It was crazy to think we were back in Shanghai, just a few weeks later, with a whole new crew of people. I spent the first day with Amanda, Ashley, and Ron (and Erik until lunch)--We went to the markets, ate at a great vegetarian restaurant (I was obsessed with this one dish--It's like a wheat germ in bran sauce, which I know may sound strange and typical of my food preferences but SO good!), got Chinese massages (which sent me straight to heaven), laughed over some wine (where we came up with a group name using the acronym "TSS" and "featuring Ron Babcock," which I can share later), and ended up in a little Moroccan-style local bar. Ashley was on the first voyage, too--She's the PR Coordinator, so she organizes all the Media receptions in port and now also oversees internal communications on the ship. We didn't spend much time together on the first voyage, so it was really nice to do so now. And Ron is the new Videographer, who is fun and goofy, all wrapped in one.
On the second day, I went off on my own. For lunch, I returned to this great vegetarian restaurant I went to during the first voyage with Cherine and Amanda called "Godly Vegetarian", where I had a dish like the wheat germ and paste sauce one, only here it was called "Brain in Paste Sauce"--a little piece of heaven. After lunch, I went to the Jade Buddha Temple, where I saw the Lying Jade Buddha, watched a man create finger paintings (literally with his pinky finger and nail), talked with a Calligraphy Artist, who wanted to practice random English phrases like "It doesn't matter." and "Don't buy it.", and visited the Tea House for some Chinese medicine tea. Rico and Jason, it reminded me of our little Kunming tea-tasting--Such a beautiful ritual; I love it. I then ended the day at Rui Massage, where I ran into Amanda, Christy, and Ashley. The wait was over an hour (probably full of TSS people), so Amanda and I opted for a foot massage a few places down then went for dinner at this Japanese restaurant down the block.
During days 3-4, I co-led the Academic Field Program (AFP) for the International Communications Learning Circle. Because of the fog delay, our AFP was cut from three days to two. We still managed to pack quite a bit...
* Attended a lecture at Fudan University on China's "Harmony Society", which sparked some great conversations later around intercultural communication and the political climate.
*Visited The Life Hub @ Daning: A commercial complex--"...total area of more than 2.3 million sq ft of retail space, officetel and service apartments. The project is first of its kind in Shanghai and creates for Shanghai's mainstream consumers a convenient, trendy, comfortable and affordable place to shop, eat, play, work, live, entertain and pursue their cultural interests." Our group met with the head of Daning to discuss development and global marketing of the complex.
* Listened to an impromptu talk by Riikka's friend, Rob, who recently moved to Shanghai to lead diversity trainings. The students loved hearing his perspective because he talked a lot about what it was like for a foreigner to do business in Shanghai and how relationships were key to the process. This was also evident in the way our tour operators interacted with us. The Tour Operator/Mentor (Kathleen) from my last AFP in Shanghai gave me a big hug when she saw me and a little gift--two Chinese masks, which was especially thoughtful, given my last AFP was "Worlds of Art s and Culture". Dad, I also thought a lot about your work in Japan and developed a new appreciation for the way you handled your customer relationships, especially with our dear friend and his daughter:-)
* Attended a lecture at Shanghai Airlines, which discussed the company's corporate culture, their training and development practices, etc.
* Visited Coca Cola China (sponsors of the Beijing Olympics!), where we saw a snapshot of their marketing products and took a little tour of their production line, which was very cool. I've never seen so many Coke cans in my life.
On the last day in port, I met up with Yuan, a student from my RC in Voyage 1. It was great to see her again and spend some time, although I was catching a cold, so I wasn't able to last very long.
A couple intercultural learning moments from the week:
1. The concept of face saving, being cognizant of the types of questions asked, the way questions are asked, and indirect messages/cues that are conveyed, especially around sensitive topics
2. When bargaining is expected vs. when it is insulting
Well, I think that sums it up! Oh, and I did squeeze in one other massage somewhere in there. And we went to a cool little lounge called Barbarossa, which was in the middle of the city but tucked away in a park-like area. Saw lots of students there, and they were very welcoming and fun.
Now onto Thailand! We just arrived this morning, so I will update you again soon...
