Shanghai Junk

Sunday, July 29, 2007

JULY 30, 2007

The skies are currently dark and threatening as I write this. There is thunder and lightning all around, but not a drop of rain. It continues to be hot and steamy in Shanghai, the average temperature being around 95 degrees. This weather reminds me a bit of Florida in the summer. The clouds appear every afternoon and threaten precipitation, but often it is simply that ... just a threat. Definitely a tropical sort of climate, but I suppose we should consider ourselves among the fortunate. China is full of news of death due to rain and floods in other parts of the country, to the southwest, I believe. I suppose we should feel fortunate that we know we'll survive hot and steamy.

I wanted to post as soon as possible after this weekend so as not to forget the events of the weekend. Randy and I joined our friend, Mike, for an afternoon at the circus .... Cirque du Soleil to be exact.

Mike had mentioned getting tickets early last week, so Randy called and reserved three tickets for us for Saturday afternoon. Mike had never taken the subway in his 14 months in Shanghai, and the Cirque was performing very near one of the stations on our line, so we headed out into the sauna of the afternoon around 1:00 on Saturday for the three-block walk to the station nearest our complex. The subway is nice and cool during the summer both being underground (at least the line upon which we live) and air conditioned. We arrived fairly quickly at the Science and Technology Center station and disembarked. A quick check of directions and a short walk, and we arrived at the "big top" ... an actual circus tent erected to stage the performance of "Quidam," the current production of Cirque du Soleil which is in Shanghai for about a month.

Mike had attended a couple of performances of Cirque stateside, and wondered aloud where the midway was. Apparently, other Cirque troupes do indeed set up a midway complete with amusement park rides, but Shanghai only had a few tents set up for snacks, beverages, and souvineers. After a short wait, we found our seats and were delighted to find it comfortably cool in the big tent. Upon reflection, we realized that it was surely a necessity for the health of the performers.

A description of the Cirque du Soleil is certainly going to tax my writing abilities ... it almost defies explanation. It is certainly something the likes of which I have never experienced. I said to Randy upon conclusion of the show that it is indeed akin to the circus ... a circus on steroids and LSD (don't worry, Mom ... I have zero experience with either.)!!!

The stage was circular in shape with the audience seated almost entirely around it, save for a section towards the back that housed the orchestra and "wings" from whence the performers entered and exited (unless of course they were coming down from the ceiling or popping up through the floor which also happened frequently). There were clouds superimposed upon the ceiling, and speaking of thunder and lightning, there also was often a sound effect of the same (unless of course it was real .... never thought of that until just now).

From start to finish, there was always something moving upon the stage to hold one's attention. The performers moved gracefully as dancers and ballerinas, and often wore bizarre and garish costumes, and the music varied from ethereal and macabre to loud and silly (like a regular circus). The mood often smacked of performance art theatre, but was always very interesting. A couple of characters that graced the stage need to be noted: a ten-foot tall, headless man wearing a trenchcoat, carrying a bowler derby and a bright green open umbrella over his missing head ... a fellow who reminded me of a bald Beetlejuice wearing boxing gloves and periodically letting out a most frightening bellow. Often, the majority of the performers were wearing what appeared to be white, Tyvek head-to-toe body suits (my friends at Kauamgraph will call them "pressroom" suits). They appeared somewhat ghostly at times, and at other times, goofy like something out of a Dr. Seuss book.

This particular show is called "Quidam" pronounced "key-dam," which is a Latin word for an anonymous passerby, a solitary figure lingering on a street corner, a person rushing past, living lost amidst the crowd. Certainly, this performance captured the essence of this word. During each segment of the show, there would be someone standing or sitting off to one side (or sometimes hovering from above) observing somewhat quizzically the comings and going, often one of the above mentioned figures.

The acts were imaginative and fascinating! There were four Chinese women who held a foot long stick in each hand with a line tied between the sticks. Each would spin and twirl what appeared to be a large spools, often throwing them high into the air. They did some amazing things with these spools, as well as with their bodies acrobatically.

There were some traditional acrobats, jugglers, and high flying artists, as well as a couple of gals who performed on hoops suspended from the ceiling as well as men and women performing amazing feats upon large, long ropes. A jump rope exhibition (yes, I said jumping rope) was probably one of the most amazing things I've ever seen. There were 15 or 20 people in every configuration of single and multiple jumping rope in a most imaginative and creative way. I told Randy I want to meet the person who envisioned that because he or she is certainly a truly artistic engineer.

