Daily Monthly Random Briefings, 4

Last month in China!!

12/1/2010 - one large bag of veggies for 1RMB!!! it's possible to eat veggies for cheap here!

12/2/2010 - so... apparently the chinese hamburger people outside FSA come out at 9:30pm?

12/3/2010 - Chinese domestic flights don't let you bring liquids larger than a chapstick... they asked if i wanted to check-in my bottle of body wash (how was that gonna be shipped without luggage???) Is it just Shanghai Airlines or every Chinese domestic flights? =(

12/4/2010 - Apparently the one time Guangzhou gov tried to make public transportation free for city residents to feel the positive externalities of the Asian Games, the whole system went haywire. Lines and lines of people had to wait to take the subway... even to work. After a week of implementation, it had to be scrapped.

12/5/2010 - Due to Asian Games, many new buildings and architecture was built in Zhujiang Xincheng (珠江新城). It's like the Expo, but in Guangzhou in a sense.. haha

12/6/2010 - it's amazing how we're in Shanghai and Guangzhou when the metro lines connecting to the airport just opens. it makes life so much easier. but the metro to Hongqiao (Shanghai) is only 5RMB from our stop near Fudan while it costs 12RMB to get from city to airport in Guangzhou. I believe it's 20+ stops in Shanghai compared to the 15 or so stops in Guangzhou.

12/7/2010 - it's 7 degrees celsius in Shanghai now. i feel like a human Popsicle.... with iced fingers on the side.

12/8/2010 - only in china can you be discriminated based on what part of asia you're in... and whether you're foreign or not. i think people in other countries don't constantly ask where someone is from, or whether it matters enough when you're just trying to buy something.

12/9/2010 - i went to sleep wearing three layers.... and three more blankets on top of that.

12/10/2010 - there was more than one male  (with no sight problems) smoking cigarettes RIGHT UNDER the sign the says "No Smoking" in Chinese. what's the point of the sign??

12/11/2010 - i believe china has tried to ban websites with game cheats on them... so much for trying to cheat with a walk-through guide =P

12/12/2010 - walking down one street, i can ask four different convenient stores if there is a medicine shop nearby and all will give different answers. it's just one block! =.=

12/13/2010 - essay writing in China is quite sad when internet (our main source of English sources) is slow. i need my jstor pdfs!!

12/14/2010 - last day teaching at baoshan ended on a happy note. games, cookies, charades, and presents (hurriedly packed on the metro) made it a very long day.

12/15/2010 - IT SNOWED IN SHANGHAI!!!!!!!!!!! i finally got my white christmas (early).

12/16/2010 - soo, one reason China has needs econ and management major hires from abroad because econ majors here are more expensive.. and require 2 years abroad?? o.o on the other hand... yummy strawberries in the winter season come in the form of honey sugar coated Beijing-style fruit on a stick =)

12/17/2010 - china pavilion was HUGE! 12 floors high+roller coaster ride+waterfall...
also had our graduation dinner at the bottleopener building (tall!!), it's been a great 4 months in Shanghai =) thanks EAP for the memories here.

12/18/2010 - pickpocket encounter #3 in Shanghai! =( luckily caught the guy red-handed....
and had the best Korean food in Shanghai, in 4 months~

12/19/2010 -  expensive private room with a personal bathroom! now that's high class restaurant in Shanghai.

12/20/2010 - i'm gonna miss skewers and riceballs just downstairs..... not gonna miss the rude bikers and drivers here though. 2 finals, 5 days before home....

12/21/2010 - streetfood vendors all live in around the same area, then disperse at night to different locations (most commonly near universities and dorms) for the night's work. it's a pretty effective strategy seeing as college students are probably make up the largest part of the late-night snackers out at night.

12/22/2010 - i have never seen so many garbage cans within close proximity in Shanghai, until i got to the walkway near the Oriental Pearl Tower. nor have i seen such a clean path... the cleaners were even sweeping up a single piece of sunflower seed!

