First Impressions

Our plane finally landed in Shanghai at 3pm. It literally took us two hours to get through all the check in points. We first had to get our passports stamps, which took a good half hour. We seemingly picked the only line that wasnt moving. In doing so, we learned that the humidity level in Shanghai sucked. I felt gross. I had been sitting on a plane for fourteen hours, and now I was subjected to these conditions. Not really. But after we got through the passport line we picked up our luggage and gave them our customs form. We finally exited the security portion of the airport. A mass of people were awaiting us outside. It was really busy. We weaved through these masses of people and then found Nihal. Then it was time to exchange our money. I chose to go to the other exchange window so me, and a small group of people, got our money. I exchanged $100 for about 720 Yuan. Then we all conjugated in a tight group as the entire airport rushed around us. As we waiting for the other people to finish their exchange of money, we clustered in our group afraid to move due to the hoards of people running by us. It was pointed out how quite it was, even with all these people. We observed this even several more times.

After all the airport business was complete, we went out and got our bus to the university. It was about an hour away, and we were in rush hour traffic. Fortunately the temperature outside wasnt as humid as it was in the airport. However, it was still cloudy and hazy. The bus ride back to the university made me aware of one thing that stayed apparent throughout the trip. The roads seemed to be a huge free-for-all. After we got off the highway, which was slow moving, we entered the city streets. The streets had a good hierarchy: sidewalks along the edge, a huge probably fifteen foot bike lane, and then traffic lanes. We soon learned that even though pedestrians didnt have the right-away in China, they were more aggressive then the cars and buses. I watched in amazement as bicyclers and pedestrians would cut off busses and cars. From my eyes there were close calls. But I learned that these close calls were very normal and it was the only chance you had to make it though traffic. For instance, our bus had the green light, but so did the bicycles and mopeds. Therefore, our bus pushed its way through the bike lane as it made the right hand turn.

We finally arrived at the University of Shanghai and obtained our rooms. The rooms were great. The beds were hard, but comfortable; we had refrigerator and other necessities. The only thing we didnt have was wireless, but we could get that in the lobby. So it wasnt bad at all. The university prepared us dinner, which I soon learned that I would have to use chopsticks or go hungry. Whenever I ate out I would give up on chopsticks because I could never master them. Now it would have to be mastered. The food was good. We were given a bowl of rice and then several dishes with different kinds of meet and vegetables. No drink, though. After the meal our ENTIRE group went to Nanjing Road. This road was equivalent to Broadway or Piccadilly Circus, just not as many theater and eating options. It was more or less the tourist area: bright lights, big signs, pedestrian only access. I even wondered one block off the road and discovered an entirely different scene, a scene that would portray China a little better. Along the street were tons of pan handlers and sellers. I mean a ton. They attacked us Im assuming because we were obviously out of town. People would approach our group and attempted to sell anything from watches and food to massages. One lady approached Mathais and wouldnt leave him alone as we walked down the street. So I stood in front of the lady and stopped walking similar to the immaturity taking place in the third grade. I thought this would surely get her away. I was wrong. Not only did our group laugh, but so did the lady. She started laughing very hard and continued her quest for money. Mathais finally gave her some and she left us along. Afterwards, we met our group and headed back to the hotel via the subway and busses. These were very cheap. The entire trip cost us 12 Yuan, which equals about $1.75. Not bad. On our way back to the hotel Maylene and Ramone stopped to get a pair of shoes on the side of the street. They got (fake) Pumas for 75 Yuan or about $10. Still not bad. We went to our hotel room, and Mathais and me were out right away.