Day 26 and 27

Today's posting includes some miscellaneous photos around town, plus the big wedding I was invited to.  As always, I am willing to answer your questions about China, and have plenty of China experts here.  On Saturday I went to the Fabric market where they have hundreds of tailors, all trying to sell you a custom made suit or a dress.  Once you start a discussion with them, they will have you pick out a fabric and a style, and then start negotiating price.  They always start high and you have to settle on a price you consider reasonable.  I had already ordered my suit, so I was just there for a fitting.  She wanted to make sure it was done right, especially around the waist.  The pants were completed and they fit perfectly.  She was adjusting the jackets.  I just paid 500 yuan for each of my two new suites.  This works out to be about $77 a suit, very reasonable for a custom made suit.  The person I bought the suit from is Mary.  She works the stall, selling and measuring, and her husband and other tailors she works with make the suits.  She works 7 days a week.  The only time she gets off is two weeks for Spring Festival.  

The pictures here are from around the campus at night, at the Science and Technology Museum, and the wedding I attended Saturday night. 

On a street by Shanghai University, street vendors are usually here from 9:00 to 11:00 in the evening selling snacks to the students.  This can include anything from grilled chicken, pork or fish, to vegetables or dumplings

This was a street vendor who just dumped all her boxes on the ground and was selling books.

 

The Science and Technology Museum.  Those low buildings on the right lead to hundreds of vendors with little stalls.

Another view of the Science and Technology Museum

This is a typical vendor and his shop.  This one is offering to make women's clothes.

Now we get to the big wedding on Saturday night.  It was held at the Four Points Sheraton in Daning, which is a very nice hotel.  Here in China, a typical celebration can take place a year or so after the couple is actually married.  This is because the celebration is very expensive, and the couple has to work for a while to save the money and to be able to afford it.  The couple that gave this celebration is Kimi and Mikino, and they were very nice to invite me.  As I was standing around I met Kimi's uncle, who could speak some English since he worked in the States for a while.  He was very nice and friendly.  A few differences from weddings in America is that there was no dancing, the guests were dressed very casually (like some in jeans and T shirts), and the whole affair is run by a company that specializes in running wedding celebrations.  Most people in China are not religious, so clergy do not conduct a service.  The food was delicious, typical Chinese style.  Fortunatley for me they had a printed menu, so I knew what I was eating.

 Below is a photo of the ballroom, set up with a long runway leading to the stage.  The bride and groom and other family members walk this runway to the alter.  This is done numerous times.  Notice the two large screens to the right and left of the stage. These are showing continuous photos of the couple, and they took hundreds of photos, her in many costumes.

 This is a picture is of me with the Makino and Kimi.  She is an absolutly beautiful bride.  She could be a model.



The bride walking in with her father



The bride and groom after a brief ceremony.  Notice all the bubbles.

Close up of the bride and groom.  Notice she changed dresses.  This is the second dress



The party host doing a game with the children

Days 23 - 25

Since I've been here in Shanghai almost a month now, I've been taking fewer and fewer pictures.  The other night I went out with my Chinese Cultures teacher and we went downtown on the subway, to eat, and to see the Bund and Nanjing road at night.  So you will see a few night pictures here.

My instructor is Chinese and she teaches at California Polytechnic.  She says that "foreign" Chinese, are given no respect in Shanghai.  We were downtown and could not find the restaurant street we were looking for, so we saw this group of three Chinese looking people, who were walking westward, and she asked me to ask them for directions.  She felt she wouldn't get any cooperation, even though she could speak Chinese.  I stopped them, and it turned out they could speak English, and last night they were on the restaurant street we were looking for.  They not only gave us directions, but turned around and walked us there.  My instructor swears it was because I was a westerner.  She said they would have never done this for a Chinese person.  At the end of our walk we stopped in the Peace Hotel.  This is a very fancy hotel, like the Willard in Washington.  Built in 1929 by Sir Victor Sasoon.  They have a jazz club there that has been playing since the 1930's.  We looked around then left.



Nanging Street at night.  A pedestrian only street



Another photo of Nanjing Street at night




View from the Bund of Pudong.  All the buildings are lit up, and there are many cruise boats at night

 

View of some of the older buildings on the Bund



In the Peace Hotel, part of the lobby.  There were women there playing strings when we walked in.



