Little slice of NYC in Shanghai

I went to two restaurants while in Shanghai this past weekend and I have to mention them. They reminded me of the US so much that it would be bad for me not to post a review.

New York Style Steak & Burger:

This little place is nestled, literally, in an alleyway that can only be accessed by small pedestrian sidewalks. It reminds me of old Shanghai, only this place has the best burger I've every tasted in a foreign country.

Adam Levin, a native Brooklyner, has managed/owned restaurants around the world and he knows exactly what his carnivore public wants.

The burgers range from a classic Big Boy (yum, I had this) to a Bacon Cheese love-dish, to a Bleu Cheese extravaganza. Simply put, this is no place for the faint of heart or the vegetarian (although some dishes available).

Served with fries, the burgers are a decent size for the money (about $9/burger). The appetizers are more gourmet with selections like an Arugula Salad with freshly made vinaigrette and Mushroom Bisque. Everything was fantastic.

If you're in Shanghai and looking for a slice (or pattie) of home, you've come to the right place. Order a bottle of wine and you've got yourself a new favorite for date night, birthdays, and the causal classy meal.


New York City Deli:

Watch out, now! When you walk into this place you'll fall on the floor. This deli will smack you in the face with the smells of ham, salami, dressing, and good ol' coleslaw.

The sandwich menu is extensive and includes hot/cold sandwiches, combo meals, soups, real Lay's potato chips, and not-too-thick coleslaw (the way I like it). I had the Hot Italian Sammich, whereas my partner in crime, Chris, had a Philly Cheese Steak -- might I add that I had the Smoked Chicken Sammich a few days later. Impressive.

I hear this place imports ingredients from America, and it's truly apparent in the taste.

The combo meal includes about a ton of food. Choice of soup + sandwich + beverage + coleslaw + chips + pickle + cookie all for $9.50 USD = life changing.

The pickle was a wee bit disappointing because it does not taste like my usual Vlasic Kosher Dills that I'm addicted to (I'm a pickle fanatic), but it was tangy and only slightly sweet, which is more than what you can say for other pickles in China (all sweet and, thus, no fun -- I'm a tangy girl).

In a word, this place is great. We walked in and Jay Leno was playing on the TV (well, a DVD of his show, of course), which added to the ambiance. This deli is clean, the service is warm, and I got to see a rerun of Dr. Phil on The Tonight Show... what other parts of home could I be more happy to have back in my life?


Did I mention they import ingredients from the US?

Peaches Concert in Shanghai

Once upon a time there was a drama teacher. This teacher guided students in theater and independent music. At some point, the teacher got bored, ready for her higher calling. She decided to pursue electronic music. She questioned what it meant to be a girl—to be a boy. She produced a record. She produced another one.

She shaved half of her head to put on makeup.

She came to Shanghai.

She sang a song completely on the hands of her fans.

She told us to stay in school.

She is Peaches.

I went to the Peaches concert in Shanghai on April 23. There is little more to say about this than it was amazing. The music was hot, electronic, and beat into the chest of everyone present. The energy was accepting. It was live.

Strong drinks and low lights fed the crowd of the sold out Mao Live House (1,000 capacity), while Peaches, known for stretching the borders and questioning traditional gender roles, came out in a camouflage swamp suit that I’ve only seen in army movies. She looked like a camo- Cousin It.

Afterwards, it was clear to see where Lady Gaga gets her inspiration for fashion. Puffy sleeves, capes, and androgynous material were undeclared themes of the evening.

From the front few rows, we were able to shake hands, touch, and hoist Peaches into the air as she sang songs with the energy of a teenager. The singer, 41, is an example of a major artist who is truly accessible to her fans. Before singing a song, she said, “Some say Peaches walks on water. Tonight, Peaches walks on you.” She stepped out into our hands, never skipping a word of the song. Why is this special? Why is this different?

She trusted us; we would not drop her. In this, she gained our respect by putting her faith in us. Tell me, how many female artists trust her fans to avoid the infliction of physical harm by dropping her or being inappropriately touched? How many are even willing to take the risk?

The concert ended with Peaches’ most popular song, in which she took her own camcorder and recorded the audience, while saying “Look at Shanghai. We know how Shanghai parties. This. Is. Shanghai.”

If there was any doubt in your mind about the stereotypes given to gender roles, it easily could be said you were plunged into deeper indiscriminate darkness on the subject after this night.

If there was any doubt about the definition of ‘cool’ before you entered the doors of Mao Life House, they were banished by seeing this woman rock it.

If you didn’t believe that a celebrity could be so passionate about giving her fans their money’s worth during a concert, you’d be proven wrong.

