cost only parts of what they did back in the US. For example, a can of soda may cost $.50 in the US and 2 RMB in China. If you convert 2 RMB into a USD amount, that's only about $.29, and the can of soda is thus "cheap".
Though TECHNICALLY this is true, you have to remember that the standards of living are different among both countries. Just because you get paid $500 a month in the US for some job doesn't mean you'll be paid the same here in China. It's kind of like converting the temperature from Fahrenheit to Celsius, then saying the height of the mercury on the resulting Celsius scale measures up to a low temperature on the Fahrenheit scale, so it must be cold.
2. There are SOOOOO many parks here; that was one of the first things I noticed when I was looking at the map of Shanghai from the airport. My parents said it's all part of China's going green program. Which also leads to the next point...
3. Bags in stores (supermarkets, shops, clothing, etc.) are all sold... Sure, they seem cheap, but they add up to a drink here and there. This is to help reduce the need to litter and increase awareness of taking care of the environment. I wish was implemented in the US already! Not that I'm such an environmentalist, but it's a pretty good idea. How hard is it to carry a bag to shop? You're going to need to carry it home, anyway.
4. Magic is really popular here. Liu Chien, a Taiwanese magician, apparently helped stir the interest in China. There's an "American Idol"-like show that judges street magicians and present them little gifts. Then there's another show which is more formal, and Liu Chien is among a panel of judges judging people's performances. Some of these performances weren't even magic tricks, and when criticized as such, the performers some times got ridiculously angry.
Among the two I remember, 1 was doing all kinds of crazy shuffling tricks with a deck of cards, but it wasn't anything along MAGIC tricks, and when Liu Chien said so, the guy got all angry and threw the entire deck of cards on the stage then walked off. As for the other case, this guy was dressed as a clown and doing tricks. When Liu Chien (and another magician judge) asked what does his outfit have to do with his act, the performer gave some answer they didn't like, and the performer went on to rant about how he saw through all of Liu Chien's magic tricks and went on to reveal ON STAGE how many tricks are done (all this was cut out by the show, though; they just fast-forwarded all that talk and typed words on the screen). Liu Chien then said it doesn't matter whether someone sees through his magic tricks, but anyone who dispells the magic of magic tricks has no right to be a magician. That seemed to make a lot of sense, even to me, someone who isn't a magician.
Anyhow, if you get a chance, go YouTube or find some way to watch Liu Chien; he's pretty good, alright. And a pretty funny guy.
5. On TV, there's this show (or shows) to help prevent scams. They interview "scammees" and "scammers", like this one guy who got tricked into paying "Shipping and Handling fees" for a "prize" he "won" on an online game. Turns out the link stating he won a prize wasn't from the game at all; it was just a scam that faked its ad to look similar to the game's webpage design. Pretty interesting show.
jay
6. There are Jay Chou potato chips here! I found it so amusing, I proceeded to call them "Po-jay-chou Chips!" Isn't that brilliant?!
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Cough Cough
Oh man, I think I slept all day today. Still feeling a bit under the weather. Might have caught a cold from the whole motorbike ordeal a couple of days ago, or just too much smog, smoke, or whatever.
Anyhow, nothing eventful to report, so I might as well put up some random stuff:
1. You know, what with all the horns blaring in traffic, I'm surprised I haven't seen even one accident yet. I guess everyone here has just become incredibly good at maneuvering and dodging each other.
2. There used to be a chef about my age that lived with my parents here in this apartment. His name was Lin. I heard some stories about him here now and then, mostly of how my mom abused him, haha.
For example, one of the rice bowls has a crack at the inside bottom of the bowl. My mom would purposely give Lin that bowl all the time. One day, as he ate and reached the bottom of the bowl, he said, "That's odd; how come every time I eat to the bottom, I always get this same bowl?" My mom then replied, "That's because I always make sure to give you that bowl!" It's sad, but I can't help but laugh every time I think of this story.
