A Late Dinner

Last night was an interesting night. What made the night interesting was our late night stop for food. We would have "dinner" or "breakfast", which ever one you prefer, at 1:30 am at a local Chinese restaurant. This adventure would be a continuation of my localization process.

Our trip to dinner began with breaking one of the unwritten rules a foreigner should never do. We would take a "illegal" taxi to our dinner destination. This taxi does not have a meter and the fair should usually be negotiated before you get into the taxi. When I visited our assembly plant in Beijing, I have had to take many of these "illegal" taxis. The town where the facility is located is very small and it costs 10 RMB ($1.46 US) to get to any destination in town. Our local friends negotiated and payed or taxi fair.

We arrived at a local hot pot restaurant 新招鲜. Hot pot is kind of like create your own meal. You choose from many things on the menu and dump them in the pot wait until they are cooked and eat up. The menu was completely in Chinese and our friends ordered all the food we would eat for our late dinner.

We had chicken. When people in the states think about chicken we usually think about the chicken wings, chicken breasts, thighs and legs. Well, at this restaurant, the chicken was chopped up and included the feet, the head, the liver, and the heart. Well, it included the whole chicken. Not a single piece of this animal would go to waste. We also had three different types of green vegetables, potatoes, lotus root, and probably pork intestines. The most interesting part of this dinner was.......

Yes, it is the brain. I have no idea of what animal this brain comes from, but it definitely was too big to be a chicken. Well, all this food went into the pot and cooked to perfection to be eaten. Everything would become a nice mixture of flavor. Many of you are probably asking yourselves if I was able to eat the brain. I have to say everything was very tasty except for one green vegetable which tasted very bad. I have to say the little bit of brain I did eat was much better than the green vegetable.

Tasting the brain was a must do activity. First of all, one never knows if they would actually like the food unless they taste it. Secondly, as part of my localization process, I have to not only experience everyday activities, but also try more local food.

The brain looks much better cooked, but probably too hard for some to eat. As far as my thoughts on localization and getting into the cultural experience, I had to try it.

Many companies talk about localization, but fall way short in their aggressiveness to localize. Their concept of localization is using international companies to supply parts to them which they can buy locally in China or dealing with international companies to buy their products. This concept is like eating KFC in China and saying you have eaten local food. The real cost savings and money to made will come from buying parts from Chinese suppliers or selling parts to Chinese companies. It is extremely risky, but if you don't try it you will never know the true concept of localization.

The Driver

Transportation for expats residing in China comes in many forms. Some companies give their employees a car allowance and let them decide exactly how to handle transportation. The employee can decide to get a rental contract with a driver, take the driving exam in China and buy a car, ride a bike or electrical two wheeler, or simply take a taxi all the time. Other companies have contracts with car and driver rental companies and provide the employee with the driver and the vehicle.

If the expat decides on a driver, this person indirectly becomes part of the family. The driver will know almost every detail about the family. The driver will take the family to every destination that is required. As one can guess, the driver will know where the family likes to eat, where the family likes to shop, what the family buys, where the family goes for entertainment, how much the family spends, and many other things. After a while, if the family keeps a routine, the driver would know everyday activities.

Most drivers speak none to very little English. In the beginning the relationship for the new expat is built on showing the driver taxi cards. The taxi cards are designed to help foreigners get the the locations they want to visit. The address is in Chinese and any can be given to the driver or taxi. They can then read the card and find the location without any required speaking. Learning to communicate with the driver in Chinese becomes an "opportunity" to practice Chinese. The expat and family members can practice the simple conversations learned in Chinese class. This small talk with the driver can help the family learn Chinese quicker. Communication can also cut the silence in the car and help the expat get to know the driver. After all, the driver is a "new" family member.

A typical day for a driver could begin with taking the expat to work, then maybe dropping of the son or daughter at school. The driver could then return home and take the spouse for grocery shopping or other activities that the spouse needs to complete. These activities can include the gym, grocery shopping, or any other activities. In the afternoon, the driver could pick up the son or daughter from school and then later bring home the working expat. Any other trips required could also be included.

Just like people, there are good drivers, good employers, bad drivers, and bad employers. Some expats will have the same driver for a few years, while other expats will go through a few drivers in a year.

PHEBE BAR

Last weekend for Valentine's Day, a friend and I decided to take our wives out dancing and drinking to celebrate this special day. We decided to go on Friday to avoid the large crowds on Saturday.

