MARCH 5, 2007

Greetings all. After having promised more frequent blog entries, I am sorry to say that I ran into numerous problems since the last post. The first being that the new laptop, while lovely in most every way, is having issues connecting to our broadband connection in our Shanghai apartment. I have had 'hit and miss' connections with the wireless, but one never knows when she will be kicked off line with the wireless. Also, upon attempting to create a new list of 'favorites,' my 'create-a-post' URL updated to all Chinese characters. I'm sure this is Google's way of making things more convenient (by detecting that I was connecting from China therefore automatically updating me to Chinese ... thanks, Google!!). It took some doing, and some help from Randy, but I found the place to change the language, and I think we're back in business. I know ... I'll quit whining now. It is easy to become a whiner here. The simplest things become complicated due to the language barrier. One must be quite tenacious to accomplish anything (and also very brave at times!).

The remainder of our stay in Scotland passed uneventfully, but the return home was fairly ugly, punctuated by a four-hour delay (sitting in the plane) for repairs after a three hour layover in Amsterdam. Then, of course, a 9 hour flight to Shanghai, an hour in customs and luggage pick up, then an hour to find Shao, our driver, just prior to an hour drive to our apartment. The airport in Shanghai was a nightmare. Apparently everyone was returning just then after their New Year holiday. Traffic snarls that make Atlanta look like a drive in the park. This was a week ago, and I dare say that I am just barely adjusted to the Shanghai time schedule. This old body doesn't bounce back from jet lag the way it used to .... sigh!

The New Year celebration continued for another week. Moderate firework displays every night and still lots of decorations and lights. On Saturday, Randy and I were watching CNN (our only source for news in English) with our morning coffee when we heard music coming from behind our apartment. We went to the small utility patio off the kitchen and looked outside. The entire courtyard was filled with people in brightly colored costumes dancing, playing various instruments, waving banners and lanterns. Some were in pig costume (Year of the Pig), and the music sounded very Oriental with crashing percussion (think trash can lids being banged together loudly). It was all very festive!! We wished we'd known sooner but we were still in PJ's so we watched from the patio. Randy took a few photos. There probably were announcements posted in the complex, but in Chinese of course, so we hadn't a clue.

Saturday, we took the subway to Nanjing Road which is a pedestrianized shopping district that is quite popular in city centre near the Bund (an historic riverwalk). It was something to see ... very crowded and colorful. Many different shops and malls, street vendors, little trains carrying parents and kids going from one end to the other. It's probably a mile long, and some of the malls are 4 or 5 stories tall. Every few feet, we were approached by someone wanting to sell us a Rolex (knock off) or a designer purse or wallet. Several young people wanted to pull us into their 'art gallery' to see their exhibit, but surely there is something (or someone) for sale, or a pitch made for a donation. We are getting quite good at saying, "Bu yao (Don't want.)." We went into a chopstick store (that's right ... nothing but chopsticks and chopstick rests) which was really fun. I never knew all the materials that can be used for producing chopsticks ... wood, metal, porcelain, ebony, mahogany, ivory, jade ... you name it, they can make chopsticks out of it. Some of them were quite beautiful ... almost like jewelry or artwork. We treated ourselves to some Haagen-Daz ice cream from a little cafe near there, and listened to a man playing love songs on a saxophone from a nearby balcony.

We fought the crowd the remainder of Nanjing Road all the way down to the Bund and walked along the river a bit (it was not quite as crowded there). It was a warm, grey day (upper 60's), but the breeze coming off the river was cooler so there weren't as many folks there. The river was full of barges, junks, and tugboats which we watched pass by for a bit. There was a barge that had this GIGANTIC TV screen mounted on it (think drive-in theater size and add several feet on each side). There were brightly colored advertisements playing on the screen while the barge slowly moved along the riverwalk taking advantage of the large audience. We laughed about this being the Chinese version of a plane pulling a banner over a large crowd for advertising. I've never seen this elsewhere, so of course, we thought, "Only in China!"

On a whim, we decided to call our friend, Cathy, who is Chinese and lives here in Shanghai. Cathy had escorted Randy and his boss, Carrie, back in December on a walking tour of these same areas. We made a date for dinner that evening at a BBQ place that we thought would be fun. It was called Bubba's Texas Roadhouse, so we imagined a large place with hardwood floors, ten gallon hats, and great steaks on the menu. Not so. It was small, VERY loud country music playing (so loud it was hard to converse), and a menu of mostly bbq sandwiches and fried appetizers. Somewhat disappointing ... we had our mouths all set for a big, juicy steak. But this was my first time meeting Cathy, and it was great getting to know her. Her English is excellent, and she was full of great advice (such as, next time, let's go to the terrific Chinese restaurant right next door to Bubba's ... we heartily agreed).

Sunday, Randy was scheduled to play 'old man football' (flag football) with some Delphi fellows, but the day dawned cold and rainy ... NOT a good day for doing anything outside. So we stayed home and Randy made chicken soup which really hit the spot on a cold day. Later after dark, we were treated to one of the most spectacular fireworks shows I've ever seen. Sunday was the last day of the New Year holiday (it apparently lasts two weeks). I'm not sure what it was like while we were in Scotland, but the locals may have saved the best for last. There were fireworks exploding in the air between every building that we could see from our patio for MILES! Pretty incredible ... and this went on for HOURS!!! There would be barrages that were larger and flashier than others, and we noticed that, after some of the more flamboyant displays, many of the folks in the taller apartment buildings would then flash their lights in their apartments to show their approval, adding even more spectacle to the scene. Of course, with all the incredible lights that the Chinese mount on all their larger buildings, and I have to say that it was something I'll never forget!! When it comes to lighting, the Chinese have Westerners beat by a mile.

OK, I'm currently waiting for someone to come over and get me connected to the broadband, so yes, I'm taking my chances on the wireless at this point. Keep your fingers crossed.