At the Wet Market

Today I took my first trip to the Wet Market. For those of you who do not know, this is a food market where raw ingredients of many varieties can be purchased. I didn't have the courage to take pictures, so if you want visual aids, you'll have to check google images.  I had heard from one Texan living in Shanghai that she became a vegetarian after her first and only visit to a wet market.  I was preparing myself mentally for what I might see. I figured that my frequent trips to the local supermarket were a good warm-up. I've already seen rows of chicken feet and even visited the space where the butcher works in one of our local grocery stores. This is pretty big for "Little Miss I Like My Meat Packaged." Even so, I almost 'chickened' out at the last minute. Thankfully, the shuttle dropped me off near the front of the market, where grains and oils were being sold. Nothing stomach churning there. After buying some sunflower oil., I headed toward the back of the market. It was easy for me to walk past the small pools of fish flopping around, as I wouldn't consider any of these creatures as a potential meal. Harder was going past the poultry coops. Many of the vendors where showing me big beautiful birds, no doubt thinking it would make a lovely dinner for my family. I saw a variety of tofu and eggs and many things I didn't recognize. Finally, I made my way to the produce area, where I had fun miming with one of the vendors. She kept showing me her best produce, but the first 3 things she showed me were not foods I recognized, and therefore did not know how to prepare. She ended up selling me some green peppers and also some chestnuts that I hope to roast. 

All is not as it appears

In one of his posts, Papa Dumpling wisely stated that in China, it is often best to just go with the flow. I couldn't agree more. Another Chinese 'truism' we are learning is that all is not as it appears. We have heard this said countless times by others and now I will give share from my personal  experience. I have a habit of carrying peppermint flavored tic tacs in my purse. I ran out weeks ago, and have been considering a replacement mint since I haven't seen tic tacs on any of the store shelves. I finally decided to try these instead. Seems like a safe bet, who doesn't like Wrigley's Doublemint?

Yum?

Turns out, we don't like the Chinese idea of doublemint!  These may APPEAR familiar, but they are not. These things are HORRID! They taste slightly like mint, but more like flowers and soap. I suppose the flower on the label may have been a hint. The Paying Customer and The Works want to save them to share with any guests we might get. Aren't they thoughtful?

Lowes!?

Last weekend I went riding around the neighborhood and finally discovered where the contractors in Shanghai go to get their building materials. The area I found was a huge triangular section of streets, about 3-4 blocks wide and 6-7 blocks long. You can see it here, just click on the satellite image and look for the blue roofs (I cannot seem to link to the satellite version, click on the map of the world in the upper right hand corner)

The whole approach was very much based on the bazaar-style approach. Each of the shops appeared to be owner-operated and specialized in something different. The number of cars/trucks/bikes/scooters made me wonder how anyone ever actually manages to get what they need.

I've got a pretty good track record that for every 2 hours working on a project I need to make one 30 minute trip to the hardware store. I believe any projects in Shanghai will completely invert that ratio to every 2 hours spent getting my materials will allow me to make 30 minutes of progress.

Need some wire?

I was glad to see that Kohler found a place to market their goods, I'm sure the people back in Sheboygan will be reassured that the Kohler brand actually is very noticeable. I've been to alot of shops, restaurant and hotels with their stuff.

Need a new hot water heater??

Of course what I should have really taken pictures of were all the bikes with large wagons attached (tricycles actually), loading/transporting all the different items. The one that stuck in my memory was carrying two very large valve assembly's, easily large enough to double as fire hydrants.

Vroom vroom

So we went out and purchased new bikes to get around. Given all the stories I have heard of bikes being stolen we kept it simple and went to the local carrefour (think k-mart/meijers) and purchased some inexpensive ($50-$90) bikes so we could get around.