3. I went to another "Target" store yesterday to buy clothes and stuff. Most of the shops here are pretty cool, since they have like 3 levels. One level is usually like a supermarket with produce, and the other 2 levels hold stuff like electronic appliances, clothes, etc. This particular one I went to was playing a couple of Jay Chou and S.H.E. songs. Right then and there, I dubbed that store as AWESOME. My sister should go there some time. :D
Anyhow, nothing eventful to report, so I might as well put up some random stuff:
1. You know, what with all the horns blaring in traffic, I'm surprised I haven't seen even one accident yet. I guess everyone here has just become incredibly good at maneuvering and dodging each other.
2. There used to be a chef about my age that lived with my parents here in this apartment. His name was Lin. I heard some stories about him here now and then, mostly of how my mom abused him, haha.
For example, one of the rice bowls has a crack at the inside bottom of the bowl. My mom would purposely give Lin that bowl all the time. One day, as he ate and reached the bottom of the bowl, he said, "That's odd; how come every time I eat to the bottom, I always get this same bowl?" My mom then replied, "That's because I always make sure to give you that bowl!" It's sad, but I can't help but laugh every time I think of this story.
3. I went to another "Target" store yesterday to buy clothes and stuff. Most of the shops here are pretty cool, since they have like 3 levels. One level is usually like a supermarket with produce, and the other 2 levels hold stuff like electronic appliances, clothes, etc. This particular one I went to was playing a couple of Jay Chou and S.H.E. songs. Right then and there, I dubbed that store as AWESOME. My sister should go there some time. :D
Monday, April 6, 2009
Tao Tsoo Dun Too - Waiting Under a Tree for Rabbit
This Chinese saying is supposed to be along the lines of hiding and waiting for a rabbit to pop out. In today's case, we were waiting for a thief. Man, Shanghai doesn't disappoint nor wait to be eventful.
If you haven't read about thieves and scammers in my other note, might want to for a bit of background to this entry.
So after dinner around 6pm today, we went to a nearby store (think Target) to buy some stuff for me to settle in. My parents own a bicycle and a battery-powered bike, and I took the bike while my parents rode the electronic one. Along the way there, we were still talking about how I should practice riding on the electric one.
Once we got there, my dad said he'll go grab some dumpling skin at a nearby supermarket and meet us up after. My mom and I went into the "Target" store first to look around. 10-15 minutes after we went in, my dad met up with us and said the motorbike was stolen. He was only in the market for 5 minutes buying dumpling skin!
Some things to note are that the bike has 3 to 4 different locks. One to activate the bike, one chain lock on the front wheel, and one built-in lock on the back wheel that prevents it from rolling. So whoever took the bike really was handy and quick (and quite the bastard). My dad even took the bike to look around and see if he could find the motorbike.
So the three of us begrudgingly went through the rest of the store with such a negative, troublesome thought in mind. We barely bought anything and went back out.
As we walked home, my mom and I walked as my dad brought all the groceries with him to the bike. Much to our surprise, my mom and I walked by a motorbike that looked awfully like ours. And as I looked closer, I saw that it resembled ours too much, including the words on the back seat. We took off a black cover that was draped on the steering wheel and the interface was all lit up, even though no key was inside. In a hurry, my mom shouted at my dad to come over, saying we found the bike.
My dad came over and confirmed with us that it was our bike. Then shortly after, 2 men came by to talk to my dad. They told him they were undercover cops (1 flashed his badge) that were looking to catch thieves stealing bikes, and after my dad explained our situation, they asked us to cooperate with them to catch the thief/thieves. My mom and I walked home first to drop off the groceries, and my dad called asking us to bring the vehicle registration.
Once we went back to the scene, my mom and I sat next to my dad and just waited to see if the thief would return. One of the undercover cops asked us to move somewhere farther, since we might look too suspicious (especially what with my mom just constantly staring at the bike's direction).
I'm not sure if it was my dad who knew or one of the cops who told him, but my dad said the cops would get a reward if they catch the thief. And apparently, a lot of cops were around the area, though I didn't know how many in total. After sitting in wait for about 1.5 hours, you kind of know who was undercover and who wasn't since they just seemed to be wondering around.
