License Plates in China
Just thought I would post something from
Shanghai Daily. Here's a quick article about the license plate system in Shanghai...
September 30, 2005
6000 plates on sale
THE Shanghai government will put 6,000 private license plates up for sale October, said Shanghai International Commodity Auction Co yesterday. Seven registration sites are available for citizens to undertake relative auction procedures. The city sells plates at an auction every month to control the number of vehicles on the road.
Here you can pickup your own freshly caught crab, cook it up with the blow torch you see on the right and walk around in the Yu Garden Bazaar, eating fresh crab...
These guys are staying afloat on their raft on the roof of one of the buildings in the Yu Gardens.
This dragon head decorates the top of a wall of the Yu Yuan Garden in the Old Town section of Shanghai.
This weird looking guy is a four foot tall ceramic in the Shanghai Museum. Cindy, Erin, Pam Schram and I walked around the museum for a few hours on Sunday afternoon. I had a chance to see a few more galleries there that I hadn't seen a few weeks ago. If I keep going, I might just see it all...
You can barely see him, but this is Dr. Peacock posing in Old Shanghai on the big screen with Erin, Dr. Bataille's daughter, in the wax museum in the basement of the Pearl Tower. We all had so much fun touring around the city and spending time in the markets. It's no secret after spending a day with Ken, that he loves to shop and loves to bargin for the best prices!
This is my good friend Ralph in a rare form. He is normally joking around or talking and making me feel at home here in Shanghai. Today, day three of the Centenary Celebration, he's taking a nap on the way to the Jin Jiang hotel, where the guests are all staying...
Chancellor Peacock and Vice President Yan, the Deputy Party Secretary
Fudan University Choir
Fudan University's seal on a piece of chocolate on Fudan Birthday Cake at the 100th Anniversary Celebration.
Busy Days
No time to really post anything new, because there is SO much to talk about. Ken and Cindy and President Broad and Vice President Bataille of the University of North Carolina system arrived on Thursday for the 100th Anniversary celebration of Fudan University. It is great to have so many good friends here now. It's been a tough first month getting acquainted to everything and this is such a treat for my "good behavior" so far...
Unfortunately, I'm sick again and it's really taking it out of me. I'm taking an antibiotic now, hoping it will go ahead and kill of whatever funk I keep getting.
Life is good. Check back soon for some real details about the past 24 hours.
This is a pretty scary article about China's legal system. I've heard a lot of talk around here recently about the need for changes in the Legal system in China.
China Daily actually published an article about the push for a Juvenile court system. Currently those under 18 years of age can be punished for a crime like an adult. Very different from many Western cultures.
The
New York Times article is really good if you have a chance to read through it. There's also a slide show of pictures about the case with audio from the article's author.
Zhujiajiao
On Saturday, I spent the day with three Italian professors and Tan Minmin, a student assistant in our office. We traveled to this small watertown in the southwest part of Shanghai called Zhujiajiao with only a 1700 year history. That makes 715 year old Shanghaim look like such a youngin. It was great to see and to think it's in Shanghai proper's backyard.
Hello Crab!!! There are hundreds of these tubs throughout the city, all full of crabs.
It's said it will give you good luck to throw a fish off of this bridge. To give you even better luck, you throw goldfish off of the bridge and into the river. In the true entrepreneurial minds of the Chinese, there were plenty of people standing on both ends of the bridge selling goldfish in bags, much like you'd see at the fair. Minmin said the people just catch the fish out of the river and sell them to good luck hunters who just throw them back in. Poor fish...
Buddha in a very small temple and monastery
A street light along the canal
A retaurant in the town... they had a live band performing Chinese music...
The top of a pagoda in the gardens of the town
Passing another boat in the small canals of the city
A concrete boat ???
A church in the distance on our river boat cruise
I got a letter from mom and grandma today. It was great to finally get mail. I thought for a while that it was a dead end road. Unfortunately my mom told me that my first dog Jenny has died since I left. Jenny was 14 years old and made it about a day after I left the U.S. Didn't really start the night out real well. A real awakening to the fact that life goes on without you when you're away...
