Showing posts with label shanghai. Show all posts
Showing posts with label shanghai. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

5:00 AM - , No comments

Ducking awesome

Living in Sweden, you kind of get used to the fact that the rest of the world doesn't really care what people are getting up to in your little corner of the universe. Not so in Shanghai, a full-fledged world metropolis, and the global giving-a-shit-o-meter most recently went off with the arrival of...
IT'S HERE.
...the Big Yellow Duck.

 It is currently stationed in Shanghai's Century Park (to quote the advert, 大黄鸭真来世纪公园啦!), and will remain there until November 23.

 This was one of those "whoa what the duck" moments for me, since I have seen countless pictures of the Big Yellow Duck on the internet without ever believing I would witness it with my own myopic eyes. But sometimes fun surprises are in store.
I usually don't like taking pictures of myself,
but some opportunities you just don't pass up

Friday, October 10, 2014

1:50 PM - , 1 comment

What's been up

I haven't been around in realtime for a while, and of course everyone is dying to know exactly what has been going on, down to what I've been having for breakfast.

The past week was a holiday, courtesy of the Chinese National Day. Hence Sunday school last week, and Saturday school this week, because nothing comes for free. Because so many people are off during this holiday, touristy locations are absolutely packed, making travel pretty pointless unless you're really cool with sharing your space. Along with a lot of others, I stayed in Shanghai for the duration of the week, exempting one day trip to the nearby city of Suzhou. More pictures will come in another post!


I have also gone swimming, for which I had to buy a Chinese swimsuit. Made the mistake of trusting the lady who said the cute cherry-patterned one would fit me, only to realize later that the chest is about 3 sizes too small. It was a fight against gravity, hard-won.

The Shanghai swimming pool was an experience in itself. To get in, you first have to sign a form confirming that you do not suffer from an array of ailments, including diarrhea, AIDS, and hemorrhaging conjunctivitis. In the pool, you are required to wear a cap to avoid getting hair in the water. There were about 6 lifeguards on duty at once. The sign marking the deep end of the pool was charmingly translated as "profundity zone." A perfect example of what China is like: the same, but always different.

Briefly visited Xintiandi, and an exhibit about the Communist Party of China, where a Chinese guy in a knockoff t-shirt sporting the Republican elephant and the word "EVERYONE" was seen having his picture taken in front of a patriotic Chinese display. A guy in our group found this so hilarious that he chased the pseudo-Republican down and made him pose for another picture.

xintiandi

The exhibit itself was, of course, extremely biased. But it made me wonder how biased the information in textbooks and museums in the West really is. My guess is: probably not as much as here, but a hell of a lot. Source criticism and awareness, guys.

I've also been exploring some of the restaurants available in the area and appreciating the amazing joy of late opening hours. I can come home from school, nap all afternoon, and when I wake up around six or seven I can cruise down to the malls and window shop until after 9 PM. Being able to hang out in the bookstore pretty much around the clock is a privilege everyone should have.

Finally, and most disappointingly, I've gotten sick. I am now juggling classes with a cough and a bit of headachiness. Today I bought myself a rescue kit in the shape of chamomile tea, honey, and an herbal Chinese cough syrup recommended by a friend. We'll see how well it works, but the first verdict is that it's extremely delicious and I could probably just drink it straight out of the bottle if I didn't know better.

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

11:00 AM - 1 comment

Pictures from the past week

Skipped class last Thursday to go on the school's so-called "city tour", which was more a bus dumping us in two places to look around and then taking us back to Jiao Tong. Pretty nice nevertheless, with beautiful sunny weather and blue skies.

 First was Lujiazui, the financial district in Pudong.





Second, the extremely touristy area around Yuyuan Garden. There was a student discount for entering the garden itself, so why not?








And then we returned home. But I'm still majorly enjoying the summery weather (20+ degrees Celsius every day!). If I ever get homesick, I just remember the fact that it's almost October and I'm still wearing shorts.

Tuesday, September 9, 2014

4:10 PM - , No comments

Update #2

Double post today, because two good things don't necessarily make an even better thing (think chocolate + ketchup). In addition to IKEA, we ventured out of the hotel and onto the super-efficient subway to see half the reason I came to Shanghai. Enter the Bund, enter skyline.

Sweden doesn't have massive buildings like this, not to mention a whole cluster of them smack-dab across the river. I am fascinated by absurd, excessive man-made things, and the Shanghai skyline about takes the cake.

 Already decided I'm going to come back to Nanjing Lu (the shopping street that leads up to the Bund) for some solo exploration. Googling has told me that there is a street nearby with multiple bookstores. Anyway, the small part of the road I saw yielded a shit-ton of shops I'm probably never going to shop at, and one that I definitely am.


Etude House is a Korean chain that sells reasonably priced makeup of reasonable quality. They shamelessly indulge in all things pink and princess-y. I am of the firm opinion that an über-girly place like Etude is something everyone deserves to treat themselves to occasionally and give a fat finger to anyone who claims you shouldn't. Absorb the pink. Be the princess.

 We returned along Nanjing Lu towards the Bund as it started getting dark (around 6 pm, extremely early for someone still used to the fading Swedish summer). The viewing deck by the Huangpu River was already filling up with people admiring the partly-lit buildings. And as the clock-bells on the Bund chimed seven o' clock exactly, the moment came. All the lights went on.




Bucket list: Check.

 The next step is getting on one of those boats...

Sunday, September 7, 2014

3:05 PM - , No comments

Day Two

Today was mostly spent exploring the Xuhui area. First and most importantly, we found Jiao Tong! I still haven't gotten any information regarding which dorm I'm supposed to stay in, or where to go to get access to it. And of course, I still need to get the residence permit out of the way. But because it's Sunday, there wasn't really any staff around who could answer questions. We won't be able to get anything done tomorrow either, because September 8 is a Chinese public holiday, the Mid-Autumn Festival (as evidenced by the glorious full moon). But now I know where the campus is, and have had my first glimpse of where I'll be living...
 

Also discovered a mall district in the Xuhui area. It's just a stone's throw away from Jiao Tong, so I'm hoping to spend a lot of time here! Whenever someone goes "China is a Communist country blah blah blah" I laugh and laugh and laugh. Because in practice, it's the antithesis of everything Communist. The commercialism/materialism/capitalist devil-worship here is absolutely amazing, 20 times anything you'll find in Sweden and with better stuff (imo) than what's offered in America. Malls are usually around 10 stories tall and propped full of shops and restaurants. Even though the stuff at genuine stores is expensive, it's worth going into a mall just to hang out, people-watch, and get juice or bubble tea.




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