Its been a looooooong time coming!! Those are the starting lines of the song with which the Documentary on Woodstock 69 begins. But I am talking about what is supposed to be the final postcard from Shanghai! It has been a long time coming!
Well, the whole China experience was a very memorable one. It was memorable because I made friends there and am still in touch with them. It was memorable because it was the first time that I had been to a foreign country. It was memorable because I was able to finish my task with flying colors.
The Chinese people are very polite. When one weekend the gang in China was going on a trip to Nanjing, we took a fast train to Nanjing. The cleanliness and order in China is something which will amaze people from India. You cannot blame the population for not being able to control things. Of course, you may need to deal with things with an Iron Fist at times, which is really not something which happens in India.
The strangest of things happened. I made a friend who was born on the same day as me, I mean the same birthday and the same year. And that happens to be the day China proclaimed itself as a republic. Also there is a city in China, which has the same name as me. And of all the countries in the world, China happened to be the first one I would visit. Remarkable isn't it?
In college I used to say to my friends that one should live across the world in all the famous cities. I have already lived and experienced New Delhi and Bangalore. I have been quite a few times to Mumbai. I can now also say that I have experienced Shanghai as a city to live and the experience was enriching. I also visited Nanjing.
Things that I remember from the trip is work of course. Then the breakfast at the hotel and the taxi ride to work. The voice and the message you heard when the taxi driver put the meter down. The remarkable taxi drivers themselves. Teppen-Yaki where we used to have lunch everyday, with the cute and courteous waitresses. Boy they had a lovely smile! Nanjing Road and the Bund. Pearl Tower. The electronics market. The railway station at Nanjing. Liz and Kiki and Lily. Johnson and Kevin. Chenggang and Frankie and Joe. The Hymall Store. The Howard Johnson Hotel where I had a haircut for a hundred RMB and where I was staying with the night drinks. Beer at Pushkar's place before I left. Pu Dong Airport. Chinese Music at McDonald's.The calm and order that existed. YSP! The guy who used to work in the night shifts. People whom I trained. Chinese the language which I will learn someday! The Shanghai Skyline!
Pictures say a thousand words so some pictures from China as a slide show. It was one experience and I wish to return there someday. Zhei Jian!
Saturday, December 22, 2007
Sunday, December 09, 2007
Postcard from Shanghai - 5
So here I was watching a Chinese serial with a cute girl! The characters in the serial were young; a reflection of China maybe! Ding Dong! That must be Mano, and it was!! Boy was i glad to see him. There was a sense of relief earlier in the airplane when I saw fellow Indians, but this time it wasn't just any other Indian. It was my friend from College. I had known him since first year of engineering and he lived with me for a few months when we first came to Bangalore. "Nice to see you Mano!!". He asked me if I had any trouble reaching the hotel and then went on to narrate how he was all alone the first time that he had come and no one was there to pick him up! One part of me was thankful that I had had no trouble but another part thought about the adventure and excitement it would have been had I ventured to reach the hotel all by myself. Mano told me all I needed to know. From how to use the card provided by the company to how to go to the office.
He told me that we would be going to his Service Apartment where Srini was also staying and would be having dinner there. Mano wasn't wearing any sweaters and I asked him if he wasnt feeling cold. He said no and that it was pretty pleasant now and that I would get used to it in a couple of days.We were about to leave and I asked him what documents should I keep with myself. The most important thing was to keep the print out of the address of the hotel and the office which was in Chinese.We locked the room and went down and out of the hotel to catch a taxi. Now back in Bangalore I was used to catching a bus or an auto-rickshaw, popularly called an auto(which is a motorized-tri cycle) and this taxi thing was new for me. Mano explained that the Taxi sign that you see on top, if it is lit then the taxi is available for hire. Just give a hand and they will stop for you. Get in the taxi and show them the print out. Don't try and tell them. No one understands English. Everything is in Chinese. Your hotel is named Howard Johnson. In India that name remains Howard Johnson irrespective of whether you are in Bengal, UP, Tamil Nadu or Karnataka. But in China, Howard Johnson is not called Howard Johnson. It would be called something else. So if you say Howard Johnson Hotel, no one will understand anything.