Days 21 and 22

This weekend our USAC group went to visit the city of Hangzhou.  Hangzhou is rated one of the most livable cities in China, and is about 3 hours by bus from Shanghai.  In this posting I will tell you a little about life here in China, and then about the two sites in Hangzhou we visited.  First, you can find out more about Hangzhou from the China Travel Guide and from Wikipedia.  On the ride to Hangzhou we traveled on a highway equivalent to our interstate highways.  Except for the signs being in Chinese, you wouldn't know the difference between the their interstate highways and ours.

 Hangzhou is a moderately sized city in China, and has a population of approximately 3.9 million.  As we drive into the city, you see from the photo that it is a modern city with many high rise buildings, beautiful landscaping in the streets, and most streets had separate lanes for the bikes. One of the first buildings we passed was one that had the Gucci, Hermes, Cartier, etc stores.  A nice and unusual feature they had at many intersections were canopies on the bike lanes.  So when it is raining and the bikers are stopped, they are protected from the rain.  Also, their traffic lights had additional features that showed when the red and green lights were about to change.  The traffic signals also told bikes when to go and stop, not only the cars. 

China is not a Christian country, so it does not treat Sunday as a special day.  Most businesses and construction sites are working on Sunday.  In fact, most businesses work a 7 day week.  You will find banks open 7 days a week, and many construction projects are going on 7 days a week.  The people in most businesses work a 5 day week.  In the small mom and pop shops, like around the University, they may work 7 days a week.



Typical street scene as we are entering Hangzhou



Canopies covering bike lanes at most intersections




They had these bike stands around town.  Just swipe your card on the post and you can take a bike



Traffic signals showing that both the red and green are about to change



Street cleaner.  Sidewalks were always attended to and cleaned

Traffic Signals showed bike directions



Barber Poles are everywhere, even if they are purple.

This picture was taken at 7:00 AM Sunday morning, showing crews working at this time



The Ling Yin Budhhist Temple

Our first tourist stop was at the Ling Yin Temple.  This link tells you all about it.  On the walkway to the temple, there were many carvings in the rocks and caves of various Budda figures.  You will see some of these photos.

 

Along the walkway to the temple, there were many carvings of Buddhist religious characters in the rocks

 

There are many stone carvings along the path to the Temple.

Most Chinese are not devout Buddhists, but they will often make a prayer to him if they are seeking a favor.  For example, good health for a loved one, good luck on an exam, help in finding a marriage partner, etc.



Now we have arrived outside the temple and there are many Chinese making prayers.



More prayers, signified by light a buch of sticks.




One of the statues of Buddha, with two Chinese making prayers





View of the Temple from a walk up the hill behind it


The next day, Sunday we visited the Six Harmonies Pagoda and the West Lake area.  You Sha and I even rode bikes around the lake.


Six Harmonies Pagoda.  That is an escalator going up to the bottom of the Pagoda



Me on the bike, beginning the bike ride around the West Lake



Day 17 to 20

Ask your China Questions

Today I am adding a little somthing extra.  You now have the opportunity to ask any question you want about China, its culture, history, language, government, economy,etc.  Just fire away.  If I don't know the answer, I have plenty of Chinese experts here I can ask.  You can ask a question either by posting a comment below, or by sending an email to jecohen@umd.edu

This week I gave a presentation on my research topic, "Courting differences between the American and Chinese Cultures".  It was a powerpoint presentation, and it went well.  The kids in the class and instructor liked it.  You can get the presentation here.

