Common Sense Is Not What We Have In Common

The weather in Shanghai is quite pleasant this time of the year. Big wide streets and handsome architectures greeted me as I hopped in my cab and headed to my hotel. Before I could get oriented with the fact that I only had a 1-way ticket this time without a departure date to report on my immigration card, the cab driver asked where I was from and immediately asked "Do you Americans think of the Chinese highly now, with the changes done for the World Expo?" I was taken aback by the question, as I wasn't quite sure how to get started on answering it. My self-defense mode took over and I blurted out, "wen-ming!" "Wen" directly translates to literature, "ming" translates to bright. Together, it is used to describe advancement and cutting edge. I knew that was what he wanted to hear, but here's how I really felt, after 2 weeks of pondering and over analyzing...

The office in Shanghai is located in the high tech park filled with professionals and nice office buildings. However, I find it interesting that Roche occupies level 2 and 8 while Pfizer is right in between. The orientation process was minimal and after 30 minutes of signing documents, I was at my desk staring at my laptop back in business. I really enjoy my local colleagues, they are nice and eager to learn. During lunch, they asked me to join them to the cafeteria where free food is served to the employees. When I got there, I held on to my compartmentalized platter and the hair-netted cafeteria workers went on scoop after scoop and I had no idea what was being served to me. I saw some tiny crabs, some veggies, and some ground meat. I happen to be one of those people that scrutinize nutrition facts and ingredients before I consume, so this to me was definitely out of my comfort zone! The food was however quite tasty, but knowing how tasty MSG is, I never returned to the cafeteria again.

Working and living in Shanghai is quite a character struggle daily. The values and morals that were instilled in me since childhood, are constantly challenged and ignored. I constantly have to remind myself that just because I think it is common sense, it is not what I have in common with everyone. People of different upbringing and background have different ways of lives. Different is not always bad, but it sure takes some effort to convince myself of that and get used to. Sometimes I find myself questioning whether or not I really want to get used to it. For example, the first day getting on the campus shuttle to goto the cafeteria, I was being cordial and staying out of the way of the large crowd (lack of line formed). A few girls seemed inpatient and got in front of me while a few others mumbled "you want to get on or not!" I definitely learned my lesson that day and started getting more aggressive in lines, whether for the taxi, the grocery shops, or coffee stands. I started to get things done faster now that I had a backbone! However, for some reason, I felt down about this at the end of the day. It is not how I was raised. I want to be nice, kind, and patient, but if I were that way, I would end up last. I started questioning integrity, ethics, and peace of mind.

Before I bore you with too much detail, let me lighten it up by a couple of photos, and I shall continue my rant on some subsequent posts!

The China study management team

Huai-Hai Street at night (in the French Concession)

After my first 2 weeks in Shanghai, I was so excited to head to Singapore, where Josh and I fell in love with the island and its city.