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Published: September 28th 2007
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Well, after being very apprehensive about venturing out on my own in my 1st week, I've started to get to know my way about our neighbourhood now. It's a great area to stay. There are lots of street stalls selling dumplings and whole roasted ducks strung up by their necks. There's a 'wet market' just up the road selling strange looking fruit & veg and fish, shrimps, crabs, frogs all still alive in big plastic tubs. Plenty of small local restaurants. Tiny shops selling everything and anything, hairdressers, bicycle repairs...
I still feel really stupid when buying fruit or dumplings from the street stalls because I still can't master the basics of the language! We've been trying out the local restaurants. So far they've had picture menus or some have English translations (though we're trying to avoid the intestines, knuckles and feet!). One Sunday we decided to have lunch at what turned out to be a hotpot cafe where all the tables have a gas burner in the middle. Then you get a big metal pot full of boiling stock along with your ingredients. After lots of confused and embarrassed negotiations we managed to order something. Then we had to
be shown how to cook and eat hotpot stylee! Getting used to making idiots of ourselves!
I've got over my 'everyone's staring at me' complex. They still do but it doesn't bother me anymore. Saying 'ni hao' (hello) to the old guys seems to work! I learnt quite quickly that a green man at a road crossing does not give pedestrians the right of way. Cars, buses, bikes, cyclists could come at you from any direction. It takes nerves of steel but it's a matter of weaving in and out of (slow) moving vehicles to get to the other side, and a lot of the time across 6 lanes of traffic. Attaching yourself to a group of pedestrians helps!
Last weekend I had my 1st proper taste of Shanghai nightlife. On Friday we went out with a big group of people to a japanese restaurant (all you can eat and drink for about 12 pounds). Then onto Cs - a real dive of a place, very studenty and grungy, but good fun. After that we went to a reggae place called Logo and then to an irish pub, O'Malley's, to catch a bit of the rugby. We got
in at 5am. Haven't done that for a while! After surfacing at 2pm on Saturday I really wasn't up for going out to a party that night. But I'm really glad we went as we met quite a few more people, some of whom invited us to other gatherings on Sunday. However, that was just too much so we had to politely decline one invitation and the other invite has been postponed due to their excessive partying as well! I really get the sense that it's the people you meet and the nightlife that makes shanghai. it's not a pretty city by any means, but it's very lively!
This week I've been getting into the expat wifey lifestyle! I went for a Chinese massage on Monday which cost about 135 yuan (approx 9 gbp) for an hour. There are cheaper places but I don't want to risk inadvertantly wandering into a dodgy one. I was relieved that they spoke some English. I was guided through to the massage room which was very dimly lit with calming music and the sound of swishing water from the foot massage area. Then I was given a set of pjs to change into
which you wear for your massage. It was quite a bit different from massages back home so I wasn't totally relaxed as I was wondering what was coming next! I did leave feeling relaxed and refreshed though, but then I was thrust back into the mayhem of Shanghai! I've also taken up yoga this week. I've had 2 classes and am very achy. After yesterday's class I treated myself to a western style lunch at the cafe downstairs - a chicken sandwich! It's not all massage, yoga and lunches though. I'm reading my coursebooks for the tefl course and banging my head off mandarin.
Tuesday was the Mid Autumn Festival when everyone traditionally eats mooncake and sets off fireworks to celebrate the full moon. Mooncakes are a bit hit and miss and very stodgy. We had some filled with bean paste (yuk), slightly sweet satay with egg yolk (hhmmm) and apricot paste (ok). Next week is Golden Week, a national holiday, so Paul's not in work. Though he has to work this weekend. Looking forward to doing some sightseeing stuff together.
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