Today I decided to skip my planned yoga class and head to my favorite spa to get a massage. The tension in my neck and shoulders has been returning since I started work again and it seemed like the perfect solution. It was a beautiful night and I bounced along ready to be kneaded and pressed until my shoulders relaxed and the tension drained away.
I arrived without an appointment, per the normal, but this time when I put in my request at the front for a body massage the receptionist just looked at me. I knew she understood my order because she then repeated it back, but instead of telling me to wait a minute or ask how long I would like, she said that they were booked. It was really disappointing, I was ready to spend the money, had cleared my schedule and now – no massage. Strike 1.
However, I had a back-up plan. Every day when I walk to work I pass a Spa 88 on the way. It looked very nice, probably more expensive than my preferred place, but still – a good retreat. Retracing my steps I entered and asked if they did body massage. This time the receptionist told me that they only service clients of the hotel, but I could get the price guide from the front desk. Strike 2. I explained that I live here and he said, “Oh, I can suggest a good place.”
Thus, directions in hand I attempted my third massage of the evening. However, the seemingly simple directions wound up getting me lost. At this point I was tired and hungry and after inquiring with a couple of security guards at various corners I couldn’t manage to find the place. Strike 3 - I went home.
I really am starting to dislike the phrase “不好意思” (bu hao yisi). The literal translation is “Not good meaning.” Contextually it’s kind of “Sorry to bother you” or “The situation is not good.” Or “I apologize for inconveniencing you.” or "I have absolutely no idea and you're a foreigner so I'm not going to figure it out because you wouldn't appreciate it anyway." People here use it a lot, especially tonight.
Question – What is your technique for coping with multiple disappointments? It seems like such a minor thing, but by the time I made it home I was wiped and my shoulders still hurt. What’s your preferred relaxation method?
On a lighter note, The Shanghai Chronicle has now been in existence for over a year! I’ve been contemplating the appropriate anniversary post and will hopefully post it this weekend. Thank you to all of you who’ve read and commented on my story here in Shanghai. Hopefully it will continue (with more massages) for quite some time to come.
Cheers!
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Pajama Talk
While I was home over the summer I read an article in the Wall Street Journal about how men’s fashion labels are starting to launch new collections with fancy pajamas. Photos of the runway shows included guys wearing pajama pants, Henley tops, fancy slippers, big robes, etc. The article went on to talk about the challenges in the United States of getting men to spend money on pajamas and that most guys will sleep naked or in underwear and a t-shirt. That columnist predicted an uphill battle in sales and that the trend would soon diminish. As I’m re-acclimating here in China I think that those fashion houses should launch the pajamas here. Pajamas are everywhere.
Last week at dinner, Chris told a story about a friend of his who went to a wedding and after getting there discovered that she was very overdressed. One guest was even wearing pajamas! Pajamas at a wedding?
The topic came up again at another dinner I was at. One of the guys commented that he has started wearing pajama bottoms now for the first time in his life. They were a gift, he said, but he is considering buying some more because they are so comfortable. He’s been in China about a year. Hmmm…
When I walk to work in the morning and home at night there are always men on the street wearing pajamas. Sometimes it is a two piece number, the pants with matching button-down top and sometimes it’s just the bottoms with a t-shirt or a wifebeater. You see pajamas hanging from clothes lines and for sale in lots of shops, right in the front window. Lest you think this is merely a male phenomenon, there are also female pajamas all over, some trimmed with lace – lighter, summer models as well as flannel pajamas. The fruit and vegetable market by me is filled with people in pajamas. I don’t really wear pajamas myself – normally it’s shorts and a tank top or sometimes a nightgown, but if I am ever tempted to wear them outside – someone stop me!
Question – Where is the strangest place you’ve worn your sleeping clothes? Or, where have you seen someone wearing pajamas that made you do a double-take?
Cheers!
Last week at dinner, Chris told a story about a friend of his who went to a wedding and after getting there discovered that she was very overdressed. One guest was even wearing pajamas! Pajamas at a wedding?
The topic came up again at another dinner I was at. One of the guys commented that he has started wearing pajama bottoms now for the first time in his life. They were a gift, he said, but he is considering buying some more because they are so comfortable. He’s been in China about a year. Hmmm…
When I walk to work in the morning and home at night there are always men on the street wearing pajamas. Sometimes it is a two piece number, the pants with matching button-down top and sometimes it’s just the bottoms with a t-shirt or a wifebeater. You see pajamas hanging from clothes lines and for sale in lots of shops, right in the front window. Lest you think this is merely a male phenomenon, there are also female pajamas all over, some trimmed with lace – lighter, summer models as well as flannel pajamas. The fruit and vegetable market by me is filled with people in pajamas. I don’t really wear pajamas myself – normally it’s shorts and a tank top or sometimes a nightgown, but if I am ever tempted to wear them outside – someone stop me!
