Tomorrow is the first leg of my trip as I'm heading to Beijing to board a train for the short, 30 hour ride to Mongolia. My trip is planned to spend one night in Beijing, one night on the train, one night in Ulan Bator, the capital, then head to the countryside with a driver and English speaking guide and stay in gers (yurts) for 3 nights, before returning for another night in the capital. Today, my tour company told me there is an English speaking biologist in one of the national parks I'm visiting that I can hire for $40/day to show me specific wildlife locations that are good for photography. The main goal is to find the Przewalski's Horse, named after it's discoverer. This horse was extinct in the wild and then successfully reintroduced a few years ago. Hopefully, we will not only find and photograph them but we may find some of the other "local" wildlife. Wish me luck.
So what's happened this week in Shanghai? The weather actually cooled off by maybe 10 degrees. Now don't be shocked but, Monday night, I went out for a run for the first time since I got here. Gasping and wheezing, I made the trip to the Bund approx. 3 miles away and then survived the return trip. This morning, I made another trek there in my sneakers. I found peace and quiet finally in Shanghai by running at 5:30 AM. A very enjoyable run! Work has been hectic as we try to get a lot done before our Holiday season. We have three days off for the upcoming mid-Autumn festival next week and then seven consecutive days off beginning 10/1 for a National Holiday. We compensate for this by working four weekend days in the next three weeks. During that second Holiday, I'm taking my mountain climbing and Panda Bear trip to Chengdu, China. Today was another trip to see the local politicos but this time without excessive heat and cigarette smoke blown at me, I had a nice visit. Can't talk about the details but let's just say there was a lot of what my buddy Dave and I call, Whiffem, as in "What's in it for me?"
So now for the weather forecast for Ulan Bator... Sunny and clear every day (They are known for having 260 sun filled days each year.) The highs will be in the 50s but the lows on Tuesday and Wednesday will be around 25 degrees with 15 degree wind chill factors.
Did I say it was freezing cold there?
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Interesting Rainy Weekend
I had no goals for this weekend except to prep for my Mongolia trip which begins on Friday, 9/17. On a rainy Saturday morning, I went to return a towel I bought at a local department store and was instantly transported 25 years backwards. This store can take your credit for sales but returns are heavily controlled so no swiping your credit card and giving a receipt. They write down your credit card number, fill out a form, copy your credit card and then tell you it will take 20 business days for the credit to go through. I objected to having my credit card written down and potentially available for someone to steal the account numbers, but was told this was the only way to make a return.
On my way home as the rain intensity increased, I watched the traffic with increasing curiosity. The moped riders drape themselves in a poncho and look absolutely miserable as the water hits them in the face and pools in the middle near there bodies. I passed one of those intersections where there are no rules, no stop sign, no traffic light, etc. Of course, cars and mopeds rarely obey the rules so it's not unusual. After walking past the intersection, I heard a loud boom. I thought it was one of those overloaded carts that might have toppled. Something like this one I found in Guillin in 2006...
So peaking out between two trucks, I see a moped rider on the ground and a very nice Audi sedan stopped nearby. I waited to see what would happen next. The Audi driver jumped out of his car very concerned and without a look at the person on the ground he raced over to see if there was any mark on his car. (You can't make this stuff up.) Then he and his passenger went over to help the lady on the ground. They never really looked at her, just standing there each holding the ends of the handlebar just waiting for here to remount and leave. The driver continued to stare at the front bumper of his car looking for damage.
Now a word about the accident victim. When she stands up, you can clearly see bandages on her left elbow and left knee. My guess is she has bounced off another car recently. She was very concerned about her right knee which was red but had no blood on it. Finally, after a lot of pointing at her knee she got on her moped and headed back where she was originally coming from. The driver just left the scene and proceeded to almost hit me and cut off two cars at the next corner. On my way to the corner, I passed one of Shanghai's many "Traffic Assistants" who are there to direct traffic in busy intersections and try to keep pedestrians safe from traffic rule breakers. She was sitting on a chair, mid-street, watching the accident scene but not wanting to get involved, so when I passed her I said, "It's okay don't get up."
Sunday was even rainier so I thought it would be good to go out and take some photos of the locals in action in a downpour. To justify my movement outside, I headed for a distant place called NY Deli on a route I have never taken to observe life and as luck would have it a few treats were found along the way. With camera in hand, the pictures will tell most of the story. (Note: As always, you can see all of the photos by clicking on any one of them and going to my Smugmug page)
The first thing I came upon was a marital dispute that seemed to erupt into a hockey fight. I saw this man make a grab for his female caveman style, while holding their child and an umbrella, never giving up his grip on any of the three. The lady tried furiously to shake loose, eventually, starting to take her shirt off because he wouldn't release his grip in the shirt. Those of you who know the ice hockey maneuver of pulling your opponents shirt over their head so they can't use their arms can visualize this easily. She seemed to be trying to remove her shirt to escape the grip. This held my interest for purely journalist reasons, of course. Finally, she slipped his attempt to move his grip to her hair and she ran down the street and out of sight. He still held the umbrella and child and walked in that direction and away from me.
As I walked away, I thought of Howard Cosell announcing a boxing match in the 70s, and screaming "Down goes Frazier", when boxer George Foreman decked Joe Frazier. It's been an incredible life and I'm only 55, but why do I remember all this stuff? In my house, only Marissa has a memory like this. Heck, Jonathan can't remember anything about his childhood, but that's a story for another day.
Then I saw this roadside repair by someone other than AAA. This tire repair job photo also catches a lady who might be giving verbal support but is lacking some support of her own, if you get my drift.
Next, I found this adorable scene with a young boy playing with a kitten by grabbing it's tiny claws under the door opening.