This bar is fairly new and it is located at the intersection of Zhu Hui Lu and Ren Min Lu (竹辉路 & 人民路). I have been there a few times and it is always packed with people. The bar has two floors and many tables to sit or stand, to drink, and to play Chinese drinking games. The bar does not have a live band, but it has very good DJs and small stages where various singers will stand on the stages and sing different types of songs.

The bar actually gets really full and I recommend calling ahead of time and booking a table. The minimum spending for a table is 600 RMB ($87.59). For this price, you can get a 12 year old scotch bottle, a fruit plate, and three or four snacks. We eventually broke down and had to purchase more green tea to mix with the scotch. Also, outside the bar is a local barbecue street food stand that sells all kind of treats like fish, vegetables, meats, mushrooms, tofu and many more snacks. I have never purchased bottles at any bars in the US, so I do not have a measure of comparison to know if this is really expensive or not.

The atmosphere inside is really fun. The place is hopping with people dancing, playing dice games, drinking, and having a good time! The music is good. We played a few drinking games, danced, went outside to enjoy the street food. We ended up drinking a few rounds with some people from the tables near by. I recommend it!

Excuse me, that seat is not taken!

Imagine being at the local fast food restaurant. This restaurant is completely full. Well, there are many tables that have two people sitting together eating and talking away. You do not know these people. In fact, you have never seen them in your life. There are no free tables available. Do you go sit down and have your meal at their table?

If you live in the United States, the answer is no, that table is occupied. Those two chairs where no one is sitting have a force field around them and they can not be occupied by any other person not known by the two people. Even if no table or other chairs are available, the chances of those chairs ever being occupied by a stranger is slim to none.

China is different in this respect. Any open chair can be occupied by any person who eats in the restaurant. The force field created by the person or group of persons extends just to the chair they occupy. It is very likely that two people can be eating at a table with two other complete strangers. This situation is very normal at alot of the local fast food type restaurants that serve western or Chinese fast food. In fact, at Chinese hotels, the meals are served at round tables with many chairs. Many families will sit down together and eat without even knowing each other.

Another Haircut:师傅我想理发！

Well, hair grows really fast and it was time for a trim. Looking for an adventure, I had decided to localize the haircutting experience. Previously, I had always went to the "high" end haircut salons which cost over 40 RMB ($5.84 US). Most locals usually do not pay over 15 RMB ($2.19 US) for a haircut.

For the localizing experience, I would try the local barber shop at the Suzhou University (高教区). This place would be where the students would go for a cost effective haircut. For the 15 RMB one would get a wash, a cut, another wash, and a blow dry. Unlike the high end places, there would be no massage.

The barber shop seemed more like a production line area for haircuts. There were at least 12 different cutting stations and all were occupied with people getting their haircuts. There was also hair all over the floor. I suppose cleaning came during a dry spell with a lack of clients or when the day finishes if the shop remains full. During my time at the shop, I did not see the floor being cleaned. During mass production, there isn't much time to clean up.

I arrived at the shop and proceeded to tell one of the barbers that I wanted a haircut. First I was lead to the shampoo station. Unlike the high end haircut I previously talked about, the shampoo would be in the basin and not seated at the chair. I think this made the process much faster and the time from customer to customer shorter. There was a waiting line for cuts. After, the shampoo I was taken to the cutting station. The station consisted basically of a mirror with different combs on the little table to comb the hair. There was no disinfectant for the combs and all had hair on them. I would tell the barber that I just wanted a trim and I did not want it too short. that was as about as specific as I got. He got to work and finished up my hair quiet quickly and I must say did an excellent job. After the cut, he took me for a wash and then brought me back to blow dry my hair. The job was finished and the price was right. I would pay him for the cut and be on my way.

What makes the cost so different? Well, at the high end salons, we start with the girl that shows you the menu for the haircut. She is also the girl that runs the register when you pay. Then, their is a team of shampoo and massage specialist that start the process by washing your hair and giving you a nice back massage. The stylist or barber would follow and cut your hair to your specification. After the cut another shampoo specialist washes your hair and then the stylist will blow dry your hair. Then the shampoo specialist also cleans the hair from the shop floor.

