Assimilating

I've been in Shanghai for about a week now, but it feels like it's been much longer than that. The weather has already changed from frigid to where a light sweater is enough. I've made some new friends, saw some old ones, and have even been hit on a few times at clubs, pubs, and whatnot. Just about all of my relatives have graciously taken me out to lunch or dinner. I've walked, taxied, or taken the subway to so many places around town that I can't even remember. I've eaten egg tarts from four different places, and yes, have the stomach to show for it.

Most of the administrative stuff has been taken care of as well. Got my physical exam results, temporary residence permit, bank account, and cell phone. I just have to wait for Chinese New Year to end so that I can get my work permit processed before starting my new job. 

All this in the first week! 

A couple of things I noticed so far... The standard of living in Shanghai is not cheap. Sure, I can consume local, and that would be cheap. But if I want to use or eat the things I did back home, it can add up pretty fast. For example: Steak here is really expensive. If China had more cows and less people, it probably wouldn't be. But as it is, I'll be consuming a lot less red meat here. Sensodyne is really expensive. I'm not going to use some domestic brand toothpaste, so that's just something I'll have to live with. Anything with a foreign brand (eg. Gap, DKNY, Coach, Canon, Starbucks), and you can expect it to cost 2X - 3X more than in the US.

Regardless, I think it's a place I'm going to grow to love.

This is MaoMing South Road, otherwise known as Bar Street, two minutes from where I live. I haven't gone yet, except to ask one of the bars with a big flat screen TV if they will be showing the Superbowl. To my delight, they will be.

Guess where I'll be Monday morning at 7:30AM Shanghai time?