Nanjing Road – First Encounter

I had a chance to visit Nanjing Road last weekend, but haven’t had time to collect my thoughts until today. I’m sure I’ll be back again, but for now I’ll record my initial impressions.

To use a simple analogy, Nanjing Road is the Robson Street of Shanghai. It’s a place where opulence meets history, and is perhaps the most iconic embodiment of China’s internal struggle for national identity.


Nanjing Road is a long street, passing through some of Shanghai’s most famed landmarks. Jing An Temple, a Buddhist institution that was at one point converted to a bomb shelter, can be found in close proximity to Nanjing Road West, which then stretches to People’s Square and ultimately meets with the Bund.

It was actually quite by accident that I first stumbled into the area, which is the epicenter of Shanghai nightlife. I had no intention of visiting that area so soon, and was initially oblivious to its existence. The reason I went was because I wanted to buy some Chinese language books to study. However, bookstores don’t seem to be in great abundance here, much less bookstores selling books that provide English instruction for learning Chinese. Fortunately, the Lonely Planet guide my sister bought me has been very useful and I learned that the Foreign Languages Bookstore is located on the intersection of Central Fujian Road and Fuzhou Road, a few blocks away from Nanjing Road East.

I got out at the People’s Square station, as I had become familiar with it and emerged from Exit 6. For a moment, I felt like I stepped into New York City. Post modern sculptures were on display and behind me was People’s Square Park, a small green refuge area surrounded by concrete towers. Many expats and tourists were there, walking leisurely. As it was 1730 and the bookstore closed at 1900, I was in a bit of a rush, but I still took the time to inspect my surroundings. The first thing I noticed was the shiny entrance to the Radisson Hotel, which neighboured the Samsung building. Madame Tussaud’s was close by, and I got probably the best chance I’ll ever have to meet Yao Ming. Next door was an ultra high end mall, sporting international brands like Omega, Rolex, Cartier, Brooks Brothers and even Vertu, retailer of the $10,000 mobile phone is slated to open a store there.


I walked along the street and came across a giant Nike store. Crass commercialism bombarded my senses. The same stores sprang up again and again, as if companies lived in fear of being forgotten on Nanjing Road. There was also a cosmetics promotional booth set up in the middle of the street, and they got two ladies to play classical instruments, which was very popular with the guys. However, I don’t think they were playing as the music came from the speakers didn't match their actions, and it must have been very awkward for the women trying out cosmetics to have a huge mass of men watching them. I don’t know if that marketing strategy was madness or sheer genius. In China, I’m never sure.


One strange thing about Shanghai is that the street signs are not at the corner of the street. They are usually a little further in, or sometimes do not even exist, so for awhile I was quite disoriented. Eventually I realized that Nanjing Road East continued on a street beyond a fenced off construction area. While I was waiting at the intersection to cross, a bus hit the gas and blew a huge dense cloud of black smoke in front of me. I immediately jumped back but I realized I was no match for diffusion. All the Westerners were shocked. The locals crossed the road as usual.

Nanjing Road, the French Concession and the Bund are very beautiful areas of the city, due to the rich European architecture that survived the ousting of foreign influence. Ever pragmatic, many heritage buildings remain in use, though their status is protected. Commercial lighting from street lamps and advertisements bounce off the buildings, creating an almost surreal effect.


All romantic notions were spoiled by the various vendors of Nanjing Road. Some offered cheap plastic toys while others offered massages by “very beautiful girls.” A simple “no thanks” did not suffice, and sometimes I had to tell people off. Because I took my guidebook out from time to time, I was an easy mark. At one point a girl came up to me and introduced herself, and asked if she could walk with me. Naturally, I was suspicious and half expected two accomplices to jump me in a dark alley. She spoke some broken English to me and asked me why I didn’t speak Mandarin. I unleashed upon her the most intense case of Western apathy, the leftovers of unused teenage angst, but she persisted and followed me for another three blocks before realizing how boring I was really trying to be.


At 1855, I found the Foreign Language Bookstore, ignored the guards and managed to buy a copy of “Intermediate Mandarin for Business” before the store closed. Afterward, I ate a decent meal for 25 kuai. On my way back to the subway station, I saw a third Cartier store, retailing a watch that listed for 278,000 RMB.

Dialogue

- Nick, I was thinking about that but the other day they finally posted a sign telling us their "real hours," for now at least...
- Fong, I think the next chapter could potentially lead our group to disband ;)
- Jeff, yeah I'm glad too. And I am thinking about asking the shop keeper about what happened to 24 hours.
- Em, unfortunately no one in ANT seems to be Christian, but my roommate may go to SCF with me this week. Glad you're enjoying my misadventures.
- Snerk, I talked to my manager and he said that because of how new ANT is, the buildings here are built to a much higher standard. Being on the fifth floor, my ceilings are also quite high. However, I heard the rent for my apartment costs 5000 RMB per month, which is quite expensive this far out of downtown, in my opinion.

