Pearl Tower

Ok…..so I am back in Oz….and it’s a little bizarre. China is a sensory overload, but coming back to Australia, its sensory overload in the opposite direction! My god there are blue’s and green’s and yellow’s and birds and dogs and such and such!

Unfortunately, my travels to China were just at the wrong time. Winter in Shanghai is extremely dull and grey. When the sun comes out or tries to come out it has to battle hard agains the massive blanket of smog or clouds. So when you do get a clear you rush out to do as much as you can!

My overall experience was really really cool. I got to see some awesome stuff, got to do some awesome stuff and met some great people. At the same time, there was stuff that was not as good. But lets not concentrate on that!

One of the coolest things I got to do was ride in the rickshaws….it was pooring, and the dude stopped opened up the little box, SW and I sat in and he pedaled us home! It was awesome!

Another awesome thing was clubbing to DJ Paul Van Dyke! My favourite dj is Tiesto. But Paul Van Dyke is number 2….that was just insane…..

And on the smoochy side, one of my favourite bits of the whole trip was seeing my girl working….seeing her teach her kids was just really great. Loved it.

China is a great place to take photos, the above link will take you to my China collection…..

Now that I am back, I am looking for work. I need to find work quickly, as I need to pay for my loan somehow! And I’m also smack in the middle of my studies. My first unit for my degree is Introduction to University Learning. It is a great idea for those, like me, who haven’t studied in a while to do this. I am certainly finding it difficult. But it’s a great challenge!

I’m also smack in the middle of my Diploma of Professional Photography. Hopefully, one day I can mix the two!

Anywho’s….I could go on, but it would take forever!

That’s it for now.

Hooroo/Zai Jane

My god! For some reason I can access my blog in China! What the hell! And I am flying home today! Bizare.

So lots has happened. Weather has gotten better and I have been able to go to the coolest places. Just as I am leaving the weather gets better!!!

On the job front, I pretty much stopped looking for jobs here a while back and started concentrating on home. On Monday I have an interview back home. Lookig forward to that.

So I’ll talk more about stuff when I get home. Just enjoying access to my blog!

For the moment I’m coming home……engaged!

Hooroo/Zai Jane

Zai Jane Shanghai

Well….not having access to my blog from here makes it difficult to see what I have written about! Cause I can’t remember what I have posted! So I might be repeating myself here.

I returned from Hong Kong a couple of weeks ago. That was really cool. Bucket loads of walking and bucket loads of photos.

Since then, I have come to two conclusions. The job front here is very tough. Employment has pretty much gone down the gurgler for the whole first quarter, for pretty much everyone. Also, locals are university trained, so if there is employment, it is a much cheaper form of employment, compared to that of an Expat. Yes, I could do some English teaching or work in a bar, but really, it doesn’t help my career. The important thing now is career progression.

Without formal qualifications, and my language knowledge being that of take me here, thank you, hello, good bye and don’t want, that drastically reduces my chances of finding work.

Last week, I went to a Headhunting, social networking event. Very very unlike me. I was shitting my pants!!! The first person I spoke to…he walked passed…looked at me, and I blurted out, “Pleased to meet you.” No hello or nothing….I was so embarrassed. But after that conversation, I got over it and it got much easier. I ended up collecting lots of business cards. None of which would really have helped me out…but I felt important.

Later that night, there was a session from a professional Resume writer, on the 3 most common mistakes in a CV. That was great and I learnt heaps. And, I met a project manager. Which was great, she is also looking for work, but has set up a network of people in Shanghai looking for work. The following Tuesday, we all caught up. That was great. In less than a week, I met a bucket load of people.

In the job front it didn’t help. But in the people meeting skills, and confidence, it helped heaps.

And so, because the crazy slide in the Aussie Dollar value, things for me have been really expensive. And I’m pretty much running out of $$….which is not good, given I have a loan to pay!

So I’m now coming home early….March…..where I will continue looking for work, but it will be easier than here.

It makes SW and I sad, but we both decided it’s best for both of us. Given, that she has enrolled in her Masters, and I have now also enrolled back at school!

