Week One

We are happy to share that we successfully survived our first week in Shanghai! We learned a number of lessons along the way. Here are a few especially memorables ones:

* When trying 'Body Pump' class for the first time, don't try to keep up with the little Chinese woman next to you (Chana tried this and is still sore 4 days later!)

* Maintaining silence can be a darn good bargaining tool (the price tag for Chana's potential gym membership dropped by about a third thanks to this handy technique).

* Don't try to mail a cardboard box when it's raining, they will ask you to come back later (lost in translation, perhaps?)

* With patience and the confidence, it is possible to win a game of pedestrian 'chicken' against a local opponent. In fact, just such a victory was Chana's fondest moment of the week. She braced herself for a collision, was determined not to move first and it worked - the pedestrian coming her way actually turned sideways just in the nick of time!

* The words Taicang and Taikang are vastly different. Jerel's work is on Taicang road. It turns out that Taikang road is about 30 minutes away from Taicang road by cab... or longer if you are driving at rush hour around the time that all important meetings (including your own) start.