Here is some of our group eating dinner under the auspices of Chairman Mao. Apparently I made the error of sitting closest to the window, thus indicating that I was inviting everyone else out to dinner. Our conversation is typically limited because of our language pledge to speak only Chinese while here in Shanghai.
I began the day by finally exercising a little bit, and much to my pleasure I was able to power past the other early morning joggers. So far I've only seen one female jogger, and that was under the cover of darkness. I haven't figured out why women don't run in public, but I'll work on that. As for the men, they don't seem to exceed a slow jog. Please comment if you have any insights about this phenomenon.
Our accomodations are specifically for esteemed international students. The menagerie of foreign students here is considerable. We have one group from Kazakhstan, one from Saudi Arabia, one from New York, and many from other Asian countries. This evening the Muslim call to prayer graced the stairwell as I launched into a rousing version of "Onward Christian Soldiers", cut short by the objections of the more discrete Virginia students.
I'm hoping that as time goes by, some of you loyal readers will comment with suggestions for future outings or with cultural questions that I can investigate. Please feel free to start a dialogue.
7 comments:
Is is perhaps because you are taller and have a longer stride? Anyway, great commentary- keep it coming!
i tole u. chinese females don't like to exercise because they don't want muscle. they just want thin.
If my elevator hadn't been filled with Muhammedans, I would have launched into the Venite or perhaps an extended Kyrie . . .
Have you talked to people about coffee? Do they even know what it is? I'm guessing Starbucks is missing out on 1.3 billion future customers, shame...
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Ask them if they've ever tasted a milkshake (a frappe if you're from Boston) or better yet, egg nog...
Coffee is known, but the taste is undeveloped, as evidenced by the extremely high price of ground coffee. There are apparently around 90 starbucks in the municipality (I think the population is around 16 million). I haven't checked, but I'm sure the frappucino's are more for statements of financial means rather than for taste.
Jen, my old running buddy, just got back from China. She's an avid half-marathoner, and also encountered this phenomenon. She could find *no* females willing to go running with her, so she essentially had to give it up while she was there.
I have been told that posters and statues of Mao Zedong in restaurants indicate that the restaurant serves cuisine in the style of Hunan Province, Mao's birthplace.
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