The "clown" routines were clever and hysterically funny!! There was a fellow who portrayed a film director who very carefully chose his "cast" from members of the audience. It was to be a love tragedy, a women torn between two lovers. Ultimately, one lover shoots the other, and the heroine kills herself (well, actually, the director grows weary of her overacting and shoots her ... but I digress). But not before the director has them performing over the top antics all to the delight and howls of the audience. Truly, a talented individual, this "director" ... the next Jim Carey, I would say.

I could go on and on, but as stated above, this performance was indeed difficult to describe in a worthy manner. It is not something we will soon forget.

We came out of the tent to find that it had indeed rained while we were inside enjoying the show. We joked about a nice, cool, summer rain, but this rain only had the effect of creating the sauna-like conditions about which I've whined ad nauseum. The steam was literally rising from the pavement and asphalt.

It was decided that we'd try a new restaurant called California 101. It is located in a huge mall called Cloud Nine, and one of the subway stations on our line is in the lower level of this mall. We had a heck of a time finding the restaurant (the 7th floor finally), but it was well worth the effort. California 101 is a grand buffet type restaurant. For a set price, one can visit a dozen different prep stations to fill your plate with every imaginable kind of seafood, sushi, sashimi, salads, soups, various meats-on-a-stick type BBQ, pizza, fruit and dessert, as well as soda, juice, beer, and wine (yes, beer and wine WERE included). The decor is all crystal, silver, and modern leather modeled in a nautical theme (as they are well-known for their seafood). We ate ourselves silly!!

After a wonderful meal, we decided to walk back to the apartment in spite of the heat so as to justify our overeating. Actually, it seemed a bit cooler, perhaps it only seemed that way just because it was dark. Our walk brought us to the Suzhou Creek which runs right behind our apartment complex. There is a new marina on the river, and if they ever get any boats in there, it is going to be a really lovely area. There are quite a few new walkways and parks to stroll, but it appears to be a recent renovation that just hasn't gotten off the ground just yet. We lingered and watched a rather large barge navigate the narrow, winding passage, and disappear into the darkness, and planned our next adventure.

Monday, July 23, 2007

JULY 23, 2007

I resumed participation with the Tai Chi ladies immediately upon my return to Shanghai, having missed the people AND the body movement. They welcomed me back with open arms and big, sincere smiles. The ladies (and now the group includes one gentleman) are now meeting in the lobby of the building that houses the library, the dry cleaner, and the spa here in our complex. It is a fairly spacious area, but the particular draw is the air conditioning. Toni, my Australian friend, was still among them, and a new Western face, Suely (Brazilian), had joined in my absence.

As you might expect, I was a tad rusty from my two-month hiatus, but thankfully, I remembered more than I'd forgotten. It was satisfying to move my body in a thoughtful way again, and also become reacquainted with the Tai Chi group. We'd barely finished the routine on my first day back when one of the older ladies started saying something to me in Chinese in a fairly dramatic manner. Toni's Mandarin has improved significantly, and she said something about the fan dancers which I have mentioned in previous posts.

The next thing I knew, I was being led away by the arm toward parts unknown. A handful of the Chinese ladies squired me towards the Residential Committee office (where our Mandarin class is held). Once inside, it appeared I was being signed up for some event of some kind. Toni had left me for her own apartment and her children, and I was with no means of interpretation. Finally, one of the younger gals that worked in the office told me that I must present myself in front of the management building at 12:45 on Saturday. For what, I had no idea, but they produced a yellow T-shirt with red Chinese characters on it in my size, and made it clear to me that I must attend wearing this garment (a size XXL which I'm sorry to say, is pretty close to MY size in China). These are the times when not speaking the language is a distinct disadvantage. I certainly could make no excuses for not attending, hence, I was thanked for my participation and whisked out the door.