12/23/2010 - i will not miss the smoking, nor the smelly trash, nor the old classrooms with no AC, nor the hard beds in Tonghe, and especially not the traffic in Shanghai. but, i will miss the foods i've eaten, the places i've gone on the weekends, the cheap stuff on the streets, and especially the people i've met here.

Thanks for not running me over, Shanghai traffic. I have remained unscathed in my 4 months here =)

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It's been a long and short 4 months in Shanghai. I really enjoyed my time here, and half-wish to go home already, half-wish I could stay longer. I'll miss my new friends in Shanghai, and hope to see those from the States soon. I've learned a lot about China, America, as well as myself in these past 4 months, and really encourage others to study abroad. Study abroad is the most amazing experience you can have in your academic career, and I'm really thankful I got the chance to come here.

THANK YOU, Gilman Scholarship committee for giving me the chance to experience all this in my undergraduate career. This will be an experience I will never forget.

THANK YOU, UC Shanghai Study Center (especially Nova!) for all the help and events we had during our time here. Without you, this program would not have went as smoothly.

THANK YOU, Fudan University for having us at your campus. Although it was a short 4 months, I really enjoyed the classes and campus. I hope someday those numbered buildings get remodeled with better facilities... haha.

THANK YOU, UC EAP and the UC System for having such a great program here in Shanghai. It has indeed given me a lot of lifelong memories.

THANK YOU, to all those who gave me such a wonderful time here in Shanghai (you all know who you are). I was homesick in the beginning, but gradually being here with you all has made it feel more like home.

THANK YOU, to all those in the States who checked-up on me occasionally. YES, I  SURVIVED. And I'm coming back.

and Thanks for reading my blog. perhaps the next time, I'll blog on another international experience when I get the chance....

For now, Good Bye Shanghai!!
12/24/2010

First China Pavilion Visit

Lots of people were still coming to see the China Pavilion, even after the Expo ended. Tickets were 20RMB for generald admission, 15RMB for students/elders.

Most of the other pavilions were already dismantled, and gated off from the public.

... I think some of the other popular pavilions should've done this too, to make some money and let people who didn't have a chance to see the pavilion see it for a fee.



lines waiting to go past security into the pavilion



front door of pavilion

lobby1st floor

pre-show film

children's art and aspirations of the future



roller coaster like ride inside



me in relation to the China Pavilion....

First Snow in Shanghai~!

12/15/2010: IT SNOWED TODAY IN SHANGHAI!!!

It was unbelievably cold, but beautiful. As students who grew up mostly in the non-snow days of California, most of us UC kids were paying more attention to the snow than our last lecture. As soon as the bell rang, everyone ran out into the snow-covered lawn outside the Guanghua Towers and played in the snow (eg. snowball fights).

I finally got my White Christmas =)

And tips for those about to come to China, especially Northern China:

- bring something warm to wear. It was -1degree Celsius here when it snowed and it was freezing at night. I heard further North it's about -20C... so hats, mittens, coats, boots, umbrellas... you can buy them here, but would you last the first few days without them? That's up to your discretion, maybe you'll be lucky and get here when it's still slightly warmer =)

- at night, it gets pretty cold. so bring what you need. the AC can also be a heater, so that's also up to you.

- personally, i think the water you can order from downstairs is very good in the Winter because you can plug the machine in to have warm/hot water.. which does wonders to you in the cold.

- STAY WARM!

before the snow really came....

.... after the snow started falling heavily...

lawn outside Guanghua Towers covered in a blanket of snow

inside campus while it was snowing...

sometimes Fudan has some hidden nice places, like this

our carefully written out "EAP" in the Shanghai snow

Daily Monthly Random Briefings, 3

Wow, time goes by so fast here... It's already the third month!