I’ve only enrolled in the first subject. But the aim is to complete the Batchelor of Business, majoring in Management from Monash Uni, through Open Universities Australia.

So the 2 of us will be stuck studying and working!

So now I am just enjoying my time here. Last night I got to see Paul Van Dyke! I was sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo excited, and it was bloody awesome!!!!!!!!!!! The club was great, the music was great and we both danced our butts off. Some very weird practices from the locals, for a night club, but we just danced.

That’s it for now.

Still lots of photo’s to upload, only uploading 3 a day.

Enjoy.

Zai Jane/Hooroo

My visa for China is only a tourist Visa. I am permitted to stay in the country a maximum of 40 days only. So every 40 days, or just under I have to leave the country. Last week I fled off to Hong Kong.

There are two airports in Shanghai. Hongqiao Airport and Pudong International. Pudong is fairly new and the main International airport. But it’s so far away, you need a gas mask to get there, cause you run out of oxygen! It cost 170RM….which in Oz $s it’s only $40…..but in RMB it’s quite a bit.

I flew with Cathay Pacific and really was quite impressed. I was lucky enough to be seated right at the front of economy class, and had the whole 3 seats next to the window to myself. Now….I think the name of “The land of long white cloud” should be taken off New Zealand, and given to China, cause the whole eastern seaboard is a white cloud! The further south you go, the less cloud there is, but Shanghai has been massively clouded and Hazy. You can hardly see anything, and it’s an awesome thing to think Pilots can land the planes with that much cloud. This cloud cover goes all the way down! Albeit a lot less. But Hong Kong was also hazy.

Anywho, being an Aussie, I got into Hong Kong without a Visa. Which is cool.

I loved Hong Kong! It’s hip, it’s all happening! There is so much to see and do. I was there only for 3 nights, but loved my time there.

One awesome thing bout Hong Kong is the train system! If Connex did just a bit of what Hong Kong MTR does, there would be no problems in Melbourne. It’s just awesome.

I got there on Friday arvo, but didn’t venture out until Saturday. I took the train into Hong Kong Island and spent most of the day there. The bay is a sight to behold. The skyscrapers, the shopping centres, the old style Hong Kong alleys and shops. It’s just awesome. Towards the end of the day, I headed back to the hotel, but stopped at Kowloon bay to have dinner and watch the light show. Every night at 2000Hrs, there is a neon, LED and spotlight light show from the the skyscrapers on both sides of the bay. Its a bit tacky, but at the same time, quite cool to watch. Hundreds of people come out to, what is like Southbank, to eat, look at the skyline, watch the light show. It’s a great place to go and see.

At the end of the day, I was knackered, and my feet were killing, so I carked it in bed.

The day after, I toured the suburbs of where I was staying. It’s cool because it’s “real” Hong Kong…not westernised. Alleys, and shops and Neons everywhere. It’s awesome really. I then took the train again back to Hong Kong island, then caught the Peak tram.

This tram takes you up this massive hill. It’s a massively steep incline. The ride up is great, but the ride down is cooler! At the top, the sight is amazing. You can see all of Kowloon bay, buildings everywhere, Hong Kong Island, even the old airport. It really is quite an impressive sight. I loved it.

I had to get to bed early on Sunday, cause I had a 0900Hrs flight on Monday back to Shanghai…..with Cathay Pacific again. This time, I was at the back, and didn’t have the seats to myself. BUT….I did get great entertainment. I had no idea that Cathay Pacific has a camera attached to the fuselage, and connected to channel 54! It was awesome, I got to watch the plane taxi, take off, fly and land! It was just great.

So I landed back in the heavy haze of Shanghai. You just couldn’t see anything. I didn’t want to spend the same money on taxi, so….I took the Maglev!! Yayay!! I was so excited! It was one of the big things I wanted to do here. It was awesome……we travelled up 300Km/h inclined to the left and right…..up in the air, it’s ok…but on ground it’s scarier….it was so cool……it didn’t take me home….took me to the middle of some place in Shanghai, but closer to home, where I caught a taxi back to home…where…… Budgets.