Unfortunately, all our wait didn't lead to any result. We waited until 10pm, when the store we went to closed down. By then, we told one of the officers we were just going to return home. When we gathered around the bike and my dad showed them the vehicle registration, that's when I realized there were 6 undercover cops in the area. After they took a look at the vehicle and the papers, one mentioned how lucky we were to be able to recover our bike. Apparently, the thief managed to open the locks without breaking them open, and he/she just opened and hot-wired the front of the bike, hence why the interface was open. Once we got home, my dad pulled out this little wire-like triangle thing that was stuck inside that might have forced the bike to work.
All this excitement and not even 1 day (24 hours) in Shanghai. Though it's an unfortunate event, it was really fortunate of us to recover the bike, and it is a sound lesson that you can't be too careful here. My parents (jokingly) even said this isn't something I'd ever encounter in the States. I'm kind of paranoid as to what else might be in store for me for the future in Shanghai, but I'm not completely fazed about Shanghai from this one event.
If you haven't read about thieves and scammers in my other note, might want to for a bit of background to this entry.
So after dinner around 6pm today, we went to a nearby store (think Target) to buy some stuff for me to settle in. My parents own a bicycle and a battery-powered bike, and I took the bike while my parents rode the electronic one. Along the way there, we were still talking about how I should practice riding on the electric one.
Once we got there, my dad said he'll go grab some dumpling skin at a nearby supermarket and meet us up after. My mom and I went into the "Target" store first to look around. 10-15 minutes after we went in, my dad met up with us and said the motorbike was stolen. He was only in the market for 5 minutes buying dumpling skin!
Some things to note are that the bike has 3 to 4 different locks. One to activate the bike, one chain lock on the front wheel, and one built-in lock on the back wheel that prevents it from rolling. So whoever took the bike really was handy and quick (and quite the bastard). My dad even took the bike to look around and see if he could find the motorbike.
So the three of us begrudgingly went through the rest of the store with such a negative, troublesome thought in mind. We barely bought anything and went back out.
As we walked home, my mom and I walked as my dad brought all the groceries with him to the bike. Much to our surprise, my mom and I walked by a motorbike that looked awfully like ours. And as I looked closer, I saw that it resembled ours too much, including the words on the back seat. We took off a black cover that was draped on the steering wheel and the interface was all lit up, even though no key was inside. In a hurry, my mom shouted at my dad to come over, saying we found the bike.
My dad came over and confirmed with us that it was our bike. Then shortly after, 2 men came by to talk to my dad. They told him they were undercover cops (1 flashed his badge) that were looking to catch thieves stealing bikes, and after my dad explained our situation, they asked us to cooperate with them to catch the thief/thieves. My mom and I walked home first to drop off the groceries, and my dad called asking us to bring the vehicle registration.
Once we went back to the scene, my mom and I sat next to my dad and just waited to see if the thief would return. One of the undercover cops asked us to move somewhere farther, since we might look too suspicious (especially what with my mom just constantly staring at the bike's direction).
I'm not sure if it was my dad who knew or one of the cops who told him, but my dad said the cops would get a reward if they catch the thief. And apparently, a lot of cops were around the area, though I didn't know how many in total. After sitting in wait for about 1.5 hours, you kind of know who was undercover and who wasn't since they just seemed to be wondering around.
Unfortunately, all our wait didn't lead to any result. We waited until 10pm, when the store we went to closed down. By then, we told one of the officers we were just going to return home. When we gathered around the bike and my dad showed them the vehicle registration, that's when I realized there were 6 undercover cops in the area. After they took a look at the vehicle and the papers, one mentioned how lucky we were to be able to recover our bike. Apparently, the thief managed to open the locks without breaking them open, and he/she just opened and hot-wired the front of the bike, hence why the interface was open. Once we got home, my dad pulled out this little wire-like triangle thing that was stuck inside that might have forced the bike to work.