After a 2.5 mile walk, I found the restaurant and dared convention by ordering a Corned Beef Reuben sandwich at the deli. It was excellent! After finishing, I ordered a Chicken Burrito, yes, Burrito, which they are known for, intending to have that for my dinner. These items are around $7 each so very reasonable. The burrito is enormous. No way I eat more than half for dinner. A definite keeper location. On my way home, I decided to go a slightly longer route to see more of Shanghai.
This next guy and I had some fun watching a bus rush through a puddle and splash passersby as they walked in front of him. I enjoyed his enjoyment and tried to capture that.
Then there was this guy who was shopping with his family.
Finally near home, was the guy similar to the one in the photo above with his heavy load on his bicycle.
The funniest event of the day was a very pushy shoeshine guy who wanted to shine the black boarder on my Goretex shoes. He couldn't understand why I had no interest.
Near my home, I found a local grocery store which was a great relief because the nearest store I knew of is several subway stops away. Now it's time to pack for Mongolia so there probably won't be any blog posts until I return.
On my way home as the rain intensity increased, I watched the traffic with increasing curiosity. The moped riders drape themselves in a poncho and look absolutely miserable as the water hits them in the face and pools in the middle near there bodies. I passed one of those intersections where there are no rules, no stop sign, no traffic light, etc. Of course, cars and mopeds rarely obey the rules so it's not unusual. After walking past the intersection, I heard a loud boom. I thought it was one of those overloaded carts that might have toppled. Something like this one I found in Guillin in 2006...
So peaking out between two trucks, I see a moped rider on the ground and a very nice Audi sedan stopped nearby. I waited to see what would happen next. The Audi driver jumped out of his car very concerned and without a look at the person on the ground he raced over to see if there was any mark on his car. (You can't make this stuff up.) Then he and his passenger went over to help the lady on the ground. They never really looked at her, just standing there each holding the ends of the handlebar just waiting for here to remount and leave. The driver continued to stare at the front bumper of his car looking for damage.
Now a word about the accident victim. When she stands up, you can clearly see bandages on her left elbow and left knee. My guess is she has bounced off another car recently. She was very concerned about her right knee which was red but had no blood on it. Finally, after a lot of pointing at her knee she got on her moped and headed back where she was originally coming from. The driver just left the scene and proceeded to almost hit me and cut off two cars at the next corner. On my way to the corner, I passed one of Shanghai's many "Traffic Assistants" who are there to direct traffic in busy intersections and try to keep pedestrians safe from traffic rule breakers. She was sitting on a chair, mid-street, watching the accident scene but not wanting to get involved, so when I passed her I said, "It's okay don't get up."
Sunday was even rainier so I thought it would be good to go out and take some photos of the locals in action in a downpour. To justify my movement outside, I headed for a distant place called NY Deli on a route I have never taken to observe life and as luck would have it a few treats were found along the way. With camera in hand, the pictures will tell most of the story. (Note: As always, you can see all of the photos by clicking on any one of them and going to my Smugmug page)
The first thing I came upon was a marital dispute that seemed to erupt into a hockey fight. I saw this man make a grab for his female caveman style, while holding their child and an umbrella, never giving up his grip on any of the three. The lady tried furiously to shake loose, eventually, starting to take her shirt off because he wouldn't release his grip in the shirt. Those of you who know the ice hockey maneuver of pulling your opponents shirt over their head so they can't use their arms can visualize this easily. She seemed to be trying to remove her shirt to escape the grip. This held my interest for purely journalist reasons, of course. Finally, she slipped his attempt to move his grip to her hair and she ran down the street and out of sight. He still held the umbrella and child and walked in that direction and away from me.
As I walked away, I thought of Howard Cosell announcing a boxing match in the 70s, and screaming "Down goes Frazier", when boxer George Foreman decked Joe Frazier. It's been an incredible life and I'm only 55, but why do I remember all this stuff? In my house, only Marissa has a memory like this. Heck, Jonathan can't remember anything about his childhood, but that's a story for another day.
Then I saw this roadside repair by someone other than AAA. This tire repair job photo also catches a lady who might be giving verbal support but is lacking some support of her own, if you get my drift.
Next, I found this adorable scene with a young boy playing with a kitten by grabbing it's tiny claws under the door opening.
After a 2.5 mile walk, I found the restaurant and dared convention by ordering a Corned Beef Reuben sandwich at the deli. It was excellent! After finishing, I ordered a Chicken Burrito, yes, Burrito, which they are known for, intending to have that for my dinner. These items are around $7 each so very reasonable. The burrito is enormous. No way I eat more than half for dinner. A definite keeper location. On my way home, I decided to go a slightly longer route to see more of Shanghai.
This next guy and I had some fun watching a bus rush through a puddle and splash passersby as they walked in front of him. I enjoyed his enjoyment and tried to capture that.
Then there was this guy who was shopping with his family.
Finally near home, was the guy similar to the one in the photo above with his heavy load on his bicycle.
The funniest event of the day was a very pushy shoeshine guy who wanted to shine the black boarder on my Goretex shoes. He couldn't understand why I had no interest.
Near my home, I found a local grocery store which was a great relief because the nearest store I knew of is several subway stops away. Now it's time to pack for Mongolia so there probably won't be any blog posts until I return.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Rosh Hashanah in Shanghai
Today, I went to a synagogue in Shanghai to participate in the High Holiday services for the 2nd day of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. I am going to try and write this so all readers can understand the situation. The name of the synagogue is the Shanghai Jewish Center. I went with a co-worker, Noah, who is originally from Boston. We got there to find a traditional orthodox setting. This means the men and women are separated by a barrier so the inferiors, don't interrupt or distract the men while they are doing important things like praying or studying Jewish laws.