10/31/2010 - from the normal point of view (minus clubs and bars), Halloween seems to be just another busy weekend.. in some Thai restaurant workers were singing/dancing and waiters/waitresses were half dressed in costumes.

11/1/2010 - i walked out to see people in Halloween costumes.... they were a day late. or just in time halfway across the globe.

11/2/2010 - this restaurant has no menu. they ask for foods you don't like/ can't eat, then they cook up a dinner they perceive as something you would like. and you pay for it. strange concept of dining. if only they can read my mind... "I want a burger... an American burger."

11/3/2010 - it's weird to go to class and hear about the California elections the entire morning when you look outside the window and see Shanghai. then again, we're all from California, and so is our professor... sorta (he's British).

11/4/2010 - chestnuts are so common here. there are even chestnut opening tools (like nutcrackers... but for chestnuts).

11/5/2010 -  there is no such thing as a return policy in china,  only exchanges.

11/6/2010 - making dumplings is hard work. especially when the skin is made from scratch! also hard to play mafia with Chinese students, when you don't remember people's name in Chinese...

11/7/2010 - street food is actually pretty clean to eat.. and cheap. my stomach can handle street food now!! chinese street food too!

11/8/2010 - new harbor trip. a government official was used to grant us access into the harbor/bridge/mid-point emergency stop area... and much more.

11/9/2010 - we cheated the traditional kneel in the japanese restaurant by having giant hole (empty space) for us to hang our legs off, but still make it look like we're sitting the "proper" way =)

11/10/2010 - veggie mart ladies are pushy. not sure if it's due to having another veggie stand one feet away from them... close-range competition.

11/11/2010 - only guys like to play pool. and who knew a game of settlers can keep us up til past 2am?

11/12/2010 - cantonese food is still, by far, the best tasting chinese food. and roasted chestnuts...

11/13/2010 - it was so good to have flavored meat in the form of Brazilian BBQ after two months. custom tailored coats cost about 300-400RMB. and i caught a pickpocket little girl (under 13)... should i be proud?

11/14/2010 - there was a sign that signaled a specific place for guys to go no.1 in tianzifang... was that even necessary? also got 15 balloons onto the metro =D "just two stops..."

11/15/2010 - sometimes i wonder why Shanghai smells so bad... is it the sewers?

11/16/2010 - it's so weird that i came to Shanghai not liking to bargain, and now it comes out without me thinking... bargaining is some Chinese culture or something...

11/17/2010 - sometimes i wonder if i attract unsanitary food conditions... first hair in food (twice), now sunflower-seed-size bugs in my curry??? does anyone else have these problems...?

11/18/2010 - restaurants seem to be good when they just start business... tried a recently opened roasted fish restaurant and the fish tasted pretty good! with free drinks and discounted prices =) maybe we should try all the new places for good food....

11/19/2010 - a good thing about being in china now is being able to watch the Asian Games live =) at a reasonable dinnertime hour

11/20/2010 - watertowns make better excursions... especially when you "break" your way into a man-made quarry.

11/21/2010 - it's hard to ride a bus around Shanghai when you don't recognize the stop, and the electronic stop notifier doesn't reflect accurate stops. tailored coats here pretty nice though....

11/22/2010 - Shanghai-nese food is seasoned with sweetness. Most dishes are sweeter than I normally remember.

11/23/2010 -  North and South Korea breaking news? Sweden and Texas competition amongst students...?

11/24/2010 - Walmart has finally put up Christmas decorations. and Shanghai has gotten colder for the holidays.

11/25/2010 - Thanksgiving with EAP made the holiday much less lonely. Though Shanghai has still found a way into our American food... sweet mashed potatoes and super sweet cranberry sauce? the turkey was surprisingly tender... like chicken.

11/26/2010 - too bad there's no Black Friday here... but then again, isn't it Black Friday here everyday? =P

11/27/2010 - Hangzhou public transportation isn't as convenient... though taxi drivers trying to get home do make a cheaper way to get around West Lake. And losing your train ticket on the train doesn't mean it's the end of the world... if you can convince a train station worker you're innocent.