There are two differences I noted between the two places that would drive the cost up. First at the high end salon, you are paying for a team to cut your hair. At the local barber shop, you pay a one man team for the whole process. Second, one pays for the cleanliness of the facility. I would think it would be hard for someone who is used to very clean barber shop to have their haircut at the low end facility. Combs and machines are shared between people who can be having their hair cut side by side or across the room. Also, I saw some trimmers being picked up off the floor with hair on them. Just a little quick blow to clean the hair off, and it was then on your head.

I really enjoyed the experience. Even though hygiene was not a top priority at the shop, its customers kept coming back for more haircuts. They were not at all concerned. It reminded me of an article that I read sometime ago in the US that had mentioned that we have been too preoccupied with cleanliness that we were not helping our bodies to build up our natural defenses. Hopefully, my body will get stronger from this experience. 哈哈！

元宵 Lantern Festival

Monday was the fifteenth day since the Chinese New Year began. It is the day where the first full moon of the year should be visible in the sky. Also, it marks the end of the holiday season. It is the last night to hear, see, and feel the Chinese New Year festive atmosphere.

In Suzhou, the New Year celebration closes with the Lantern Festival at the Pan Men Gate. The festival includes games, food, fireworks, and many other activities. On our way to the festival we would see many people preparing to send out their flying lanterns into the sky with all their New Year wishes. They would light up the lantern and let it float away into the sky. Many hundreds of lanterns would fill the night sky.

Also, fireworks would bring a constant buzz from all over the city. Everyone was celebrating the full moon. Fireworks were literally over my head and such an impressive site.

One of the things that makes the Lantern Festival such a special event are the thousands of people who go to the festival. There is literally a sea of people, as the Chinese would say, 人山人海! The most interesting thing of the night is crossing the bridge to the festival. It is one tiny bridge that fills up with so many people that one is helpless to move and completely at the mercy of what the crowd will do. My son describes the feeling of being in this crowd as being squeezed by an anaconda. This helpless feeling I think is pretty much what a foreigner would feel. I felt that the locals were pretty much accustomed to these type of crowds although many of the locals I know do not like to go to the festival because of all the people.

Once you reached the other side, there are many carnival games being played. These would include games with darts and balls to win a lucky prize. Also, there was local food including the special foods for the festival. The special food to eat this day are small little dumplings balls called 元宵. Below are some pictures of local foods served at the festival.

This festival can not be called the Lantern Festival without the presence of lanterns. All over the festival grounds one can see many different type of lanterns. They are all very beautiful and decorate the festival grounds. Historically, these lanterns should have a puzzle on them and the family would get together try to solve the puzzles and eat 元宵.

Suzhou Times Square: Worlds Largest LED Screen

Time Square in Suzhou has the largest LED screen in the world. The screen is over 500m long and spans from one end of Time Square crossing a street to the other end of Time Square. I have been looking forward to seeing this marvel in action. I have been to Time Square during the day and was not able to see the screen turned on and I have also been to Time Square at night and did not see the screen turned on.

Well, Friday night we decided to have dinner at Time Square. We arrived just before 7:30 pm and noticed quite a few people outside sitting down and looking up. It seems that they were all waiting for something to happen. And then it did. Over the loud speaker a voice announced that the show was about to begin. All of a sudden, the screen went blue. A few advertisements begin to appear on the screen. After the advertising finished, the show began. It started with fireworks on the screen and then it showed some beautiful flowers and clouds. It then had a small tribute to the new year with all the animals from the Chinese horoscope, dragons, and of course the ox. It was an incredible site to see! I feel lucky I actually took my camera with me this day. Below you can see a few beautiful pictures of the screen. The first one is from the east end of time square and the second photo is from the west end.

Eggs and Birth in China

There are many customs all over the word to celebrate the birth of a Child. In my adventures on this world, I can recall a few I have experienced. I have received cigars for the birth of male children in the US. I have received donuts for the birth of female children in Mexico. Now, I receive eggs for the birth of children in China.

I have asked a few people about this tradition and why eggs are given for the birth of children. Surprisingly, many people have not been able to give me a complete story on this tradition or they simply do not know. The best story I have heard has to deal with the roundness of the egg. When a couple gets married and then has a child, they complete the family circle. Thus, the egg's roundness symbolizes the completion of the family and its well-being while the smoothness of the egg symbolizes the tranquility of the family.

Also, the quantity of eggs is another topic of debate. Some people say it doesn't matter, while others say it must be an even number for a boy and an odd number for a girl.