This one is actually The Paying Customer's bike, his came with a basket & I was on a mission. I had stuff to buy and needed a way to carry it all home. Charcoal, steaks & beer!! Loaded up and headed back. The place we are renting came with a grill...good. But, the chinese are very environmentally conscious and lighter fluid appears to be very hard to find. I find this very odd given their passion for fireworks. I ended up using these small "lighter brickets" one small box came with 4 of them. They light easily enough, but take 5-10 minutes to heat up and turn gray, no flames, they just slowly heat up....then you wait for them to heat up all the "normal" brickets....took over an hour to get the grill going. Definitely need to track down some "boy scout fire water"....perhaps I'll stop by the local painting supply store and get some of uncle deans favorite camping gear :-)

This is my ride! It has several unique characteristics. First and foremost it was the only bike I could find that was close enough to my size. While the average height of the Chinese is increasing as each generation gains better access western style methods for growing food, the bicycle industry hasn't responded yet.

This is actually an american made bike purchased in china! Its almost big enough, has a rack and it folds up small enough to fit into the trunk of a taxi. Overall not a bad gig. Next step is to find a basket I can mount on the front and maybe dig up same panniers.

On the rack you can see the brand-new giant-branded bike pump I purchased ($7.50), The Works' bike had a flat and required some repair work, and some tools...and some time. Found the local sporting good store (decathlon.com.cn), overall a decent place to get bike, camping & ping-pong gear.

The Flower Market

Inside the market, just one of many corridors. 

Outside vending area

This week, I took it to compound's shuttle service to one of Shanghia's flower markets, and I hope to return soon with more spending money and a bigger shopping bag! The market houses various vendors peddling indoor and outdoor plants, cut flowers, seeds, potting soil, vases, kitchen ware, knick-knacks as well as pet birds and fish. It was great fun to explore the shops, but I barely scratched the surface because I had quickly spent my money and filled my shopping bag. As I am still learning the ropes with shopping, I was unsure if this was a place to bargain or not, so I just paid the asking price, which I later learned was a mistake. However, I still feel as if I got a great deal, as I came home with 7 sizable plants and 2 matching glazed pots for about $25.

One of 2 matching planters on our porch.

The gnome finally gets a bit of  privacy.

Hong Kong!

Ok, because I was unable to obtain all of necessary documentation before we moved to China I was "forced" to make a trip to Hong Kong! This was necessary so that I could leave the country & visit the Chinese consulate, obtain a Z-visa & re-enter the country. Since HK is now part of China I don't really understand how/why this works, but as with all things in China its best to simply go with the flow.

I find the entire Visa process facinating. They ask for a pile of forms, check to make sure they are all filled in then put a big sticker in your passport. Since they will turn these things around in as little as 4 hours (chicago) or 24 hours (HK) I suspect its just some form of test....or simply a mysterious ritual that I wasn't meant to understand.

The Z visa is very fascinating since it required a health check, a work authorization and an official invitation letter from the Chinese government (that had to be requested by GE) Now that I have it I am allowed to enter china once (done!) and work for 30 days. I am now also allowed to apply for a work permit and a residency permit that will allow our entire family to stay for one year....when we get to do it all again! :-) Hmmm, 30 day process to apply for a Z visa, followed by a 30 day process to finish..pretty fishy....moon cycles?

Honestly after reading a bit of Chinese history I believe it dates back to when "barbarians" visiting china were expected to go through an elaborate series of ceremonies and gift exchanges before getting down to business. Modern china has simply streamlined the process.

We had a good time in HK, between my two visits to the Consulate we managed to visit HK Disney, tour a museum, walk about town and do wee bit of shopping.

When the British claimed HK after the opium war it looked like a vicious defeat for China. HK then spent 100 years developing into one of the most famous cities in the world....that now belongs to china. Perhaps the Chinese found an interesting way to turn defeat into victory?

It's Mail Time!

Twix checks out the box. Anything good in there?

