Category: Shanghai
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A Housing Protest on Nanjing Road
“Could you put this on the Internet?” The elderly man had leapt up from his stool on the sidewalk next to Nanjing Road as soon as he saw me pull out my camera. I had thought he was going to warn me not to take pictures; I could spot a security guard a few yards…
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Super Bowl Monday in Shanghai
One of the funny aspects of living abroad is that things from home that ordinarily wouldn’t interest you very much take on a new significance. I’ll almost always eat at least one meal in McDonald’s when I’m out of the U.S., even though I don’t normally like their food very much. In part, I want…
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January Recap
At the end of every year, journalist and photographer Howard French posts a list at his website of all the books he read during the preceding twelve months. I decided I wanted to start doing that in 2013, but the end of December seemed too far away—when I’m excited about a book, I want to…
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Blue Skies Smiling On Me
I probably overdid it a bit this morning. I was so excited by today’s good weather that I laced up my sneakers and headed out for a walk. A really long walk. Every time I thought about turning at the next intersection and looping back to my apartment, I decided to go just a little…
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Socks With a Story
I could feel her creeping closer to me, watching me. The subway car was almost deserted, and I had been entirely alone on a long bench before she boarded the train and sat down at the other end. But over the past minute, she’d slid closer and closer until I could feel her within a…
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Have Yourself a Merry Mini Christmas?
I live a 15-minute walk away from West Nanjing Road, Shanghai’s version of Rodeo Drive. This busy street is lined on both sides by luxury brand stores and massive high-end shopping malls, almost all of which are now decorated for Christmas. I was walking home via Nanjing Road last night when I passed by one…
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The 18th Party Congress: A Shanghai Perspective
It’s been happening at least once, and generally more like two or three times, per day this week: I’ll be working away on my computer when things suddenly slow down. Gmail stops responding. Apple Mail goes offline. Google searches take minutes instead of seconds, and end in a message that “the server could not be…
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The Street of Eternal Happiness
I’m not entirely sure I can blame this mental lapse on jet lag and the sinus infection I was nursing last week, but I’ll try anyway. The street I live on here is called Changle Lu. I’ve been saying the name for days, without giving a whole lot of thought to the meaning behind those…
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If Anyone Needs Me, I’ll Be at IKEA
Getting my apartment was surprisingly easy. I picked it out on Saturday and went to Jacky’s office early on Tuesday morning, armed with my passport and an enormous stack of renminbi (the largest denomination is a 100RMB bill; I had seventy-nine of them to pay my first month’s rent and Jacky’s commission). Bathrobe Guy showed…
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House Hunters International
I took a deep breath late this morning and ventured into the unknown world of Shanghai real estate. An acquaintance had given me the names of several real estate agencies that she had dealt with while searching for a place recently, and I took the subway over to the French Concession to check out her…
Maura Elizabeth Cunningham 