MBA???
So I've decided to go ahead and spend the money to take the GMAT and apply to grad school. I just finished a letter to the Dean of the Darden School at The University of Virginia, my ideal choice for school. The letter's about living in China and not being able to show up for an interview in Charlottesville, VA this fall. I hope they're understanding and that I'll have a chance. I'll keep you posted if I hear anything back.
I'm not sure where else I want to apply, but I'm keeping my options open. If you have suggestions, send them my way.
Today I tried out a Chinese barber shop... for only 10 RMB (US $1.24) it's not bad. 10 RMB included a haircut, shampoo and a half hour of laughing over my aweful attemp at Chinese. What an incredible experience... good people!
Bank of China
So sitting in a Bank of China is rather different from the AG Bank. When you walk in, you grab a number from this small ATM like machine. Then you sit and wait in a big lobby until your number is called. It's actually air conditioned and very clean. One thing is the same in every bank I have been in so far... Bullet proof boxes that the tellers sit in. It's very safe for the bankers and the vault is not out in the open like most US banks.
I'm just going to sit here and enjoy the cool air and dream of a lunch today... I arrived at 11:52 and it's already 12:10... I'm #165 and they're now calling #146. They were on #139 when I arrived.
China = Does not like me today
I have been very nice to China today, but it wasn't very nice to me. Bad days in a place where you live by yourself are twice as bad.
Today I show up for work and sit down at my desk, newly assigned just two or three days ago, and yet again about five minutes after I start working I'm told I need to move again. So I moved back to the desk I was at before this one, stuck off in the corner of the room away from everyone else. Now this doesn't seem like a big deal, but taking everything you have off of your desk and inside of your desk out and moving it is a pain. Doing it for the third time in a row in the period of two weeks is a little much. I can't wait for my own office, but the reality of that promise is pretty slim. Our new building looks finished, but many speculate it will be months till our big move.
I needed to get money exchanged today at the bank. I went to the Agricultural Bank of China on campus, a fairly large branch that I thought would do exchanges. I asked the guard when I went in if they did exchanges and he seemed to think they would do it. I then stood in line, a small line of only 3 people in front of me. At US banks during the lunch hour, a line with just 3 people is pure luck. There is so much paperwork involved here in just making a deposit or withdrawal that is took 25 minutes for the three people in front of me to get done with their business.... 25 minutes. And they're making deposits and withdrawals... you would think in that time they're getting a loan on a new home or something. Finally it's my turn. I have my passport, my pen and cash ready to go and the teller will not exchange it. Why... I have no clue. I couldn't understand her. They had a huge board behind them that displayed all of the exchange rates, but for some reason, today she could not exchange my money. Defeated again, I had to go back to the unairconditioned office to work for four more hours.
After work I decide I'm going to bike just outside of campus and find the nearest Bank of China branch that is sure to make exchanges, so I could waste my lunch hour tomorrow standing in line again. I finally found one close to campus. As I was biking back, I'm in the bike lane and this man tried to pass me on the left. Now on my left is about 6 inches of road and then a 9 inch curb. As he's passing me in this six inches, he hits my handle bars and I loose my balance and fall into this huge row of bushes that are separating the bike lane from the rest of traffic. I scratched up the top of my foot pretty good since I was wearing sandals, but thank God the bushes were there so I didn't fall into traffic. The guy never even turned around and I'm certain he never knew anything happened.
I'm 6'1" and I'm pretty hard to miss in China. Especially in line at the cafeteria. Evidently, I'm invisible to most in China when it comes to lines, as most just like to walk right in front of me... I'm going to find some good words in Chinese to tell them to back off, just haven't had the time. I usually just give up if the food doesn't look good and head to a different area where I can actually get what I want without being trampled over.
