Arriving in Shanghai it immediately became clear that we were in a completely new and different part of the world. There were tall buildings scattered across the landscape, which did not seem to be particularly concentrated in any specific area. The other significant difference was the huge amount of smog blanketing the city.
As an obvious tourist, it is impossible to walk down the street without being approached by a shifty five foot tall local offering you a Rolex or Mont Blanc for an initial “cheap price” of 200 Yuan. This would immediately drop to 50 Yuan if you shook your head and kept walking. Despite this being a hassle at times, we were able to pick up some great bargains. At the knock off markets everything was on offer from imitation bags, to 10 year old Air Jordans (which are very hard to find I might add). No item had a fixed price, and if you wanted to know much it was, the shop keeper would display it on their trusty calculator. Once you put in your price, leaving was not an option without purchasing the item for an agreed amount.
Getting to and from such locations was an experience in itself. The cheapest and most convenient way to get around Shanghai was in one of the city's 40,000 taxis. No matter the taxi company, they were all the same unmistakeable VW Santana model. The taxi drivers did not know a word of English, so the usual “how has your day been” small talk was out of the question. The only way to get to your destination was by getting a bilingual local to write the address down in Chinese for them to read. Once on the road, your life was literally in the driver's hands. This was not a very comforting thought at all as he (or she) would weave in and out of traffic at 100 Km's without signalling, casually roll through red lights and dive at pedestrians as if they were targets in a computer game.
Another interesting discovery in Shanghai was in relation to the food. One would think that China would be the obviously be the first port of call for the best Chinese food. We discovered this was not really the case. It took until our last day to get an authentic meal that was on par with what we could find in Melbourne.
Now to the part most of us budding marketeers were really looking forward to experiencing… the night life. It is definitely a unique experience going out in a city like Shanghai. As you walk into a bar, you are met by a smiling waitress who leads you to a table. Here you begin the night the way they usually end, on your ass. Throughout the evening the waitress takes drink orders and brings them to you. It is seldom that people actually go up to the bar like they do back in Australia.
All though the concrete jungle was a bit overwhelming at times, and no one left without some form of illness from the pollution, the city was vibrant and an unforgettable experience was had by all. It is clear now that China is a global powerhouse, and it is only getting stronger.