Apartment & Church

I’ve finally moved out of the hotel and into my apartment. So how did I spend Friday night? Dragging luggage up five stories while making three trips back and forth between the hotel to the apartment. I think I made the girl at the front desk uneasy, since I don’t think she knew my company was paying for my room and that I would officially check out on Saturday. I made three trips because I didn’t want to leave any of my belongings unattended while I hauled my things upstairs. Five stories doesn’t seem to be very much, but in ANT that’s usually the top floor of the apartment, and apartments five stories and under are not mandated by building codes to have an elevator. With two suitcases, my suit and a full backpack, it seemed more like 20 stories. I was so tired and thirsty after moving in and I wanted a drink, so I walked to the corner store. Well, it was closed at 1930. The 24 hour store just keeps closing earlier and earlier.

Dreamhouse

My roommate, a German coworker named Alex, was away in Beijing for the weekend. He’ll be back to his Mutterland by the end of next month. He was nice enough to leave me a clean set of sheets and the wifi login. The connection profile name cracked me up; it read “Dreamhouse.” The front door to the place is an industrial steel door with a dual stage lock. I don’t imagine anyone will be able to break in unless it’s an inside job or we forget to lock it. Also, to enter the lobby of the building you need a key card. Right after entering, the TV room is on the left side, and the dining area is on the right side adjacent to the kitchen area, both of which wrap around the balcony.


A long hallway divides the two sides, and the bedrooms are at the end of the hallway. On the way down, there’s a guest room on the left, a storage room on the right, as well as my roommate’s bathroom (which houses the washing machine). My room is on the left hand side and has its own bathroom.


Being my first apartment, I think it’s pretty cool. It’s quite spacious and more space than two people need. I suppose this is a benefit of living in Anting Ghost Town. There is a “shock” sensor at the front door of each apartment which activates the hallway light. When I reach my apartment, I usually stamp my foot hard and it turns on the light, so I can see my keys. All the rooms are furnished so I don’t have to worry about furniture. My room is also quite large and I have a queen size bed. The air conditioning blows cold and my bedroom has its own machine. There’s plenty of storage space, so I’ve already unpacked most things. I also did my first load of laundry already. We have a side-loading combo washer/dryer produced by Siemens, as are most of the fixtures in this apartment. I couldn’t read the machine so I took a picture and my parents deciphered it for me. Thanks Mom and Dad!

Now, some strange things about the apartment. There are these two sets of lights in the hallway. They are actually LED squares that flash neon pink and blue, which is very strange and turns the hallway into a “rave.” My bathroom has a phone jack, once again. The microwave is on the floor because we don’t have room for it on the counter. The fridge is quite small and for some reason, we don’t have a can opener (I used the corner of a kitchen knife to hack open a can of salmon). But these are all fairly minor issues.


I bought some groceries at Carrefour to fill the fridge up. I noticed that the milk I bought last week isn’t available for sale anymore. I guess I survived melamine.

This is China

So even though church started at 1600, I was still late this past Sunday. It just goes to show that the time church starts isn’t necessarily to blame. Here’s what happened.

I got onto the ANT direct bus to Downtown at around 1320, but unfortunately, all the seats were already taken up by locals. I had no idea where all of these people came from. Apparently it’s a sit-down-only bus. A lady was already standing in the aisle and there were some toddlers sitting in their own seats. Well, two more people came onto the bus after me, creating a situation where four people were standing in the aisle. A mother put her kid onto her lap, freeing up a space right beside the first lady, so she got a seat. Then, another mother picked up her toddler at a seat behind me, so a man who got on after me got his seat. The last lady to get on the bus refused to budge and just stood there, so we were both seat-less. They even got one of the ANT guards (I call them the Gestapo) to check everyone’s bus cards. I didn’t even know I needed a card, as they had never checked before (supposedly all new residents get cards delivered to them when they arrive in ANT). So I just flashed my metro card and somehow got away with it. The last lady didn’t have a card either, but the guard didn’t do anything about it. At this point, the driver threw a hissy fit and got off the bus. It was clear he wasn’t going to move with both of us standing there. I didn’t want to hold everyone up so I got off the bus, thinking the last lady would do the same. But all she did was sit on the steps until the driver got tired of waiting and let her do so. So I was the only one left behind.