It’s safe to say that, on this night, we found out what Peaches believes in. She believes in us and thrust us into facing a traditional world, which makes rules that almost no one dares to question. She made us want to be free, with her. She wanted to us believe with her. It’s safe to say, we were all converted in one way or another, her devoted believers.

The jury is still out on how China ever gave this woman a visa.

Happy Birthday, Dad

Man will know

Days come and go--

Flying by

To and fro.

Sometimes we are lucky enough to remember a few days with the passage of years but in all truth, we forget most days for lack of making them interesting. You could say that’s the reason for this blog – to live a little more; to see the rarity of life in the mundane as well as the majestic.

Today, though. Today is a big day. My dad turns 70 years old.

Although I am unable to be with my dad on this day of celebration, I will meagerly try to relate some meaning, instead. My dad has been the crux of my artistic and intellectual development for nearly a quarter century. He is a fantastic teacher: tried, true, patient, and caring.

---Who is responsible for me humming La Traviata while waiting for my kids at summer camp to get changed for swimming? Dad.

---Who taught me that a whole day spent at museum looking at only one painting of a man in a fluffy hat is worth the $40 entrance ticket to the museum, itself? Dad.

---Who taught me the difference between sweet and dry, white and red, nutty and fruity, aperitif and port, old and new, Chianti and Super Tuscan? Dad.

As I cannot fully do justice to how much I appreciate my dad's support and love, I will tell a story:

Once upon a time in China, my family visited me and we traveled to the southwest corner of the country where there is a mountain named Jade Dragon Snow Mountain (base camp 3,200m/10,500ft). This is a tall man, ladies and gents.

Not many people hike to the top of this mount and, being stubborn or adventurous (I’m not sure which), I was determined to prove myself.

Now, my mama prefers to hear stories of my adventures after I’m home safe with a cup of tea warming my hands. My dad says,

“You can climb it to the top…no wait, I’m coming with you.”

At the age of 67, my dad climbed that mountain with me all the way to the peak, step by step – 4,680m/15,400ft. Heart beating fast, we had to stop every 3 feet to catch our breath. The Chinese walking down from the peak had portable oxygen tanks to lessen the burden of altitude. I thought, If I cannot breathe easily, how will Dad and I reach the top? I should have been more prepared for this. I looked at my dad, willing to turn around and go back if he said the word. His face said it was no use asking. We were going to make it.

While moving slowly, Chinese people asked me how old my dad was, astonished that he was climbing so high. I replied and they just looked at him, admiringly, and congratulated me. I was proud, I am proud.

There is more I could say about this, but the best part was when we stepped onto the highest deck, we had someone take this photo (below).

Extending one hand up in the air, we had made it. Number one. It’s something I’ve noticed the Sammarcos do when we’ve surmounted the feat. We reach up, exhausted, and claim that last bit of height that only raised fingers can reach.

The unfettered freeness of the cold wind against palms made the moment real. Yet, it was not until a few moments later that pure joy settled in both of us: a tour group of 40 Chinese people had somehow also made it to the top. They saw me and Dad — rather conspicuous against the backdrop of snow, plus most Chinese people have black hair... — and proceeded to ask if each person could take a photo with us. Who are we to deny the public? Instant celebriosity – there’s nothing like it. I think my dad got quite a kick out of it.

In this instance and so many others, I am lucky. I have been supported, loved, and pushed by my parents to reach the top, run further, driver faster (but always under the speed limit, Mom), and live free. This is a tribute to my dad, who teaches me, by example, that excellence is not a single act, but a habit.

It’s Dad who taught me never to accept defeat before an attempt. Even now, when I climb to the highest point to overcome the challenge, I find myself elated, tired, and wanting to rest. In this moment, I remember I am not done. I find one last bit of energy within me to slowly extend one hand into the air above my head, fingers open, to reach a little bit higher. That energy is my father.

Happy Birthday, Dad. I love you.

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial--

Taipei, Taiwan, 2010

More photos from our family trip to China (2007)--

The ever-graceful Sammarcos in Beijing, doing Taichi:

Hong Kong:

Annie, riding the Daisy, Daisy tandem bike on the Xi'an City Walls:

Dad, in Guilin, exhibiting the fine art of using chopsticks:

Mom and Dad at Tiger Leaping Gorge -- Yunnan Province (sadly, the gorge is now flooded to create hydroelectric energy for the neighboring areas)

In Yunnan Province, the foothills of Tibet:

7 Tips for Surviving China in the Rain:

1) Never wear open toed shoes or sandals – If you know what goes on in the streets when the weather is nice, you will absolutely avoid getting any of that on your little piggies when it’s wet out.