Unfortunately, the dollar value is crap! So things are that cheap. So the $’s I had saved, have gone down a bit faster than I wanted….especially after my time in Beijing. And with a job, it makes it a bit harder….so it turns out…that I might actually have to come back earlier.

Which sucks massively. Getting a job here has been quite difficult. And not having a degree makes it almost impossible. It turns out that without, they virtually don’t bother looking at you…no matter your experience. So that sux.

So I’m planning on culling my time here by about a month and coming home earlier, unless of course I happen to get a job.

This has all forced to really think about what it is I want to do, and think about the future. Especially now that I am engaged……

So…..school? Yep….I’m thinking of going back to school part time in Oz…..

All is obviously dependant on what happnes here…..but that is a huge possibility. Especially if I happend to go overseas again to look for work.

That’s pretty much it for now. I’ve spent most of my time processing my photo’s from HK since I came back.

They are not all up yet, but they will soon.

Hooroo/Zai Jane

26 January. An important date in the history of Australia. Australia day….yes….this is 5 days late! But Happy Oz day for 5 day’s ago. It’s hard when I have not net access.

The day is also important for Superwoman and myself.

We both flew off to Beijing for a holiday on the 24th. As soon as I landed, I fell in love with Beijing. I love it. It’s awesome. Shanghai is lovely, but for me, Beijing just tops it. It’s full of history and culture. It’s a wonderful place. I also noticed that it was kept very clean since the olympics.

On the 25th, we walked from our hotel to where Tiananmen square is. It was a nice 40 minute walk. Bloody cold though! We arrived in Beijing with a high of -1 and a low of -14!!! It was freezing….but blue skies and sunny….

Our entrance to Tiananmen was to Ancient gates. They are massive. You have to cross the road via the underpass to enter the square. This one square is like a city. It house, the gates, Chairman Mao’s resting place, the monument of the people’s heroes and across another street…..Tiananmen Square and Forbidden. The Grandeur is impressive. It’s too hard to put into words. But it’s just awesome.

First we cimbed up the gates. That was awesome. It’s an amazing feeling when you are in amongst structures that are hundreds of years old…if not thousands……we then walked down the square and saw the monument to people’s heroes and across the street, Tiananmen square….where you see the massive painting of Chairman Mao. It’s amazing. This whole People’s square is so big, it holds 500,000 people. It is staggering to think how big this whole area is, and how many people there here! We were able to enter Tiananmen Square, but because of Chinese New Year Celebrations, Forbidden City was close from midday! So we missed…..for now.

That night we had dinner at Ho Hai lakes, where the lakes are frozen, but is surrounded by “old Beijing”. But “old Beijing is beautiful. The lanes, called Hutongs, are lined with shops or bars or restaurants. It’s soooooooooooooooooooooooo nice.

Anywho…..Monday was the 26th. We booked a tour to go to the Minh Tombs, Jade Factory and Great Wall of China.

First was the tombs. Where 13 of 16 emperors are buried. We went to 1 of the 13. Again, it’s massive. And beautiful. The architecture is just beautiful. Everything has meaning and reason. I’m pretty much left jaw dropped about the things we got to see…..in amazement.

Once we finished the tombs, we stopped off at the Jade factory for some shopping and lunch. Then the wall.

You can see parts of the wall along the route. We kept on asking…”is it that one?”…”no further ahead”…”is it that one?”….”no further ahead”…then we got there…..Jaw dropped…..there was the wall in all its grandeur. Resting peacefully on this massive line of mountains. It’s hard to imagine armies not just trying to cross the wall, but the mountains. The sheer size is crazy. Visiting the wall is one of the best things I have ever done!

We got to the start point…and I asked myself…Here? Nuh….at the top….it will have meaning…..so off we climbed….there are some real steap bits…but once your at the top….it is well worth the minor struggle….every 50 odd metres, there is a tower….in it, little off shoots or hideaways with opening like windows….I pulled Superwoman into one of them….and in Chinese, Spanish and English I popped the question……….”Yes!” I was extatic…….the nerves did not hit me until I said it in English, my legs prett much fell off……and when she said yes…..they shaked even more!