11/28/2010 - I am convinced Shanghai people make the best soup wontons. Shanghai doesn't taste as funny if a dinner is homemade!!

11/29/2010 - which is more soundproof: my windows, walls, or blanket?

11/30/2010 - Fudan library is so weird. you have to reserve "cubicles" and table spots with your student card.... and undergraduates aren't even allowed to get the nice desks with power outlets =(

if there's one thing i learned, it would be to make sure all your electronics have adequate voltage (or else get a converter, sometimes it's cheaper to get it abroad, but the first few days can get hectic).... and bring an adapter... just in case your charger turns out to be special (like mine). btw, it's freezing here in Shanghai (as of December 7, 2010). 

First Visit to Zhujiang Xincheng, Guangzhou after Asian Games

With the end of the Asian Games in Guangzhou, two years after the Beijing Summer Olympics, there has been lots for the Chinese population to look forward to. First the Beijing Olympics in 2008, then the World Expo in Shanghai in 2010, and finally the Asian Games in Guangzhou in November. So what's next for China?


Rumors are that there will be a Disneyland built in the Pudong side of Shanghai in the near future. The smallest Disneyland of all.


Before we see any part of that Disneyland built, there are quite a few things to reminisce about... the events that held so much attention of the international community the past few years.




Post Asian Games visit to Guangzhou, 珠江新城（Zhujiang Xincheng) 


From what I've heard in Guangzhou, there was a week when the Guangzhou government wanted to make all public transportation free so the residents can experience the positive externalities of the Asian Games being held in Guangzhou. The bus and metro was free to all passengers. The downside to all this? Massive lines of people just trying to get on the metro.


Although the Guangzhou government had good intentions for making public transportation free, it negatively affected residents of Guangzhou because residents had to wait long lines just to get on the metro to go to work. A normal day of half an hour metro ride from home to work spanned over 2 hours waiting in line to even get on the metro. And if you had to switch lines? ANOTHER long wait for the next available metro to pack sardines (people) into. It was not a pretty sight... and many frustrated cries were heard during that week.


Because a massive amount of people outside the city came to visit and take advantage of the free transportation, the government had no choice but to put an end to the transportation problem by reimplementing the fees. When I went to Guangzhou one week after the Asian Games, the metal blockage bars/fences were still in the subways, showing just how many people were in line waiting to get past metro security and onto a metro for work or leisure purposes. It was a surreal sight to see so many snaking lines of fences in the metro station... like a concert was being held at some venue. Surprisingly enough, I heard the bus system was fairly ok. Probably because it was not as extensive as the metro system, nor was it possible to manage and predict travel time by bus.


珠江新城 （Zhujiang Xincheng) was a new area built for the Asian Games. Located very close to a metro stop, it was a popular sight for families to visit on weekends. 

flower-made mascots of the Guangzhou 2010 Asian Games

tall building where the fireworks for the opening/closing ceremony was at

youngest volunteer for the Asian Games... 7 years old i think?

golden statue outside of the Friendship building, symbolizing harmony and nature

First Thanksgiving Abroad, Hangzhou Trip

Celebrating Thanksgiving abroad in a country that doesn't, it quite a strange predicament. But with the help of our Shanghai Study Center, a group dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant made the day as close to home as possible..

Pictures to come later... and excuse the weird formatting of this post =) now uploaded

Thanksgiving Dinner at Salabim Restaurant, Nov. 25

To make it in time for dinner, all our Chinese teachers made arrangements to either meet up earlier to finish earlier, or went through the class without taking any breaks. Intermediate Chinese meet up at 5pm to end a bit before 7, Beginning Chinese met at the same time and just went through class without breaks, and Advanced Chinese started class half an hour early to end at 7:30. Appetizers were to be served starting at 7:15pm, and the turkey dish to be served at 7:45.

