Virtual Groceries

Since I've been away from the US for over two years now, I'm not really ever sure when I see something new or strange or crazy, if it's an Asia thing or if it's all the rage at home as well.

Case in point: I had heard about vending machines in Japan selling live crabs & used underwear. What will they think of next, I thought. But when I was in the US for a visit earlier this year, I was surprised to see, live & in person, a vending machine selling electronics in Dallas (how many quarters do you need for a Canon?), & one in LA selling fresh cut flowers. Vending machines. Like Coke & Fritos vending machines. Does no one else think this is strange?

The other day, during the morning push-n-shove on the Shanghai subway, I passed by a billboard that caught my eye. At a glance, it looks like the shelves of a grocery store, with brightly packaged food lined up in neat little rows. But a closer look reveals more.

Each product has a scan code pattern next to it that you can scan with your mobile phone. The scan places an order with the store, & the products then get delivered to your door later that day. You can shop on your morning commute & by the time you get home, your groceries are waiting for you. Not only groceries - electronics too. You can get a Canon for 6648 RMB (US $1038). What will they think of next?

So what's going on back home? Do they have this kind of shopping there as well?

Chinese-Style Yard Sale

Parks are where people hangout here in Shanghai. Families go there to relax on the weekends, engaged couples go there to take wedding photos, middle-aged men & women gather there in the evenings to dance the cha-cha or the waltz. Parks are bustling hubs of social life.

As I was walking around near the center of the city over the weekend, I stumbled upon what I might call a bird market. There were all manner of little tweeters for sale in handmade bamboo cages. Along side the bird sellers, men were selling wiggly worms by the kilo - bird feed.

But birds weren't the only attraction. The sidewalks were lined with cloths covered with all manner of mostly second-hand goods - from shoes to knives to tiny little teapots. Several of the vendors had one-of-a-kind items - a tibetan bowl, a wooden cricket cage, a porcelain figure painted in blue. It was the closest thing to an American yard sale I've ever seen in China.

What to Wear to an Ice Festival

On my way home at the end of the month, I'll be stopping in Harbin for the Ice Festival. It's way up north, a three-hour plane ride from Beijing, & it's going to be unbelievably cold up there. Last I checked, the low was going to be about minus 20 degrees Fahrenheit, the high a balmy one degree.

So I headed over to Decathlon, Shanghai's mega-super outdoor store, over the weekend to look for some ice festival gear. Apparently, everyone else had the same idea.

The store was huge! It had two massive floors full of outdoor gear, apparel & sporting equipment, & everything was pretty reasonably priced. It reminded me a lot of Big 5 but ten times bigger - more like Big 50.

For 1230 RMB (about US $186) I got a pair of really warm snow pants, a new winter jacket, some toasty winter boots, a fleece under shirt, a hat, gloves, & a few other things. Not bad, eh? The jacket alone would have cost at least $200 in the US. (Of course this skews my numbers for the 100 Thing Challenge, doesn't it?)

Armed with all this warm paraphernalia, I think I can handle any kind of weather that Harbin can muster. Bring it on Harbin - I'm ready for you!

Large Shoes

There's this great website called Shanghai Solved where you can post a question about Shanghai & one of the other members will answer you.

Several weeks ago, one of the members posted a question about where to buy shoes for big feet in Shanghai, & another member posted an answer recommending a store on the other side of town.

I took down the address, printed up a map, & went in search of it on my day off. After several wrong turns, I found the store in an alleyway, up a set of stairs, & with no other signage anywhere except for this declaration on the door.

I went inside & was amazed to find lots & lots of shoes for big feet! & they were "normal" looking shoes too, without rhinestones or bows or funny colors that no one wants. Plus, they were reasonably priced at 150-250 RMB a pair (about US $20-$35).

I didn't buy anything this time since this was just a reconnaissance mission, but I will definitely go back there soon. I could use another pair of shoes for work, & maybe some new tennis shoes.

Mahjong

I've been trying to get someone to teach me to play mahjong (麻將 ma2 jiang4) ever since I got to Shanghai, but no one seems to take me seriously - or maybe they think it's too complicated to try to explain in English. But I'm determined to learn how to play before I leave China.

Today when I was poking around the tourist market, I saw a cute little mahjong set in one of the shops. I thought, if I bring my own playing pieces to the school, perhaps it will inspire some students to take on my project with me.

I asked how much the mahjong set was. The sales lady clicked on the keys of her calculator & then showed it to me: 180 RMB (about US $25). Ha! I said, & started to walk out. The sales lady gently grabbed my backpack & pulled me back into her shop. "How much you wanna pay?" She asked. I offered 20 RMB. "Impossible!" She exclaimed. I started to leave again. Again she pulled me back.

After a few more rounds of this, we settled on 40 RMB (a little less than US $6), & I had my very own mahjong set. (Looks like I'm getting a little better at haggling.) Now to recruit some people to play with.

The tiles are really tiny - little bite-sized pieces of plastic - but this mahjong set is the perfect size for traveling, & certainly won't take up much room in my suitcase when I leave here. Hm. I wonder how that fits into my 100 Thing Challenge.

[Mahjong: Part 二]

The Shoe Fits!

I've been looking all over this city for a decent pair of shoes to wear to work - the pair that I have been wearing is wearing out. Of course it's not easy to find women's shoes in size 41 in Asia, but there are thousands of foreigners with big feet living in Shanghai. There had to be something in my size.

I went to all the stores in the foreigner area of town that specialize in large sizes, but none of them had anything bigger than 40. I tried a few of them on, but they were just too small.

I was on the verge of asking for shoes from home when I stumbled upon a shoe shop right near my apartment. I went in & on the shelf I found this pair in my size for 128 RMB (about US $18). Yahoo!