The 26th January 2009…is a special date.

That night we had dinner at Da Dong’s which is Beijing’s Best Peking Duck restaurant….and boy it was awesome!!!

The next day we had another tour…this time to Summer palace, Lama Temple and the Panda Gardens…..Lama temple was amazing….not only did we get to see the tallest standing Buddha in the world….26 metres tall…..but I was awestruck and mesmerised to see the monks doing their morning prayer…..hearing the murmor of their prayers was amazing…..I couldn’t move….for me it was a profound moment….

We then got to see the “Coolest dudes of the trip”….Panda’s…they are soooooooooooo cool….

And then summer Palace…in Typical Chinese grandeur and Architecture…it was simply amazing……we walked the long Corrider…this corridor…..728 metres long! next to it….on the huge hill….a temple Stands proudly…it’s amazing.

I forgot to mention…on the 25th, we also got to go to the temple of Heaven….that was also amazing…..this is more open air than anything else we’ve seen…but just so beautiful….

The day before we left…..we finally got into Forbidden city! Yayayayay!! I think it’s the size of a suburb. It’s just enormous. The amount of people in there is just ridiculous. It’s loaded. Buckets loads of people. Everywhere. In such a massive place. It takes a lot more than a couple of hours in a day to tour this place….we only did straight down the middle……we didn’t travel the sides….no time…too big.

We then got to walk the Hotongs….they are so cool….there a Chinesemen in Rickshaws taking you around…some are really funny….one just rode past us as we walked, and with a Big smile said….”Hello! Welcome to Beijing!” What a dude…..”Ni Hao! Shi-Nien Quay Le!” we would reply… (happy new year)

Chinese New Year…the one thing that made the trip frustrating. It’s an amazing festival….last a long time….the frustrating bit……a nations worth of fireworks going off all day and all night….not 1 day but multiple days. You soon get to hate fireworks!!!!

And now we’re back home to Shanghai…..where….I’m still chilaxing….and just starting to look for work…..hopefully I find something…..otherwise, Oz awaits for me in May….

This friday I’m off to Hong Kong….Looking forward to that.

Click on the above photo for all my current photos. I upload 3 a day. There is now a Shanghai Set and Beijing Set. There will be a Hong Kong set. Choose which one you want to look at. I took bucket loads of photos, so will take me a while to upload, but each post will have a link.

Hooroo/Zai Jane

The last few days, and probably for the rest of this week, have been and will be quite. I really need to conserve money, given I don’t have a job yet. And I have to leave the country every 40 days! Flights aren’t that cheap. I’m of to Hong Kong for 3 nights on the 6th Feb. Looking forward to that.

I’m thinking of going to Mongolia in March, and possibly Singapore in April. But those trips depend on if I get a job.

I got to go to the city the other night…was great to see Shanghai at night…so many lights…..but it sux though, cause at 2230Hrs, the building lights switch off….and all you have left is street lighting. We were at a pub type restaurant….the food was shite! Anywho….as the guys got drunk, I left to get some night shots before the lights were off….I got there on time, and was an awesome sight.

But that night I saw one of the saddest things I have seen. In Shanghai, there is a lot of modernity and extravagance. But also, around you, there is poverty….especially in the city. As I walked up the stairs of the Underpass to arrive at The Bund….on the steps, was a lady, shaking back and forth. I just got a glimpse of her face. It was disfigured. It was a horrible moment. I got to The Bund, and started taking photo’s. As a typical human being, I forgot what I had just seen.

I stayed there for about 20 mins before the lights went off, and headed back to the pub. I had to go via the underpass. On my way to the underpass, some lady offered me “lady massasge” and sex! “Buyao” I said….”I don’t want”….and continued onto the underpass. As I walked down the stairs, this time with my camera around my neck, I remembered the disfigured lady. She was still there, shaking and almost pleading. And she saw me. We were eye to eye, and at that point, I almost felt like collapsing and crying. For she straight away covered her face with her hand. As if she was ashamed to have me look at her. Her face is horribly disfigured. Imagine having to feel like that. Ashamed to face the world. Imagine having to live that. It was a sudden realisation of how lucky I am. Even as I type this, I am haunted by that scene. This poor lady with no help from anywone. One hand missing, a disfigured face. Shaking and begging on the steps of the underpass to The Bund….in one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world.