Before I begin, you need to know I do appreciate the continuity and strength of the religion. After 5,000 years, everywhere around the world, people are hearing and saying (we call it chanting) the same prayers. Through wars, persecution, destruction, attempted annihilation, the religion stands strong so I can walk into a synagogue anywhere including Shanghai to hear the same prayers I heard as a young boy in NYC.. This is true of Jews anywhere in the world. Of course, I am choosing to explore this with a sense of humor so enjoy that.
When we entered there were four men busily praying while we shuffled in to a wave of greeting from one of them. They were very welcoming. I quickly realized this was only the pre-service crowd because in the Jewish religion you need to have ten adults to begin a service. (Yes, the less strict group includes women in the count, but not these boys.) I indicated to Noah that this was warm-ups so we didn't need to do anything and told him why I thought so. He quickly agreed so we settled back to take it all in. The bustling crowd grew to seven men when the praying ended and one guy immediately held up three fingers indicating we needed three more men before we could start. There were people upstairs who were summoned to join us so the prayers could begin. The rabbi came over and asked a us if we knew why the 11th person was called the "Pisher". (Note: "Pisher" is Yiddish for bed wetter.) Of course, we knew a joke was coming so we waited. He told us that ten men are required not only to start the prayer service, but also to remain in the sanctuary to allow it to continue. So if only ten were there and someone needed to go to the bathroom having an 11th person in the room meant that the services could continue while the person in need could go do his business. Otherwise, they would have to stop the service and wait for the person to return from the restroom before continuing. (Sorry folks, this is Jewish humor.) Kind of like this Joan Rivers quote, "I'm Jewish. I don't work out. If God had wanted us to bend over, He would have put diamonds on the floor."
Anyway, the services take off with nary a word of English except for an occasional shout-out of the page number. The congregation peaks at around 18 men, which is fewer people than the CHORUS at our synagogue in Westboro, MA, not to mention the 5,000 person membership that my brother, Howard, is a part of in Houston. They race through the service chanting Hebrew at breakneck speed I haven't heard since the 1970s in NYC. The service hasn't changed much in the past 5,000 years, so I was able to actually recall a lot of what they did and keep up. Noah, on the other hand, was losing interest in a hurry but we agreed to stay to hear the sounding of the shofar. This is a traditional part of the service where the rabbi blows air through ram's horn to make sounds based on certain Hebrews words. From Wikipedia... A shofar (Hebrew: שופר) is a horn, traditionally that of a ram, used for Jewish religious purposes. Shofar-blowing is incorporated in synagogue services on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
During the service, Noah and I were each given the honor of opening the Ark. (The Ark is a receptacle, or ornamental closet, which contains each synagogue's Torah scrolls.) This is considered an honor. In most synagogues, it the highest ranking members who get these honors (or the biggest donors, hey, we ARE Jewish.) The Ark is probably opened and closed 20 times during the service plus there are a few other honors for attendees to do, so you had to figure the odds were with us that we would be asked to do something, which is an honor so you never refuse. Of course, they didn't ask us to dazzle them with our Hebrew reading skills either.
The moment came to hear the shofar. I leaned over to Noah and said, "You don't think the Rabbi is going to give a sermon, do you?" My kids know how I am especially disdainful of preaching from the Jewish pulpit, but that's a story for a different day and usually exercise my religious and personal freedom by leaving the building when this is about to occur. Of course, Noah said, "I'm sure he won't, there are only 18 men in here." So we sat and listened to him ramble on for 10 minutes about whatever the Torah reading for the day was. Something about God not letting someone die in Israel, but having her die in the desert so the Jewish people would be able to have someone to pray to when they got exiled again from Israel, blah blah blah. Now wait a minute, if these are your chosen people and you know they are going to be exiled and you are God, don't you think you could do something about this? Then I wouldn't have to listen to this made up story 5,000 years later. Come on God, do your job, too. (You can tell that I'm deeply moved by this religious stuff.)
Okay, so the story of Rachel dying in the desert was over so we could move on with the shofar service without further ado. Since, I've been in around eight different synagogues for the High Holiday services, I know that generally, everyone in all synagogues stops their chatting and shuffling, the kids pay attention, the yentas pay attention, etc. The rabbi did a pretty good job of getting all the sounds out correctly and on time. I'm not saying this is easy and I have attended some services where the shofar blower, who is not always the Rabbi, couldn't get any sound out, so this was a successful shofar event.
After this was concluded, we decided to exercise our religious freedom and retire to a local restaurant for Kung Pao shrimp and Chongqing chicken, the chicken was a bit too spicy for me but I watched Noah dip his pieces in some kind of hot sauce, I'm glad I didn't have to be around him the rest of the day.
Of course, there's a Seinfeld Kung Pao reference you can find here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJIZo9DA-5g (you have to copy and paste this link)
After that, we parted ways with Noah headed to the U.S. tomorrow. I ended up walking for two hours a sweating like a pig but since this is a Jewish themed post, I'll just say I was shvitzing, best explained in this quote from the NY Times...
"I, on the other hand, am shvitzing. That’s Yiddish, of course, and therefore the best word in any language for this slippery situation brought about by heat and humidity."
Before I begin, you need to know I do appreciate the continuity and strength of the religion. After 5,000 years, everywhere around the world, people are hearing and saying (we call it chanting) the same prayers. Through wars, persecution, destruction, attempted annihilation, the religion stands strong so I can walk into a synagogue anywhere including Shanghai to hear the same prayers I heard as a young boy in NYC.. This is true of Jews anywhere in the world. Of course, I am choosing to explore this with a sense of humor so enjoy that.