A taxi slowed down and we got in. Mano said something in Chinese. The driver was not sure so Mano took out his printout and passed it to the driver who took out his specs and nodded in agreement. "OK OK" he said meaning that he knew where we were to go. Shishya mano replied. "What did you just say?", I asked. "Thank You! That's how you say thank you in Chinese! You know Guru-Shishya right! Thank you in Chinese sounds very much like Shishya...though it is not spelled like that!" "Shishya...!!" I repeated."So how do you spell it?" "Xixie.." "X i ..!! X...??" "Yes, thats how you spell it in pinyin. pinyin is how you write Chinese in the roman script!! So you know the sound sa in hindi...the same sound is written as X in pinyin.. We wont have much trouble picking up Chinese as the sounds in Hindi are pretty similar... But the tough part is the pronunciation.. If you pronounce a word incorrectly it might mean something else!!"
"Another you should know is that the Chinese word for Road/Street which is lu.." "Loo..?" "yeah..Lu...see I told him Hong Shu Lu.. meaning .." "Hong Shu Road..", I completed. "Oh ! You mean to say that back in Bangalore, I stay at Airport Loo???" "Haha!! Yeah you got it"
The taxi driver said something in Chinese. Apparently we were already on Hong Shu Lu. Then Mano told him something which contained Hong Shu Lu and another street's name. The driver understood!! "I was telling him that we have to go to the intersection of HongShu Lu with (I dont remember the name of the rd.) We reac that place then take a U turn to the other side where my Apartment is...See there on the other side... that's where I stay ! High Sure.." The taxi reached the intersection or chauraha as we might call it and took a U turn dropping us in front of High Sure All Suites Hotel! HOTEL?? I thought he was staying in a Service Apartment!! Well if you are staying for a long term they provide you the room on lesser charges he explained. They call it a Service Apartment. Well, it sure is pretty luxurious for an apartment!! We entered the lift where Mano swiped his hotel card and then pressed a button. "I can only go to the floor for which I have authorization! Security!!" Wow. Impressive.
We reached and I finally met Srini, recognizing him instantly having seen him at HSC earlier, but not knowing who he was. We sat down and I helped myself with Heineken. Then we chatted about work and all and had a splendid dinner of Rice Sambhar, Potatoes and curd cooked in pure South Indian style! Later, we bid goodbye to Srini and went to Mano's room where we just chatted. Mano told me more about the Chinese language and the office and we just chatted how our friends were in Bangalore and elsewhere! It was getting late and I decided that since I had to reach the office by 8:30 in the morning I should go and sleep! I was tired with all the traveling from India!! Seems odd doesn't it, that the fifth postcard and I am still just 24 hrs into my journey! Well it was only this part and a few other days worth writing about as the rest of the time I was busy with work, which I am sure I don't want to bore you with.
Mano Dropped me and helped me board a taxi! "Dont worry! Just show him the print out and he will do the rest!If any problem just call me!" Wow! To trust a cabbie is not what you do in India, be it Delhi or Bangalore! And here all alone in this Mega City late at night in a place where nobody would understand what I was saying, my friend had said to have complete faith in this cab driver!! It wasnt without substance as I later found out!!
I was back at the hotel in my room trying to get some sleep! More about the days that followed in the coming posts!! Till then Enjoy!!
He told me that we would be going to his Service Apartment where Srini was also staying and would be having dinner there. Mano wasn't wearing any sweaters and I asked him if he wasnt feeling cold. He said no and that it was pretty pleasant now and that I would get used to it in a couple of days.We were about to leave and I asked him what documents should I keep with myself. The most important thing was to keep the print out of the address of the hotel and the office which was in Chinese.We locked the room and went down and out of the hotel to catch a taxi. Now back in Bangalore I was used to catching a bus or an auto-rickshaw, popularly called an auto(which is a motorized-tri cycle) and this taxi thing was new for me. Mano explained that the Taxi sign that you see on top, if it is lit then the taxi is available for hire. Just give a hand and they will stop for you. Get in the taxi and show them the print out. Don't try and tell them. No one understands English. Everything is in Chinese. Your hotel is named Howard Johnson. In India that name remains Howard Johnson irrespective of whether you are in Bengal, UP, Tamil Nadu or Karnataka. But in China, Howard Johnson is not called Howard Johnson. It would be called something else. So if you say Howard Johnson Hotel, no one will understand anything.