Today we received 2 packages. The first to arrive came via courier on a bicycle, and it is something Papa Dumpling ordered from Amazon.com.cn.   The site is quite different from the US version, and items are only returnable if they are defective. Still, it is one way to get items that we cannot find in stores. Another Chinese site that I am having fun browsing, but have yet to order from is the Chinese version of eBay, called Taobao. This will probably require some help from a native Chinese speaker!

Our second package of the day was delivered by a gentleman in a uniform, and I had to sign for that one as well. Perhaps he was our mail person? Anyway, thank you dear sister-in-law for sending the package of our forgotten items! I appreciate it.

Papa Dumpling's office provides a pouch service for forwarded mail. So far, there has been no mail, however. We know from our snowbird relatives that the forwarded mail sometimes takes awhile to get started. We know the service works from China as we have reports that something we mailed from here was received in the U.S.

It's a rainy day here and the temperature is a pleasant 70 degrees F. Rumor has it that the weather is hot and humid in Hong Kong for the big Disney Trip. Hoping that there are no problems securing the required visa and that the rest of the dumplings are back tomorrow night as scheduled! It's too quiet here with just the pets and me.

Walking the dog

Now that we don't have a yard we can call our own, we must walk the dog several times a day. This is an adjustment for all of us, but it definitely has its advantages, too. Biscuit loves the attention she gets while she is out walking in the neighborhood, and we are all spending more time moving around outside. This morning I took a few photos of things I noticed on my walk.

A snail climbs a tree.

Unidentified tree.

A bird in the teahouse. I tried to help it
get out, until I noticed a cat looking in
from the outside (not pictured).

Freshly planted petunias in September!

Pomegranates?

Signs of Fall, even if it still in the 80s.

Several blossoms here, can't wait to see
the flowers

Watch your step!

Out on the streets, it's important to watch your step, as people are known to urinate and to spit. There are people employed as sweepers cleaning up all over the city. I really get a kick out of the musical street sprayers that I have seen spraying the streets down on particularly dusty days. The trucks sound almost like an ice cream truck back home, but without the expense or the calories!

But really, sanitation is only one reason to keep an eye on the ground. I am really enjoying the beautiful stonework details I come across as I explore the area. Here are a few of photos I have take around the city:

Tempting....

Hmmm....only $7.50....tempting.....oh so tempting.....I can wait....just.....a.....little bit longer...............

Just another day

Today I took the compound shuttle to what is currently my favorite grocery store in Shanghai. It's a German version of Costco or Sam's Club called Metro. I found baking cocoa there, so I hope to bake something chocolate soon!

What I should have been doing instead of shopping for cocoa is registering with the police department. I still haven't updated our address with them. I tried to do it this afternoon, but was instructed by Papa Dumpling not to let go of the passports, as he is trying to arrange a quick trip to Hong Kong to get his residency permit. He plans to take The Paying Customer and aka The Works with him for a 2-3 day stay, and would ideally like to leave tonight or tomorrow morning. He is waiting on some paperwork, so it may be next week before they head out. I'll be staying behind on poop-scoop duty.

The brightest spot in my day is that the new slip covers for all of the couches arrived and were installed. Now my living room has some color until the rest of our shipment arrives. The landlord will provide us with 3 rugs, so I have decided that picking them out will be a good reward for registering ourselves, our dog and our bikes.

Here is a picture of the formerly white couch:

More on taxis

In one of my early posts, I mentioned that one day I had 2 taxis refuse to take me to my destination. I learned a few reasons for this from one of the teachers at the boys' school. The first one is that at lunch time, the taxi drivers have a specific place they go to lunch, and they may not want to venture too far from it if it is close to break time. Chris confirmed this by saying at his company, the lunch room runs out of food within 30 minutes. They are very careful not to prepare too much food. He has noticed that his coworkers won't start anything new too close to lunch, as they are very focused on getting to the lunch room on time!

But more plausible to me is that many of the taxi drivers come from a nearby island. I was correct in assuming that sometimes these drivers do not know the city, and was told that some of them cannot even find the most famous places in town. However, another issue, probably more common, is that many of these drivers are illiterate. So our system of handing out a slip of paper with the address and cross streets written in Chinese won't work for them. Luckily, this same teacher was able to provide us with a taxi assistance phone number for English speakers. Apparently, the government started the program last year in time for the Expo, and it is free. Just call and tell your address in English, and they will translate and tell the driver the destination in Chinese. I haven't tried it yet, but will let you know if it doesn't work!

Tea

Last week I learned a few things about tea. One of my coworkers grew up in the country and is quite particular about the tea she drinks. She shared some with me & it was very good. She got the tea outside of Shanghai (because everything in shanghai is outrageously overpriced) and was very particular about how/when it was harvested. I couldn't follow all of the details but the best tea can only be harvested at one time of year (early spring?), is gathered by hand, has only one (?) leaf and the most experienced harvesters will only get 500grams/day! (17 ounces)

When drinking tea the first cup smells the best, then you reuse the same tea leaves for a 2nd,3rd...6th cup as desired. The 2nd cup tastes the best and the 3rd or 4th cup is not bad at all. In the office people have these tea-cups with lids and refill them as the day goes on.

Seconds?

Hope your still hungry, because China's fat cat is! I found the sequel to Sushi Cat, called Sushi Cat 2. You play as the same cat, but this time there are different power-ups, types of sushi and looks. You can get costumes in the game. My favorite costume is the ninja costume. In this game, however, the pink cat (I'll call her Pinkie) has been taken by a bacon-loving dog. In order to rescue Pinkie, he must become even bigger than he already is to open an elevator door, watch a movie, and break through a door. It's just as good as the first game!

Biting off more than I can chew (but loving every minute of it)!

I mentioned in one of my first posts that everything takes longer to accomplish here, so today I will go into great detail. I hope this isn't too boring and mundane. It is Friday, and our pets are arriving this afternoon. For the Chinese, it is a holiday weekend, but our kids have school on Monday. I had a long list of errands to attempt today:

1.) Go to uniform office, which is located in Owen's school to exchange a long sleeve shirt that was given to me in place of a short sleeve shirt I requested for Evan. While at the school, stop in the cafeteria to prepay a lunch card for Owen, since he finally saw an offering that was more tempting than the packed lunch I had been sending.

2.) Stop at the hotel downtown to pick up Evan's clothing that was inadvertently left behind on moving day. Also pick up important paperwork from the hotel that proves to that we had registered with the police there, as all visitors are required to do or risk getting fined. Every place we have stayed has done this for us, but neither Chris nor I had any recollection of the hotel taking care of this, so we were a bit nervous!

3.) Stop at the tailor to pick up some alterations I couldn't do myself because I don't have my sewing kit yet.

4.) Pick up a few items that were not available at our local grocery store, but that are available at another store close to the hotel.

5.) Take our passports and the papers from the hotel to our new landlord so that they could register us with the police at our new location.

6.) Pick up something for breakfast tomorrow.

7.) Be home in time for the pets to be delivered and meet the boys after school.

Now, if I were back in the states with my own car and no language barrier, I would have been able to accomplish all of these things. But instead, I only got about half of them done, and I am exhausted. I did not even attempt to go to the school, because it was raining this morning, and taxis are hard to get on a rainy day. I was confident I could get a taxi to school, but not sure one would wait for me while I conducted my business, or that I would be able to catch another one home. Add to this the fact that a major road near the school has been under construction (but should be done soon if it isn't already) and I just didn't want to risk getting stuck at the school for several hours. Instead, I opted to start my day with a trip downtown. I tried to flag a taxi on my own (the compound provides this service, but I was trying to be independent, silly girl!) and it took me over 20 minutes and one rejection (the driver either didn't know how to get to my destination, or it was too far away) before I finally got a taxi. The ride was uneventful. Some slowdowns on the highway, but got there via the most direct route (not always the case).

Stop Number 1

I start at the grocery store and stocked up on a few things, but nothing perishable or likely to be crushed, since I had lots of stops planned. I load up my wheeled shopping cart that I remembered to bring with me, but I didn't buy anything for breakfast, because it is still only 10:30 am. I had lots of time, right? Then I take a short walk to the hotel. There I was greatly relieved to see that they had the police forms. Oh wait, they have 3 forms, but there are 4 in our family. Where is the 4th form? 45 minutes later I am able to leave the hotel with all 4 forms and a bulging bag of clothing. Having had no caffeine all morning, my head is throbbing, so I stop for a cup of coffee in the lobby of the hotel next door. I will formulate my next step from there.

Stop Number 2


Since I don't know the metro route and have a horrible sense of direction, and I have a cart full of groceries AND a bag of clothing with me, I opt to take a cab to the fabric market. I had a business card with the tailor's address written in Chinese, which is essential for getting around when you don't speak any Chinese. Cab drivers generally don't read or speak any English, so having someone translate an address in advance  (or using the Google Translation app -- I have a smart phone, but it hasn't made me smart enough yet!) are essential. I manage to get a taxi to the fabric market quite easily and am in and out of there in no time. However, adding another bag into the mix, I decide that maybe I have time to catch a cab home and unload and grab some lunch. I am in a busy area and no rain is falling so hailing a cab is easy. However, the first cab will not take me to my destination, so I try again and am successful with the second cab driver.

Stop Number 3


I stop at the landlord's office to drop off the papers and passports and am told that the person who can deal with this is on vacation. Panic sets in because on Wednesday we were told that it must be dealt with within 3 days. The woman makes some calls, and tells me all is well, they DO have someone who can take the passports and paperwork to the police today. I go home and fix lunch. In the meantime, I get a call telling me that they do not have all of the paperwork from Papadumpling's employer, and that we will have to appear in person at the police station on Tuesday. I request assistance with this, and am promised an escort on Tuesday. I wait while the office worker produces a letter with an official seal that should keep us in good standing with the police. It is now almost 3 pm and I am exhausted. I consider making a trip out to buy breakfast goodies and a dish to pass for tomorrow's school BBQ, but I am spent, and I'm not sure I even have enough time, for reasons that hopefully are now evident! I decide to take it easy, put my feet up and blog instead. The boys and the pets will be here soon, and we have food to eat tomorrow morning, even if it isn't traditional breakfast fare. Today hasn't gone as expected so far, but it hasn't been dull. I hope it doesn't sound like I am complaining, because I am not unhappy, I am just learning how to adapt in this new place.

Assembly-line physical

Today I had the pleasure of having the medical examination required by the Chinese government for people making long stays in China. Papa Dumpling had his last month, and thankfully The Paying Customer and aka The Works are exempt. For those of you who don't know, I am totally basket case when it comes to medical exams, so I was REALLY not looking forward to this. I had a million excuses: I just had the entire family checked out before the move, the pets are coming tomorrow and I don't have a litter box yet, and of course, we just moved yesterday and the household is still in chaos! (Can you believe we left almost all of Evan's non-school clothes at the hotel? Thankfully his uniforms, socks and underwear made it, but guess what I'm doing tomorrow?)

Anyway, it was off to the medical center I went today. Thankfully there was a Chinese guide assigned to meet me there and help me through the process. First thing I had to do, after waiting an hour because I arrived during the lunch break, was have 7 passport photos made. Then my guide stood in about 4 lines to deal with paperwork and payments before I was given a form and taken to the medical hallway where I was provide a very nice gown, and a nurse directed me from one exam room to another. It was very busy and crowded, but I managed to move through all of the stations very quickly. I had a vision screening, blood pressure check, surgical history review, EKG, blood draw, ultrasound and an xray. Mostly painless and now it is OVER!

One thing that is curious about the Chinese is how they wait in line. It's an odd thing, because in many places there don't seem to be any rules for waiting in a line. A Chinese person will often think nothing of just pushing past a crowd of people and cutting to the front of the line. It is accepted as the norm here. I have certainly had people cut in front of me a waiting for a public restroom or at a service counter. In some popular restaurants, you can pay extra to hop to the front of the line. However, at the cell phone office and again at the medical exam, I noticed another line practice that I find more amusing than cutting. If seats are available, everyone takes a seat in the order that they arrive. When the person in the first seat is called, everyone gets up and moves over one seat closer to the front of the line. At least my thighs got a good workout today, but I think it probably would have been easier to just stand!

China has a cute fat cat

Sushi Cat is a small computer game that you play as a cat who is trying to get a toy purple cat (who he thinks is a real cat) to love. Basically you drop the cat to pick up sushi to complete levels. The reason he has to pick up the sushi is so that he can get fatter. The reasons he is getting fatter are: to open a sliding door, to win a sumo competition and to ring a bell at a carnival. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom.

Hot Pot

Okay already! Sheesh... you didn't have to spell it out loud!!! I'm blogging now so STOP PESTERING ME ALREADY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay, now that that is out of the way, my mom made me blog about this so I had no other choice. Anyway, we went to a place called shabu shabu (Can't. Stop. Laughing. At. The. Name.). It was a really good restaurant! You get to cook your own food in a boiling pot-dumplings, vegetables, pork, beef- you name it (that is, of course, if it's on the menu). Also, I learned that if you leave everything in the pot for about 45 minutes or so, it will all taste the same. It didn't seem too appealing at first, but it was really worth it! Also, if you're wondering, I'm having a good time here in Shanghai!

This is my second attempt at making this...STUPID POWER CORD!

By the way, the name of the restaurant makes me think of Ocarina Of Time.

Waiting for The Paying Customer or The Works?????

If you are waiting to read ANY post from The Paying Customer or The Works, please leave a comment below. They both have photos and topics ready to go, but getting either one to come to the computer to write (I'd even let them DICTATE!) is proving to be a chore. Maybe a little encouragement from the Peanut Gallery would help? I'm desperate here!

Ikea to the rescue

Tomorrow we move into our townhouse. We have 2 shipments of household goods, one of which has arrived in Shanghai, but won't clear customs for about 2 weeks. That means that we need to stock up on a few supplies so that we can be reasonably comfortable in the meantime. A perfect excuse to check out one of the Shanghai Ikea stores. It was very similar as the ones in the US, including the crazy Saturday morning crowd.  We bought the items pictured below for RNB 227 or $36. For kicks, I looked up the prices on the website, and these same items would cost $44 back in the States. We still need bedding so we may be heading back.

Coffee...

Ok, lets get one thing straight. The coffee in china stinks. The one and only saving grace is that Starbucks has done fairly well establishing themselves in Shanghai. Same high prices, same exact cup of coffee and snacks. But if you go to a restaurant or hotel you should set your expectations very, very low. The other day I was late for the work and could not find a cup of coffee in one of the largest subway stations in the city! (no breakfast options either)

I did pass three "Costa Coffee's", none of them were open. I was forced to wait until I completed the 1-hour bus ride to work to drink this! (<----) This is not a Tassimo, this is not even a Keurig. Best I can guess is that they managed to shrink an old fashioned vending machine & drop it on the counter. A well, at least it is caffeinated.

Fyi, the cafeteria serves noodles for breakfast...hope nobody was surprised :-)

Mr. Pancake House

Ok, breakfast is not a big deal in Shanghai. But if you look hard enough you can find what you want. Today I wanted a traditional american breakfast and after 20 minutes of searching we found a place a short taxi ride from our service apartment. Mr. Pancake House! There appears to be one other place "La Pancake" that'll we'll try sometime. Beyond that you'll need to have breakfast at one of the hotels if want a western-style breakfast.