Question – Where is the strangest place you’ve worn your sleeping clothes? Or, where have you seen someone wearing pajamas that made you do a double-take?
Cheers!
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Meetings
This past Friday I had five meetings, each with a distinct tone, each presenting a different picture which together represent my China.
The first meeting was a lunch meeting; I invited one of the members of my team to go eat so that I could find out more about her in a less formal setting. She picked a sushi restaurant and we sat at the counter, speaking English, about my history and her history. She’s almost done with her ASA and I gave her some gentle encouragement to take the last set of modules and finish. It was a low pressure situation, conversational, easy.
Number two was the monthly leadership call for China H&B- Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing and Hong Kong were all represented. This meeting was also in English and my role was to absorb current state and client lists and names for future reference. It lasted a little less than an hour which then flowed into meeting #3.
Meeting #3 was the monthly H&B practice meeting. All offices were represented again but the major difference here was that almost the entire meeting was in Chinese and it lasted 2.5 hours. My boss had told me before the meeting that it just didn’t make sense to conduct that meeting in English. I agreed with him – I’m one person in a group of about 40. In theory this is what I need to do to improve my Chinese. It also made it a very long meeting for me. I was able to follow what was going on and probably understand about half of what was said. I also learned a new word (yin xiang – impact/effect). To add to the pressure I had a speaking role, I had been asked to give a short presentation on the importance of peer review and peer review under company policy (in English). Talk about a tough crowd: 1) I’m speaking English, 2) it’s 6:45 on a Friday, and 3) there was cake to eat after I had finished. It went really well (thank you Kaien and my teaching training) all told, so after eating my cake I hurried to the basement of the office.
In the basement is a large health club which had been running a promotion for membership. I had stopped by earlier in the week to check it out and was supposed to have met my sales rep around 6:30 to sign a six month contract. He was still there and he and this personal trainer guy gave me the final sales pitch. All in Chinese, relatively low key, except that I was already running late for my last meeting. We ended by scheduling an appointment with the trainer on Sunday (his English name is Hero) to measure my baseline, discuss my goals and see how much I want to train.
I raced home – 18 minutes flat— and made it to my apartment at five minutes to eight. I was supposed to interview a prospective ayi (maid) at 8pm. Luckily, she was a little late. It turns out that she cleaned this apartment before, under the previous tenant last year, and she lives five minutes away. We’ve arranged for a test cleaning on Tuesday to see if we get along and then tentatively set up a schedule going forward. I had a little trouble with her accent (she’s from Anhui province) and she had a little trouble with mine. There was a lot of pointing involved, especially when it came to talking about tools that you need for cleaning, but I remember the first time Mollie (our ayi at the old apartment) came and how I couldn’t say anything to her. I’m also proud because I set up this meeting by calling her and actually talking over the phone, which would have been impossible a year ago. She left about 9pm.
Five meetings. What a day.
Question: Do you have a marathon meeting story? Share.
G
The first meeting was a lunch meeting; I invited one of the members of my team to go eat so that I could find out more about her in a less formal setting. She picked a sushi restaurant and we sat at the counter, speaking English, about my history and her history. She’s almost done with her ASA and I gave her some gentle encouragement to take the last set of modules and finish. It was a low pressure situation, conversational, easy.
Number two was the monthly leadership call for China H&B- Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing and Hong Kong were all represented. This meeting was also in English and my role was to absorb current state and client lists and names for future reference. It lasted a little less than an hour which then flowed into meeting #3.
Meeting #3 was the monthly H&B practice meeting. All offices were represented again but the major difference here was that almost the entire meeting was in Chinese and it lasted 2.5 hours. My boss had told me before the meeting that it just didn’t make sense to conduct that meeting in English. I agreed with him – I’m one person in a group of about 40. In theory this is what I need to do to improve my Chinese. It also made it a very long meeting for me. I was able to follow what was going on and probably understand about half of what was said. I also learned a new word (yin xiang – impact/effect). To add to the pressure I had a speaking role, I had been asked to give a short presentation on the importance of peer review and peer review under company policy (in English). Talk about a tough crowd: 1) I’m speaking English, 2) it’s 6:45 on a Friday, and 3) there was cake to eat after I had finished. It went really well (thank you Kaien and my teaching training) all told, so after eating my cake I hurried to the basement of the office.
