Catch-up: Part One

I know, I know. It's been FOREVER since my last blog post - you all can give me a slap on the wrist the next time you see me. I've already posted most of these photos on Facebook, but for those of you who aren't my friend (to those in my Panera family, feel free to add me!) or those who have managed to resist the temptations of FB (Amanda), here's a quick recap of everything I've been up to since my last post. I've hunkered myself down in a Wagas cafe, bought myself a latte for encouragement, and told myself I'm not allowed to leave until I finish!

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Part One: The Bund

Despite being a city of 23 million people (!), I have never felt crowded in Shanghai. That is, until we visited the Bund. It seems that everyone in the city flocks to this riverside boardwalk each night to take in the stunning views of the Pudong skyline. And who could blame them? The sights almost make your forget how dirty Shanghai is. Almost.

The city itself is divided into two parts: the Manhattan-esque, ultra-modern Pudong ("east of the Huangpu River") and the more historic Puxi ("west of the Huangpu River"). My family and I live and work in Puxi. This area once served as the financial center for European nations occupying Shanghai in the early 20th-century, so the buildings are characteristically European. The Pudong area has only been developed in the last twenty years or so and has been aptly dubbed "Disneyland China" for its neon-lights and space-age architecture. Pudong also hosted the World Expo in 2010 - something the city is still very proud of!

At the Bund, we enjoyed the slight breeze coming off the water, were greeting with hoards of running children shouting "Hello! How are you?," and had our first picture taken with a Chinese family (this has proven to be quite a common occurrence). During out second trip to the Bund, my uncle took us to the bar on the 92nd floor of the Park Hyatt, which overlooks the entire city. It was one of those moments where my uncle and I looked at each other and said, "Can you believe that we actually live here?" SO COOL. 

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Part Two: River Town

Our first trip outside of Shanghai was to one of the dozen or so ancient water towns outside of Shanghai called Wuzhen. Since the train line was under construction and we shuddered at the thought of taking a tourist bus, we decided to go local and take the express bus. So, we loaded up on soggy corn-on-the-cob (a popular snack here), Oreos, and mango smoothies, and hit the road. Needless to say we were the only Westerners on the bus (or "Anglos" as my aunt calls them). We soon discovered that the bus drivers drove as recklessly as the Shanghai taxi drivers - slamming on the brakes, cutting across four lanes of traffic, laying on the horn. In China, drivers are taught to only be responsible for what is in front of them. Therefore, there's no need to check your mirrors or look over your shoulder before merging on the highway. In fact, those merging or making turns have the right-of-way here - the idea being that the people going straight can see them coming. I think I'd be afraid to even ride a bike here. Anyway, back to the story. No bus ride would be complete without the bus breaking down. Twice. Thankfully, we made it to Wuzhen in one piece in just under two hours. When we exited the bus, we were greeted by hoards of pedi-cab drivers yammering in Chinese. Spoiled by the endless supply of taxis in Shanghai, we didn't even think that there wouldn't be a traditional taxi available. So, we had to watch our poor rickshaw driver carry our big American selves - with luggage in tow - all the way across town. At one point, he had to get out and start pushing the bike. I was feeling mighty chubby until I saw another driver do the same with only a tiny Asian woman in the backseat. When we got to the hotel, we were approached my a middle-aged Chinese woman (who my cousin defines as a "socialite" - she had a choppy, dyed bob and was wearing a short black dress, a strand of pearls, and sequin sandals) and what appeared to be her two younger daughters. We spent about twenty minutes in an endless circle of confusion regarding when we paid the deposit, how much it was, how much the room was, etc. before dropping our bags in our rooms. When we went back downstairs, the mother motioned for us to follow her and mimed the action of taking a picture to ensure that I brought my camera. We then followed her on the half-mile jaunt to the "Old Town." She took us inside the visitor's center, took us to the window to buy our tickets, and found an English-speaker to translate that she would come and pick us up whenever we were ready. Such a sweet woman!

It was already dark by this point, so we decided to walk along the canals to find a restaurant for dinner. We stumbled upon a quaint little cafe by the river that's owned by a couple from Hong Kong (which means they speak PERFECT English). She sat us down at a table that looks into the cozy kitchen, and asked if we would like suggestions for what to order. We finally decided on a Wuzhen speciality - the "soy sauce duck," prawns with chili sauce, "river fish," and bok choy. This was without a doubt my favorite meal I've had in the almost five weeks I've been in China. It was so simple, but so delicious (or in Chinese, "tai haochi le" - It's too good to eat!). And I have to say, the Chinese are definitely turning me onto duck and pork (they don't seem to do chicken quite as well). It's odd to think that just a month ago I was a vegetarian! 

We spent the rest of the evening strolling along the river, traversing the numerous bridges, and peeking into bars that had live music performances. Even though it was night time, though, it was still incredibly hot and humid, so we turned in around 10:30, determined to finally buy a fan when we returned to Shanghai.

Wuzhen was a great opportunity to see a different part of China. Every time we leave the city, we are reminded of how comfortable and easy Shanghai is. While you can get by with little to no Mandarin in Shanghai, this isn't necessarily the case in smaller towns. This trip made us realize that we needed to start Mandarin lessons. PRONTO. We enrolled in a private class the next week, and while we still have a LONG way to go, we can now order at a restaurant, give directions, tell a taxi driver where we want to go, introduce our family, and make plans to meet friends. My new goal is to be as fluent as possible by the time I leave - wish me luck!

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Next blog post (I've already loaded the pictures - just need to take the time to write about it - so it will be finished soon!): Hangzhou, Xi'an, the Shanghai Book Fair, and the Pixar exhibit at the Shanghai Contemporary Art Museum.