When we entered there were four men busily praying while we shuffled in to a wave of greeting from one of them. They were very welcoming. I quickly realized this was only the pre-service crowd because in the Jewish religion you need to have ten adults to begin a service. (Yes, the less strict group includes women in the count, but not these boys.) I indicated to Noah that this was warm-ups so we didn't need to do anything and told him why I thought so. He quickly agreed so we settled back to take it all in. The bustling crowd grew to seven men when the praying ended and one guy immediately held up three fingers indicating we needed three more men before we could start. There were people upstairs who were summoned to join us so the prayers could begin. The rabbi came over and asked a us if we knew why the 11th person was called the "Pisher". (Note: "Pisher" is Yiddish for bed wetter.) Of course, we knew a joke was coming so we waited. He told us that ten men are required not only to start the prayer service, but also to remain in the sanctuary to allow it to continue. So if only ten were there and someone needed to go to the bathroom having an 11th person in the room meant that the services could continue while the person in need could go do his business. Otherwise, they would have to stop the service and wait for the person to return from the restroom before continuing. (Sorry folks, this is Jewish humor.) Kind of like this Joan Rivers quote, "I'm Jewish. I don't work out. If God had wanted us to bend over, He would have put diamonds on the floor."
Anyway, the services take off with nary a word of English except for an occasional shout-out of the page number. The congregation peaks at around 18 men, which is fewer people than the CHORUS at our synagogue in Westboro, MA, not to mention the 5,000 person membership that my brother, Howard, is a part of in Houston. They race through the service chanting Hebrew at breakneck speed I haven't heard since the 1970s in NYC. The service hasn't changed much in the past 5,000 years, so I was able to actually recall a lot of what they did and keep up. Noah, on the other hand, was losing interest in a hurry but we agreed to stay to hear the sounding of the shofar. This is a traditional part of the service where the rabbi blows air through ram's horn to make sounds based on certain Hebrews words. From Wikipedia... A shofar (Hebrew: שופר) is a horn, traditionally that of a ram, used for Jewish religious purposes. Shofar-blowing is incorporated in synagogue services on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.
During the service, Noah and I were each given the honor of opening the Ark. (The Ark is a receptacle, or ornamental closet, which contains each synagogue's Torah scrolls.) This is considered an honor. In most synagogues, it the highest ranking members who get these honors (or the biggest donors, hey, we ARE Jewish.) The Ark is probably opened and closed 20 times during the service plus there are a few other honors for attendees to do, so you had to figure the odds were with us that we would be asked to do something, which is an honor so you never refuse. Of course, they didn't ask us to dazzle them with our Hebrew reading skills either.
The moment came to hear the shofar. I leaned over to Noah and said, "You don't think the Rabbi is going to give a sermon, do you?" My kids know how I am especially disdainful of preaching from the Jewish pulpit, but that's a story for a different day and usually exercise my religious and personal freedom by leaving the building when this is about to occur. Of course, Noah said, "I'm sure he won't, there are only 18 men in here." So we sat and listened to him ramble on for 10 minutes about whatever the Torah reading for the day was. Something about God not letting someone die in Israel, but having her die in the desert so the Jewish people would be able to have someone to pray to when they got exiled again from Israel, blah blah blah. Now wait a minute, if these are your chosen people and you know they are going to be exiled and you are God, don't you think you could do something about this? Then I wouldn't have to listen to this made up story 5,000 years later. Come on God, do your job, too. (You can tell that I'm deeply moved by this religious stuff.)
Okay, so the story of Rachel dying in the desert was over so we could move on with the shofar service without further ado. Since, I've been in around eight different synagogues for the High Holiday services, I know that generally, everyone in all synagogues stops their chatting and shuffling, the kids pay attention, the yentas pay attention, etc. The rabbi did a pretty good job of getting all the sounds out correctly and on time. I'm not saying this is easy and I have attended some services where the shofar blower, who is not always the Rabbi, couldn't get any sound out, so this was a successful shofar event.
After this was concluded, we decided to exercise our religious freedom and retire to a local restaurant for Kung Pao shrimp and Chongqing chicken, the chicken was a bit too spicy for me but I watched Noah dip his pieces in some kind of hot sauce, I'm glad I didn't have to be around him the rest of the day.
Of course, there's a Seinfeld Kung Pao reference you can find here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJIZo9DA-5g (you have to copy and paste this link)
After that, we parted ways with Noah headed to the U.S. tomorrow. I ended up walking for two hours a sweating like a pig but since this is a Jewish themed post, I'll just say I was shvitzing, best explained in this quote from the NY Times...
"I, on the other hand, am shvitzing. That’s Yiddish, of course, and therefore the best word in any language for this slippery situation brought about by heat and humidity."
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Weekly update for 9/9/10
I guess on this date I don't have to think about writing the date the way they do here with the number of the day first and then the number of the month. If you don't understand you can stop reading now because there will be a test later.
Big events this week:
1. Moved to a new home
2. Finalized arrangements for the first big trip
3. My Chinese tutor bites the dust!
The Move - Now that I have a new home, it's amazing how fast you forget simple pleasures like a freezer or ice cubes I didn't have the past 6 weeks. Peace and quiet is a big win vs. the first location which had construction and horn honking contests at all hours. I guess now I have to find someone to cut the grass, trim the hedges, wash my car, figure out what day the garbage is picked up, etc. Wait a minute, maybe I had you fooled, it's an apartment, I don't have any of those hassles of regular home owning life. So I got to thinking about it. Not counting my temporary stay in an apartment for 9 months when I moved to Framingham or 3 months in 1979 when I worked for Mobil Oil (who promptly offered me a move before the ink was dry on the lease), I have not lived in an apartment since 1959! Pretty amazing and I've been pretty lucky considering my parents raised us in private homes and then being able to buy a home in Bellingham, WA at age 25.
