The First Week

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So, I have survived my first week in China without eating anything that made me sick or getting lost on the streets! I think that is a success! This past week was very eventful to say the least. Here is a list of things I have learned about living in Shanghai:

The smog and pollution is worse than anywhere I have ever seen. It took my throat some getting used to the first couple days
If you are driving, using your horn is the most effective and commonly used way to say "Hi, I am right behind you". Taxis are especially good at doing this.
Shanghai's transportation system is completely superior to anything I have seen in the US. Taxis are between $2-3, buses are less than 30 cents, and the metro is about 60 cents. And, the buses and metro come quickly and leave quickly.
The food here is much more diverse than anywhere in Atlanta. So far, I have eaten at these restaurants: Turkish, Shanghainese (which is apparently different than just Chinese), Italian, Chinese (of course), Japanese, McDonalds (mmm...home), Burger King, and French!
The bread rolls here are much sweeter and very yummy compared to the US.
There are so many Chinese people! The roads are constantly packed, the metro is always teeming, and everything is always full!
Move fast! Things change very quickly around here, and everyone has somewhere they need to be -- FAST! So, move out of the way, and fight for your place in line.
There is an entire section of Shanghai that is a very European place to live. It has expensive food, western supermarkets (like Publix, but much more expensive), and very rich people. It is a completely different world from the rest of Shanghai, which is very run down and dirty.

Anyway, those are just some tidbits. We have been able to do a lot of different things so far here in Shanghai. We have been to the Bund a few times, which is like the tourist spot around here. We have gone to the Oriental Pearl Tower, which is the tallest TV tower in Asia. We went to the expo center for the 2010 Expo. We have been to all kinds of places to eat. We have learned how to cook a Chinese dish, and learned how much tai chi can really work out your thigh muscles. It has been a very full week, and so this Sunday is going to be pretty slow.

So, I want to tell you guys a little bit about church here. The branch is a little bit bigger than my ward back home, and there are two services in the same building! It is amazing how many LDS people from the states or from other Asian countries live in Shanghai! It is great, too because they feed the YSA at one of the members homes after church for lunch, and that is always really good American food. Last week we had burgers and hot dogs and this week we had BBQ pork on buns. It reminds me of home, and it is great to be in a real family's home. The kids are always so adorable, too. The branch here is very welcoming and very nice, even though it is a very transient branch (a lot like the singles ward).

Anyway, I will put up some pictures soon, so look out for those! I hope everyone in ATL is having a great summer, and if you are traveling the world, then I hope you are having some adventures yourself. 😊

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Photos

Window 1
This is the view of the buildings right outside my window. It is very polluted here, and you can tell by the picture from the smog over the city

Window 2
This is a zoomed close view of the street next to my window.

The girls
From the left this is Liz, Liang, Katie, and me. Katie is my roomate. She is pretty cool, and is extremely prepared

Comments

[jeanna]

woot!
dang, you sound like you're having SUCH a good time. keep the blog coming, it's great. 'Mrs. Jensen' sounds like just about the coolest thing i've heard so far this summer. i'm having a good time in charleston, just loafing around with family. we went on a ghost tour yesterday and we got lost twice trying to get to and from the beach, so today is the day of rest. so i'm mostly just gonna be reading scriptures and stuff and napping. *muah* i love you!!!!