Afterward, I was really mad for some reason. Those of you who know me well know that I don’t get mad easily. But it felt like my brain was going to explode. I don’t think I was entitled to be angry. After all, I got to the bus too late. I think I was just unhappy with myself and the chaotic, random manner in which things unfolded. I think generally I’ve been trying to treat people here with the same respect I’d give strangers in the West, even though it’s unlikely many people here would afford me the same courtesy. At that point, I really wanted to kick the last lady off and take her seat on the steps. So that was the culmination of another struggle. Most of all, I had been looking forward to church all week, and missing it would have been a big disappointment. Moral of the story, first come first serve doesn’t work in China. I should have remembered the ethos I developed last week for life in Shanghai, which is “You never know.”

Thankfully, Hilda provided me with some catharsis after the event. I realized that I wouldn’t have enjoyed arriving at church early if it meant that I succumbed to my selfishness and got the lady kicked off.

I got onto the 1530 bus in the hopes of getting to church in time for the sermon (which is at the end of service, after the announcements, unlike RCAC). I got to Zhongshan Park at 1615 and booked it on Train 2 to People’s Square. Then I madly dashed and transferred onto Train 1 to get to Hengshan Road. I got to church at 1645, halfway through service. Traveling in the subway took 10 minutes less compared to last week, which took 40 minutes. The ushers welcomed me, although they were bewildered to see some random Chinese guy jump into the church during “How Great is Our God.”

Shanghai Community Fellowship Church

The church I’m attending in Shanghai is what is considered to be Shanghai’s “mega-church” (http://scfenglish.com). It’s not a state-run church, so people who attend the English services on Sunday at 1400 and 1600 need to be bearers of foreign passports (Hong Kong and Taiwan passports are ok as well). The Chinese services that take place during the other times permit locals to attend.

The church is located on Hengshan Road, which is in an expatriate area with lots of western restaurants (TGI Fridays, Papa John's, etc.) and bars. It’s a nice peaceful area. The church is very big and in fact is featured on maps in the subway station (labeled as “Community Church”). I think the government likes the fact many expats worship there, so they don’t spread themselves out too much in Shanghai.


The church has sound doctrine and very inviting people. It is multi-denominational. A lot of people worship there. Over 60 nationalities are represented in the congregation. They have 62 cell groups throughout Shanghai, and I may join one once I’m settled in (although they will never replace CMN). They also have many different ministries, including volunteering. The worship is very nice, not too traditional and they play the saxophone, guitars and other instruments during. They sang two or three songs I know. I think communion is taken every service. Last week there was a baby dedication service. At least eight babies were dedicated to Him, all of different nationalities.


Both weeks I attended the 1600-1730 service. The 1400 service is identical. I attend the 1600 service because of the transportation schedule.

One thing I enjoyed at SCF was letting my guard down for a period of time. I felt at peace with a kind group of people that could be trusted. When I walk around on the streets outside I am very guarded and careful, to the point of being suspicious, especially in Downtown.

I would say that the English congregation of the church in total numbers over 1200. It took about 10-15 minutes for me to get out of the building after service last week, due to the fact I sat in the fifth row and the large number of people that were vacating. There are some signs of SCF being a mega-church- there is quite a lot of “selling” that goes on in terms of promoting ministries. But in a church this big, it’s easy to become a nameless face if you aren't pushed to join some sort of ministry. A good tradition they have is that they ask all the first time visitors to stand up and ushers pass them welcome cards to sign. They also give “exit interviews” on the spot to people who’ve been at the church six months or longer and are now leaving. I think it helps to cultivate a culture in which “no one is left behind.” I will make SCF my permanent place of worship while I’m here in Shanghai.

This week they focused on men’s ministry, and I heard quite a few dynamic and encouraging testimonies. One person was actually a CEO who talked about his struggles to live as an obedient Christian. It was very humbling.

Afterward, I went to the Raffles City food court in People’s Square for dinner, as I did last week. I’ve wanted to try some local restaurants, and some of the more famed gastronomic factories on the Bund, but I haven’t mustered up the resolve yet to eat at a restaurant alone. The concept remains foreign to me. I probably will next weekend, if I don’t go on an excursion to Yellow Mountain with ze Germans.

I ordered off a Chinese menu, but didn’t know what to drink. So I asked the lady to get me whatever she thought was good “shen me dou ke yi.” She got me a plum drink (not juice, drink), which tastes like prune juice (which I don’t like) gone bad.

After all, this is China and you never know.

Dialogue

- Em, yes I suppose Chinese food here is just "food." But then I'd have to specify which kind: Shanghainese, Hunan, Cantonese, Szechuan, etc.
- Free, kuai, yuan and RMB are all synonyms, sorry I didn't clarify. At Oscars, I was thinking... if I just angle up from 35 to 75 degrees, who would I hit?