Anyway, while my apartment is fairly small, it is very well constructed with lots of luxury types of built-ins like indirect lighting, rainfall shower head, solid wood doors, etc.
2. The big trip - I have now finalized my trip to Mongolia (or Mon Gu, in Chinese language). No one I have spoken to here has ever been there and no one would even consider it. There's Inner Mongolia which is part of China as what they call an Autonomous Region and then there's Outer Mongolia which was part of the Soviet sphere of influence from the 1920s until 1990. The means Lenin or Stalin was ruling things long distance. Stalin killed many thousands of people, mostly monks, and destroyed most of the Buddhist Temples leaving a few standing as reminders to people of when they were weak and on the wrong path before Communism found them. (You can't make this stuff up.) So the Chinese have no interest in Mongolia which is now a Democratic country with elections, bad politics, etc. The problem is the infrastructure is all Soviet and has been floundering since they ran out of money so the infrastructure is in a crummy shape. Sounds like a great place to visit, doesn't it? Oh yeah, 50% of the population lives in a Ger (or Yurt) dwelling and horse is the main means of travel and the paved roads end within 30 miles of the capital.
So instead of taking the easy way and flying, I'm doing something a little goofy. I'm flying to Beijing, staying overnight near the Rail Station and boarding a train for Mongolia. This short trip will take around 30 hours. You can only imagine the characters that I will encounter. Should be very interesting. At the border, they get everyone off the train, do customs checks, out of China and into Mongolia. Then they take the train itself and bring it to some kind of work-shed. Lift the train, remove the wheels that were used and replace with a different set. I guess the Chinese tracks are a different gauge than the Russian made Mongolian ones. Then it's through the Gobi Desert toward Ulan Bator the capital city. From there, I have two excursions planned into the countryside staying local people's Gers before returning to the capital for a flight home to Shanghai. For those of you who remember playing the board game, Risk, I better get off the train in Ulan Bator because the next stop is Irkutsk and the train trip ends in Moscow, but not for me this time.
So, this all starts next Friday, which means I have this weekend to prepare. The forecast for Mongolia, 50-55 for the high and 32 for the low not counting the winds. Did I say it was cold there?
3. Chinese Tutor
I decided on Day 1 here that I wanted to have a tutor to supplement or even replace the Rosetta Stone lessons for Mandarin I was taking on my computer. So I found this young lady who is bilingual and has taught Mandarin to Expats for a while. My interest attracted two other Staples people and we all took individual lessons for $14/hr. She did a good job. I had to fire her though. She decided that since she got an MBA she should be starting her career at age 29, probably a good idea. Not only did she go out and get a job offer, but one of the Staples team she was working with had her interview with us and she got an offer from Staples which she accepted. Se told me she would no longer be giving lessons so I told her, "You can't quit on me, you're fired!" (I guess I told her). We're all really happy she got the job. She will be a great addition to Staples and I may even get a lesson at lunchtime every so often.
Big events this week:
1. Moved to a new home
2. Finalized arrangements for the first big trip
3. My Chinese tutor bites the dust!
The Move - Now that I have a new home, it's amazing how fast you forget simple pleasures like a freezer or ice cubes I didn't have the past 6 weeks. Peace and quiet is a big win vs. the first location which had construction and horn honking contests at all hours. I guess now I have to find someone to cut the grass, trim the hedges, wash my car, figure out what day the garbage is picked up, etc. Wait a minute, maybe I had you fooled, it's an apartment, I don't have any of those hassles of regular home owning life. So I got to thinking about it. Not counting my temporary stay in an apartment for 9 months when I moved to Framingham or 3 months in 1979 when I worked for Mobil Oil (who promptly offered me a move before the ink was dry on the lease), I have not lived in an apartment since 1959! Pretty amazing and I've been pretty lucky considering my parents raised us in private homes and then being able to buy a home in Bellingham, WA at age 25.
Anyway, while my apartment is fairly small, it is very well constructed with lots of luxury types of built-ins like indirect lighting, rainfall shower head, solid wood doors, etc.
2. The big trip - I have now finalized my trip to Mongolia (or Mon Gu, in Chinese language). No one I have spoken to here has ever been there and no one would even consider it. There's Inner Mongolia which is part of China as what they call an Autonomous Region and then there's Outer Mongolia which was part of the Soviet sphere of influence from the 1920s until 1990. The means Lenin or Stalin was ruling things long distance. Stalin killed many thousands of people, mostly monks, and destroyed most of the Buddhist Temples leaving a few standing as reminders to people of when they were weak and on the wrong path before Communism found them. (You can't make this stuff up.) So the Chinese have no interest in Mongolia which is now a Democratic country with elections, bad politics, etc. The problem is the infrastructure is all Soviet and has been floundering since they ran out of money so the infrastructure is in a crummy shape. Sounds like a great place to visit, doesn't it? Oh yeah, 50% of the population lives in a Ger (or Yurt) dwelling and horse is the main means of travel and the paved roads end within 30 miles of the capital.
So instead of taking the easy way and flying, I'm doing something a little goofy. I'm flying to Beijing, staying overnight near the Rail Station and boarding a train for Mongolia. This short trip will take around 30 hours. You can only imagine the characters that I will encounter. Should be very interesting. At the border, they get everyone off the train, do customs checks, out of China and into Mongolia. Then they take the train itself and bring it to some kind of work-shed. Lift the train, remove the wheels that were used and replace with a different set. I guess the Chinese tracks are a different gauge than the Russian made Mongolian ones. Then it's through the Gobi Desert toward Ulan Bator the capital city. From there, I have two excursions planned into the countryside staying local people's Gers before returning to the capital for a flight home to Shanghai. For those of you who remember playing the board game, Risk, I better get off the train in Ulan Bator because the next stop is Irkutsk and the train trip ends in Moscow, but not for me this time.