I’ll prob spend the rest of this week trying to do my assignment to the course…onto Assignment 2 now, but I’ve been procrastinating. 8/10 for assignment 1…though only questions for that one. Then on Friday, SW and I are lucky enough to be heading off to Beijing….it’s going to be even colder than here. Apparently there is going to be a -14 when we’re up there!! But can’t wait to see the Great Wall, and forbidden city and Tianamen Square….should be cool. We went and bought some “real fake” clothes the other day to keep us warm….So North Face jackets and stuff…..you really just can’t tell that it’s fake….

Hopefully my photo’s during the trip are better, cause this week’s photo’s have been really really crap.

That’s it for now…of too wash dishes….

Zai Jane/Hooroo

So I grabbed my scarf, gloves, and trusty beanie that WM gave me for Kapooka. And hopped into the taxi. Was the first time on my own. But I was comfortable with what to say. Hopped in and said to the cabby….”Nanjing Lu, ZhongShan Lu” then showed him the map….he said a couple of things, but I heard the word “Tower”….straight away I knew he knew that I wanted to see the Pearl Tower…..so I said Yes and nodded.

Off we went. Traffic was crazy. In Shanghai, there is one big main arterial, it is both at street level and also elevated. So essentially, it’s 2 levels of 8 lanes…..4 lanes one way 4 the other…..we jumped onto level 2 and drove off….

Shanghai has amazing architecture. There are bulding everywhere, some old and European influenced, other modern and awesome shapes and designs….Jesse….you would have a feild day shooting here….I’m shit at architectural photography…but I gave it a shot…

We got into town, but got stuck…the cabby detoured and got me to where I wanted to go. Paid him…”She sheh, Zai Jane” I said.

I got out and started to put the ipod on and grabbed my camera. As I was fumbling through things….”Hello?”

Two chicks and a bloke had approached and asked me where I was from and where I was headed….I mentioned I really wanted to go see the pearl tower….in their broken English, they said….”Oh don’t go there now…go at night, much prettier…….we going to traditional chinese tea ceremony…..would you like to come?”

I was hesitant. Thinking…..is this an organised group that cons Westerners and mugs them? They added that once the ceremony is finished you can come back to see the tower…..I dunno why I said ok…but I did….risky….so we headed off…..continuously on my mind…”Ruben get ready to get mugged…and we arrived at a building that from the outside didn’t look special…just a plane 2 storey white box….mmmmm….we went in a young chinese girl greeted us….no english….but my new freinds translated…..she showed us all the awards….apparently this was the place of some grand team master…..and they were his awards….being a buddhist place, I wasn’t allowed to take photo’s, so I respected that. We went up stairs into this small room where there was a table and a whole heap of different tea’s….wow…we sat down, and out of respect in chinese culture, I got the middle chair! And off it went….It was an amazing experience.

My freinds turned out to be learning English, and they needed to practice it, so they stopped me…..they were sooooo nice though…..and they translated everything the host was saying…..so I learnt heaps about the tradition of Chinese tea…..how to hold the cup girl way and boy way…..the reasons behind how it’s poored, how it’s drunk with what etc etc…and how this relates to the overal chinese culture….it really was an amazing experience…..and yes…I got conned into buying tea……all the while, I still had “Ruben be on your guard in my head”….but in reality I didn’t have to. It was an amazing experience, and I got to taste a whole bunch of different tea’s….one which is apparently the best one in all of China and really rare…so…it could have been all a con to lure Westerners in to spend the money….or not…either way…it was an awesome experience, where I learnt a lot….yes…I spent a fair bit of $$’s….but it was well worth….I think those type of things are worth more than money….I was really grateful in the end that they stopped me….put a big smile on my dial….and according to my freinds they were really happy that they got to practice there English, but also show me, a westerner, a little bit of their culture…..a culture so old….4000 years…..that it makes you realise, that no matter how much I love Australia, we are still so very young.