Anting Ghost Town

It must be strange for some people to find that, although I am living in Shanghai, it takes me 35-45 minutes by direct bus to get downtown. The reason is because, obviously I don't live in Downtown Shanghai. Rather, I am living in a suburb called Anting New Town (ANT).

For anyone who has studied a bit of history, the Cold War will bring to mind concepts of five year plans and centrally planned economies. And while China hasn't shown itself to be particularly communist during my stay thus far, this town is certainly the manifestation of an alternative economic model.

In most countries, cities develop and condominiums are built as an increasing population creates a proportional demand for such construction and facilities. In Anting New Town, the reverse is true. Phase I of the town has already been built, and awaits residents to make it their home. Bob Rennie would probably lose his mind if he had to sell this.


The government has envisioned Anting New Town to be the future Detroit of China. Not so much the violent crimes part, but rather the aspect about Detroit being the automotive centre of America (although that's not going very well either). In fact, Anting New Town is also known as the Automobile City. Anting New Town is a 4.98 square-kilometer project located approximately 30 kilometers west of the City of Shanghai, and is also part of the Shanghai International Automobile City development. With the completion of Phase II (I'm living in Phase I), the town will eventually support 50,000 residents. On the corporate side, the town is doing well, being close to the Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai Volkswagen (which has the largest market share in China), Ford China, and other auto companies that have decided to base their operations here (no doubt in part to cultivate guanxi with the government). However, ANT has achieved residential occupancy levels of perhaps 2%.


My initial impressions of the town was that it was very new and clean, but for some reason deserted, like in those zombie movies where everyone has locked themselves inside or has run way because zombies are everywhere. Except there were no zombies. The guards stationed at the road intersections bear an eerie resemblance to Pyongyang's deserted road system and indeed, very few cars ever drive here.

A subway line that connects to Downtown Shanghai is to be completed by 2011. In fact, everything in town claims to be "coming soon," including a shopping mall, a super market, and a whole bunch of other amenities.

To be fair, the town does have a hotel (which I'm staying at and doubles as a golf club), a bakery (overpriced, but is the morning meeting place for expats), a pub (evening meeting place for expats), a cornerstore (24 hours but closes at 2200) and supposedly a Chinese restaurant (which I have yet to find). The government also commissioned a free direct bus to Downtown Shanghai that leaves ANT everyday at 0900, 1000 and 1330 and picks people up from Zhongshan Park for the return trip at 1715, 1830, 1930 and 2100. A taxi ride back costs anywhere from 120-160 kuai. There's also a bus that goes to Anting Old Town until 1900, and a cab ride back is just 10 kuai.


The town is very modern and has a state of the art design, thanks to the efforts of AS&P, or Albert Speer & Partners. Yes, it is the son of Albert Speer, the Nazi architect who was convicted during the Nuremberg trials, who designed my town. In fact, the city is supposed to have German themes. Another similar project is Thames Town, which is also 30 km away from Shanghai City in Songjiang, and is supposed to emulate an English settlement.


I'm cautious to say that in fact, I like ANT. Even as I hear the crickets chirp at night, I enjoy the tranquility this town provides, because in Shanghai, peace and quiet usually comes attached with a hefty price tag. Little details, like miniature rivers that grace the community, pathways for the blind and motion sensors that control traffic lights and room lights, make this place a special place to live. For now, I don't mind being far from downtown, because I actually have the chance to live a normal life here.

It'll be interesting to see the fate of this development in the near future. Will it pay off and become a pre-eminent example for planned communities, or will it live on as one of China's failed ghost towns? Only time will tell.

Dialogue

- Free, it was actually quite liberating to use the washroom at Oscar's, for some bizarre reason. And no, not many local friends yet, due to the language barrier and gender wariness. I may go to the Jazz Festival this weekend with some locals.
- Nick & Ed, I didn't ask for my friends' explicit permission to post their pictures, so I wanted to respect their privacy. But the Great Firewall does give me headaches from time to time.
- Char, I've seen all of those things (spitting, picking, squatting, etc.) although they're not extremely widespread. In terms of Engrish, I notice many things are "forbidden." It makes it that much more tempting to try.
- Em, my boss for now is this young guy, and you know what young men are like. No Pho yet, getting desperate.
- Marian, I hope to be recognizable upon my return. But you're right, in the future I'll try not to censor my own face (unless I become horribly scarred).

Initial Impressions - Downtown

Bombastic, glitzy and busy are among the words that come to mind when describing Downtown Shanghai. A mixture of the most classic contradictions, the city is world class in every way, and doesn’t fail to impress.

I’ve been downtown twice so far. The first time was during the week, to attend a meeting with a design agency. The second time was on Saturday, with several new friends from Anting New Town.

