Back again and riding the subway...

So I have not posted anything for the last month. I, of course, got sick again, plus a bit of laziness.

So back to Nanjing; one feature I do like about Nanjing is its public transportation system. There are is a huge bus system which is dependable (although more often than not, a bit cramped.) And since two years ago, there has been a subways line running north to south with two more lines in the works. (The second line will open next year.)

The subway runs til 11pm, though I wish it ran a bit later.
They are super fast. (Okay not that fast, but tons more faster than buses.)

Another nice thing about Nanjing is "cheap living." Many goods and services are relatively cheap due to unlimited amount of cheap labor and lower standards of living. One of those things is fresh flowers. You can find people selling beautiful fresh flowers for around 2-5 yuan or around 30-70 cents American, and they will also give you a earful about how to rise them.

These are actually wild flowers which I brought for 2 yuan, but they lasted for like 3 weeks.

I think I want to be a pirate....

With all the news about how pirating is so lucrative in Africa. I think its a good time for me to get into the game.

I think I will mark out my territory around the South China Sea around Vietnam and Hong Kong area, there will be a lot of booty and loot their. My crew will be call "Bruce Lee on the Sea," its a bit long, so I should probably shorten it.

Why is there a chicken in the office/workspace?

So when my boss's mom broke her leg, one of the owners of the factory gave my boss a "wild" chicken for her mom to eat. A factory owner brought over the chicken, live, and it got loose in the office while staying overnight.

In the morning I was asked to "catch" the chicken. Being the brave soul I am, I obliged. Thankfully the wild chicken was tired from flapping around in the office and I made a quick grab with some yellow plastic gloves.

Only in China and maybe some third world countries do you find live "wild" chickens as beautiful as the one above in the office and apart of working.

Lets go the countryside...

Last weekend one of the factory owners invited our company members to crab for lunch and we had to visit a new toy factory. Since all the factories are all in the countryside, it was time to get out of the city into the farm fields and factories.

The countryside is a compete contrast to the city. Its less developed, and people have much lower incomes and are extremely poor compared to urban areas. Most people subside on farming a small and limited piece of land.

The man made pond is for raising fish and crab.

The countryside can be beautiful, but pollution is a big problem. The pollution comes from the factories, who come to the countryside for the cheap labor and wages.
On to the crab buns... They were quite good, but you have to like crab in the first place.
People in and around Nanjing eat a lot of crab. You see crab being sold almost everywhere. It takes a while to eat (especially for a beginner like me) but its worth the effort.

Down but not out...

So, its been more than a week since my last post on the blog. A few things have preoccupied me:

• Travel's diarrhea. A whole week of a running stomach and intially fever. I had to go the hospital. China's sanitation is not up to par with the "Western" world. (Not fun.)
• Lose "Wild" Chicken in office.(Will explain in a later post. Quite fun)
• Wondering why I'm staying in China? And how long I will stay? (Not fun)

Expect some pictures and posts about the above topics soon...

Work...in China

Working in China has puzzled me in many aspects.

Our company has been getting ready for international export show. (Its both an import and export, but China doesn't import many goods.) We have been working none stop for the last week. We had to come in on Saturday and Sunday and stay late everyday.

Yet like usual, we take a huge lunch break. From 12:00 to around 2pm, the office stops all work. Some like to nap or play cards, while others go shopping for things. After 2pm though, its all work, and sometimes we go until 8pm or later to finish up on work. (The buses stop running after around 8:30 depending on the route, but the subway runs until 11:30. I have been taking the subway home, because my bus route stops running at 8:30)

Why couldn't we take a shorter lunch break instead of working late or on the weekend? I guess its a ritual in China to take long lunch breaks, and napping after lunch is the norm for most workers. (Even my boss sometimes takes a nap. They also have pillows. They place the pillow on top of the desk and rest their heads on the pillows. I'm not sure if its like this for the rest of China.)

They also take company vacations. (I guess they get a better rate if they go together?) One of the company walls is plastered with pictures of many vacations they have taken together. (Who answers the phones when everyone is gone?) In China, your work family is like your real family. People attach and identity themselves by where they work. I, though do not fully understand.

The Fire

So I was sitting at my desk, filling out some forms for a freight delivery at the office, when I hear a loud bang. I look up and see one of the lights fixtures has gone out and black smoke slowly seeps out. My co-workers and I realize there is a small fire inside the light fixture. I, being native, offer to use water put out the fire. Instead, the fire slowly burned itself out. After a few minutes the flickers of light from flame disappear and all is well in the office. My co-workers shrug off the fire and quickly go back to work.

(For all "The Office" fans, you will probably remember "The Fire" episode in season one, when Ryan starts the fire in the office. Its actually one of my favorite episodes. We didn't evacuate the building or anything though.)

I'm guessing the building codes here are not as strict as those in the States. Public safety also seems to be a issue. One of the factory owner's son (the company buys from many factories) was recently hit by a car and did not survive the accident. I guess I'm living in a still developing country, a "less developed country."