So, this all starts next Friday, which means I have this weekend to prepare. The forecast for Mongolia, 50-55 for the high and 32 for the low not counting the winds. Did I say it was cold there?
3. Chinese Tutor
I decided on Day 1 here that I wanted to have a tutor to supplement or even replace the Rosetta Stone lessons for Mandarin I was taking on my computer. So I found this young lady who is bilingual and has taught Mandarin to Expats for a while. My interest attracted two other Staples people and we all took individual lessons for $14/hr. She did a good job. I had to fire her though. She decided that since she got an MBA she should be starting her career at age 29, probably a good idea. Not only did she go out and get a job offer, but one of the Staples team she was working with had her interview with us and she got an offer from Staples which she accepted. Se told me she would no longer be giving lessons so I told her, "You can't quit on me, you're fired!" (I guess I told her). We're all really happy she got the job. She will be a great addition to Staples and I may even get a lesson at lunchtime every so often.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Weekend silliness
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Without any plans for the weekend other than to pack my stuff on Sunday evening for my move on Monday, I was free to roam around Shanghai. Saturday, along with one of my Canadian co-workers, my plan was to look for a hiking backpack to use on my upcoming journeys. She was hunting Rolex watches for her family. I have an everyday backpack, too small for overnights, and a big camera backpack, ideal for camera gear but a little heavy for hiking all day. My thought was something you see hikers use that could accommodate whatever I needed to take, which is a combination of camera and personal essentials, like clothes.
Earlier in the week I checked out the only sporting goods retailer here, Decathlon. Those in Massachusetts may remember them for buying MVP Sports and then ruining the business and subsequently closing them all. The ones here are pretty nice, plus they are the only game in town. After reviewing their inventory, it was off to the knockoff mall again to see what they offered. The first place had some that fit me as most are too short for my longish torso. When I asked for better quality, the guy disappeared into the backroom (looking like a contortionist as he twisted his way through a tiny opening to bring me a "North Face" backpack that was pretty good. I felt the quality was still fairly poor and, of course, told him. He said, "But it's a North Face and they are excellent quality." I answered, "It's not a North Face, you just have North Face tags on it." His priceless answer was, "Well, it's still good quality." OK, on to the next stand. At this one, I found a better quality NF knockoff, this time with no NF tags but a reasonable fit. I decided to buy it if I could get my price. He started at $100 U.S. and I just laughed and told him $19. He saw I was serious so he countered with $50. I said, "No, it's $19 or it's no." He tried one more attempt at $35, before relenting as I began walking. I'm satisfied, it will last for my trips in Asia but may not have the lifetime use I would get from a real NF backpack but over here you just can't trust that anything is real.
Note: Lots of photos here but you can click on any one of them to go to my smugmug site and see them all.
Then it was on to lunch at my new favorite restaurant, and an excellent fresh salad, bumping into another co-worker who is a local resident. One the way out, she showed us where an inexpensive ferry ($.28) was that went across the river back to where we were headed. From there, we hiked to my favorite bookstore for a book on Mongolia. Due to the lack of popularity of Mongolia as a destination, the Internet has little to offer so I was forced to buy a book (and pay full retail!).
Then it was hiking around town, getting hot and tired, so we went in the direction of a new restaurant I have had on my list but never visited. On the way, my co-worker decided to go back in an test the watch market at a later hour since she didn't get her price earlier. She emerged with 6 Rolexes! And paid 10% less for each than I did. On to dinner at this Italian restaurant for Tagliatelle with shrimp and a pizza with salami and mushrooms. Good eating! Nice restaurant too.
Back to the Metro to head home, early to bed (10 PM).
Sunday was a day to go into some older areas. Not a lot of words because I'd like to have the photos tell the story. I'll just give the itinerary. I started in the center of town and hiked south in the heat. (Did I say it was hot here?) I took some photos intended to show the contrast you find in quickly growing cities in Asia. Old abandoned buildings, religious places and new sky scrapers. Something like...
Then into an old market where mostly Westerners shop but it also has some local color and vendors. I think this fruit vendor could give the sugar cane lady from last week a run for her money for physical fitness...
Along the way are tired workers like this street side leather repair guy...
or this street cleaner who is taking a break on the job...
There are people out for a Sunday stroll in their PJs (Fairly common sight here)...
A young man hanging out with Dad who's doing some street side card gambling...
A couple with an umbrella to block out the sun (these are the ones that are usually aimed at my eyes.)...
A little girl on the $.28 ferry I took again for the river side photos which follow the young girl...
Also, commerce is still going on this Sunday on the Huangpu River...
Finally, a view of the Bund from the ferry...
This was a walking weekend where I clocked around 15 miles so my dogs are tired. More stories next week after the apartment move and a typhoon.
Readers have been having issues making comments here. I have gone through and reset all settings so now I think you will be able to post here. Please try and let me know if it works for you.
Without any plans for the weekend other than to pack my stuff on Sunday evening for my move on Monday, I was free to roam around Shanghai. Saturday, along with one of my Canadian co-workers, my plan was to look for a hiking backpack to use on my upcoming journeys. She was hunting Rolex watches for her family. I have an everyday backpack, too small for overnights, and a big camera backpack, ideal for camera gear but a little heavy for hiking all day. My thought was something you see hikers use that could accommodate whatever I needed to take, which is a combination of camera and personal essentials, like clothes.