First Time

My first visit to Shanghai was disorienting. Traveling from the office to the agency at 1500, we hit rush hour traffic. Despite all the cutting and weaving our cabbie attempted, the normally 40 minute trip took around 1.5 hours. The freeway cut through many overpasses and 70-story condominiums to bring us into the city center. Our meeting was in the old part of town, in an unorthodox office building, which was an old converted house. The meeting was cordial and ended relatively quickly, with the typical Chinese niceties, although we dealt with an expat, which was nice.

Afterward, my manager brought the team over to Oscar’s, a sports bar. During happy hour at Oscar’s, which lasts until 2000, it’s buy one get one free. Of course, people didn’t factor in the free ones and ordered the normal amount. You can imagine what happened afterward (yeah it’s a hard life). Eventually, it came time to empty the toxin out of my system. My manager told me to go “enjoy myself” in the washroom. I didn’t really know what he meant until I got there:


Pretty classy, isn’t it? I went twice.

The conversation was great. Being diverse group (British, Austrian, Australian and Canadian), we ended up engaging in political discourse. We progressed to talking about the USA’s numerous problems, to the dismay of the American who turned out was sitting behind us. My impression is that it’s fairly unfortunate to be an American in Shanghai, which seems to be rife with an undercurrent of domestic and international anti-American sentiment.


We then went to Zapata’s for “real” food. Honestly by that point I was stuffed with beer, but I still had a fried chimichanga stuffed with chicken and cheese. As Mexican food, one would think it’d be cheap. Try 90 kuai (by comparison street food is 5-10 kuai), and I ordered relatively conservatively. The reason is that Zapata’s is a favored expat hangout. There’s a thatch roof and a bar in a hut, encased in an old fashioned fence, which cries exotic. As well, there are many tables outside and a large courtyard for people to mingle. The expat/local makeup there was about 50/50. My food was decent, but a bit on the greasy side. The whole scene rang hollow to me, but probably a more fair statement is that it didn’t fit my normative idea of what Shanghai should be. In fact, Shanghai for much of its history has been characterized by its adaptation of foreign trends.

We then proceeded to another pub to see an ex-coworker off. I think that was honestly the first time I’ve ever had a beer I didn’t enjoy. The cab ride home cost 160 kuai (Anting is far from downtown), which I luckily split with a coworker. I’d classify the whole evening with one word: excessive.

Second Time

The second outing to downtown yesterday was much more enjoyable. I went downtown with three German coworkers who have since become fast friends. Anting New Town has a free shuttle bus that goes directly downtown, so we hopped on at 1330 and got to the Zhongshan Park stop around 1415. I’m glad ze Germans called me up, as I was debating whether or not to head out due to the typhoon warning. Fortunately, I went anyway and it wasn’t bad at all (we did have to duck under a bridge for awhile though).

I did not see any nature at Zhongshan Park; it was just a corner adjacent to a road intersection. We walked through a mall to get to the subway station. The subway in Shanghai is a like a tree that has grown out of control, but is modeled on Hong Kong’s MTR, complete with use of the “octopus card.” There are some tracks that are used by multiple lines, so attention has to be paid to which line stops into the station. The subway system is still undergoing massive expansion; last year there 4 lines, this year there are 8. Although it looks convoluted, nearly every line passes through People’s Square, which is the centre point of the entire network. Our first stop was to the tailor, as my friends had ordered some suits last week.

About a 15 minute ride later, we arrived at the Lujiabang station at the Huangpu District and got out. There was some street food there, so we all had some lunch. I picked the xiao long bao (first ones of my stay here) and these wuo tip filled with vegetables. Once again a bit greasy, but still excellent for 10 kuai. My friends had noodles and wraps.


Across the street was a tailors’ market, filled with many tailor shops. We went upstairs to a shop that is favored by people from my firm. Apparently, experienced employees often bring new employees there to get suits made, so the dividends from previous bargaining negotiations carry over. However, I still had to bargain as they gave me a more expensive rate than my colleagues. Nice try! I ordered a gray suit, an extra pair of pants, and two shirts for 790 RMB (first quote was 930 RMB). Although I brought a suit over, it’s quite nice and I don’t relish the thought of it getting worn out on a daily basis. It’s also a bit hot to wear for now. They had this tiny changing booth in the shop that was taken up by someone else, so we just all stripped down in the store to get measured and try on things. So much for Asian modesty!

Afterward, we split up into two groups. One group went to the Science & Technology Museum area and I followed a friend to Liujiazai.

