Crazy!

Monday in Shanghai... I literally fell of the Subway. I was trying to get off and people are all in the way.. Oh China. A guy picked up my leg and literally threw me out of the subway car and onto the ground. I had a swarm of people trying to help me and also yelling at the guy. It was crazy. I am bruised and a little sore, but such is life. Shanghai is busy and crowded. Not my favorite place on earth, but close. I did get Cold Stone Creamery, and Crocs. Found an amazing book store! Can't wait to go back to the book store. Other than that.. nothing.

A man steps out of a breakfast shop on the platform of the Line 1 Lianhua Rd metro station.

Reacting to the news that Nanjing will institute a RMB 20-100 fine next year for eating on the subway, the Shanghai Metro company says that it does not intend to follow suit. According to the Metro, passenger feedback will be solicited before such a rule would be instituted in Shanghai. Currently the opinion of local passengers overall is that people should be allowed to eat as long as they are clean about it. An internet poll revealed that many passengers oppose a blanket ban: 70% of respondents were against food on the subway, but 70% also expressed understanding of passengers who needed to eat, and 60% are against a rule banning food completely. http://sh.eastday.com/qtmt/20081127/u1a505459.html http://www.dfdaily.com/node2/node22/node258/userobject1ai134286.shtml

According to a survey, 55.42% of Shanghai passengers are merely annoyed at having to crowd on the subway, 35.78% are downright upset, and only 8.8% are not affected at all. According to experts, being crammed onto the subway can cause feelings of anxiety, anger and helplessness. Physiological reactions can include high blood pressure, temporary hypercatecholaminism, and the stimulation of adrenal secretions. Recommended steps to dealing with a crowded commute include preparing yourself psychologically to deal with crowding; distracting your mind by listening to music, chatting with friends, or sending SMSs; being polite and saying "sorry" when you bump into people; and moving towards the middle of the car, which tends to be less crowded. http://news.hexun.com/2008-11-26/111684158.html

Starting December 21, the China railway system will add two bullet trains with sleeper cars to the Beijing-Shanghai route. D301/D302 and D305/D306 will leave Shanghai at 9:46 and 9:41 in the evening, respectively, and arrive in Beijing at 7:45 in the morning. Current sleeper tickets on the SH-BJ route cost RMB 478-499, while the price of the new the bullet-train sleeper tickets will likely rise above RMB 500 due to the comfort and speed of the trains. Although the price is high, it will still remain competitive against the airlines due to the rising cost of airport construction and airplane fuel fees that add to the cost of flying. http://news.sina.com.cn/c/2008-11-25/023214777903s.shtml

(Via Zhangjiang BBS.)

Overheard yesterday while walking home. A rental agent helping an expat and what sounded like a European expat looking at apartments in my complex walked in with me into my complex. As they entered, the client asked the agent how many buildings there were in the complex. The agent answered, “Fourteen”. (actual answer is that there are 8 residential buildings and 11 buildings in all including guard shacks).

Then the client asked how many floors there were in the building to which the agent answered,” Fourty”. (There are actually only 32 floors in most of the buildings in my complex)

My thoughts on this short snippet of a conversation was that (a) The agent was an idiot as it was easy to check the number of floors just by stepping into the elevator, or (b) The agent’s English needed a lot of help as maybe he just misunderstood the questions, but mostly (c) The agent regardless of communication skills was still stupid as he should have just told the client he wasn’t sure, or just re-asked the questions to make sure he understood the questions correctly.

At the same time, the client really needed to be asking why he ended up with an agent that could not communicate with him. I mean geez, if the agent can make answers up about the number of floors in a building, which is obviously wrong, what else can be incorrect in the rental process?
On the flipside, overheard in an SPR Coffee recently in Pu-Jersey… A New York Jewish guy attempting to teach English to a local Chinese student was overheard telling his student, who had the audacity to suggest that maybe he should practice his Chinese more, said,” No, I don’t need to. This is Shanghai, I can just use English so no need to learn Chinese.” My thought: What a f---ing idiot. An effective teacher needs to be able to properly understand his/her students.

Poor communications skills can come in all shapes and sizes. I know despite my wordiness, I still can improve my communications abilities and I try to think about this on a daily basis. But with an attitude like the second individual, things will never get better. I just hope that everyone that comes to Shanghai at least make the attempt to learn the local language. While not the most widely spoken language across the globe, it certainly is the most spoken language in the world, and mostly here in China. I am not blaming the expats whoa re having a hard time learning as truly it’s a tough language to learn and master, but any attempt can go a long ways.

