I am shortly winding up my first year in China and I thought it was time to make note of some of the different customs and things you would see or experience out on the streets. I may have mentioned some, but certainly not others, so do forgive me if I repeat myself a little. My foray to the supermarket in the rain today reminded me of a few things!
Split pants
Many babies here do not wear diapers (nappies). For some people here, the cost would be prohibitive. But rather they have a split in the back of their pants and as they show the urge to go, Mom splits the pants and off they go. Unfortunately at times the timing is not so great and you may see them poised over a garbage can or the gutter. I was worried about possible consequences when I saw a little boy in Beijing, with full tackle hanging out, on the subway. What WOULD the mother have done there???
Wet days at the supermarket
One of the loveliest customs I have seen is on wet days as you enter the shopping center. A little man or lady waits there with a trolley full of plastic bags - short ones for the fold-up umbrellas and long ones for regular umbrellas. NO DRIPS!!! How very sensible!
Smoking
This habit is very much alive and kicking here. Oddly though, I have only ever seen one Asian woman smoking. It seems to be a “male” thing to do here. Cigarettes are cheap so there is not a lot of incentive to quit. Since May 1st there have been regulations not to smoke in restaurants but I doubt that it is enforced very strongly.
Billing for gas consumption
My apartment is not that old, but guess what? The gas meter is INSIDE in a kitchen cupboard. So once a month we are supposed to read the meter and put it on a sticky note on the door. Unfortunately I often forget, so they obligingly do an estimate. I hear that even if your bills are paid late (gas, water, electricity, phone, etc) , you will not have your service cut off as you would in New Zealand or the states. Guess I don’t really have to worry about paying bills over the summer vacation then!
Banking
I have not mentioned this minefield! At my Chinese bank, YES, I have a Chinese account. YES, I have an NZ $ account. YES, I have a US $ account. YES, I have online banking. So far all seems good, right? Except that all I can do with online banking is check my balances! If I want to transfer money - even from one of my accounts to another of my accounts, I have to fax instructions, give them a time to call me, go through a 20-question identification (OK, a bit of exaggeration there) that I am really me and then a wait of several days before it all happens!!!
Walking (on the road)
Mostly on wet days, but really on any given day, you may see people walking on the street rather than the sidewalk (footpath). I can tell you that in wet weather it is simply that, at least in my area, the sidewalks are made from very slippery cobbles and it is like a skating rink, so people are very concerned not to fall. On dry days, well, who knows! I can say that bicycles, scooters and motorbikes all often drive on the wrong side of the road, too, and now I am as guilty as the rest!!! When in Rome (or Shanghai).....
Supermarket customs
My local supermarket is GREAT! It has almost everything - food, shoes, air conditioners, fans, cameras, TVs, tape players, computers and printers, etc! My very favorite thing? Being able to buy Chinese takeaways (fried rice with a sprinkling of salted meat) for $1 US ! This is a once-a-week incentive to get to the supermarket! Unlike many other Europeans, I have no qualms about buying chicken or pork at the market or the supermarket. And it’s CHEAP!!!
Riding in the rain
Be it a bike or a scooter, this is the way most people get around, and when it is wet (luckily not often) it is a particularly miserable way to get around. Sooooo, when you buy a scooter, they throw in a lovely scooter rainshield (see the pIcture, no description could do it justice!!!) I have only used mine twice. Most of the time, if it rains, I adhere to vanity and do an umbrella and walking. (Yes, I have seen people holding umbrellas on scooters or, even worse, umbrellas that fit onto their heads!!!) I take no credit for any photos this week.
xxx,
Shanghaisuz