We went to a shopping centre there, which was first rate by any Western standard. The most symbolic of all American inventions, the mall has been readily adopted in Shanghai. Stores like Calvin Klein, Zara, Nike and others are all there, featuring international prices (a Ben Sherman, “Cast No Shadow” tee was 360 kuai). Kurt Cobain promoted sneakers:


China’s burgeoning middle class is growing, and although international prices are still a bit expensive for the local populace, all the shops we visited were packed with browsing, buying Chinese.

We capped off the day with a meal at Ajisen Ramen, a popular franchise in HK (there is also one at Parker Place in Richmond, although it’s not as good). The prices ranged from 25-35 kuai for a bowl of noodles. At 1930, we took the bus home.

Alright, I’m tired after attending church. That’ll probably be my topic after I go for the second time next week.

Dialogue

- Cat, you got a haircut? I want to see!
- Vespertine, the pollution isn’t too noticeable, but I do have to breathe a bit harder here. And lunch is provided free of charge by the company (although we need to present a lunch voucher we get at the office).
- Hilda, assimilation is inevitable- hence the title of the blog. Guess you’ll need to learn how to squat!
- Jason, you need to watch The Office. Lol, I’d like to be Dwight.
- Andrew, your pictures will have to do until mine are published.
- Connie, the rough conversion rate is 6 RMB:1 CAD (Thanks for catching that, Snerk). The time difference is indeed 15 hours, which sucks.

Work

Since I’ve finished my first week of work, and some people (starting with Debbie) have asked about it, I think I’ll elaborate on my experiences thus far.

Situation

I’m currently working in the Corporate Communications department (or CoCo) for a multinational industrial firm. The Firm set up its operations in China a few years ago, but only recently (within the last two years) established its Asia Pacific corporate headquarters in Anting, Shanghai, or the “Automobile City.” Due to attrition, I’m actually the only person in my department at the moment. So you could say I am the department. This means I’m being exposed to high level, strategic issues, but it’s also a double edged sword as I alone am held fully accountable for any communications issues. Right now I’m working closely with the regional HR team to design new communication strategies for organizational development and recruitment. I think the company is in the final stages of hiring my new manager, so my role will probably change once she/he comes onboard.

Our offices are very modern, furnished very nicely and the building is just two years old. However, I no longer have a private office like I did at my old firm, which I don’t mind because I’d rather work more closely with a team than be cooped up in an office (at this point in my career). For anyone who watches “The Office,” the desk setup is quite reminiscent of the Scranton Branch, although I have yet to meet my office’s Dwight. Security is very tight, as our industry is highly competitive and our R&D capabilities are our primary competitive advantage.

I work with a very international team, including: an Austrian, a Brit, another Canadian, a Frenchie, a German and two local Chinese employees. I think I’m the youngest one there, especially since the German military requirement means that most Germans are around 24-26 by the time they finish their undergrad. From what I’ve seen, I would say that the ratio of Locals/Germans/Other International is about 40/40/20. It’s quite cool because every day in the office I’m listening to three languages being used. A few of the Chinese executive assistants here speak German, which caught me off guard initially. Maybe they’re GBCs? There are around 400 people in the headquarters building. At the company’s nearest plants about 45 minutes away in an adjacent district, there are 4000 employees.

Corporate Culture

The company is expanding very rapidly in Asia, and has made quite a few major acquisitions in recent years. It still feels like the firm is trying to get a firm grasp of its new, unified identity. However, the firm stays true to its German roots; the way it chooses to structure the organization and the way it does things remains very conservative, regimented and disciplined. The orders come from the top, in Germany and so we often liaise with them, as they have the final say on many of our initiatives. There are pros and cons to that.

A Typical Day

I wake up between 0630 and 0700, check my mail, do some reading, eat breakfast and then I’m out the door. For now, I also get a European breakfast every day, compliments of the F1 Holiday Hotel. It consists of scrambled eggs with corn, almond toast, two pieces of ham and a small cup of watermelon. It’s quite good. And Phil, the drink for dinner wasn’t whisky, but rather “hong cha” (“red tea”).

The shuttle bus then arrives at 0845 to pick us up (us being the German contingent and me) to head to the office, which is a seven minute drive away. The bus is nice because I’ve been able to meet some German friends that work in other departments, just by the virtue of us being in the same area. The bus is never late, so that means I can't be late to the stop either. Otherwise, I'll have to call for a taxi, as they rarely venture into Anting New Town of their own volition.

The headquarters building is in an interesting place, as it’s basically this big building in the middle of acres of unused farmland. Guards greet us at the door and we have to show our security cards to pass. It’s actually quite reminiscent of “The Simpsons” and Homer’s nuclear plant. Buses from all over Shanghai arrive at the same time, so there’s a massive influx of people at 0855. Lets just say the Germans are really organized.

