Last night I went with my Chinese roommate John (Zhao Xin) and one of his friend's Eldora to the equivalent of Chinese Wal-Mart, Auchun....which they told me was a French supermarket. We took the local bus four stops which was quite an experience. Driving in China is kind of every person for themselves and there are no real rules anyone has to follow. But our bus only had to slam on the brakes one time, and I was told, this was not a bad journey....The bus ride was only one yuan, so about 13 cents.
I can never complain about crowded stores in America again. Literally thousands of people were in this place and I'm only mad that I did not have my camera with me to document it. I am sure I will return there and take pictures of the awe inspiring masses. Literally, there was everything you could possibly want there so I bought some ritz crackers, an umbrella, oreos, a chinese pop cd, and some school supplies, all for about 12 dollars.
When we left the store I offered my two chinese hosts a ride back to the hotel in a taxi. They were a little reticent because of the cost, but I told them that it would be my gift for them taking me to the store and helping me find everything. The 2.8 kilometer ride cost 10 yuan or just about $1.30. The same ride would have been around 10-15 dollars in Manhattan, so it is quite shocking the difference in price and what is considered expensive.
I have been enjoying the class so far, today we actually start the real teamwork, we have been doing a comparative review the last two days. Our team is made up of 5 chinese students, 2 Americans, and a Danish student. We are representing a German Company. I think we have some advantages because the other American speaks Chinese fairly well, so we have a link to get over language or semantic road blocks.
All for now....