I've promised myself that tomorrow will be better. I'm going to make it better.
I may have mentioned the Bund area of Shanghai before and if I ever mention it again... here's a picture. It's extremely beautiful, especially at night.
Transportation Card
This is a great card. It uses Radio Frequency ID to keep track of money you deposit onto the card. Then you can use it to ride the Metro, the bus, the ferry, a train out of town or in a taxi. What a great idea for a large city. No buying tickets, you just place it on top of this green pad and it deducts money from it. And you can even recharge it at convenience stores and at the Metro stations.
Rechargable Metro/Bus/Ship/Train/Taxi Card
Getting Internet Access
I'm not getting free internet access, but it is very inexpensive. It ends up to be about $0.02 per hour. All of the rooms have an ethernet connection to Fudan's network, but you can not access the internet until you buy this card, much like using a calling card to make long distance calls. Once you have the card, it gives you 120 hours of internet access. You login with the User Name and password on the back of the card and it works! It sounds simple enough, but the process of learning how to do that and buying the card took days. Now it should be much easier and quicker now that I know what I'm doing.
Calling Home
When making an international call, I have to use two cards. First, I have to use a Local Call Card (30 RMB) to make a local call... so that's a good 20 plus numbers to dial. Then I have to use an International Direction IP Card (100 RMB)... an additional 20 plus numbers. In the end, I've entered 49 numbers into the phone before I even enter the phone number for the person I'm trying to call.
A Cellphone in China
When I got here I bought a SIM card for my new cell phone. The SIM card has my China Mobile number and stores your minutes. The card and 100RMB was on the card as well. I bought everything for 66 RMB (US $8.16). It's funny because you see the stands all along the road and in the metro stations with all of these bright green envelopes that have the cell phone SIM cards in them.... you see huge lists of all of the phone numbers that each booth has and you can go pick the number you want off of the list and they'll find the envelope with the SIM card with the number on it.
Using the cell phone is just as expensive as using it in the U.S. if not more. Text messaging is more common than actual phone calls in China. Luckily all cell phones, at least for foreigners, are prepaid so there are no surprises at the end of the month with a high-priced bill. I had the phone turned on to make International calls, but they're expensive. You also have to re-register to make international calls every two weeks, so it's really inconvenient.
SIM Card Envelope
Back of SIM Card envelope
More Minutes Please
Once you have no minutes remaining on your phone, you just go to any grocery store, corner market or the guy on the corner and by a GoTone recharge card by China Mobile. They cost 99 RMB (US $12.25) and the amount of minutes depends on how much you text message, but it's not cheap! Then you scratch off a pin number on the card, call a service number, enter then pin and you're done... you've got minutes!
100 RMB refill card
Shanghai Museum and some Holland Fellows
The Shanghai Museum is well worth the 20 RMB (US $2.47) for the entrance fee and the 40 RMB (US $4.95) for the Audio Tour with handheld electronic "tour guides". Jerry, Jody and I went through the Bronze Gallery first with some amazing bronzeworks, some dating back 3,000 years. Then off to the second floor for the Ceramics Gallery, showing the history of porcelain and the history of today's "China"... the fine dining dishes that is.
My favorite exhibit was the last, the Furniture Gallery. Traditional Chinese furniture used no nails, but all hand cut mortise and tenon joints and tongue and grove. All of the furniture was amazing. The collection included a canopy bed that had latus work on three sides of the bed, keeping you in the bed at night, that was all hand cut to fit intricately together to make each joint section in the latus work. It's extremely difficult to explain, but amazing to see! The thrones of several of China's emperors were also in the collection. All of the thrones were carved out of wood and had amazing carvings of dragons and the pheonix throughout the large chair. One throne even had a tatered cloth pillow on it from an emperors reign. To think that many emperors used to sit on that throne. So much history in one museum, some peices close to 4,000 years old.