A taxi slowed down and we got in. Mano said something in Chinese. The driver was not sure so Mano took out his printout and passed it to the driver who took out his specs and nodded in agreement. "OK OK" he said meaning that he knew where we were to go. Shishya mano replied. "What did you just say?", I asked. "Thank You! That's how you say thank you in Chinese! You know Guru-Shishya right! Thank you in Chinese sounds very much like Shishya...though it is not spelled like that!" "Shishya...!!" I repeated."So how do you spell it?" "Xixie.." "X i ..!! X...??" "Yes, thats how you spell it in pinyin. pinyin is how you write Chinese in the roman script!! So you know the sound sa in hindi...the same sound is written as X in pinyin.. We wont have much trouble picking up Chinese as the sounds in Hindi are pretty similar... But the tough part is the pronunciation.. If you pronounce a word incorrectly it might mean something else!!"
"Another you should know is that the Chinese word for Road/Street which is lu.." "Loo..?" "yeah..Lu...see I told him Hong Shu Lu.. meaning .." "Hong Shu Road..", I completed. "Oh ! You mean to say that back in Bangalore, I stay at Airport Loo???" "Haha!! Yeah you got it"
The taxi driver said something in Chinese. Apparently we were already on Hong Shu Lu. Then Mano told him something which contained Hong Shu Lu and another street's name. The driver understood!! "I was telling him that we have to go to the intersection of HongShu Lu with (I dont remember the name of the rd.) We reac that place then take a U turn to the other side where my Apartment is...See there on the other side... that's where I stay ! High Sure.." The taxi reached the intersection or chauraha as we might call it and took a U turn dropping us in front of High Sure All Suites Hotel! HOTEL?? I thought he was staying in a Service Apartment!! Well if you are staying for a long term they provide you the room on lesser charges he explained. They call it a Service Apartment. Well, it sure is pretty luxurious for an apartment!! We entered the lift where Mano swiped his hotel card and then pressed a button. "I can only go to the floor for which I have authorization! Security!!" Wow. Impressive.
We reached and I finally met Srini, recognizing him instantly having seen him at HSC earlier, but not knowing who he was. We sat down and I helped myself with Heineken. Then we chatted about work and all and had a splendid dinner of Rice Sambhar, Potatoes and curd cooked in pure South Indian style! Later, we bid goodbye to Srini and went to Mano's room where we just chatted. Mano told me more about the Chinese language and the office and we just chatted how our friends were in Bangalore and elsewhere! It was getting late and I decided that since I had to reach the office by 8:30 in the morning I should go and sleep! I was tired with all the traveling from India!! Seems odd doesn't it, that the fifth postcard and I am still just 24 hrs into my journey! Well it was only this part and a few other days worth writing about as the rest of the time I was busy with work, which I am sure I don't want to bore you with.
Mano Dropped me and helped me board a taxi! "Dont worry! Just show him the print out and he will do the rest!If any problem just call me!" Wow! To trust a cabbie is not what you do in India, be it Delhi or Bangalore! And here all alone in this Mega City late at night in a place where nobody would understand what I was saying, my friend had said to have complete faith in this cab driver!! It wasnt without substance as I later found out!!
I was back at the hotel in my room trying to get some sleep! More about the days that followed in the coming posts!! Till then Enjoy!!
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
A New Counter
Though I have already configured Google Analytics for my blog, I just added a new counter. Encouraged by the fact that I was getting views from some unexpected places I have taken this step. Hope the counter moves really fast!!
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