Cheap DVDs

There is a DVD shop near my apartment that charges 10 yuan for a movie (about US$1.40). I'm told that's expensive, but I'm not willing to bargain for a lower price just yet. The shop offers a wide selection, from the classics to brand new films. I've already watched The Time Traveler's Wife & Creation.

Sometimes the features on the DVDs are not the same as what you would get in the States. If you click on Spanish subtitles, for example, you might get Chinese subtitles instead. The other day I bought a copy of Good Bye Lenin. I've been wanting to see it for a while now. But when I got it home I realized that it was in German with Polish subtitles. Bummer. I took it back to the shop the next day & they happily exchanged it for The Lovely Bones.

Looks like I'm going to do a lot of movie watching while I'm here in Shanghai.

The Hassel of the Haggle

Traveling on the tourist track requires you to deal with haggling, a national pastime in most countries.

I'm not good at bargaining at all. In the United States, everyone pays the same price, which is clearly posted or marked on the product. But in other countries, haggling is a kind of sport. People absolutely love it. They especially enjoy engaging foreigners in a game of bartering because they know they are much more skilled than us.

After several days of getting taken by every shop owner & taxi driver in Bangkok, I was annoyed & even exasperated. I just wanted to pay the going price without having to negotiate it. I'm definitely not a worthy sparring partner. I know I will lose the game every time.

Shopping at the Bookstore

I went to the bookstore today just to look around. Among all of the books in Vietnamese, I found the ubiquitous Harry Potter...

... & of course the Twighlight series translated into Vietnamese.

They seem to like American politics too.

Even though this is a communist country, they're surprisingly business savvy.

You got that right, bub! (85,000 Dong = US $4.72)

Morning in Bien Hoa

This morning I went back to the public swimming pool with Michael, Jimmy, & Harley. Michael was determined to get five laps in at the olympic-sized pool. The rest of us were content to splash around.

A Vietnamese man came up & started talking to us while we were at the pool. He said that he was a pilot & had studied English in Houston in the 60's. His English was very fluent, a rarity here. He must come from a privilaged family. Not many Vietnamese have enough money to travel outside the country, let alone to the US, & forget about becoming a pilot unless you have some serious cash.

After swimming, we went to a coffee shop for more sludge. I'm starting to get used to this gritty goo they call coffee. There is a coy pond at this coffee shop. Someone was throwing in pieces of bread & the fish boiled up into a frenzy over it, like pirhanas on a scuba diver.

Back near the hotel, Harley dropped me off at the market. I bought a plate & bowl for 22,000 Dong (= $1.25), plus some yummy ingredients for a bowl full of lunch. Cooked beans 3000 Dong = $0.17. One slice of tofu 1000 Dong = $0.06. A tomato 2000 Dong = $0.11. An avocado 3000 Dong = $0.17. I put it all in my new bowl with cilantro, green onions, & a little chili oil = YUM!

My Date with Michael & Jimmy

I went to lunch with Michael & his friend Jimmy (Vuong) today. We ate at a Chinese restaurant near Michael's apartment. We had eaten there a couple of days ago & the owner remembered us. I tried out my rudimentary Mandarin on him, but couldn't understand a word of his response. Alas.

After lunch, we went to a very cool coffee shop where Michael & Jimmy both had pineapple smoothies & I tried another cup of sludge. It was even thicker than my cup of coffee yesterday, so it wasn't long before I again poured the gritty goo into my iced tea glass. Voilá, a yummy cup o' joe. It's okay, I can blame it on being a foreigner!

Coffee & smoothies down the hatch, we headed back to the Co-op Mart to buy more groceries. Tofu, bread, lotus root, chom chom fruit, a cucumber, an avocado (5,920 Dong = $0.33 - HA!), two oranges, & some jicama: $7.00

Then we said goodbye to Jimmy, & Michael dropped me off at my hotel. It was a great morning out!

First Day Out

Today I ventured out on my own for the first time. I had written down a few phrases in my notebook to take with me just in case.

First, I stopped at the coffee shop across the street from the English school where I work. They love their sugar here in Vietnam, & the coffee usually comes with a healthy portion of it. At the coffee shop, I tried to say, "Coffee without sugar, please," but my pronunciation is atrocious, so they just gave me a blank stare. Then I showed the woman what I had written down & the light of understanding came across her face. Minutes later I was served my own little coffee pot atop a miniature glass with a side of ice to pour the coffee over when it was finished brewing. The coffee turned out to be more like sludge. No wonder they use so much sugar! I finally diluted it with the iced tea that is served wherever you go no matter what you order, like water is in the US. It was at last a tasty cup of caffeine. 7000 Dong = $0.55

Next, I checked out a street market, where lots of pointing & gesturing got me some freshly made tofu, a tomato & four bananas for 6000 Dong (= $0.35). Of course I got an individual bag for each item. Forget about saving the planet here! Later, another street vendor wanted to charge me 15,000 Dong for an avocado. I waved him away because it sounded so expensive. 83 cents for an avocado? You must think I'm a fool!

I ate my lunch as I walked around exploring the neighborhood. Many people yelled "Hello" to me as I passed by. One little boy tried out his superior language skills by asking me, "What's your name?", & then said, "Nice to meet you." Very cute.

As I was walking down one street close to the hotel, I passed by a man leaning casually on his bike. He said, "Excuse me, do you speak Vietnamese?" No, sorry. I continued walking & about 100 yards later, the same man was there again, leaning casually on his bike. "Hello," he said. I started getting the creepies. I turned a corner & saw him ride past me & park ahead of me again. That's when I decided it was time to turn around & head back to the hotel.