Earlier in the week I checked out the only sporting goods retailer here, Decathlon. Those in Massachusetts may remember them for buying MVP Sports and then ruining the business and subsequently closing them all. The ones here are pretty nice, plus they are the only game in town. After reviewing their inventory, it was off to the knockoff mall again to see what they offered. The first place had some that fit me as most are too short for my longish torso. When I asked for better quality, the guy disappeared into the backroom (looking like a contortionist as he twisted his way through a tiny opening to bring me a "North Face" backpack that was pretty good. I felt the quality was still fairly poor and, of course, told him. He said, "But it's a North Face and they are excellent quality." I answered, "It's not a North Face, you just have North Face tags on it." His priceless answer was, "Well, it's still good quality." OK, on to the next stand. At this one, I found a better quality NF knockoff, this time with no NF tags but a reasonable fit. I decided to buy it if I could get my price. He started at $100 U.S. and I just laughed and told him $19. He saw I was serious so he countered with $50. I said, "No, it's $19 or it's no." He tried one more attempt at $35, before relenting as I began walking. I'm satisfied, it will last for my trips in Asia but may not have the lifetime use I would get from a real NF backpack but over here you just can't trust that anything is real.
Note: Lots of photos here but you can click on any one of them to go to my smugmug site and see them all.
Then it was on to lunch at my new favorite restaurant, and an excellent fresh salad, bumping into another co-worker who is a local resident. One the way out, she showed us where an inexpensive ferry ($.28) was that went across the river back to where we were headed. From there, we hiked to my favorite bookstore for a book on Mongolia. Due to the lack of popularity of Mongolia as a destination, the Internet has little to offer so I was forced to buy a book (and pay full retail!).
Then it was hiking around town, getting hot and tired, so we went in the direction of a new restaurant I have had on my list but never visited. On the way, my co-worker decided to go back in an test the watch market at a later hour since she didn't get her price earlier. She emerged with 6 Rolexes! And paid 10% less for each than I did. On to dinner at this Italian restaurant for Tagliatelle with shrimp and a pizza with salami and mushrooms. Good eating! Nice restaurant too.
Back to the Metro to head home, early to bed (10 PM).
Sunday was a day to go into some older areas. Not a lot of words because I'd like to have the photos tell the story. I'll just give the itinerary. I started in the center of town and hiked south in the heat. (Did I say it was hot here?) I took some photos intended to show the contrast you find in quickly growing cities in Asia. Old abandoned buildings, religious places and new sky scrapers. Something like...
Then into an old market where mostly Westerners shop but it also has some local color and vendors. I think this fruit vendor could give the sugar cane lady from last week a run for her money for physical fitness...
Along the way are tired workers like this street side leather repair guy...
or this street cleaner who is taking a break on the job...
There are people out for a Sunday stroll in their PJs (Fairly common sight here)...
A young man hanging out with Dad who's doing some street side card gambling...
A couple with an umbrella to block out the sun (these are the ones that are usually aimed at my eyes.)...
A little girl on the $.28 ferry I took again for the river side photos which follow the young girl...
Also, commerce is still going on this Sunday on the Huangpu River...
Finally, a view of the Bund from the ferry...
This was a walking weekend where I clocked around 15 miles so my dogs are tired. More stories next week after the apartment move and a typhoon.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Mellow week in Shanghai
Not a lot of unusual activity this week...
We all met the new President of Staples, China who is originally from Denmark and has been living in China for seven years. Seems like he is the right guy to help take this business to the next level so it will be a good environment for what I'm trying to accomplish during the next 5 months.
There are two Chinese holidays approaching and I hadn't finalized any plans so this was the week to take the next step. We have a holiday for three days in late September call the Mid- Autumn Festival. While we get three days off for this, we work two weekend days to make up for taking the two days off (as do all businesses in Shanghai.) Following that, we have a seven day National holiday from October 1st thru October 7th. Which is a five work day break for which we will work two weekend days to make up for some time lost.
For the first holiday, I have arranged a tour in Mongolia (Outer Mongolia to us old people). Several factors in the decision. First, I have to leave the country (and Staples pays my reasonable transportation) to "renew" my visa, like my recent trip to Hong Kong. Second, the choices were Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea or Osaka. For various reasons, these seemed like temples, palaces, shopping and repeat. I wanted a little more adventure. So, I'm taking a plane to Beijing, then a long train ride through the Chinese and Mongolian countryside to Ulan Bator, the capital city. This ride is on the Trans-Siberian railway that goes all the way to Moscow. No Visa for Mongolia is required for U.S. citizens. After arriving, I have arrange a tour of two large National Park areas with interesting wildlife, countryside, staying yurts or gers (Google them), visiting a nomad family, riding horse, etc. This should be a very blog worthy trip.
The second trip will be to Chengdu, China. This is a city of 9 million where I will board a bus and head to a town called Baoshan to start walking. I plan to walk to the top of a mountain called EmeiShan (Eyebrow Mountain). Think of me a non-running Forrest Gump, going vertical. The views above the clouds are supposed to be amazing. The mountain climb/hike is on mostly paved stairs that are well traveled. For those who can't make it to the top, there are two places to jump on a bus to the top. No reservations for the overnights, so I plan to stay in monasteries that are along the path on the mountain. I've read that the monasteries are not expensive and provide electric blankets too. There are several places where monkeys (actually macaques) pester the travelers, sound like great photo ops to me. If/when I get back down, there is also a Panda breeding center in Chengdu to visit before my return home.
So a slow week with a lot of planning and activities to think about. Monday I move to a new apartment nearer the city center where the noise level will be significantly reduced and the proximity to fun things will make life even more fun, especially for Susan when she arrives. (She did reach Washington State today on her cross country car trip.) The only negative is the doubling of my commute time but I can handle that since it's public transportation.
We all met the new President of Staples, China who is originally from Denmark and has been living in China for seven years. Seems like he is the right guy to help take this business to the next level so it will be a good environment for what I'm trying to accomplish during the next 5 months.
