As my time here in Shanghai is starting to wind down, I just wanted to write a post describing some of the random little things that we have done over the past 1.5 months here in Shanghai.
All you can eat teppanyaki:
For dinner one night, a friend of ours suggested that all of us meet up at a teppanyaki restaurant called "Tairyo". This was no ordinary teppanyaki however, as for 160 RMB ($23.62 USD) all of your food and drink was included. Considering the high price of teppanyaki, a chance to gorge ourselves on the delicious food and drink served there seemed like an excellant idea. We were all seated around a large grill, and the food began to trickle in. We were first served with several types of sashimi and sushi, before rice was served. We then moved on to the staples of chicken and steak. Everything was delicious, and another round of sake bombs was only a call to the waiter for another beer and another bottle of sake away. For dessert, I tried an absolutely divine fried banana, which was sugary and just perfect. The restaurant manager gifted us with a coffe mug each, but mysteriously only Justin's managed to survive the night. We eventually found ourselves completely full, and had to head out to the clubs in order to dance the food away.
World Cup 2010:
With Shanghai being such an international city, with many foreigners living here, the World Cup is a very big deal. We were all interested in watching the games, and luckily one of the local channels provided 24/7 coverage, including replays of all of the important games, and highlights of the less-than-important ones. Watching a game in the hotel is fine for most games, but for some, such as America's games, the only real way to watch was to head out. Our destination of choice was Windows, a sports bar in Shanghai that was filled with screens on which we could watch the game. Beer was cheap, at 50 RMB for a pitcher, and shots are just 10 RMB each. Their Flaming B-52 is especially delicious. The food served there was also really good, and very fairly priced.
The highlight of our times at Windows was the USA at Algeria game. Half of the screens in the bar were showing the America game, while the other half showed the England game. This led to a very tense moment as the English fans cheered at their country's win, but we were finally rewarded at the end.
The next game that we watched at Windows was the America at Ghana game. While the previous game had been at 10pm, this game started at 2:30am. While we would have been much happier to win the game, an interesting thing that we learned from this experience was that the sun rises extremely early here in Shanghai. The first rays of light could be seen at 4:00am, and by the time we got home it was as though the day was already well underway. Shanghai at this hour is definitely an experience.
Nightlife:
Every weekend, we de stress from the long week of classes and internships by heading out to the bars and clubs in force. A few of the bars and clubs have special promotions on Friday and Saturday nights, whereby 100 RMB ($14 USD) will get you as many drinks as you can handle (and then some). Sometimes we will head out to these first for a bit of social lubricant before heading to the clubs, while other weekends we have simply started with and ended with clubs.
The club scene in Shanghai is quite spectacular. While everything seems expensive at first, when prices are converted into USD, we find that, at least compared to clubs at home, everything is actually really cheap. A Red Bull and Vodka can be found for $5 USD, which is great when compared to prices found in Miami. Everything here is relative. Tables are almost required however, unless all of your time is spent on the dance floor. As a word of caution, DJs don't really like it when you decide to try your hand on playing with their records...
Rock Climbing:
One of the surprises that Shanghai threw at me was rock climbing. Situated inside of the Hongkou Indoor Stadium, a small rock climbing gym awaits anybody who cares to give it a go. The price, including rental of shoes and a harness, is about 45 RMB for the entire day, which is not bad at all. There are all kinds of routes, ranging from a beginner wall, to a practice wall littered with hundreds of hand holds of every shape and size, as well as a realistic looking rock face and a route that takes you upside down along the roof of the building. It is a really cool place, and it was a lot of fun when we went.
Walmart:
One of the biggest shocks for us to see was Walmart. In China. It was inside of a mall, and offered 4 different floors, each one with a separate department. It was absolutely huge, and as always the prices were low, even by China standards. And here I thought that I would miss the comforts of home...
Beer Pong:
For entertainment one Sunday afternoon, Justin, Nakul, James, and I decided to play a game of beer pong. We went out and managed to find cups as well as ping pong balls, and set up our bedside tables in each others doorways. It was actually really hard to play, as the cups were so much lower than normal, and the two sides were a lot farther apart than usual. The crosswinds from the hall also made for interesting strategies. In the end, Justin and I ended up losing by one cup. We'll get them on the rematch though...
Well, that's all I have for now. Next weekend I'm off to Beijing, so I'll be sure to take lots of pictures and write an in-depth report.
For dinner one night, a friend of ours suggested that all of us meet up at a teppanyaki restaurant called "Tairyo". This was no ordinary teppanyaki however, as for 160 RMB ($23.62 USD) all of your food and drink was included. Considering the high price of teppanyaki, a chance to gorge ourselves on the delicious food and drink served there seemed like an excellant idea. We were all seated around a large grill, and the food began to trickle in. We were first served with several types of sashimi and sushi, before rice was served. We then moved on to the staples of chicken and steak. Everything was delicious, and another round of sake bombs was only a call to the waiter for another beer and another bottle of sake away. For dessert, I tried an absolutely divine fried banana, which was sugary and just perfect. The restaurant manager gifted us with a coffe mug each, but mysteriously only Justin's managed to survive the night. We eventually found ourselves completely full, and had to head out to the clubs in order to dance the food away.
With Shanghai being such an international city, with many foreigners living here, the World Cup is a very big deal. We were all interested in watching the games, and luckily one of the local channels provided 24/7 coverage, including replays of all of the important games, and highlights of the less-than-important ones. Watching a game in the hotel is fine for most games, but for some, such as America's games, the only real way to watch was to head out. Our destination of choice was Windows, a sports bar in Shanghai that was filled with screens on which we could watch the game. Beer was cheap, at 50 RMB for a pitcher, and shots are just 10 RMB each. Their Flaming B-52 is especially delicious. The food served there was also really good, and very fairly priced.
