Shanghai Local Customs

These construction workers where putting up their scaffolding. I don't know if the hardhats they are using would meet OSHA regulations here in America! They probably work just as well though! And the bamboo scaffolding is probably as any steel scaffolding in the west!

These guys and their bicycles can haul around great loads of stuff. I've seen these carts stacked 12 feet high with shoes too! They can haul it all!! They are great manuevering their bicycles in around the buses and trucks.

Here, banners attract locals to buy the traditional Moon Festival cakes for the Mid Autumn Festival due on 12 September, when full moon hangs bright in the night sky in the Chinese Lunar Calendar of August 15. Confectionary shops are busy when people queue up to buy all flavours and sizes of moon cakes, which are literally sold fast like hot cakes.

In the old town of Shanghai, which is located near Yuyuan-Garden, you can see this buckets everywhere, when you go there in the morning.

The old houses don't have private toilets. People use this buckets in the night. In the morning the buckets are emptied into the public toilets and cleaned. Then they have to dry in the sun.

I found that on our travels the people we met were very friendly.
Oh - a good tip for catching a taxi at the airport in Shanghai...and this goes for Beijing as well .... get in the taxi line up. Do not let those really nice guys who are offering you a quick taxi take advantage of you. And, when in the taxi, make sure they use the meter. Pay only what's on the meter and, of course, any applicable tolls that you drive through.

Bargainning is a must, no matter how cheap the first price you are given sounds in US $, you can usually get it down to less than a quarter of that. A good general rule is at least half of the first offer.

I would suggest bringing a Chinese-English dictionary. There are not many English speaking people in Shanghai, so if you are not familiar with Mandarin you may get a little lost.

People in Shanghai are generally very friendly and helpful. The merchants are very hard working and pleasant and you will find just about everyone to be respectful.

The most important thing to remember is, if you get in to trouble, keep your cool. It is considered very bad manners to lose your temper, shout, gesture, etc. If something is working out, ask to speak to a supervisor or manager.

Also, there are very few westerners in Shanghai. If you are not of Asian decent, dont be surprised to be the only non-Asian around. People will stare at you and you should expect it as it is a normal part of Chinese culture and is not considered rude.

The people from Shanghai (as well as the rest of China) are very friendly. They will go to great lengths to ensure that you are comfortable. You will not find many people from this part of the world that like to brag about themselves. They believe that actions and results are much stronger than words.