For the remainder of the week, I was quite curious about what I'd started calling the "Yellow T-shirt Event." Finally, on Friday I was chatting with Suely (pronounced SWAY-lee) after Tai Chi, and discovered that she too was signed up for the "Yellow T-shirt Event." She knew a bit more about the activities than I did. We were to board a bus and drive to a gathering where we would be supporting our very own fan dancers in some kind of exhibition or competition. This sounded like a bit more than a 45 minute excursion to me, and Suely confirmed that indeed, we'd return to the complex around 4:00.

On Saturday, Randy accompanied me to the designated meeting place where many other yellow T-shirt bedecked folks were milling about. He didn't stick around very long, giving in to the mortal fear that he too would be roped into wearing a yellow T-shirt (it simply isn't his color) and herded onto a bus for destinations unknown. As this was too far out of his comfort zone, he happily volunteered to do some grocery shopping instead, and left me in good hands with Suely and the other Tai Chi members. Mr. Hu, my Mandarin teacher, and his wife were also in attendance. Suely has a handsome command of the language (she's been in China for four years), and with Mr. Hu also being on hand, I was sure that I be able to grasp the gist of the event.

The bus only went a short distance and we arrived at the Shanghai International Gymnastics Arena, an arena that not only is utilized for gymnastics, but also basketball, ping pong, and obviously fan dancing on occasion. Each section of the arena held a block of individuals all wearing the same color T-shirt. Of course, our section wore the yellow, but there were also white, blue, orange, red, green .... every color and shade imaginable. It was quite the sight!! Also, each section had some sort of device which was to be utilized as a tool for cheering on each section's corresponding group. We had those inflatable tubes used at basketball games that you bang together to make noise (my mother-in-law calls them "whackers"), others had fans or pom-poms to wave, banners to display, and other paraphernalia necessary for exciting a crowd. Our group was somewhat special in that we had a young fellow who played peppy tunes on a saxophone which we accompanied by clapping, or whacking as the case may be.

The arena floor was divided into two sections. One end was the stage area, very well lit with a large Oriental backdrop. The other end was lined with tables and overstuffed leather chairs where, it was explained to me, that special dignitaries would be seated. This led me to the mistaken belief that they would be judging a competition, but in fact, it was actually a revue-type talent exhibition. There were big lights and TV cameras everywhere, and big screens on either end for flashing graphics and photos. This event was either broadcast live or taped for re-broadcast at a later date. I never did find out this information. Also many still photographers were in attendance. This was quite the media event!

Eventually, the dignitaries were led onto the arena floor. There were Chinese governmental big-wigs, local celebrities, and even an aged world champion ping pong player (they flashed photos of her meeting Chairman Mao). It seems that whenever there is a public gathering such as this, the government never misses an opportunity for some good ole fashioned propaganda dishing. There was a fair amount of "China ... RAH RAH!!" happening until we finally got down to the real display of talent (not that dishing propaganda isn't an art unto itself, but you know what I mean).

I have to say that I was VERY impressed with this show. What I'd mistakenly assumed would be various groups of fan dancers such as our Yanlord group, were actually many different types of entertainment and talent all from within the Changning District which is where we live here in Shanghai. There were dancers with fans, parasols, drums, pom-poms, and various other props. There was a fashion show comprised of fashions for men, women, children, and professionals. A middle school symphony performed as well as any professional orchestra I've witnessed stateside. A local singer displayed her talent, as well as a couple of ballet dancers and a contortionist/acrobat type woman (who had me saying, "You've GOT to be kidding!!" several times). There were Korean and Thai displays of dancing. And you haven't lived until you've seen 50 Chinese men and women dressed as matadors and flamenco dancers doing the Passo Doble .... amazing!!

The costumes were magnificently colored and peppered with sequins and metallic fabrics that caught the light spectacularly. Our very own Yanlord ladies were adorned in turquoise and white loose flowing Chinese pajamas with silver sequins and large fuchsia fans. They did a terrific job and we were very proud of them (and we whacked our fool heads off in appreciation)!! Between Suely and Mr. Hu, I was kept informed of any pertinent information. The show lasted a little longer than 4:00, but we arrived back at the complex in plenty of time for dinner.

Randy had indeed accomplished the shopping, and had also arranged dinner out with our downstairs neighbor, Mike, a fellow from Pittsburgh. Poor guy was celebrating his 50th birthday all by himself, so we took it upon ourselves to try to mark the event in his family's absence. That is one thing that really warms my heart about this place. All the expats seem to close ranks and care for one another here as all of us are away from many loved ones for extended periods of time. Randy's birthday passed while I was home in Michigan, and thankfully, our friend Toni hosted a birthday dinner in his honor (bless you, girlfriend). As much as possible, we look after each other.