All this excitement and not even 1 day (24 hours) in Shanghai. Though it's an unfortunate event, it was really fortunate of us to recover the bike, and it is a sound lesson that you can't be too careful here. My parents (jokingly) even said this isn't something I'd ever encounter in the States. I'm kind of paranoid as to what else might be in store for me for the future in Shanghai, but I'm not completely fazed about Shanghai from this one event.
Greetings from Shanghai
Hey HEY! This is my first post about my trip to and first day in Shanghai.
My plane was late for like an hour, so we left around 2:20pm instead of 1:30pm. The plane was pretty small and packed, since supposedly, they packed 4 flights' worth of people into 1 plane to save on trips. Food wasn't too bad, and I must say, flight attendants are really stereotypically hot (well, the female ones, anyway).
Since I was flying towards where the sun was setting, I kept losing track of time and had naps at weird hours. The attendants asked us to close the windows most of the time, and every time someone would open it, light just bursted into the plane.
They had power outlets on seats in front of you, so I managed to watch 3 episodes of Code Geass, The Dark Knight, and Yip Man on my laptop. However, I didn't have headphones, so I just watched the action scenes.
By the time I landed, it was almost 9pm (rather than the planned 6:30pm). It was waaaaaaay easier to get through airport security and stuff than it was at LAX; they barely asked to check your passport for a bit and that was it. They didn't even check suitcases.
I was one of the last 2 (delayed) flights, so it was pretty empty at Pudong airport. After I met up with my parents, We rode a shuttle to somewhere. When we got off, we wanted to take a cab, but those guys were real bastards since they wouldn't ferry anyone to some where too closeby (they want to take customers that wanted to travel to farther places in order to earn more money). Instead, we took the subway to somewhere else, and then rode on those electric bicycles back home. I just ate a bit of dinner, showered, and slept.
This morning, I woke up around 10am since downstairs, they're remodeling the apartment, and it was noisy like hell. Afterwards, I ate breakfast and with Phi's help, got internet to work on my laptop. My parents' desktop is way too slow (and in Chinese), so it was quite the relief to get this one working.
We went out really quick to take care of some paper work, and now I'm home waiting for my parents to finish baking some bread before we head out to buy some stuff I'll need. I'll take more pictures then and put it up.
BTW, I'll be uploading pictures I take in Shanghai to here:
http://s662.photobucket.com/albums/uu348/ShanghaiDave
At the end of every entry, I'll put up some random facts/good-to-knows/etc. stuff for you guys to know about Shanghai.
1. When I got off the airport, I was surprised at how normal Shanghai looks. I thought I'd see red flags waving everywhere, but I haven't seen one yet. The only things I saw literally EVERYWHERE are advertisements for the World Expo 2010, which I really want to check out next year. If I can, I want to rent out a place near the Expo by then.
2. As I told my friend, the number of car accidents I ALMOST got into this past hour beats the number of potential car accidents I had last year in the US (maybe even more years).
3. There aren't as much smokers as I'd expect, but there are still quite a few here and there. The city's been trying to cut down smoking and other things to make the public more eco- and people-friendly by the time the World Expo comes around.
4. There are so many ways people try to scam you. My dad was telling me about how people try to "get change" with you with fake money. Then some others try to "borrow" your cell because something happened to theirs (no reception, out of batteries, etc.) and they walk away a bit then run off with it. Some try to steal your bicycles and motor bikes, and even your bike's battery has to be locked or they'd steal it. Supposedly, certain people even blatantly try to rob others in broad daylight. And Shanghai has one of the better crime rates... - __ -"
5. You don't need a license or anything to ride a motorized bicycle! Just don't get into any accidents. Let others go first in traffic if you're not in any hurry. They only cost like 1000 RMB (~USD $200) each. They scare the hell out of me though when I sit in the back with nothing to hold onto. I fear hitting a bump and flying off.
6. Things seem so cheap compared to the US prices. A night at a "common" hotel is 20-160 RMB, which is about USD $3-$14. That motorized bicycle ride was 5 RMB, which is about 5/7 of USD $1.