We arrived at the restaurant and apparently we took up the entire second floor just for our program. Tables were set up where the teachers and guests sat in the middle long table while the students took up tables and booths around the long table. I sat with a few friends and our Fudan friend at a corner booth.

Menu:

Appetizers:

Fruit Salad

Bread/ Breadsticks
Veggie Sticks with dressing (cucumber, olives, celery)

Main Course:

Turkey

Mashed Potatoes with Gravy

Cranberry Sauce

Turkey Stuffing

Caramelized Onions

Additional Dishes:

White sauce pasta

Thin crust pizza (Hawaiian style?)

Dessert:

Apple Pie

Vanilla Ice Cream

Drinks:

Lemon Iced Tea

Wine (at individual students' expense)

Comments:

The turkey was surprisingly tender, like chicken. The gravy for the mashed potatoes were also surprisingly sweeter than I'm used to in the States. Didn't like the stuffing as much though. The pasta was ok, and the pizza was also ok, not up to par to pizza in the states (not even Costco, haha). But it's decent considering this is Shanghai. I could make better apple pie at home, and ice cream... is just ice cream (tastes like China milk).

Activities:

A student was in charge of putting together a slideshow of student pictures during our time here, and music was also coordinated by students. Most of the time, after eating, everyone went around socializing with others and chatting together. It was a nice dinner for students, teachers, and family alike to get together during Thanksgiving. At home where we usually go home to eat with our families, we ate with our EAP family here in Shanghai. It was as close to home as we could make it here in Shanghai, and I'm really glad we had this dinner. Many students also started exchanging California numbers too, to keep in touch even after we return to our respective UCs.

Hangzhou Trip, Nov. 27

Most beautiful picture I took in China, on the West Lake at sunset

This was the most tiring trip, lucky and unlucky, all mixed into one trip to the nearby city of Hangzhou. My roommate and I just went around like headless chicken half the time with getting lost, then not, then walking for ages looking for correct directions and places. Probably not the best idea to come here without a well-thought out plan, and a one-day trip to boot.

It was smooth traveling from Shanghai to Hangzhou. Then as soon as we got into the city, everything started going up and down. The speaker on the bus in Hangzhou was really hard to hear, we missed the stop. The entire city is very bike-friendly... in the sense that renting a bike for one hour is free, second hour is 1RMB, then third hour is 3RMB, etc. There are usually separate lanes for bikes, which means bikers don't really have to fight the road with cars. A bit safer, in my opinion... if the IC card (card needed to rent these bikes) wasn't so hard to find. These stands for the bikes are everywhere, but the IC card wasn't.

First stop: Hangzhou Silk Town

The town was about 4 blocks total going around in a square formation with all shops selling something made with silk. We walked around looking at everything ranging from scarves to sleepwear. After a bit of going around and out to this plaza that supposedly sells silk clothing, we went back and bought some gifts for friends back home =) There are reasonable prices are smaller materials like scarves, but if you want things like silk collar shirts, then prepare to bring more money.

Second stop: Longjing Village

In our quest to get to this fish pond by bus, we missed the stop, then ended up somewhere in the middle of the scenery near West Lake, but not really. We stumbled across a water tunnel that took forever to walk through. Some 20 minutes later, we finally see light and find ourselves on Longjing Road… and fields of tea leaves around us. Since we were here, we figured we should just go find some Longjing Tea to buy and bring home. But when we went to this house nearby, we couldn’t figure out where was the best place to buy the tea leaves. We backtrack thinking of going to the Tea Museum when we see a taxi with no customers. I ask the driver where to buy tea leaves, and he told us he’d bring us to Longjing Village to buy some. He was a local and knew the best place to buy them, and offered to drive us there and back to wherever we want for 20RMB. Good luck on our part since we didn’t know where we were going, so we got in and he asked us (me) what we wanted to buy and gave us estimates of what the pricing should be.