After four hours in the museum, Jerry and I met several 2004 Holland Fellows from Fudan University and MP Brenan from Appalachian at MYC restaraunt, right across from People's Square. It was great to see familiar faces and to spend some time with people my own age. Jerry and I then took the metro back to our local station and rode our bikes home.
Ticket to the Shanghai Museum
A bronze wine vessel in the Shanghai Museum... you store the wine in the middle hole of the water buffalo's back and you pour hot water in the front and back hole to heat the wine.
The Shanghai Museum on People's Square in downtown Shanghai, China
The amazing canopy bed I mentioned above... I'm making this when I get back to the states. (again, had to borrow the picture)
Qing Dynasty Throne that I mentioned earlier... (Had to borrow the picture)
Jack Johnson in Shanghai!
I was biking around campus today and heard some familiar music that wasn't Kenny-G, Celine Dion or an electrical piano arrangement of some bad 80's music. This little record store called
ANF right outside of campus was blaring Jack Johnson. What a welcomed noise pollution!!! I went inside and found some decent priced CDs, most of which were surprisingly heavy metal. I did find
In Between Dreams by Jack Johnson which is a 2-disc set in China. It cost 20 RMB (US $2.40) which is a little pricey for CD's, but the quality is guarunteed to be better with the higher price. I've listened to it already and it reminds me so much of Boone!
Jack Johnson
In Between Dreams 2-Disc Album
Jack Johnson
In Between Dreams Back Cover
ANF Music Store on GuoDing Lu
Check out this label on the pillow I bought a few days ago...
Maybe some chinese...
So I've spent the morning attempting to meet with the Dean of the International Cultural Exchange School at Fudan to try and audit some Chinese as a second language classes. I met my translator, a student assistant from the Foreign Affairs Office at 9 AM this morning. Another person from my office was to call over to the Dean's office last week and setup this meeting for a few minutes after 9 this morning. We arrived a few minutes after 9 and no Dean, but the translator talked to his secretary and he was in a meeting and would be back around 10:30. We agreed to meet back at the office at 11:00 to meet with him. When I arrived back at the office around 10:45, I waited, and waited and waited on my translator. She didn't even arrive.. I had to text her twice and call her after waiting till 11:30. I just left... hopefully I can find out more tomorrow or have my boss call over there again.
Going Up!
Ticket from my visit to the top of the Oriental Pearl tower in the Pudong New Area. It costs 100 RMB (US $12.36) to go to all three levels of the tower: 90 meters, 263 meters and 350 meters. The tower is the third tallest structure in the world at 468 meters/1,535 feet tall, 285 feet taller than the Empire State Building! From the top you can see all of Shanghai, if it's a clear enough day to see through the smog. It's an amazing structure that's well worth at least one trip during your stay in Shanghai.
My meal card to eat on campus... it's really awesome.. it's magnetized and all you do is put it on this pad on the counter next to the register and it automatically deducts money from your account... no swiping or entering numbers...
Here's a night view from my balcony... the two blue rooftops you see are the top of the "Two Towers" buildings on campus... where our new office will be. So I'm fairly close to our new building.
Talk about a nice office in Shanghai
The new Two Towers on Fudan's campus. My new office will be in this building when it is finished. We are supposedly moving there anyday now... I'm not going to hold my breath. It's an incredible building... both in size and gaudiness. I am excited about our move their though because that signifies the end of my desk being in the corner of someone's office. This new building has administrative offices as well as two classroom wings. Each tower is 100 meters and can be seen from anywhere on this side of town. To really understand the size, checkout the people walking in the plaza in front of the building. The columns in the front are at least 40 feet high. It's also about twice as wide as what can be seen in this picture because there are two, 7 or 8 floor wings on each side of the two towers.
Another picture of the plaza in front of the building
And another view from the other side.
It has a HUGE lawn in front of the building, which I'm sure will be covered with more buidlings one day soon when they run out of space on campus, but for now it's green space.
Right wing...
The front door...
Welcome Home...
Room 612
Room 612
The Key to Room 612