Hope you all had a good weekend despite the rain. In researching next weekend’s events, I found that there are lots of stuff happening this week during the week, so… out comes a MONDAY events update, for those interested anyhow. ☺

Midweek events update for the SHXP Community : week of Nov 24-30

Thanksgiving is this coming Thursday for those Americans out there so for those still looking for a last minute Thanksgiving venue, you can refer to last week’s SHXP newsletter for a full list of such venues. http://www.shanghaiexpat.com/index.php?name=microsites&file=08_11_11#thanksgiving

If anyone is interested in joining ShanghaiExpat for their own company and family and friends dinner, a few spaces may be left if you reply to me I will see wat I can do. Cost is 300pp for a full Malone’s supplied Turkey spread, and from past experience, it is quite good. Freeflow drinks, beer and wine, and it will be a private venue, 3rd floor Malones.

Optimizing Sourcing Strategy in a Down Economy : Tuesday, November 25, 2008from 7:30pm - 9:30pm at 2F@Figaro http://www.shanghaiexpat.com/MDForum-viewtopic-t-84698.phtml

Adweekly.cn and Shanghaiexpat bring a weekly singles event called Matchmaker. This Wednesday, DECEMBER 3, it kicks off with a DJ, lost of food fun ad games, all hosted at the NEW Cottons at 294 Xin Hua RD. Event goes from 7:30-9:30pm allowing for you all to enjoy the event then come out to Malones for the mixer after. 100/120rmb admission (advanced/door) includes 2 drinks.

And of course our regular weekly Wednesday Night Mixer is hosted from 9-midnight every Wednesday at the Loft, 3rd Floor Malones where the event is private for members and guests to enjoy discounted drinks and free appetizers with new friends and old.

Oriented Happy Hour: Thursday, November 27, 2008, 7pm will be hosted at Servus Vienna this time around. A social networking event held in conjunction with many others in dozens of cities across the globe. ¥50 for RSVP members, ¥100 at the door includes one drink. More info at: http://www.oriented.com or call 159-2166-4120

Sunday, November 30, 2008 – the Christmas Tree Lighting at the Marriott Hong Qiao- this annual event welcoming the Christmas season will kick off the holiday season with international student choirs singing carols and a fewstive atmosphere. Free and starts at 5:30pm. More info at www.marriottshanghai.com or call 6237-6000.

December 4, Thursday, 8pm- Pecha Kucha goes green this coming month with a green expo and its regularly scheduled programming of 10 speakers presenting 20 slides of 20 seconds each. This upcoming event will be hosted at a warehouse located at 668 Huai’An Rd, near the SuZhou creek. For more info: info@ankengreen.com

And that is the quick list for this Monday!

Enjoy the week!
Cheers!

Ed

Link: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2435642101

Hi All,

I know, its only Thursday but if I add more stuff, this newsletter will be too bloated so i am sending this off now to prevent overload. :)

Welcome everyone, to the first cold week of the coming winter season. Bundle up and get those layers on! The weather gets colder from here on out though a short break is expected this weekend (hope hope hope). Time to make sure your apartment and home heaters work and if you need tips, my old article has been updated via a new entry on my blog about keeping our uninsulated apartments warm here in Shanghai. Link Here

Charity announcements:

Help save the lives of babies in need of critical life saving medical procedures. Two of the co-founders of this foundations are friends of mine that I have only the utmost respect for in that they truly work hard for what they believe in, saving children’s lives, one at a time. Please check out the BaoBei Foundation and donate to a good cause… Give the gift of LIFE! http://www.baobeifoundation.org

Helping Hand Shanghai is distributing an environmentally friendly re-usable shopping bag that can be bought to benefit a choice of Shanghai charities: Shanghai Sunrise, Charity Carnival, Second Chance Animal Aid or Roots and Shoots. Just go to the link for more details: http://www.helpinghandsh.com/ .

Membership of our little group is now at 727! Wow, consistent growth is cool. Thanks all for your support and feedback!

Another tip- it seems that the PSB is cracking down and updating the temporary residence permits system so it may be necessary for you to stop by and renew your registration. See the linked Shanghai Daily article for more info: http://www.shanghaidaily.com/article/?id=380142&type=Metro

New Wine Bar! Introductory article here: Cuvée openes its doors to the serious wine enthusiasts! Read Discussion Here

Tryptophan-tastic week coming ahead. For those non-yanks in the room, its American Thanksgiving this coming Thursday so I must at least make a mention of the fact that many thousands of Americans in Shanghai will be celebrating what is known more colloquially as “Turkey Day” this coming Thursday. For those interested in celebrating with the ShanghaiExpat crowd, there will be some limited seats available at Malones to dine with the founder and staff of Shanghaiexpat at Malones. 300rmb will get us a buffet dinner of all the traditional turkey AND ham you want along with some great trimmings and free flow wine beer and drinks. Yes a little pricey, but this is a bit better than the regular deal at Malones or any of the other ho tels and such, like Westin, the Marriot, and several others also hosting turkey day celebratory dinners.

Sorry to start it out on such a nationalistic note, but Thanksgiving is a big holiday back home and as I do not have my family here to celebrate it with, I am hoping to celebrate at Malones with all of you… or some of you anyhow. ☺ A list of other Thanksgiving Dinner venues can be found HERE!