2) Never wear long pants that touch the ground – Clothes on the lower half of your body do not touch the ground. Women tuck trousers into boots.

3) Use an umbrella – If you don’t use one, you are strange. As a side note, Chinese people seem to avoid being rained upon as if it were a plague. This leads me to two conclusions: Chinese people are a) cats, or b) at risk of melting when moistened.

4) Wear your coat – You won’t get a taxi to save your life, so bundle up to face the elements and be prepared to walk to your destination if need be.

5) Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – For some reason plastic bags are an accessory to be worn: shoes, hat, gloves. Very versatile. Totally worth the $0.06 you paid for the bag.

6) Be vigilant – If someone has forgotten said umbrella or plastic bag to act as protection, they will be running (see point a or b in #3). Experience has told me that Chinese people would rather body check you to the ground rather than run in a ziggity-zag around you. Lesson learned: You have to choose? You move.

7) Acknowledge the inevitable collapse of your day’s schedule – You were going to go shopping? You don’t. You were going to exercise? You won’t. You were going to go outside? Try again. It’s like Raleigh, NC after getting .5 inch of fresh snow. Don’t you dare go outside. What if you get a cold or something?

Hiding in the rain:

5:45am, Yangtze River, Three Gorges Dam, central China:

They have since flooded this mountainous area to allow for utilization of hydroelectric energy that can be reigned in by the dam. This project has displaced at least 2 million people and has flooded this entire mountain range to the tip top of each peak (more than 175 meters).

*Photo at top is in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, central China.

Pendulum

“Mister, I’d like to go to the corner of …” – a common statement for those who ride in taxis.

“I don’t know where that is.” –immediately a flair of annoyance is felt in the pit of my belly. You’re a taxi driver, how do you not know where I’m going? It’s not that hard.

We all have those days where you’re annoyed with life. Mainland China is no different. Some days, it seems to provide the epitome of annoyance:

-->You step in gruel in a city gutter when you moved off the sidewalk to give way to four old ladies walking side by side

…the man cuts in front of you in line when you want to buy your noodles

…you finally get your coffee, only to realize it’s NesCafe instant coffee with prepackaged milk powder and sugar already swilled around in it.

…and just as you say “fine, I can deal with Chinese non-dairy creamer…”, a man body-checks you on the street, sending that precious, and rather expensive, bit of caffeine flying to the ground.

At this point, what’s the point in leaving the house?

As bad as this situation is, it is bound to turn around at some point, right? You know the reality of the matter: it’s not that bad, you’re not too victimized, and good golly, this is just one day in the life of living the dream… The heavy pendulum of life swing back in the other direction and you’re back on top again:

-->You walk to the coffee shop in time to get coffee at 9:45am before class

...you’re casually walking down the street when someone calls your name, you turn, realizing it’s someone you knew in high school: you stop, you chat, you can’t believe it (this really happened)

…you get stopped by a Chinese person who asks you for directions (a very big feat if it happens in Chinese, which it sometimes does and you feel awesome afterward)

…you run to the gym, don’t feel tired at all during your 40 minute cardio-fest, rocking out to the tunes of Frank Sinatra remixed with Lil Wayne

…you run home and realize you have made room for that 20 mins to read a leisure book before bed

…it’s 11:30pm, lights off. You know you’re going to get your 8 hours of fine rest.

It can go both ways, taking it in stride is the difference between living life and extremism.

Formula One Racing in Shanghai

Late trains never happen in China. When a train is late, about 1,000+ people are stranded, waiting and irritable in train stops all along the prescribed route. Did I mention that standing in line a foreign concept to the Chinese, as well?

At any rate, I’ve gone to Shanghai six times since the end of February and my train has been delayed 50% of the time. This is a new phenom, my friends. It's never happened to me before March of this year. It’s unexplainable. I’m stumped. This, however, is doable if you can gird your loins and your temper and just go with the flow (being jostled to and fro, of course).

The central Shanghai train station is a nightmare when a train arrives. It’s even more so when the train arrives at 5pm on a Friday night. As I am not a wiz a math, I will explain this in simpler terms:

(Surplus people + taxis shortage) * 1000 people with frayed nerves + Fri night = “Wow, I can’t find a legitimate way to get to my hotel…”

So, I hailed a motorcycle:

Exhilarating.

I got on the back of this electric bike with my bags on my shoulder (I packed light, thank goodness) and zoomed off in between the cars in Friday night Shanghai traffic. It was only $3.00 –US dollars—for the ride. Convenient and fun, what’s not to love?