There are two Chinese holidays approaching and I hadn't finalized any plans so this was the week to take the next step. We have a holiday for three days in late September call the Mid- Autumn Festival. While we get three days off for this, we work two weekend days to make up for taking the two days off (as do all businesses in Shanghai.) Following that, we have a seven day National holiday from October 1st thru October 7th. Which is a five work day break for which we will work two weekend days to make up for some time lost.
For the first holiday, I have arranged a tour in Mongolia (Outer Mongolia to us old people). Several factors in the decision. First, I have to leave the country (and Staples pays my reasonable transportation) to "renew" my visa, like my recent trip to Hong Kong. Second, the choices were Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea or Osaka. For various reasons, these seemed like temples, palaces, shopping and repeat. I wanted a little more adventure. So, I'm taking a plane to Beijing, then a long train ride through the Chinese and Mongolian countryside to Ulan Bator, the capital city. This ride is on the Trans-Siberian railway that goes all the way to Moscow. No Visa for Mongolia is required for U.S. citizens. After arriving, I have arrange a tour of two large National Park areas with interesting wildlife, countryside, staying yurts or gers (Google them), visiting a nomad family, riding horse, etc. This should be a very blog worthy trip.
The second trip will be to Chengdu, China. This is a city of 9 million where I will board a bus and head to a town called Baoshan to start walking. I plan to walk to the top of a mountain called EmeiShan (Eyebrow Mountain). Think of me a non-running Forrest Gump, going vertical. The views above the clouds are supposed to be amazing. The mountain climb/hike is on mostly paved stairs that are well traveled. For those who can't make it to the top, there are two places to jump on a bus to the top. No reservations for the overnights, so I plan to stay in monasteries that are along the path on the mountain. I've read that the monasteries are not expensive and provide electric blankets too. There are several places where monkeys (actually macaques) pester the travelers, sound like great photo ops to me. If/when I get back down, there is also a Panda breeding center in Chengdu to visit before my return home.
So a slow week with a lot of planning and activities to think about. Monday I move to a new apartment nearer the city center where the noise level will be significantly reduced and the proximity to fun things will make life even more fun, especially for Susan when she arrives. (She did reach Washington State today on her cross country car trip.) The only negative is the doubling of my commute time but I can handle that since it's public transportation.
Living in Shanghai
This post is about some things that I have observed here in Shanghai. In no particular order...
Escalators - There are lots of escalators but not everyone knows how to use them, sounds silly but it's true. Yesterday, I had a problem for the third time. When some people get to the top of the escalator, they just stop and look around. Of course, all escalators are jammed with people and some people are not thinking about what is going on behind them. Yesterday, I had to physically move the person who reached the top without taking more than one step. Let's just say he was shocked by my actions but he did move pretty easily.
One other escalator story... When we went for Peking duck a few weeks ago, we were mistakenly taken down an escalator (inside the restaurant) to a lower floor we were not supposed to be on. When we got returned to the escalator to go back up, it was broken and someone was slowly working on it. To the shock of my Canadian co-workers and the cries of "No!" from the restaurant staff, I just ran up the down escalator while it was still operating. Sure it took a little effort, but I made it safely to the upper floor while my fellow associates roared with laughter and the servers were a bit horrified.
Tongs - Last week, when I was in the Hong Kong airport, I noticed that when someone left the stall in the men's room, the attendant proceeded into the stall with a pair of really long metal tongs. I let you think about what he is doing.
Toothpicks - I am amazed at how popular toothpicks are. Every restaurant has then prominently available, some have large containers with toothpicks on the tables. Many people can be observed using them as soon as their meals in completed, usually in a very good social fashion by covering their mouth with their left hand while using the toothpick with their right. Now, orthodontics has not really taken off here yet but when it does there are plenty of candidates.
Napkins - Most restaurants seem to have their napkins counted and issue them begrudgingly. A napkin's size is a like a cocktail napkin you would find in the U.S. and using more than one is not expected. As many of the foods are messy and difficult to consume for Westerners without requiring extra use At the same time, most restaurants provide each diner with a package of wipes before the meal.
Escalators - There are lots of escalators but not everyone knows how to use them, sounds silly but it's true. Yesterday, I had a problem for the third time. When some people get to the top of the escalator, they just stop and look around. Of course, all escalators are jammed with people and some people are not thinking about what is going on behind them. Yesterday, I had to physically move the person who reached the top without taking more than one step. Let's just say he was shocked by my actions but he did move pretty easily.
One other escalator story... When we went for Peking duck a few weeks ago, we were mistakenly taken down an escalator (inside the restaurant) to a lower floor we were not supposed to be on. When we got returned to the escalator to go back up, it was broken and someone was slowly working on it. To the shock of my Canadian co-workers and the cries of "No!" from the restaurant staff, I just ran up the down escalator while it was still operating. Sure it took a little effort, but I made it safely to the upper floor while my fellow associates roared with laughter and the servers were a bit horrified.
Tongs - Last week, when I was in the Hong Kong airport, I noticed that when someone left the stall in the men's room, the attendant proceeded into the stall with a pair of really long metal tongs. I let you think about what he is doing.
Toothpicks - I am amazed at how popular toothpicks are. Every restaurant has then prominently available, some have large containers with toothpicks on the tables. Many people can be observed using them as soon as their meals in completed, usually in a very good social fashion by covering their mouth with their left hand while using the toothpick with their right. Now, orthodontics has not really taken off here yet but when it does there are plenty of candidates.
Napkins - Most restaurants seem to have their napkins counted and issue them begrudgingly. A napkin's size is a like a cocktail napkin you would find in the U.S. and using more than one is not expected. As many of the foods are messy and difficult to consume for Westerners without requiring extra use At the same time, most restaurants provide each diner with a package of wipes before the meal.
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