We took Mike to Simply Thai, one of my favorites, and then to visit the City Shop where they have many imported American items (groceries) in stock. Mike had never been to either of these places. Hopefully, he had a nice birthday, although I'm sure he'd have preferred it with his loved ones. After we arrived at home, he came to the door with a big bag of peaches for us. His company has purchased peaches to give to their customer as gifts, but as there were far too many for this purpose, he was happy to share them with us. The peaches here are very sweet and juicy, but don't have a strong "peachy" flavor .... still good though.

Sunday, we braved the heat and took the subway to IKEA to purchase some rugs for the apartment. Our entire apartment is either hardwood or tiled floor. Taking pity on Mike with our clomping around above him, we decided that we could do better than a seemingly hundred year old fake Persian rug that was covering most of our living room floor (and spreading lint over the remainder of the apartment), as well as something for the dining area which had nothing on it but the dining room table and chairs. We found something we liked online and headed out, as it was listed in stock.

When we arrived at IKEA, we found the rug we liked, but there was only one in stock. Bummer! So we picked out another rug that had a corresponding black trim so that it would at least match. The dining and living room areas are one big open space and our preference was to get something coordinated. So we had the two rugs, as well as a smaller one for the foyer, found a driver and headed home. Randy plopped the rugs on the floor and started to open the one intended for the dining room. Bummer again!!! It was brown, not black ... also it appeared to be a smidgen too large for the room. As transportation is an issue here, we decided to keep the rug and try it in one of the bedrooms at a later date. We'll try for the smaller, black one again later.

Our outdoor pool here in the complex is now open. As you can imagine, it gets a LOT of use by the children of the complex as the heat is a deterrent for playground activity. It is a large pool with vast areas of shallow water for wading toddlers, but also a large deep end for more experienced swimmers. It was our intention after our big IKEA adventure to have dinner and a nice cool swim, but Mother Nature was against us on that idea. As soon as the dinner dishes were cleared, a thunderstorm presented itself and kept us inside. Well, at least it cooled off a bit. And with that, another Shanghai weekend came to a close.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

JULY 19, 2007

Greetings, loyal readers. We are, as they say, back in business. After an eventful two months back in the land of English language, junk food, and relatively good driving conditions (orange barrel zones notwithstanding), we have returned to Shanghai to continue the adventures begun earlier this year. Actually, I was in the USA for two months, Randy only managed two weeks vacation (not nearly enough time to actually get relaxed .... shoot, he only barely got over jet lag, then had to return, poor guy!). But as they say, back to reality.

Ah, yes .... SUMMER IN SHANGHAI!! Sounds like the latest Daniel Steele novel, doesn't it? Well, let me enlighten you .... it's not nearly so romantic. Yes, that sound you hear is the "whining" alert going off. If you don't want to deal with MAJOR whining at this point, please skip down a couple of paragraphs and continue reading because I need to get this out of my system.

Being from Michigan, I'm used to temperature extremes (all my fellow Michiganians will back me up on this), but this is ridiculous. We came off the plane at approximately 9:00 PM Monday evening after what was a pretty good flight (a couple of margaritas at Chili's in Detroit prior to take off went a long way to shorten our flight, if you know what I mean). Luggage took a while, but finally showed up on the belt. Found our driver, and we're off. We walked out of the airport and literally into a steam sauna! There was this immediate sense of wetness and heavy air all around not to mention extreme heat. And it's well after dark at this point. I'd been warned of this heat, but I have to say, I really had no idea.

Maybe this is something that simply requires some getting used to, but considering the fact that our friend, Cathy (a local Shanghaiese), calls this the two months of FIRE, I assume that it only gets worse before it gets better. As it is often heard stateside, it's not the heat, it's the humidity. Well, OK, it's BOTH!! All one needs to do is walk outside, and any activity more strenuous than breathing seems quite excessive ... and even the breathing activates sweat glands that I didn't even know I possessed. It's like a 24/7 hot flash (my postmenopausal lady friends will sympathize)!!! My life is currently relegated to showering, changing clothes (3 to 4 times per day), and doing laundry so as to always have something clean and dry in which to change (no, I'm NOT shopping for more clothes. That would require me to actually LEAVE the air conditioned premises ... uh, uh, ... no way ... ain't gonna happen!!). Yesterday, it hit 100 degrees, and they don't seem to measure the humidity (it might make them suicidal), but it must be near 100%. And as the Carpenters used to sing, we've only just begun.