CHRISTMAS TREES! In the US, Thanksgiving kicks off the holiday season and so Chrsitmas trees come to mind. There are a few sources for REAL trees this year! Rosa Gallica is selling trees ranging from 1.5m to 2 meters, and wreaths as well. They have two locations, one in Ferguson Lane at 376 WuKang Rd, and another in Pu-jersey (Pudong) ay 594 BiYun Rd. Royal Fir Christmas trees is again importing Danish trees this year and they will be available for delivery starting around Dec 3. Call Maggie at Shanghai Blue Fish Trading for info and orders. (21)50454088/33781590. Prices fo trees will range from 500 and up at both vendors. Trees may also be found at various flower markets around town including the CaoJia Du Flower market and the Hong Qiao Flower market, both in Chang Ning District.

A few food tips as the holidays means EATING!!! Yellow Valley Cheese is here! A LOCAL source that is foreign owned and operated that makes delicious Dutch styled cheeses (much like Gouda) A fair Trade supplier using controlled sources for milk in Shanxi Province, Yello Valley Cheese is now available through City Shop, Baastian’s Bakery, and Slice! They also have a WEBSITE: http://www. cheeseinchina .com .

Another Dairy tip: TongChu Organics is now selling Asahi branded pure milk! A safe and high quality milk that is closely controlled by Asahi. You can contact TongChu Organics for delivery of Asahi Milk as well as their usual selection of organic produce, juices and more. Website: http://www.tongchu.com.cn or email steve_liang@tongchu.com.cn .

Another book swap will be happening Saturday, November 29 from 1030-1230 at my Saturday Coffee Meeting in Zhong Shan Park. Pop by with English or French books to trade or donate. Books will be swapped or sold to benefit the community and proceeds will go to the Red Cross. Member Pierro has been making this thing work so far so I ask folks to support this effort in any way possible as truly, foreign language books are hard to come by here in Shanghai. Swap will happen at the Coffee meeting at CoffeeBean and Tea Leaf in Cloud Nine mall, first Floor near Citibank. The mall is located at Zhong Shan Park Metro station.

That evening, you can opt to go to Shanghaiist’s Beer Tasting. Hosted by Southern barbarian, you can come enjoy unlimited tastings of American craft beers (Brooklyn Lager, Brooklyn IPA, Rogue Dead Guy Ale, Acme Pale Ale, etc) and select Yunnan finger foods from Southern Barbarian's menu (alt/Pepper Fried Yunnan Goat Cheese, Seasoned Crispy Potato Pancake, Barbecued Chicken Wings, etc). All attendees will be given scorecards to rate each beer — the results will be published on Shanghaiist.

((ad)) Polluted water from your tap? Bring in a sample to get tested! Directway, proud supplier of water safety products here in Shanghai will happily test your tap water or even filtered water against pure drinking water at the showroom located at 509 Beijing West Rd in Jing An District.

Come in to check out a simple but effective line of water filters good for your home here ins Shanghai. Drink pure drinking water, bathe in chlorine-free softened water today!

DirectWay is a proud supporter of the ShanghaiExpat! Clean drinking water? Chlorine-free showers? Reduced Detergent use for laundry for eco-friendly washes. Preview the whole line of fine Water filters on the web site at: http://english.obusiness.cn/yhhnj/en/water/productlist.jsp ((ad))

(PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT) Get your flu shots. United family Hospitals is offering this imported flu vaccines from Italy, now through December 13 every Saturday hosting a “fast track clinic” from 830am-5pm. No appointments needed. Special offer price is 88rmb. More info at www.unitedfamilyhospitals.com .

Of course the regular events are still happening:

Regular events include the Saturday Coffee meeting at Cloud Nine Mall at Zhong Shan Park, every Saturday from 10:30a-12:30p at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf; and lunch that follows the coffee meet. Contact me if you have any questions as I do host this event every week.

Sunday Coffee Brunch is held at XinTianDi’s Coffee bean outlet from noon-3 every Sunday afternoon. More info on that: http://www.shanghaiexpat.com/MDForum-viewtopic-t-28351.phtml

And of course the regular Wednesday Night Mixer where expats and locals alike can come to mix and mingle, meet old friends, make new ones and enjoy discounted drinks from 9-midnight at Malone’s American Bar and Café’s 3rd floor bar called The Loft. Happens weekly. Malones is located at 225 Tong Ren Rd near Nanjing West Rd.

Hope everyone has a great weekend! Stay warm!!! ☺

Cheers!
Ed

Cross posted on Facebook

Another reason to get a public transportation stored-value card:

Months after the arrests, a retired detective working for Mr. Jones’s lawyers drove to a city jail located on a barge moored in the East River in the South Bronx, where Mr. Jones had been held after his arrest, and retrieved his wallet. The MetroCard was still inside.

Mr. Jones’s lawyers then asked New York City Transit to use the card to trace his movements the night of the shooting. The results supported his account, showing that the card had been used on a bus, and later on a subway roughly five miles from the shooting, just as he had described.

From the New York Times.