So I made some new freinds! And we’ll keep in touch…..and we went our separate ways…..off I went to see the Pearl Tower…..what an awesome sight that is….you arrive at a place called The Bund…which is like Melbourne’s Southbank….but just waaaaaayyyy bigger…..and colder and bucket loads more people. It was awesome….The Bund is on one side of the Huangpu River and on the other side is Pudong Park…..where all the big buildings and businesses are….and the Pearl Tower….it really is an awesome sight…..and standing next to the Pearl tower makes you feel really small…….it’s just awesome….

At the end of the day, I caught a cab and went off home….through the usual Shanghai traffic and suicidal driving styles! You get used to it. It’s scary though, cause there are no seatbelts on the back seat of the cabbies!

Got home, and had a big smile on my dial…was an awesome day…..then SW rang and said we’re off to the gym! So I’ve now signed up to the gym….which will be good….can start my exermacise regime again….

That’s it for now.

Hooroo/Zai Jane

Since I have arrived, the weather has been freezing and dull and
grey….so I haven’t really ventured outside of our suburb……but
each day I try to do something different.

Our heating has been broken, so we had manager of the complex come
and look, then the landlord…then finally the technician….this is
where I learnt that the Chinese just get on with things….and it’s
soooooo cool. We are on the 7th storey of the apartment building. The
electric heaters are plugged to the fan and some other thing on the
outside of the building….so if that breaks…you somehow have to get
outside the building and fix it.

Well…….the technician came with a harness….there was nowhere
to strap the harness to…..so….he opened the window….gave me and
the building manager the rope he was attached too….and climbed
out….here we are…..two blokes….we couldn’t speak to each other
cause I can’t speak mandarin, and he can’t speak english….so
everything is by eye gestures and hand signals….and we’re holding a
rope with a dude hanging out the window…..he perched himself into a
whole underneath the balcony and did his job……then we pulled him
up…..was scary….I felt for him…he was tough….tough man….but
we finally got heating and we don’t have to experience the minus 0
weather…..

The sun finally decided to come out in the last couple of days, so
I ventured out a bit further…..and has been cool….the intimidation
levels are decreasing each day, and I’m getting to the point where I
feel I can catch a cab on my own and take myself to the city…which I
will cause I really wanna take a photo of the Pearl tower….

The other night, SW’s best freind’s brother arrived in Shanghai.
The plan was for us to meet him and have dinner with him. He arrived,
and decided to take the Maglev into the city…problem is…he had no
idea where to go from there…..so he got lost…..he rang us while we
were in the cab on the way in to meet him….so our dinner night turned
into 3 hours of searching…..people….if you get lost, stay put! And
describe your surroundings…..it made it very difficult when he moved
about! So 3 hours later, dinnerless, we found him and got him to his
hotel! We went home….I loved the experience, cause got to see the
city at night…It’s huge! It’s like Bourke Street Mall….3 times as
big! With Neon lights everywhere…..it’s cool…I got to see the Pearl
tower at night….that was cool…but the lights had been switched
off…..and because I didn’t bring my tripod, wouldn’t have been able
to take a shot.

Yesterday, we waled to another commercial district….it was
awesome…about 1.5 hour walk…..bucket loads of people, cars, taxi’s,
bikes and buses…awesome…here, there is a dome shaped building, in
it….a multi storey market….where, you can get whatever you
want…..fake, not fake or those special orders where things are made
after hours….I got myself a tripod…cause I need one….esecially
now that I have just enrolled in the Professional Photography Online
course witht he Photography institute. Something to keep me busy while
I have nothing to do…..

Also got a router and a mouse….ooh….that day I also got merino
wool socks! And a Nalgene bottle…..now Frutz knows that I only one
get one to try and prove the theory and their stateme wrong that it’s
industructable…..but…i don’t have a water bottle here and it looks
cool…..so I might hold of in trying to break it….don’t
worry…these things were bought from the legit store…..like
Kathmandu….and they are more expensive than in Oz….