In the basement is a large health club which had been running a promotion for membership. I had stopped by earlier in the week to check it out and was supposed to have met my sales rep around 6:30 to sign a six month contract. He was still there and he and this personal trainer guy gave me the final sales pitch. All in Chinese, relatively low key, except that I was already running late for my last meeting. We ended by scheduling an appointment with the trainer on Sunday (his English name is Hero) to measure my baseline, discuss my goals and see how much I want to train.
I raced home – 18 minutes flat— and made it to my apartment at five minutes to eight. I was supposed to interview a prospective ayi (maid) at 8pm. Luckily, she was a little late. It turns out that she cleaned this apartment before, under the previous tenant last year, and she lives five minutes away. We’ve arranged for a test cleaning on Tuesday to see if we get along and then tentatively set up a schedule going forward. I had a little trouble with her accent (she’s from Anhui province) and she had a little trouble with mine. There was a lot of pointing involved, especially when it came to talking about tools that you need for cleaning, but I remember the first time Mollie (our ayi at the old apartment) came and how I couldn’t say anything to her. I’m also proud because I set up this meeting by calling her and actually talking over the phone, which would have been impossible a year ago. She left about 9pm.
Five meetings. What a day.
Question: Do you have a marathon meeting story? Share.
G
Sunday, October 5, 2008
A Tour
My new apartment is spacious and open and bright. It is furnished - beds, sofas, desk, chairs, but by no means full. There is definitely room to expand. This week I took some photos to give you a sense of my space for the next twelve months. Welcome to my home!
For those of you in Shanghai, the housewarming party will probably be at the beginning of November, after my things arrive from the States.
Hope you are enjoying the fall. The weather here has cooled down in the last week or so, but that means highs in the upper 70s and lows in the mid60s. There were even clear blue skies here last week. No complaints!
G
 |
| Virtual Tour - Living in South Shanghai |
For those of you in Shanghai, the housewarming party will probably be at the beginning of November, after my things arrive from the States.
Hope you are enjoying the fall. The weather here has cooled down in the last week or so, but that means highs in the upper 70s and lows in the mid60s. There were even clear blue skies here last week. No complaints!
G
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
走路 (On foot)
One of the reasons that I chose my apartment is that it is very close to my office. Tonight I walked home from work for the second time, making my way along streets that will soon become very familiar. I skirted the touristy Xintiandi area and progressed into my neighborhood. I didn’t see any other foreigners and it was a beautiful evening – clear, crisp and everyone was outside enjoying the air.
I stopped into a convenience store to buy some more minutes for my cell phone and the cashier complimented me endlessly on my Chinese. I walked by a grandpa holding his new granddaughter and he stopped me and said, “Hello! Hello!” and I smiled at the baby and said, “Ni Hao! Ni Hao!” There are restaurants that I want to try (even though or maybe because the menus are all in Chinese) and clothing stores that look like they might have my size.
As I strolled past the security guards in my complex they said, “Ni Hao!” and gave me a big smile, really making me feel welcome. Each time I come home it is a treat, I know they recognize me and I’m already looking forward to seeing them each day. The vibes are good here. I think the only thing that would make it better would be someone to share it with. Any takers?
Next week is one of the Golden Weeks – this one for National Day, so I have a full week off of work. It’s more time to explore and get settled in. Maybe I will buy a bicycle.
G
I stopped into a convenience store to buy some more minutes for my cell phone and the cashier complimented me endlessly on my Chinese. I walked by a grandpa holding his new granddaughter and he stopped me and said, “Hello! Hello!” and I smiled at the baby and said, “Ni Hao! Ni Hao!” There are restaurants that I want to try (even though or maybe because the menus are all in Chinese) and clothing stores that look like they might have my size.
As I strolled past the security guards in my complex they said, “Ni Hao!” and gave me a big smile, really making me feel welcome. Each time I come home it is a treat, I know they recognize me and I’m already looking forward to seeing them each day. The vibes are good here. I think the only thing that would make it better would be someone to share it with. Any takers?
Next week is one of the Golden Weeks – this one for National Day, so I have a full week off of work. It’s more time to explore and get settled in. Maybe I will buy a bicycle.
G
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
