Shanghai’ing in the Rain
June 20th, 2014
Shanghai is big and wet, I should of stayed in Suzhou one more day. I promised to be in Shanghai for the weekend, but I haven’t heard from Anders at all and my other plans were for Sunday, so I had plenty of time to see the rain and the smog. I would have a really great view from my hotel if you could see all the way to the New Territories, as it is I mainly see vague outlines of famous skyscrapers.
On the ground when it is not raining it is crowded. People assure me Beijing is as big, but it doesn’t feel like it. Beijing is laid out more logically, their metro seems to let you transfer easily. In Shanghai we had to leave one station and walk outside for several blocks to change train lines.
My hotel is OK, it is close to a popular tourist attraction and in Shanghai that means people selling something or even flat out asking for money. Beijing seems to have a lot less of that. Beijing has souvenir stands but Shanghai has watch salesmen who just come up to you while you’re walking to your hotel with all your bags.
Shanghai is famous for shopping, nightlife, and apparently women. But I went to “The Camel” and it was mostly old white men and I couldn’t stay awake long enough to watch even the first half of the World Cup game. I also once again learned my lesson. Write down the address in Chinese and take a cab, either that or find someone who actually knows the city and speaks Chinese.
There is a hop on hop off tourist bus I might try, but given the rain and the smog, I’m not sure there is much point. I actually need more shirts, I tend to go through two a day in the humidity so I may buy a couple today as the famous shopping street Nanjing Lu is nearby. I was actually in a shopping district last night on my way to the Australian sports bar. Sunday I see Hyemi so that is actually the best shopping day. Today is a good day to sleep in, but I failed at that, at least I booked a hotel with WiFi, it has a big desk too so my laptop and me do not have to find a cafe to update this blog.
Update January 2019
I ultimately was talked into to living, working, and studying in Shanghai. After all my effort and sacrifice including passing the final CFA® exams I could not find the better job I’ve been looking for since I did my MBA. I also could not find happiness. I am trying to stay optimistic, there are a lot of drunk expats in Shanghai so the fact I managed to lose over 15 kilos in a single year impressed a lot of people. If you have advice or questions, you can leave a comment below.
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