The othernight I was taken to Blue Frog….a local pub….there…I
felt proud….I felt my alcoholism was now somewhat comparable to
SteveO’s……where….if you have all 100 shots they have on their
list….you get your name printed on the special wall of fame….so
I’ve started…im on 10…90 more to go…it’s not that cheap
though…and I don’t really think they have that much alcohol. Cause
after the 10….I really wasn only slightly tipsy…….

Anywho….that’s it for now…enjoy the photo’s (above) I add 3 to the collection each day……

Hooroo/Zai Jane……

Ni Hao

Yesterday I enrolled in an online Photography course. It will give me something to do, and I can get a diploma after it. In the world of photography, it’s not a big deal…..but I’ve already learnt something.

Yesterday’s weather, as has everyday, but worse yesterday, was pretty crap. So I didn’t venture out….until the arvo, where I decided I better go get some poo tickets and other stuff. I could have gone to the local Western supermarket, but decided I would challenge myself and go to the local supermarket….the Chinese version of Coles or Woolies….Trust Mart. Wow….it was scary and cool at the same time. I was the only westerner in the whole building. It’s 2 stories of supermarket! You enter where all the fridges and tv’s are then move along to the household stuff and kitchen stuff…..all I wanted was some poo tickets!!! And some food….where is the food?!?

Found the escalator….went up….Fark!! All these people! All this food! Everything’s in Chinese….what the hell am I doing?

I got the stuff I needed. And paid for it….lucky numbers are the same world wide. and I walked home with a big pack of 10 3 ply poo tickets amongst other things…..that was pretty much it for yesterday…

Today…I went walking in the other directions of Hong Mei Lu….my main street….walked passed an army barracks…that was cool…and there was a building having work done on it…I think the work safety inspectors in Aus would have a feild day….scaffolding? Yes…..safe? No…Bamboo scaffolding?! Crazy stuff…..It’s cool here cause they just get on with things. On my way home I decided to buy some DVDs…..real? Well

Got 3 movies and the whole Planet earth BBC presentation for $19 AUS….crazy….watched Last King of Scotland…loved it….then put Iron Man on….It’s in CHinese!!!! Man!!! Sooo pissed off…then put on the Planet Earth one…..It’s in Chinese also!!!! GGGGRrrrrrr!!!!!!!

Not happy Jan…..not…happy….jan….

tomorrow’s adventure? Haven’t decided yet….but will be heading into town on Sunday….looking forward to that….I think tomorrow I will spend time reading through Module 1 and 2 of the course.

Hooroo/Zai Jane

Ni hao. I’m on my second day solo now. SW is comfortably back at work. I had my first walk about yesterday…wasn’t very long….but I got out there….went and bought some groceries, and came home…hat was the extent of my adventures. It was freezing….Im pretty much travelling with my scarf, gloves, new A & F jumper and the beanie that wingman gave me for my Army expedition….i feel so toasty and warm.

SW had to stay a bit later last night, so I cooked her some dinner for when she got back. Yesterday was quite relaxed. Last night though, I walked out into the balcony in the freezing cold…but was somehow nice….i looked down, and there was a gentleman…by the uniform he was wearing, he was a cleaner of some sort….he had a bucket and soap, and a basket full of clothes…he was washing his clothes in the public gardens. Then, he would neatly, and gently hand them on the nearby tree…..it was amazing.

Today, I felt I would go on a longer walk about. But first I wanted another A & F jumper. Packed my camerea and off I went. Left our building and meandered around the many stray cats running about in our complex. Navigated around the bikes and got to the main streets.

The main streets are an experience. There are so many people here. It is just continuously busy. And every couple of hundred metres, you will hear a horn. Either a bike horn, motor bike horn, car horn or bus horn…..even a bell…..or a speaker on a bike advertising something or other. It’s really quite cool. Crossing the street is entertaining…..but not as bad as Vietnam I’ve been told.

So I got my jumper and for the same price. So happy with that. Then I decided to walk around the block……a bloody big block. I felt quite weird.

a) Im white and western
b) I’ve got an expensive camera hand around my neck

The looks and stares were continuous.