My office is at the third and top floor of the building. I check my email and if there’s anything from the Vice President, that is priority one. The VP I work for seems very nice (and Austrian). All of my coworkers are pretty nice too, though some are friendlier than others. My workstation is right by the door and people enter and exit freely, so there’s a bit more human traffic than I previously experienced at my old job.

The company serves lunch in the canteen between 12-1 everyday. Apparently it'll be forever the same five Chinese dishes that are served. So far my favourite has been the jiao zi, or dumpling. I don't mind it at all but I think some of my Western coworkers find it to be a bit too repetitive or foreign to them. However, if it means that I don't have to eat pickled pig's feet with a generous side of sauerkraut, I'm thrilled to remain with the present status quo.

Work ends at 1730 everyday. However, if people need to work overtime there are also shuttle buses that transport workers at 1910 and 2010. After that, people will probably have to call a taxi if they want to go home. Once again, the end of the day is a collective affair; the building resembles a milk jug in the process of pouring out its contents.

Why Male Models?

I got to work on some pretty interesting things since arriving, and two in particular included negotiating with a design company in Downtown Shanghai and helping coordinate a photo shoot, in which we brought in a professional photographer to shoot some photos that would deliver a more “regional, relevant and diverse" feel to our print media. We managed to assemble quite an international group, but in the end, I had to be a “model” and be in a few of the shots, as people had to attend meetings and the process took longer than expected (it always does). One nice thing here (depending on how you look at it) is that people aren't as hung up on political correctness; the teammate I worked with for this project actually requested for only "handsome" people to participate in the photo shoot (which doesn't explain why I was there). In Canada people would definitely have thrown a fit (well the people who weren't asked).

The local photographer tried to pop my collar for some of the shots. Although I respect his skills, his concept of business fashion was very foreign to me.

So…

The goal for now is just to establish my credibility. One of the company’s goals is “zero defects,” so being careful about my work is key. I'll have to "concentrate." I’m being exposed to German culture as much as Chinese culture right now. A challenge I'm encountering is that a German accent is slowly invading my speech. Who knows what my English will sound like in ten months? However, all in all, I would say so far, so good. Tchuss!

And Happy Birthday Hilda (on the 12th)!

Observations on Nothing

This is all random:

Since I haven’t found a place to do laundry yet, I’m starting to have thoughts like: “the less I wear this shirt, the later I’ll need to wash it!”

The bathtub is quite large… I find myself turning it on even when I don’t need to bathe because by the time it’s filled, who knows?

The stall in my bathroom has two issues with it- for one, the "Joey phone."


I just noticed my hotel room is called “The Two Brothers.” My question is, when does he get here and why are there two bathrobes?


I saw quite a few Germans in the morning on the shuttle bus to the Company. However, at night, they all disappeared which leads me to believe there’s a German underground railroad that transports them to Downtown Shanghai.

Today I splurged and bought some emergency food in case the hotel restaurant closed for any reason. I bought four cup noodles and a milk tea, but I still haven’t found a grocery store yet. I included the plastic bag because I actually had to buy it. The bundle cost me 22 yuan.


Tonight I ate in the hotel again. Apparently there is another place just at the outskirts of town I could eat at, but I didn’t feel like groping around in the dark to find it. Only two people served me tonight, which is like a 300% improvement in labour productivity for the hotel. Tonight was baked chicken rice, which cost 35 kuai. I thought about buying a beer to go with dinner, but then realized it cost more than my entire meal and decided to pass on it. The meal was served with very romantic lighting; I could barely see my food as it was illuminated by a sole spotlight.


It was also my first day of work today; tomorrow I'll be heading Downtown for a meet and greet with a marketing company our company has contracted. I'll talk about work later, but so far so good.

Dialogue

- Cat & Free, I think the lighting in the room is much too dark for them to take my kidneys without damaging the merchandise. I am blood type O though so there could be some credence to your theory.
- Nick, I've gotten past the jet lag thanks to a good night's rest and a busy work day.
- Phil, sorry I won’t be able to read/comment on your blog anymore. It's not because I hate you or what you stand for. The Great Firewall of China has blocked Wordpress.
- Char, the reason we were talking about the women in Suzhou is because I wanted to appeal to the driver’s regionalist sentiments in striking up a conversation. I asked him what was Suzhou known for, and he said... nu ren!

Flight and Hotel

I have arrived safely and spent a night at the hotel. Not too much has happened yet, but here's a basic recap.

First, the airport send off. A big thank you to everyone who came out. It means a lot to me. For the friend who bought me a tin foil type card with a controversial envelope, you'll be pleased to know that security check did catch me with it! It wasn't the envelope that they cared about, but rather that I went through the metal detector with a piece of tin foil in my back pocket (I hadn't opened it at that point). Pretty funny.