Let me put your mind at ease. As mentioned above, we DO have air conditioning in our apartment. In fact, there is a separate unit in each room except the kitchen and bathrooms for both heating and cooling (this is so that one only need heat or cool the room that is occupied so as to reduce energy usage ... not a bad plan). It has taken some experimentation to connoiter the correct configuration, but we seem to have it down to running only the dining room unit, the most centrally located in the apartment, while keeping all the doors shut. This cools the dining and living areas nicely. We can cool any room pretty quickly in the event we will be occupying that room simply by opening the door.

It's a pretty efficient system. The AC runs pretty much nonstop right now, but keeps it comfortable in our humble abode. In fact as a bonus, the AC unit, which sits upon the patio outside our kitchen, throws off so much residual heat that I can brew a pitcher of tea upon it in just a few minutes!

Unfortunately, I find myself looking for excuses not to go outside in much the same manner as I have in the winter back in Michigan. I've always considered myself a "summer" person. You've all heard me say it ... "Heat doesn't bother ME!" I have, in less than three days time, revised that statement ... retracted it, in fact!! Fortunately, right now the jet lag wakes me at around 4:30 or 5:00 in the morning. I have found that this is a GREAT time to go for that daily walk (still quite warm out ... last night it cooled to around 86 degrees), but bearable for a 45 minute power walk, leaving plenty of time for the first shower and change of clothes in time for 8:30 Tai Chi (currently an indoor activity to take advantage of the AC). In fact, the grounds of the apartment complex is quite busy at this early time of day. I noticed quite a few walkers and at least one jogger. Many of the benches were occupied by quite a few couples with babies who no doubt have been awakened by the early dawn.

OK, I do have a bit of romance to pass along ... many of these couples take turns fanning each other and/or baby (if they have one) with big, beautiful Chinese fans (yes, they REALLY use them). It made for a very sweet scene early this morning. Lots of elderly folks were out for their daily exercise. Most have this habit of walking with their hands clasped behind their backs. Seems to be a Chinese mannerism. Several folks were squatted chatting the latest local gossip. In spite of the heat, it was an idyllic scenario. It helped my disposition that there finally seemed to be a bit of breeze, and it was slightly overcast.

I think I'd mentioned in earlier posts that sometimes the smells of the street can be an olfactory affront to the senses. Well, in this heat, the severity of that situation is hard to describe appropriately. Suffice it to say that once one leaves our complex, there is no doubt about the fact that many choose to relieve themselves wherever it's handy on the street. I walked to the market yesterday to buy fruit and vegetables. I had a notion that the market might be overwhelming in terms of the stench. I had not underestimated this situation. It smelled like rotting vegetables and decaying meat and fish ...... PHEW!!! Between the smell and the heat, my shopping was accomplished VERY quickly! All I could think was, "Get back to my lovely apartment complex and the AC!!" OK, I know ... I'm spoiled. I will say that I never knew I could sweat so much. Randy tells me it's a good weight loss system. I'll let you know on that score.

Luckily, we have a LOT of green space and lovely trees in our complex, as well as a brand new (and HUGE) outdoor pool that is getting a lot of use. Even if it doesn't feel like it, it gives the appearance of coolness to our immediate area. Kudos to Randy for picking out this location. I can't imagine anywhere in this city that would be as comfortable. Now if only they would open a grocery store here, I'd have it made. Actually, we could have our groceries delivered, but as my grandmother says, that's the height of extravagance. Does me good to get out and mingle with the locals anyway. I wanted the Chinese experience ... I'm certainly having it now!

Now that we're back in the Orient, I'll try to be more timely about updating the blog. It was quite satisfying when I was home to hear how many of you are actually reading it, and I received many positive comments about it. Thanks for your dedication. It's nice to know that we have folks back home interested and pulling for us.