The worst dressed person in China lumbers around Shanghai

Hello again!

The sight of hundreds of people crammed into a subway car, faces pressed against the windows and arms in danger of being severed by the closing doors, no longer alarms me, so I think I must be getting used to life in Shanghai. This past Friday I started my internship with the Bureau of Education. The day started off more than a little surreal as I was met by a black official Chinese government car at the subway stop and whisked past security guards to a nearly empty building. My hosts were extraordinarily welcoming and taught me a lot about China's education system (Here's the inside scoop: it's better than ours. Shocker, I know.) Interesting as it has been to get an inside look at the education system that will clearly be the downfall of the American Empire, I have a lot more time on my hands than I had thought I would. So my time over the last week has mostly been about finding ways to fill the time. After I exhausted Hulu's supply of Daily Show episodes (yes, there are hundreds. don't judge.), I hit the streets in search of M50, Shanghai's up and coming art district. 

Grafitti China style: This wall is actually officially approved of by the government

I got yelled at in Chinese for taking this photo

There I inadvertently walked into (literally) what was apparently a rap music video. Just another day. The art was pretty cool and made for a nice Saturday afternoon. Next, I decided to go get a massage, which leads me to the top six things about life in China:

1. Massages, by far. While finding a good massage place can be a bit sketchy, as brothels and legitimate massage parlors have similar signage, I decided to take a leap of faith and go into a massage place, knowing that I would either come out with relaxed muscles or a good story. Thankfully I got a legitimate massage-$8 for an hour anyone? And I had a great time teaching my masseuse some English. Back massage=背部按摩

2. GREEN BEANS. This one borders on unhealthy obsession.You will never have more delicious green beans than the ones you can get in China.  

3. Street food. Nothing I like better than buying a 30 cent dinner cooked on a grill that may never have been cleaned. 

4. Public transportation. I can go anywhere I want, anytime I want, and it won't cost me a fortune. What a novelty! 

5. Gift giving. People just give you gifts all the time, seemingly without reason. Wonderful. 

6. Bubble Tea. YUM YUM YUM. 

On the other hand, the worst thing about life in Shanghai is being relatively obese and perpetually under dressed, which brings me to this week's episode of Times I Wish I Didn't Understand Chinese. My friend Cathy, taking one look at my outfit one day, made the executive decision to take me shopping. In the mall we discovered that my feet are too big for nearly all the shoes (Saleswoman in Chinese: Wow! Those are huge! Like a clown's feet!). Then we progressed to finding me a shirt. Cathy asked the saleswoman for the biggest size (尺码)possible, and all the saleswomen came up to determine whether or not the biggest size would fit me. (Saleswomen in Chinese: Do you think it will fit? No she's too fat. Too fat for everything in our store!) My attempts to convince them that I am actually a small in America were met with skepticism by the tiny Asian women, and eventually we had to give up. Ego bruised, the giant American lumbered out of the shopping mall. 

My ego recovered quickly the next day, returning to its normal state of over inflation (the result of years of awards for coming in last in swim meets, no doubt-did you know that 11th place is a brown ribbon? I could wallpaper a room with those), when I went to visit a middle school.

A big welcome!

I got to hang out with some middle school students and they got to practice their English with me. 

That excursion was interesting, but only lasted two hours. So I had the whole rest of the day to continue to explore Shanghai and find something to do with myself. What I did that day may or may not have involved buying a cheap ukelele and skipping down the streets of Shanghai singing "I have confidence" from the Sound of Music. In the last two days I taught myself a song on my purple ukelele, taking advantage of my nearly empty dorm and infinite free time. Due to popular demand, and by that I mean one person I talked to on Skype, I have posted the video below for your viewing pleasure.

You and Me by Zee Avi

Things have picked up recently, as I went to a DELICIOUS vegetarian (素菜) restaurant with a Chinese professor and Cathy, found a swing dancing group (absolutely in love with West Coast Swing), and have been hanging out with a friend from Olaf for a couple of days. 

The view of the Pudong side of the river from a classy bar on the Bund

I've loved getting to talk to many of you this week! Check back for another update soon.

Maria