I decided to turn left into a street that was a lot less western and a lot more shanghainese than where we live. There, I was a little spooked – more so cause I’m carrying expesive gear, and the people don’t really have much…you can’t help but thing….”When am I going to get mugged…..be on the look out…” but I tried to keep calm, and I just took photo’s….with many staring at me with that look….”What the hell are shooting or doing?” It turns out that that left turn I did, followed by the second left, led me straight back to my living complex……but I wasn’t done….so I continued on the other main street…..

It is amazing….there are bikes everywhere……and cars…..Buiks everywhere….they seem to be almost regal here….as I walked, I saw massive villas, outside….the poor….men on there bikes carrying rubbish….or sweeping or balloons….others, on there taxi bikes….every now and then, some one will stop and ask me in Chinese if I would like a lift….the only communication….nodding yes or no….I kept on walking and arrive at an intersection….BUSY….cars and bikes everywhere….little shops every….

It’s amazing…1KM backwards….Im in a more western spot, and not as busy…..here….Shanghai….

it’s awesome….but at the same time, given who I am and what I am…spooky…I turned left again…..200 metres up the road…..one of the biggest intersections I have seen…..in many ways, Shanghai reminds me of Mexico…..things are just big….this intersections saw cars and bikes going off whenever they felt it safe….though the majority followed the rules and lights……others did as they pleased….it was an awesome sight….

About 20 metres to my left, some fella and a baby on his back had crossed the road….but not using the crossing bit…..and then he got to a point where he couldn’t cross no more. So he just stood still…with the baby….and cars just flashed passed him….eventually he got across…..it was crazy….I decided it was time to head back and eat…about 2k away….walking back through the many chinese this time didn’t seem as spooky…..

Yesterday I noticed, that clothes are hanged outside the window….but I didn’t get how they physically hung them…today I realised how…..there is a horse shoe type thingy….big one….more square like….attached to each window of each apartment complex…..and a couple of big long rods are fed through a couple of hoops….these rods can be brought into the home through the window……the pole is fed through the holes and then through the hoops and lie gently on the horse shoe thingy….your very own chinese Hills Hoist…..almost

Walked passed a driving range under construction….the mixture of poor and rich is amazing…….you are surrounded by both……that it almost seems to be 1 class only….not poor nor rich…..just Shanhainese…..

As I walked passed the grocery store….called City Store…where all the westerners go…prices are crazy….”luxury” items like strawberry jams or crisp chips cost 2 or 3 times as much as they do back home….and as you would expect…outside that store….beggers….as I walked passed….1 begger approached a group of Chinese….and begged…but followed one of them to his car…..the beggar dragged with tied to a metal chain…..a monkey……on the lift of his right hand…the monkey would a somer sault. On the lowering of the right hand, the left hand would raise up with a hat, where he expected to see some $$ in there…..the poor bugger didn’t get anything…..one guys, shooed him off and pointed in the other direction…telling him where to go…almost in disgust…..it was a scene…something we are just not used to in Australia. I feel lucky that I have been around this in Mexico….but it doesn’t change how you feel about it….how lucky you feel to have what you have….I wished I had the right lens on my camera to take a photo….but I felt, though, that at that point, it wasn’t the right thing to do.

I continued on home. I walk down Hong Mei Lu….our street….it is full of complexes…each one with it’s own security…..in each about 5 or  6 different apartment blocks…about 13 stories high…..as I walked passed 1, I heard some yelling, and a westerner walked passed me with a smile…..two security guards, one female and one male….were having a tiff…..shop workers round the corner were giggling at their antics…..I kept on going.

Back to the apartment where I finished of the best Doritos I have tasted, as I sat in front of the Idiot box watching cable TV…..and typing this….while outside, the beggers beg, the poor sweep and the only slightly less poor, ride a taxi bike asking you if you need a lift. The difference is just sad. Astonishing and disgusting. Disgusting in a way that the world is like this.

I will be walking in the opposite direction tomorrow. Photos can be found here: