The Fabric Market in Shanghai

I decided to follow Kate and Heather to the Fabric Market when they needed to pick up some summer dresses they had made and I soon realized something that I thought wasn’t possible: Shanghai CAN get better!

After checking on their dresses we walked around and I checked out a few stalls that had some good jersey. Along with silks, leathers, furs, and even sparkly metallic fabrics, I found a few places that would probably copy some cute skirts I was fancying. I’ll have to let you know how it goes.

The Shanghai fabric market is officially called the Shanghai Bund Soft-Spinning Material Market. (Don’t ask me the reasoning behind the name, I don’t know haha) It’s located in a slightly slummy area of town, and I couldn’t stop thinking that by the time I leave Shanghai the houses in this neighbourhood may not be around anymore due to all of the new condos popping up and down.

At the multi-floor indoor bazaar, hundreds of tailors man stalls, all selling cashmere, silk and cotton copies of runway designs from the likes of Giorgio Armani, Prada, and Chanel. You can have anything copied as long as you bring a picture or an original for the tailor; from what I can see on the web, you should expect to pay about $45 for wool jackets and $60 for cashmere--after you bargain, that is.

It was strange to see so many tourists in one building, and most were from Germany from what we could tell. I’d like to think I could bargain great prices but seeing all of those tourists made me wonder how far the bottom line is and how close I can get to it if all of the silly foreigners are negotiating terrible prices. I guess we’ll just have to see ;-)

Wish me luck!

Here are a few pictures I found online. (Please note these aren't mine.)

Some ladies checking out some fabric

Everything you could ever want. Buttons, Zippers, feathers, and Fur !

Just outside the market

xx

Jin Mao Tower, aka "Golden Prosperity Building"

Heather, Kate, and I needed to make out way down to downtown Shanghai to purchase our bus tickets to Huangshan on Saturday morning, and I decided to backpack on their trip to the Fabric Market and then on Heather's skyline photo shoot in Pudong.

Pudong is officially known as the Pudong New Area (quite literally because it is so new, i.e. 20 years go there were only rice paddies and farm fields...)

"Since the beginning of its development in 1990 when plans were first announced, Pudong has become a New Open Economic Development Zone, and has emerged as China's financial and commercial hub. Pudong is home to the Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone, the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and a skyline that includes the symbolic Oriental Pearl Tower, the Jin Mao Building, and the Shanghai World Financial Center, reflective of Shanghai and China's rapid economic development." (More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pudong)

I constantly remind myself how lucky to be in China at this time in its history, and even more so in Shanghai - a city that is essentially a representation of China's new development and race for modernisation.

Standing there in the middle of Pudong; in its new streets and looking up at its steel and glass giants reaching for the sky; I really had to remind myself that this had all appeared less than 20 years ago... A skyline that has taken North American cities like Toronto and New York decades to develop just suddenly 'appeared' across the Huangpu River in Shanghai.

It really does leave one in awe as China unapologetically sweeps the old under the new and removes all evidence of its past by erecting shiny new buildings in its place. Of course this was only possible because of the incredibly cheap and abundant labour. Migrant workers come from poorer farming provinces where labour is lacking and live on site and only go back home once the job is done; which means the job gets done quickly as both boss and worker want to get the next job started ASAP.

Apart from the sad state of China’s disappearing culture and history, Pudong still does make quite the impression in terms of wow factor. As much as one could argue the need for China to show off its new wealth in such an obscene manner, you could also learn to appreciate the enthusiasm and speed at which they can get The Job done. No other country has enough of an inferiority complex to pull this off and all you can do is join in on the party and take as many pictures before newer and taller buildings take place of the “old” ones.

Having been here for nearly 4 months, Heather and I decided it would be a good idea to get to the top of the Jin Mao tower and look over new and old Shanghai while it was still a potpourri of architecture. We probably didn’t spend more than 20 minutes
On the 88th floor but we definitely got away with some interesting pictures.

Hope you enjoy!

The Jin Mao Tower and the Shanghai World Financial Center to it's right.

Jin Mao Tower, Shanghai World Financial Center, and the new Shanghai Tower being built on the Left... This new building will trump both the Jin Mao and SWFC in terms of height and size.

A view from the 88th floor of the Jin Mao Tower

Can you believe this skyline is only 20 years old??

New and Old Shanghai, seperated by the Huangpu River

xx

So let the sun shine in, face it with a grin, open up your heart and let the sun shine in!

Well it has definately been a quiet few weeks for me.

I was hit with a bout of strep throat a few days after arriving from Qingdao and while it was certainly debilitating, I took it as a learning experience for me here in China.

I originally found a lump in my armpit - which from what you hear out there, is never something comforting to find. A few days later the fevers and chills started and at this point I started to panic, because all of a sudden Lymphoma started screaming over and over in my head... A lump and intermittent fevers is a sure combination of cancer. So here I was thinking, “CANCER IN CHINA...Whaaaa???”

Fortunately, between going to classes in the morning and crashing in bed in the afternoons, I started to feel that my swallowing was becoming a little bizarre, so I looked in and sure enough, the tell-tale white spots of Strep Throat were right there, hibernating in the back of my throat, nuzzled in my tonsils. 24 hours later my throat was on fire and swallowing was a chore.

At this point I had contacted my coordinator to ask him how to get to the hospital and what documents I needed to see a doctor and get a prescription for Penicillin (I had strep as a kid so I knew what to ask for and had everything translated in Chinese). What I didn’t expect and was for my coordinator to tell me to avoid the hospital as they were going to overcharge me and write me up for a bunch of unecessary prescriptions, and that he was going to get me the medicine I needed. I ws groing increasingly frustrated and decided to take this into my own hands and brought the symptoms that I’d written out previously to the pharmacist. All I needed was some Qingmeisu (Penicillin) and all would be good in the world again.

The pharmacist took one look at me when I said “Wo xiang yao Qingmeisu” and uttered the dreaded “Mayo La” (Don’t have)... I started thinking that I was going to die in China of a simple case of strep throat, at which point my eyes must have welled up with tears because she reached back again and placed two boxes in front of me. One read Amoxicillin and the other Cefalexin. These sounded familiar so I went back to my residence and looked them up. Sure enough they were exactly what I needed and I rushed back to purchase the drugs that would make life bearable again. All hail the pharmacist god.

With a little more research I decided to take the Cefalexin, took my first two pills, and slept through the whole weekend.

Here I am, a full week later and the last two pills have been swallowed along with lunch. Life is good again, my armpit lump is gone, the sun is shining and swallowing has once again become something I don’t have to think about.

And what is it that I have learned through all this? Well, for one thing you do not need to see a doctor to get your drugs here. Also, drugs are also ridiculously cheap. The boxes of Amoxicillin and Cefalexin set me back a whopping 25 kuai (5 Canadian dollars).



China is great.



xx

Qingdao - The one where the girl drinks beer out of a bag

It’s been two months since I started teaching here in Shanghai and my first long weekend came and went like a flash. Qingming (pronounced Ching-ming) is a statutory public holiday here in mainland China and Tomb Sweeping Day is its most common English translation. For the Chinese, it’s a day to remember and honor one's ancestor’s grave sites. Young and old pray before the ancestors, sweep the tombs and offer food, tea, and/or wine.

I was originally going to stay in and do various touristy things in Shanghai (which would have been fine but I probably would have felt like an idiot for staying when I had three magical days to do whatever my heart desired) - and then randomly on Thursday night, Kate and Heather (Fellow BSKers) knocked on my door and asked if I wanted to join them on their trip to Qingdao. The obvious answer was “Of course, why not”? Twenty minutes later we had our flights and hostel booked and we were anxious to get going the next day.

Qingdao (pronounced Ching-Daow) is a coastal city on the Yellow Sea, about a 15-20 hour drive north of Shanghai. It’s famous for its German history and Mt Laoshan, but I’m sure that the most popular reasons people flock to this city are its beautiful beaches, and for the fact that it’s home to the Tsing-Tao Brewery. I have been a fan of this beer for the past couple of years and have been very lucky that it’s one of China’s most popular brews. I urge any of you to pick up a few bottles the next time you are at your local LCBO... I think most of you will like how light and refreshing it is as a summer beer.

What I found interesting was it's fascinating history; Did you know that between 1898 and 1949 Qingdao was occupied by both Germany and Japan (Germany between 1898-1914, and Japan between 1914-1922 and 1925-1949)? I bet you not! It was 50 years before the Chinese even had control back of the city - which might be why this is one of the more efficiently run and cleaner cities in China... ;-)

For more info on Qingdao: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qingdao

Our trip was packed with all kinds of excitement – from beach strolling, to mountain climbing, to drinking beer out of a bag. (Yes drinking beer out of a bag.)

There were clean beaches and amazing German houses, buildings, and churches - but we found our favourite part of Qingdao down a dirty side street a few minutes from a giant German church. What we found there was no other than Beer in a Bag. Now I’m not talking about any old fancy bag; I’m talking about lowest of the low; the thin, flimsy bag you might use for lettuce at the grocery store. Of course it wasn’t really us foreigners who found the beer, but really the beer who found us: As we turned down this street, we spot this giant keg on the side of a store and before we even realize it, the Chinese beer lady smiled and started to pour her beer into one of the flimsy bags.

How nice to know that the Chinese know us so well as to start pouring the beer before we even know that it’s beer! Once we all have our very own 2 kuai (35 cents) Bag o’ Beer, she passes out the straws and we proceed to laugh hysterically at what now looks like cheap bags of pee with straws sticking out of them.

It was- as much as it could be- my favourite bar in China. There is something about sharing a ridiculous moment with people, realizing it’s a moment that - for the three of us - is probably going down as one of our most hilarious. And while we spent our afternoon drinking and laughing, my guess is that we all had a few quiet seconds to ourselves where we thought “how did I get here??” Because I can promise you this - only the luckiest of people can say they got the chance to sit in a park on a cold afternoon, sipping beer from a bag...

Drinking the famous Beer in a Bag

Gambei! (Cheers! )

Of course the whole weekend wasn’t spent drinking beer out of bags (although come summer if could have been different story. 0.35cent bags of beer on a beach? Common, why hasn’t Canada taken on to this idea???)

Apart from walking around town, we strolled the boardwalk for 4 hours on Saturday and climbed a mountain on Sunday. Both of which have given me great pictures and even better memories. The beaches in Qingdao are surprisingly clean and the waters are a beautiful blue-green. And even though it was only 15 degrees there were even a few brave Chinese who made it out for some chilly polar bear dips.

Morning mist over New Downtown

One of the many beaches in Qingdao (6 all together!)

Beauty defined

A man and his son enjoying the water

A family enjoying the views

A family remembering loved ones who passed on by throwing flowers off a cliff.

A sculptor sculpting a portrait - much like a sketch artist in Canada (but better!)

Gloves? check. Socks? check. Itty Bitty Blue Bikini? check.

She sells seashells by the sea shore

Fisherman taking advantage of the beautiful weather

Mt. Laoshan is a gorgeous mountain known for its great views, sea air, and “magical powers”. The hour long bus ride to the mountain was as scenic as it was long but definitely had us appreciating the mountain once we arrived. This mountain has been dubbed the birthplace of Taoism, which surprised me since there were only a few temples - although to be honest, getting a temple up on this mountain is a feat in itself.

Gorgeous views on our way to Laoshan

Boats off a little fishing village

The cable car we took to get up to the top of Laoshan

Taoist charm hanging off a wishing tree

Lovers' locks off a bridge

Waterfalls

The Laoshan Dam

Of course, not all of it was great - we did find ourselves in a hostel with walls decorated like a frat house, and with no A/C (in chinese this means no heater!) so the room was incredibly cold. Thank heavens for the lovely heated sheets that came with the beds though - sleep came easily in those. And of course we couldn't figure out the shower head and cleaning turned into a bit of an acrobatic act on the shower floor, but this only made this weekend that much more memorable.

Come monday morning, we were sad to leave this city we had had such a good weekend in. If only all weeks had three day weekends and if only all cities had beer in a bag. I think it would be a much nicer to place to live in :-)

The Qingdao Airport

Miss you all. Happy Canadian Easter! xx

Another reason why I love China

I've been seeing a ton of these little shops with photobooth-like machines that take your picture and all the girls here get them done with friends or boyfriends, so I thought, why can't I? 20 minutes later I had gone through 6 catalogs of background images, posed a few dozen times, and had 2 sets of glittery fabric stickers and a dvd of the proofs for the bargain price of 40rmb. The plain paper pictures would have cost me half but I had to go all out, haha.

You can also find an extra sheet of my pictures posted on the door of the store. Apparently having an example of a foreigner using your shop is good PR.

Here are my results. And yes I am posing "a la chinoise" (Chinese style).

xx