Sensory Overload

So it's been roughly 4 full days and I think i'm slowly starting to get a feel for things, slowly being the key word there. There is so much to take in around me that it is often hard to learn 30 different things at once. But, I'm going to do a quick little synopsis of my last few days.

Day 1....
After getting off the plane, I got through customs surprisingly easy. From the time I stepped off the plane, got my luggage, and was on a bus going into the city, it was only about 10 minutes. Which leads me up to the bus. I knew what bus I was taking and where I needed to get off, unfortunately I couldn't read the bus pass which was all in pinyin, so I just guessed. And fortunately I guessed right.
I met up with Edna, got everything situated for housing for the next couple days, and immediately she took me to dinner to meet a few more newbies to Shanghai that I would be able to band together with.

Day 2,3,4

These days were all very similar. I would get up, shower, get dressed, and follow Edna around like a duckling after her mother. She would lead me from street to street, introduce me to people who we would have lunch with, teach me all the essential words that I would need to have, and laugh at how innocent I was. aka: lu=road, xingdao=most popular in china.

Also, on the last night Edna was here, she took me out on a tour of a few of her favorite night clubs and I got to experience chwan(food on a stick) for the first time. Memo to self, never get the chicken when there is a line because they won't cook it long enough and you will get mild food poisoning. But according to the other expats, that happens to everyone the first time. Took a day, but I'm all better.

Edna left, but she introduced me to the Deputy Consul for Luxembourg. Her name is Jo, is 25, and offered me her spare room in her 4 story apartment with a maid for virtually no rent. She was telling me she needs more company than just her two cats.

OK.....Brief Rundown of the things I've learned and/or seen

1. No one uses seatbelts
2. No one uses headlights, daytime or nighttime
   
3. people are for the most part friendly and always willing to help
4. Don't get invited to a ceremonial tea party (it's a scam) (Don't worry mom, I didn't fall for it)
5. Never eat chwan outside a club at 1:00 a.m.
6. Network like crazy, you never know who can help you out here or who you can help.
7. Iphones are pretty much a necessity
8. Twitter is a way of life here
9. The way to tell the difference between a conversation and an argument is how many people are watching.
10. Food is only considered fresh if it still has the head on it. (InternationalEzra - Flickr.com http://www.flickr.com/photos/41655931@N06/3873508721/in/photostream/
11. I miss blue skies, clouds, and not having everything smell like a porterpotty.
    

I'm going to try and update this more often because there is so much here that I want people to experience with me.

Love,
Ezra

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