I got the "Big breakfast", two eggs anyway I like them, a piece of ham, a piece of bacon, a piece of chicken sausage, potatoes and two pancakes. I don't think the Chinese like to serve food that is even close to raw, the concept "over easy" didn't get me very far & toast was not an option. Momma got a spinach omelet (go veggies!), The works got same plain pancakes and the paying customer got the strawberry pancakes. Everyone was very satisfied and this one stays on "the list", although once we move south I'm not sure how often we will be able to visit the north side of Shanghai...but I know we will :-)

Veggie Heaven

Our serviced apartment includes a breakfast buffet. It has an assortment of Eastern and Western foods. Much of the food put out is not what we would typically consider breakfast food, but I am taking the opportunity to get a few more veggies into my diet. I'm pretty certain this is why I have seen so few heavy or obese Chinese people. I am trying to get the boys to try more veggies, too. The Paying Customer is still pretty resistant, but The Works enjoyed an order of pan fried veggie dumplings (sans coffee and ice cream) from a street vendor earlier this week.

What is so unusual about my feet?

There are so many things here I have yet to understand. One burning question is why so many of the Chinese women look at my feet when I am out an about. I have noticed someone staring at my feet almost every day I have been here. I have 4 pairs of shoes I have been wearing and cannot pinpoint it to just one pair or style. I can't decide if it is because my shoes are ugly, my feet are large, or if my painted toenails are taboo. Or perhaps they are marveling at my height without heels? I will admit a certain curiosity about their footwear as well.  I am amazed at how many of these ladies run around town in high heels. They look great! But my feet would never last all day in shoes like that. Another thing I've noticed is that women of all ages frequently wear knee-high or ankle-high nylon panty hose with shorts or skirts. Given the sanitary conditions on the streets, I guess I can see why they may chose to do this, but still, it looks a little odd to me.

The Wonderful Miss WOW

Many of the taxis have video screens that play short clips and advertisements. There is a series of exercise videos featuring this1980s-styled cutie. The Paying Customer and The Works love to practice what they refer to as 'the sissy slap' wrist exercises that are demonstrated in one such clip. I just love to hear the giggles.

Does he look happy here?

I am posting this picture so that certain people can see that The Works is having fun, even if he looked a little sour in his first day of school photo. What self respecting boy will smile about returning to school after summer vacation, I ask you?

We stopped at the mall for dinner and to change the cell phone plans. This mall, one of a half dozen we've stepped into, had 5 floors of shopping and dining with many Western brands available, such as Levis, Crocs, North Face, etc. We stopped in the Croc store, and they wanted $62 for a pair you can find on their US website for $39.

The sun comes out!

I had spent a few days in Shanghai in June, and another few days in early August, before moving here with my family. In that time, I never saw the sun, and experienced rain almost every day. I had no idea if the gray sky was just overcast, extremely polluted, or both. Turns out the sun does come out in this city. I took this photo yesterday afternoon on my walk back from the grocery store. The photo doesn't do it justice, it was really perfectly clear and bright. I think it looks foggy because of the glare from the sun. Anyway, today it is also sunny. Better put some sun screen on before I head out on errands today!

Slowly, very slowly . . . .

We've had a good experience the first week. We've managed to get around town via taxi and subway without incident. We've made a few trips to the grocery store, and have even secured 2 cell phones and gotten them working. There have been a few glitches along the way (good for a few posts) and EVERYTHING takes us much longer to accomplish than if we were in the US, but we're still learning.  I've had the easiest time of it, as I have had the most control over my time. Poor Veggie Dumpling with the Largest Cup of Coffee You Have and Ice Cream (aka The Works) is exhausted, and there were tears this morning before his 4th day of school. He really likes his new school, but the long days and short nights are catching up with him. Next week we move into our townhouse and the pets will arrive. Both will help!