7. So far, I found out that Xanga and YouTube don't work.
Can anyone recommend me some good blog sites to use (like Xanga)? I rather write there than notes here on FB. If possible, I want something that works as easy as Xanga.
My plane was late for like an hour, so we left around 2:20pm instead of 1:30pm. The plane was pretty small and packed, since supposedly, they packed 4 flights' worth of people into 1 plane to save on trips. Food wasn't too bad, and I must say, flight attendants are really stereotypically hot (well, the female ones, anyway).
Since I was flying towards where the sun was setting, I kept losing track of time and had naps at weird hours. The attendants asked us to close the windows most of the time, and every time someone would open it, light just bursted into the plane.
They had power outlets on seats in front of you, so I managed to watch 3 episodes of Code Geass, The Dark Knight, and Yip Man on my laptop. However, I didn't have headphones, so I just watched the action scenes.
By the time I landed, it was almost 9pm (rather than the planned 6:30pm). It was waaaaaaay easier to get through airport security and stuff than it was at LAX; they barely asked to check your passport for a bit and that was it. They didn't even check suitcases.
I was one of the last 2 (delayed) flights, so it was pretty empty at Pudong airport. After I met up with my parents, We rode a shuttle to somewhere. When we got off, we wanted to take a cab, but those guys were real bastards since they wouldn't ferry anyone to some where too closeby (they want to take customers that wanted to travel to farther places in order to earn more money). Instead, we took the subway to somewhere else, and then rode on those electric bicycles back home. I just ate a bit of dinner, showered, and slept.
This morning, I woke up around 10am since downstairs, they're remodeling the apartment, and it was noisy like hell. Afterwards, I ate breakfast and with Phi's help, got internet to work on my laptop. My parents' desktop is way too slow (and in Chinese), so it was quite the relief to get this one working.
We went out really quick to take care of some paper work, and now I'm home waiting for my parents to finish baking some bread before we head out to buy some stuff I'll need. I'll take more pictures then and put it up.
BTW, I'll be uploading pictures I take in Shanghai to here:
http://s662.photobucket.co
At the end of every entry, I'll put up some random facts/good-to-knows/etc. stuff for you guys to know about Shanghai.
1. When I got off the airport, I was surprised at how normal Shanghai looks. I thought I'd see red flags waving everywhere, but I haven't seen one yet. The only things I saw literally EVERYWHERE are advertisements for the World Expo 2010, which I really want to check out next year. If I can, I want to rent out a place near the Expo by then.
2. As I told my friend, the number of car accidents I ALMOST got into this past hour beats the number of potential car accidents I had last year in the US (maybe even more years).
3. There aren't as much smokers as I'd expect, but there are still quite a few here and there. The city's been trying to cut down smoking and other things to make the public more eco- and people-friendly by the time the World Expo comes around.
4. There are so many ways people try to scam you. My dad was telling me about how people try to "get change" with you with fake money. Then some others try to "borrow" your cell because something happened to theirs (no reception, out of batteries, etc.) and they walk away a bit then run off with it. Some try to steal your bicycles and motor bikes, and even your bike's battery has to be locked or they'd steal it. Supposedly, certain people even blatantly try to rob others in broad daylight. And Shanghai has one of the better crime rates... - __ -"
5. You don't need a license or anything to ride a motorized bicycle! Just don't get into any accidents. Let others go first in traffic if you're not in any hurry. They only cost like 1000 RMB (~USD $200) each. They scare the hell out of me though when I sit in the back with nothing to hold onto. I fear hitting a bump and flying off.
6. Things seem so cheap compared to the US prices. A night at a "common" hotel is 20-160 RMB, which is about USD $3-$14. That motorized bicycle ride was 5 RMB, which is about 5/7 of USD $1.
7. So far, I found out that Xanga and YouTube don't work.
Can anyone recommend me some good blog sites to use (like Xanga)? I rather write there than notes here on FB. If possible, I want something that works as easy as Xanga.
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