In class I have been learning quite a lot about Chinese culture, politics, etc.  A few of the topics we have been discussing include the following:

• The divisions within China that create many differences amoung the Chinese people
• The id system, Huko, that still segregates rural from urban folks
• The One Baby policy, and how it is implemented, enforced, and changed
• The various religions in China
• Confucianism - its core tenents and effect on Chinese society today
• Buddhism, Taoism and Daoism
• How the Chinese are very superstitious, and the many gods, like the marriage god
• The Wenzhou model for development of private enterprise
• The different phases of economic reform, initiated by Deng Xiaoping in 1978
• The huge migrations of people from urban to rural life, and the reverse
• The changes to Government owned and State Owned Enterprises
• Corruption and the shift of politicians every three years
• The welfare system, that includes pensions, healthcare and housing subsidies
• Education and the old examination system
• Chinese Industry - Primary, Secondary and Tertiary
• Shanghai history
• The Silk Road
• Five Star factories and shadow factories
• News and media - US China differences
• Internet blocking and monitoring

Yesterday we went to the home of Dr. Sun Yat Sen, the founder and first president of modern China.  He was the president that took over the government after the emperor was overthrown in 1911.  This ended the Dynasty period in China.  Below is a picture of our classmates in "Special Topics in Chinese Culture."  The tall blond is not actually in our class, but she wanted to hear my presentation on courting differences.  Our instructor, Dr. Sophia Chen, is the short one with the purple sweater in the back.  The picture was taken in front of the Dr. Sun Yat Sen museum (home), which was located in the French Concession area of Shanghai.

Tomorrow we go to the City of Hangzhou for the weekend.  Hangzhou is the capital of the province,  is rated one of China's best cities to live in, and it has a lot of history.



Our Chinese Culture class in front of Dr. Sun Yat Sen's Home and Museum



Group of school children we passed as we were headed to the shopping district



Popular shopping area for the younger set, in very narrow alleys with many bars, restaurants and shops



Days 15 and 16 - Dragon Boat Festival Weekend

This posting is for Saturday June 4 and Sunday June 5.

This weekend is the Dragon Boat Festival and Monday is the National day of celebration for the festival.  Most businesses and the governments are closed Monday, but most retail stores appear to be open.

On Saturday our group went to visit the village of Xitang.  The drive there took about 1.5 hours.  This is a water village and it is so quaint and charming, but you would never think so when you first arrive, as our bus was only one of a hundred other tourist buses there.  The village is a major tourist spot, and millions of Chinese visit it, especially on this holiday weekend.  It was raining, but in spite of this we had a great time and got to see this beautiful villiage.  Also, this is the town where they shot the movie Mission Impossible 3 with Tom Cruise.  You will find some very interesting photos of the town.

The next day, Sunday, a student, Cassie, took us via the Metro to Meilan Lake to see the Dragon Boat Festival and parade.  We ate lunch there, watched the parade, saw the dragon boats, and took many pictures.  We were also the object of many photographers, who wanted pictures of our group with the dragon boat people.  We accomodated them.  Then we walked around the town a little and saw more festivities.

Next we took the subway to the Boshan campus of Shanghai University.  This is the main campus of Shanghai University. It is very big and very beautiful.  There was a lake, and the campus was like a park, with beautiful flowers and landscaping.  Very wide plazas and the buildings appeared fairly new.  You will see a picture of the library, and we went inside.  After we toured the campus we went to a restaurant and had a dinner where we barbequed our food on a grill at the table.  After dinner we went to a game room like Dave and Busters and the young ones played a few games.  After that we took the Metro home.  This was a very exhausting day.



Typical canal in the water village of Xitang

 

Vendors selling food in one of the many street stalls.






Canal scene in Xitang



Close up of fisherman and gondola in Xitang canal



Parade of many gondolas.  Tourists, including us, take a gondola ride that last about 20 - 30 minutes.




Two fisherman with large black birds on their boats.  The birds catch the fish, but cant swallow them because they have rings around their necks.




Lone fisherman who uses net to catch fish



This is the next day, Sunday, at the Dragon Boat Festival at Meilan Lake



Parade celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival



Festivities at Meilan Lane during Dragon Boat Festival



The Dragon Boats on the water




Photo of me and one of the Dragon Boat sailors




Sign on the grass, telling people to stay off the shy smiling grass



Me with two youngsters who love to be around westerners

After we left the Festival, we went to see the main campus of Shanghai University.  It is absolutley beautiful.  Big lake, park like setting with many flowers, wide plazas and millions of bikes.  This is a photo of the Library



When we walked outside the campus, this was a shopping and dining area.  We ate dinner in one of the restaurants on the top right