from the left: Ming Hou, Qing Ming, Ming Qian

We arrive at this establishment and were greeted with a lady who took out some tea leaves and poured us some tea from each kind for us to try. There was one kind that called Before Ming (明前), and another called After Ming (明后). The kind of tea leaves depends on whether it was plucked before the Chinese holiday Qing Ming (清明), the Before Qing leaves were a bit smaller and the tea was sweeter, while the After Qing leaves were larger and had less of a sweet clear taste. There were also the more expensive tea leaves that were plucked as soon as the leaves grew, and that tea was very much sweeter than the other two.

at the tea establishment

I decided to buy one box of each (1/4 gen), totaling 300RMB, for my family to try.

Third Stop: West Lake

West Lake view from the shore

The taxi driver waited for us outside the establishment and asked us where we wanted to go next. We wanted to check out the boating around the West Lake we heard from some friends who went earlier in the program, so he took us to a port that was supposed to be for individual boating. After dropping us off, we went around the scenery and finally saw West Lake… it was indeed as beautiful as people say.





famous three statues in West Lake,
has a historical story regarding the moon



We found a boating guy that offered to take us to the other side of West Lake and near some landmark in the middle of the lake for 40RMB each person, so we decided why not. We were heading to the restaurant on the other side anyways, and the boater claimed it only took 5-6 minutes to get there from the dock. The boat ride was really nice, since the boater took four people (2 others, my roommate, and I) he talked about historical facts of the landmark, Hangzhou, West Lake, and the pagodas around the lake. He even let us try to row the boat… but to no avail. That thing is hard to carry! Much less row the boat with 5 people on it.

i tried rowing the boat.... way too heavy

Fourth Stop: Louwailou Restaurant





After docking, we got off and got lost after 10 minutes and still not seeing the restaurant. We asked probably around 7 people on the way before eventually making it there, a 30 minute walk! =.= Luckily, there were seats when we got there. So we were able to order and eat in time before we had to go catch the train back. Got two famous dishes, the sweet and sour Gui fish, and the beggar’s chicken. The sauce for the fish wasn’t the best in my opinion, and the chicken was dry… for being chicken.



beggars chicken, famous dish



sweet and sour fish, fresh from the lake?



Fifth Stop: Getting back to Shanghai



This ride back was the most eventful. First as we were able to depart, we hear this screaming lady in the cabin in front of ours (we were in cabin 1), and then security detaining her for some reason. Some five minutes later, the train finally took off. No idea what happened, but I think it was a lady trying to get on… or a lady who had a fight with someone in the train. We didn’t hear anything after that. Smooth 1.5 hours back… then the drama came. As we were about to leave the station, my roommate realizes she lost her ticket. We went back to the train, but it was locked. There were no workers who could help us open it. We ran around to another platform asking them if they could do anything to open the train doors, only to hear the only people able to open the doors left already. I went back to ask the workers by the exit machines what we should do, and they nonchalantly told us to get the ticket somehow or to buy another ticket. How were we supposed to even buy tickets if we were still in the platform?! Useless advice. We ran back to the platform where our train was, and asked people around there if they saw any workers. A nice guy told us we should go find the 24-hour worker on the platform and tell him our predicament. Since I had my ticket and my roommate didn’t, it should be fine, he told us. So we went around the platform looking for this guy. Found the office eventually and told the worker what happened. He seems to believe us, as the other nice guy told him we’re students outside of the area. After directing a train to the platform, the worker took us through this worker’s only elevator that goes straight to the exit, past the place where they check tickets. He directed us all the way to the exit towards the metro station (where I told him we were headed). And after some crowded metro ride later… we finally got back.



So remember: it’s not the end of the world if you lose your train ticket on the way out. Don’t give in and buy tickets from those shady people trying to sell tickets on the platform, the workers will help you if you are truly innocent.

What a long day!