For some reason, before I moved to Shanghai, I thought it was going to be cooler and drier than back home in Tennessee. Well....I have never been more wrong about anything in my life!
The temperature since I got here has in the 90s (F) [upper 30s (C)] with a humidity of about 80%. YUCK! If you know me, you know that I am not a hot weather person. If there is snow on the ground or if you can see your breath, then I am happy. Even at night it is hot which still makes no sense to me. Back home, if it was hot during the day, it would still be cool at night. I never thought I would say this, but I long for Tennessee weather. Crazy, I know! The only relief from the heat is right after it rains. The temperature does cool off the day or two after a good rain which is nice.
I do hear that it can get pretty cold in the winter here. Let's hope that is correct! Once winter comes, I will let you know.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Friday, June 22, 2012
Business Trip??
My first day at work was interesting for sure. I arrived to
the office for my first work day at an architecture firm in China to be told
that I was going on a business trip to ZaoZhuang for an uncertain amount of
time. This would have been an exciting event had it not been my first day at
work and had I been giving the opportunity to go home to get a change of
clothes but sadly that was not the case.
The city is located north of Shanghai in the ShanDong province. It is a city that is pretty much completely under construction (ALL of the projects in the office are located in ZaoZhuang). There is no English to be found unlike Shanghai. I believe I was the only western person in that city until my boss's friend from Australia showed up which was a much needed relief.
We, a few colleagues and I, were there to meet with clients, government officials, as well as do some site visits. I still don't know why I was there which was a total of 2 full days and 2 nights. All the meetings over the 2 days there were in Chinese with no one to translate for me and I had no knowledge of the projects that were being discussed. I was told by others that I was there to be the "white face" of the company to impress the clients and officials. Whether this is true or not, I did feel useless there.
The only good thing about being there was attending the big banquet lunch and dinners. Every lunch and dinner was a chance to discuss more business for my boss, however; I was there for the new foods. I had some really amazing food (don't ask me what I ate because I didn't ask, I just tired it all...lol). I did try something that I knew exactly what it was but I tried it anyway, that was a large INSECT with 6 legs and a crunchie outer shell (trust me it was crunchie). There was an entire plate of them sauteed for the table. I knew I had to try one to keep face and not be laughed at by everyone at the lunch. To my surprise, it wasn't that bad. I did just have only one though..lol.
The city is located north of Shanghai in the ShanDong province. It is a city that is pretty much completely under construction (ALL of the projects in the office are located in ZaoZhuang). There is no English to be found unlike Shanghai. I believe I was the only western person in that city until my boss's friend from Australia showed up which was a much needed relief.
We, a few colleagues and I, were there to meet with clients, government officials, as well as do some site visits. I still don't know why I was there which was a total of 2 full days and 2 nights. All the meetings over the 2 days there were in Chinese with no one to translate for me and I had no knowledge of the projects that were being discussed. I was told by others that I was there to be the "white face" of the company to impress the clients and officials. Whether this is true or not, I did feel useless there.
The only good thing about being there was attending the big banquet lunch and dinners. Every lunch and dinner was a chance to discuss more business for my boss, however; I was there for the new foods. I had some really amazing food (don't ask me what I ate because I didn't ask, I just tired it all...lol). I did try something that I knew exactly what it was but I tried it anyway, that was a large INSECT with 6 legs and a crunchie outer shell (trust me it was crunchie). There was an entire plate of them sauteed for the table. I knew I had to try one to keep face and not be laughed at by everyone at the lunch. To my surprise, it wasn't that bad. I did just have only one though..lol.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Welcome to China!
Here I am on the other side of the world living, working, and starting a new chapter in my life.
A few months ago, I came across an advertisment for a placement company that brought architects to China. With this economy and the effect it has had on the job market for architects, I didn't see any harm in sending my information to this somewhat suspicous company. I never really considered working in China. Up to this point, I had sent out over 400 CVs since graduating from with my bachelor two years ago. It was a huge surprise when I received an email from the company notifying me that there was an architecture firm in Shanghai, China, that wanted to interview me.
Well, as you probably know by now, I received the job and made the frighten, life changing move. I have now been in Shanghai for a little over a month. There have been a lot of ups and downs when it comes to working here, living here, and just trying to mantain a life here. In future posts, I will recount my experiences both good and bad. Please keep in mind that any observations made whether positive or negative are purely based on my opinion and/or stating the opinions of others.
A few months ago, I came across an advertisment for a placement company that brought architects to China. With this economy and the effect it has had on the job market for architects, I didn't see any harm in sending my information to this somewhat suspicous company. I never really considered working in China. Up to this point, I had sent out over 400 CVs since graduating from with my bachelor two years ago. It was a huge surprise when I received an email from the company notifying me that there was an architecture firm in Shanghai, China, that wanted to interview me.
Well, as you probably know by now, I received the job and made the frighten, life changing move. I have now been in Shanghai for a little over a month. There have been a lot of ups and downs when it comes to working here, living here, and just trying to mantain a life here. In future posts, I will recount my experiences both good and bad. Please keep in mind that any observations made whether positive or negative are purely based on my opinion and/or stating the opinions of others.
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