The flight. China Eastern Airlines is tres ghetto and met all of my wildest expectations. Lets just say flying with Air Canada is preferable to China Eastern. Yes, the plane was old and didn't have an AC adapter or personal inflight entertainment (in true China fashion they had these rickety TVs that would pop out of the ceiling and allow everyone to share). I was initially seated under one of the TVs, but it sounded like it would fall out when it was coming down. My row also didn't have a desk tray for some reason, so I decided to change seats, which I would come to regret later- the row behind me became the unofficial baby calming section. Parents and grandparents from all over the plane would make the pilgrimmage to that row to quel their little emperors' cries. The meals were typical airline fare, but for snacks they served tuna-mixed-with-ham sandwiches, which were strange but tasty.

I didn't mind the fact that my flight was all of these things, but the stewardesses were rather unfriendly and I think that was the worst part of the trip. I think I have generally been spoiled when it comes to flights and never really had a bad experience with the inflight service before. Maybe it was because the plane was under-capacity or it was rough weekend for them. Oh well, welcome to China!

I arrived at Pudong International Airport and went through customs without a hitch. In the arrivals reception area, one of the company's drivers, Wu was waiting for me with a sign in hand. He didn't speak a word of English, but I managed to summon the remnants of all the Mandarin I remembered from school to communicate with him. He drove one of the company's Volkswagens and was very nice. We talked about family and women from Suzhou (which is where he's from).

One interesting thing I observed is that he spoke in a very hushed, quiet, polite tone when he was chatting with me. But as soon as one of his local coworkers called him, he was loud and brash. I think he didn't really know what to do with me because I look Chinese (I mean I am Chinese), but don't speak Chinese as he understands it.

The drive to the hotel took about an hour and a half. Traffic wasn't bad... I think Anting is just far away from the airport. I was entertained by all the men who pulled off to the side of a 120km/hr freeway to take a leak with reckless abandon. There are a lot of Volkswagens and Buicks (hatchbacks) on the roads in Shanghai. Almost all of them are 4-door person sedans or the white "triad" vans, tailored for the Chinese market.

I'm staying at the F1 Holiday Hotel, which is perhaps the coolest name ever for a hotel! The name is derived from Anting's proximity to the Shanghai International Circuit, which will be hosting F1 in October (saved for another post).

The hotel (and the area) I'm staying in is very new. The room I'm staying in is large and comfortable. Here are some pics (click to expand):




What the pictures don't show is the bathroom. Although my room is labeled as business, the bathroom cries honeymoon suite. I think it's the cheesy lighting and big square bath tub that achieves this. I'm not complaining though... I'll be soaking in it often, as this room will be my home for the next two weeks.

The hotel is almost brand new... and relatively uninhabited. In fact, I think I am the only person staying at my hotel right now. Last night, I ate dinner in the hotel. I think six people were serving me because I was the only person there. I had chili chicken rice and a Coke for 38 kuai. It was pretty good.

Alright, now I have to get ready for my first day at the job that brought me here in the first place. The shuttle bus gets here at 0845.

Well, this is it...

So it begins. From the creator of jlghana.blogspot.com comes another journal on the routine, eccentricities, observations and reflections of some dude living abroad. This time in Shanghai.

Right now I don't really have too many expectations, other than that it would be prudent to live by the motto DTA (or Don't Trust Anybody) while I'm away in China. I'm hoping that this preconception will be shattered. People who've shared experiences with me so far have generally been polarized in their opinions. Some view China as the triumphant, resurgent global superpower. Others have described it as a heartless den of thieves. Either way, it should be an interesting experience.

I've spent the last few weeks packing and mulling over what it means to fit my life into two suitcases. It's been quite humbling to see the distinction between what one wants, and what one really needs. It was great to take the day off and enjoy T&E's wedding (congratulations you two). This past week, I truly lived my life to the fullest and enjoyed some great evenings with friends and family. Right now, it hasn't really clicked in that I'll be living without these people this coming year. I expect it to hit me two weeks in, as I eat xiao long bao alone in my apartment and wonder, whether the meat in the bao is truly pork.

I'll be flying out later today at 12:25pm. The fact China Eastern Airlines does not offer online check-in already foreshadows the inconveniences I'll face next year. A friend who lived in Beijing for a year before has told me that waiting in line to get a bank account set up in China generally takes around three hours. It's going to take a certain degree of effort to remember that I'm not in Vancouver anymore, especially since wasting time is one of my greatest dislikes...

This journal is what it is. It is merely a stream of consciousness for my experience. I cannot guarantee entertainment or some sort of secret wisdom. But I promise to be genuine in my observations and prose.

Take a journey with me, as I tumble into the rabbit hole that will be my next few months in Anting, Shanghai.