I had the good fortune to meet up with my friend, Pam, in Shanghai (I visited her in Taiwan last week). She was in town to watch Formula One (Euro car racing, anyone? I’ve no idea what this is except the cars go faster than NASCAR). Many people were excited about this race and traveled from near and far to see it.

The race is over, Jensen Button won—racing for McLaren— and now there is a big problem. This problem isn’t in China, though. It’s halfway around the world.

Who would’ve thought that dust and ash could be such a problem for the entire planet?! I certainly didn’t, but then I got back to basics, studied some science-like stuff and realized that wind can blow ash – from, say, a neighboring Icelandic volcano named Eyjafjallajökull—all the way across the European continent. Flights were canceled wily-nily by the UK, France, Germany, and Russia. If you’re traveling that way, it’s enough to make you say, well, Eyjafjallajökull .

The weekend was quite exciting in Shanghai. I've new restaurants that I must review in my coming posts. It's thoroughly exhausting having fun. I'm back in Nanjing with my cup of tea and a good book. I'm about to rest but then again, I have some work to get done early in the morning before class on Chinese ethnic minorities. Can't catch a break, can we?

Eyjafjallajökull.

who knew watching TV could be so helpful?

It's late, I'm tired and the only thing between me and this weekend is an essay that I am writing for my Chinese Interpersonal Relationships course. What did I choose to do my paper on? Taiwanese Soap Operas.

Frankly, I've watched a lot of Taiwanese dramas. Ask Chris (Caterpillar Killer), my mom, Joey, Sydney, KTBrooks, or anyone who I've gone to Chinese school with and they will tell you... I've made more people watch Taiwanese TV who never would have watched it than Jackie Chan has movies made. I must say, I love them.

The ones I am writing about are these: Hana Kimi, It Started With A Kiss, Fated To Love You, and SMILING PASTA (of course).

They all are very telling about Chinese society and how love is viewed. Mostly, these dramas are about how men are awesome, smart, powerful, and gifted. The women are portrayed as always needing assistance, helpless, and pretty dumb. Love that relationship, right? No wonder everyone over here really wants a boy, rather than a girl...


At any rate, here is PHOTO TIME::
Migrant workers in Nanjing:















National Palace Museum (in Taipei, Taiwan):


Me, at the American Chamber of Commerce Charity Gala (Shanghai):

Whoa. I am home from Taiwan.


What can I say? Taiwan is an interesting place. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the China mainland / Taiwan relationship, please continue reading as I will brief you a bit for further understanding. For those who are familiar, please skip down to the section ***(~.~)***:

History Brief 1: Mainland China believes that Taiwan is not it's own country. China believes that Taiwan is a province of China and will be treated as such. In mean terms, the big bad Chinese government in Beijing can, will, does control Taiwan. Even though Taiwan currently has a democratic government, holds elections, and functions relatively free of Mainland Chinese influence, Beijing still maintains that it controls Taiwan. This is the present situation and, although the reasons behind animosity are steeped in history, I will spare you the long explanation of why China-Taiwan relations are like this. But where am I going with this?!

I am going here: ***(~.~)***I found that the Taiwanese do not like Mainland China, what it represents, and especially their tourists, despite the fact that the mainland tourists contribute mass sums of money to be able to visit Taiwan. It was disconcerting. I have only lived in the mainland and felt myself strongly tied to defending the big bad government. What an interesting thought~~ BUT-- enough of my internal struggle with how I really feel about a communist regime...

I visited many places while in Taiwan. I went to Dragon Boat practice with Pamela (the friend who I was visiting) ((Dragon Boat is rowing/crew on steroids)). We went hiking, sat in the hot springs, went to the night markets, ate stinky tofu, and went to the National Palace Museum! The sad part is that I was sick for the entire week and it also rained every 20 minutes for the whole week. Overall, if I were in my 'native' town of Nanjing, this would have put a damper on my mood; yet, Pamela and I supported one another through the week with Airborne, tea, and good spirits. We hit all the bases, went to see the memorials, ate all the fun regional food and didn't let anything stop us on our way.

That is all for now, my loves. I will now digress into Chinese Story Time and pictures:


CHINESE STORY TIME:
The National Palace Museum in Taipei is interesting for one main reason: none of the artwork is native Taiwanese. It is mostly from China. Why would the Chinese put all their cultural relics in a museum in a remote island province and not in Beijing? They didn't.

History Brief 2: Chiang Kai-shek, Mao Zedong's adversary, left mainland China in 1949 because he could not succeed over Mao. Poor China was too engrossed in setting up its new regime that they turned around and found that nearly all of the portable pieces from the imperial collection had been carted away by Chang Kai-shek to his new residence (Taiiiwan) ... it's very much like traveling: you make sure all your big, checked luggage gets safely to your hotel, reach for your wallet to tip the doorman at the hotel and *oops*, someone stole your wallet! -- That's why the Palace Museum is a figurative sore spot for the Chinese mainlanders.