This past week I received five eggs from a colleague who had twins. Congratulations on his new family!

Yu Garden and the Bund

In China, the new year begins based on the Lunar Calender. This year the Chinese New Year began on January 26. During this time period many people are going home to spend time with their family. The first three days of the new year are national holidays. These first three days are relatively quiet and many people stay home to be with family and friends. After these days, families and friends adventure out to the tourist areas to pray in the temples, to shop around town, and to eat out. This time of year becomes very crowded with many locals as well as tourist adventuring around the town. We decided to become part of the adventurers and visit some of the tourist areas in Shanghai.

Our day began at the famous Yu Garden. This area is known as the Old Town. Originally, this part of Shanghai never saw many foreigners. It was home to many of the poorest Chinese as the settlers from various countries built there communities around the Old Town. After the Cultural revolution, the area was restored. It has many traditional looking buildings with tea houses, local food vendors, as well as Starbucks and other modern shops. During this time of year, there are many decorations for the Year of the Ox. These include the traditional lanterns as well as many ox decorations.

This year there was an arts and crafts festival at the Old Town. Many of the traditional Chinese crafts which included paintings, paper-cuttings, seals, and many other handmade items were being sold at the market. Today we decided to buy a seal. Seals have been used for many years around China. Seals were used to mark ones own possessions as well as contracts and documents. These seals are made of many materials and are hand carved. We purchased our seal for a negotiated price of 30 RMB ($4.38 US). The market is the best place to get local arts and crafts. Always remember to negotiate. Once the price was negotiated, the artist would make the seal with one's name. We chose to have the Chinese version of our name on top with the English name on the bottom half of the seal.

After shopping and wandering around all morning, it was time for some local snacks. There were many delicious items to choose from including traditional Chinese barbecue, soup dumplings, meatball soup, and many other local snacks. We would snack on some soup dumplings.

Each dumpling contained a pork soup inside with a delicious meaty flavor. Each one came with a straw to be able drink the soup. After a few snacks, we also went to lunch to a local sit down fast food restaurant and enjoyed some pork chop noodles. The pork chop noodle is also a noodle soup with noodles, a few vegetables, and the pork chop. I love to eat this soup wherever I can find it.

After lunch, we decided to go to Longhua Market. This market sells clothes, watches, jewelry, purses, and so many other things at low prices. There is one catch. The prices actually start a little high. Here you have to use your negotiating skills to reduce the price. A long sleeve polo shirt can be sold from 40 RMB to 100 RMB ($5.83 US to $14.60 US). Your price depends on your negotiating skills and what you are willing to pay. Tourists will usually pay a little more than a local because a local will usually know fair market price. If you come to China, get some local help with the shopping!

After buying some clothes, we were of to the electronics market Mei Luo Cheng. This market works the same way as Longhua except it sells all electronic items from USBs, Cameras, and PCs. It is a huge electronic market with hundreds of stores inside. Here it is critical you know fare market price for the items or you could be spending hundreds of dollars more. We limited our purchases to an all in one card reader and a memory stick for my son's PSP already loaded with games.

We also had dinner at the electronic market. The method for ordering food was pretty electronically automated. First, you would purchase a card for the amount you would like to spend in food. Then you could go to any one of the food court stores and order food. You would present your card to the teller and the money would automatically be deducted from the card. Once your dinner was finished, you could return for the remaining balance on your card or save it for later.

As darkness approached over the city, it would seem as our day in Shanghai was almost over, but in fact it was just another beginning. We wanted to walk the Bund at night. The Bund is the scenic area on the western side of the Huangpu River and claims to be the most scenic spot in Shanghai for both locals and tourists. The west side has many 19th century colonial buildings which served as trading houses and banks earlier in Chinese history. During the night, these buildings light up the area. On the east side across the river the financial area of Pudong lights up the night. There are many ways to view the Bund at night. Boats along the Huangpu river offer tours around the Bund by water. Many people choose the walkway and walk along the river bank taking in the views from both sides of the river.

There are two ways to get to the other side of the river without having to take a taxi to the other side. There is a ferry that goes across the river and there is a pedestrian tunnel that can be used to cross underneath the water. We chose the pedestrian tunnel ,50 RMB ($7.30 US) for round trip, and stopped by the Super Brand Mall for a Starbucks Coffee. We returned to the west side by the pedestrian tunnel and called it a night.