Shanghai Local Customs

When you are approached by street solicitors and don’t want something .. the magic phrase is “Pooh Yo”

"Pooh" as in Winnie the Pooh, and "Yo" as in ‘Yo mamma is so ugly..”

One of our Chinese tour guides told us to say it so I assume that means it’s an appropriate phrase and not rude.

I think it means “I don’t want it, stop touching me and go away” Saying Pooh Yo works much better than saying No Thank You in English.

Bicycles, bicycles, bicycles... they were everywhere! Sometimes I just stopped to look at them, wondering if I could capture a moment without seeing one. I couldn't! While walking around in Shanghai or any other Chinese city, it's better to be careful because it's quite easy to be run over. Auch! ;)

Westerners have an unspoken and sacred aura around them that they expect to never be invaded. In line, westerners will stand at least a foot apart, and when talking to friends, they will equally do so, even after knowing each other for years.

In China, however, I suppose as a result of adapting to such a populous nation, they concept of personal space does not exist. People will fall asleep on the bus and rest their head on your shoulder, and get annoyed if you push their head away. If you are standing in line and allow 1 foot space between you and the person in front of you, others will assume you are not waiting in line and jump in. Pushing and shoving is the norm. The concept of waiting in line is also largely unheard of, and everything works on pretty much a first come, first serve basis.

I can say that observing local people in Shanghai was definitely one of my favorite things. It was my first city to see in China and thus, I was taken by many cultural differences. I couldn't stop looking (OK, I wasn't staring!!) at different costumes they wore. And the hairstyles were unbeatable!

... are common in Shanghai. In the midtown, traffic is heavy and the amount of bycicles up and down makes it almost impossible to even cross the streets.

Well, this could be also filed in the section "Warnings or Dangers", but anyway this is what China is.

One annoyance you ll quickly experience in Shanghai (and most big Chinese cities) is that the locals don t seem to know the concept of waiting their turn, lining up properly, or respect for personal space. I was cut at KFC, at the subway ticket booth, at the hotel checkout, the airport line, you name it...it is the survival of the pushiest!!

Too bad I didn't have my camera at the time but the crowd getting onto the city bus was like a crazed mob. No doubt this leads
to a lot of traffic accidents.

If that's not bad enough, you'll hear and see plenty of spitting, clearing throats, and cleaning noses. Well, this is just the way things are for now.

This isn't isolated to Shanghai or China but it was disturbing to see the large number of homeless, largely rural migrants, especially those begging with children in their arms, the police do pester them to not loiter around for too long.

On a more positive note, Shanghai tries to be foreigner/tourist friendly...maybe its because they are willing to spend and not insist on discounts! Anyway, it is demonstrated by the sign in the picture. Ladies and foreigner's free.

The super long electric buses seemed to be the People Mover of Shanghai. They were always packed with people. I rode them quite a bit myself. The bus system is very extensive and cheap. If you get yourself a good bus map it's also fairly easy to use...the tricky part is knowing when to get out!! hahaa I missed several stops but I was never to far from my intended destination.

Almost every back alley that I walked through had laundry hanging everywhere. It was interesting to see laundry even hanging at street level in the big city. So that showed me that the people of the area most not have a petty theft problem. Nobody wants to steal their neighbors underwear!! hahaha