At any rate, we continue:

I went to the National Palace Museum on my own on a rainy day. I was excited. In 2006, I had taken one of my favorite courses at Middlebury on Chinese Painting (Berninghausen, for all your MiddKids). This class really meant a lot to me. It opened up Asian art, de façon générale, to me in a new way. I enjoyed it, I studied it, I loved it. I couldn't wait to get to Taiwan to see these pieces I had studied, since most of them were not in China proper, for reasons aforementioned.

Long story--short, the Museum is too small to display all the pieces at once and not one of the paintings I wanted to see was on exhibition. They had a special exhibition of some unknown artist's work ... I felt miffed, cheated, wronged. So, I did what any mature 24 year old would do: I moped in the museum gift shop.

I was staring at big bowl full of plastic Buddhas when a young kid came up to me and, in broken English asked, "Hi. -- Could you-- be here-- on this?? __", and pointed to his book which was, no doubt, a worksheet from school. I asked him, in Chinese, "Are you here for school?" and he just stared at me, I believe a bit shocked. ((really, what foreigner speaks Chinese?!))

I read the question he pointed to and it said "Find a foreigner at the museum, as him/her where she is from and get a signature from that person." I smiled, sighed, told him I was from America, signed my name. Good deed for the day? Check.

Little did I know that I then became a cultural phenom, myself. Gobs of children (ages 12-14) came to me, asked me in broken English to, "please, name -- ok? -- on my --- write it here" and after I had a mini - lesson on how to say "Please, will you sign your name?" (I made each of them ask me, themselves; what is life without practice?) I felt like I was at the Oscars. I signed so many autographs, I consciously started thinking -- Natty, you have to find a better way to shape your N's, they are ugly.

So after this, we took a huge photo: me and my new friends and I talked with their teacher for a bit. Then I realized why I was so interesting: They were from a remote part of Taiwan. They had never seen a foreigner speak Chinese before. They never knew any foreigner who could write characters before.

They had never seen someone in person who was not Chinese before.


PHOTO TIME:
Cori and our "fruit beers", which tasted like concentrated Luden's cough drops:


Men's Dragon Boat practice:















Getting my hair washed!















Acupuncture on my back/neck:


(This actually felt very good and relaxing. No, the needles did not hurt!)














At Chiang Kai-shek's memorial:


This is an enormous memorial. For the record, I am the one standing in the middle of the doorway with my hands up in the air.

I can hardly see myself!









Taipei 101, taken from Elephant Mountain:


This is the tallest building in the world with habitable floors. It's meant to look like a bamboo shoot.

(NB: Burj Khalifa in Dubai is the tallest building with habitable floors to date, but no one lives in it, so it can't claim it's fame just yet).

Taiwan or Bust!

Hello, Friends!

I have had quite an adventure since last week. I got over part 1 of midterms well enough. Friday night, I left for Shanghai. Saturday morning, I flew to Taipei, Taiwan (where I am now spending spring break!) It's been a fun adventure so far...I am very very exhausted.

It's actually a wonder how sitting in hot springs for 60 mins can just suck the life out of you. I have no energy right now! I must buck up, though, because I have a big night ahead of me~ We are going to explore the night markets and find some yummy things to eat.

A few nights ago, I had my first experience with 臭豆腐 （pinyin: chou4dou4fu3 ::: English Speakers: Cho-doe-foo). That is directly translated as "Stinky Tofu". Wow. That's all I have to say...it smelled about as good as walking behind elephants on a hot day in Africa...woof! -- I've heard tell that stinky tofu smells bad but that it tastes good. In times past, I have avoided this food because I just couldn't deal with a food that has so much aromatic personality but this time I was convinced to try it. I must say: since smell is 80% of taste, my suppositions are confirmed: this stuff also tastes like dragon. yuck.

Taiwan weather is rather rainy. I went hiking up Elephant Mountain yesterday. It was a short hike and I got to see a great view of Taipei 101 (the tallest building in Taipei, 101 floors). It was a great, short hike and left me sufficiently out of breath. At the top, there are Taiwan's 'homeless dogs', which are coincidentally homeless. Yet, the native Taiwanese hikers seem to notice them and bring them food all the time. This was sweet, although you won't catch me petting any of them.

That is all for now, Happy Passover, Easter and Spring Break!

Love to all,

Natalie xoxo 桑嘉雯