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Leaving from Vancouver

We’ll skip the long and boring flight from Vancouver to Shanghai!

When I first arrived in China I did so at Pudong airport in Shanghai. Pudong is a new and very modern airport

that looks and feels very much like any large airport in North America with one small difference. Everyone speaks

Chinese LOL (Laugh Out Loud).

I was expecting a long and difficult process to pass through customs. At the minimum as a round eyed hairy

barbarian I expected a search of some part of my luggage and a stiff “Your Papers Please”. What I got was a

cursory inspection of my passport and visa and a cherry “Welcome to China”. I was through Customs and

Immigration faster than any one of my numerous entries to the US. I later found out that teachers are listed as

not only very desirable people to have come to the country but there is a long tradition of holding teachers in high

esteem. This apparently goes back thousands of years to when the Emperors of most of the ancient dynasties

held the teachers of their families to be like one of them. Unlike many other countries China realizes the need for

education, especially higher education. My new employer was unable to meet me at the airport but he did give

me detailed instructions on which bus to take to the hotel where he was to meet with me the following morning. I

was bagged after 16 hours in the air. (Vancouver to San Francisco to Shanghai). I was able to get on the right

bus, wrestle with my 3 huge pieces of luggage and suffice it to say check in, get undressed and fall into bed

completely exhausted. I slept for about 12 hours and was awakened by my employers call to my room.

After cleaning up and meeting him for a late breakfast he helped me to check out gather my bags and make the

trip to the train station where I was to catch a (soft seat) express to Nanjing. Alas when we arrived at the station

all of the seats were sold out for the 2pm express so I was forced to stand for the whole trip. I was fortunate

however to meet up with one of the faculty from the school in Suzhou by the name of Hart, who assisted me in

manhandling my bags onto the car and stacking them in the space between cars. My employer lives in Shanghai

and offered to make the trip with me but it would be a long day and I was being met in Nanjing by staff from the

school. There is no space to store large pieces of luggage on the train. By the way it seemed that there were a

million people at the train station in Shanghai. This could be close to real as there are 18 Million people in

Shanghai and on a Saturday there easily could be up to 700 thousand travelling by rail. Rail is the most common

way of transportation in China (except for bicycles). The cost to go between Shanghai and Nanjing (the capital of

Jiang Su Province) on a soft seat express is 80 Qui ($16 Can). By the way the money here has three names,

RMB which is the official name, Yuan “¥” or Qui. Anyway after Hart got off in Suzhou a young man introduced

himself to me as Freeman. His English was very good and he offered to help me with my luggage and even

offered me his seat for the rest of the trip. I thanked him but said I would stand and just watch the scenery. After

the next stop (there are only 3 on the express) Wishi, he got us both seats together where he proceeded to tell

me about himself. He looks about 16 years old. He is a doctor specializing in immunology and has spent the day

in Shanghai picking up blood cells he will use back in Nanjing for experiments. At this point he flips open his shirt

pocket and produces a small vile with a yellow looking fluid in it. “These are the cells” he explains. He proceeded

to tell me his whole life, what his hopes and expectations were, how he planned to do his PhD in medicine in

Canada then return to his small city (I later found out to be only 2 million) and work to help his people. We talked

for the next hour and a half almost steady. He wouldn’t let us stop because he needed to practice his English and

in truth I was very interested in what he had to say. Anyway we finally reached Nanjing. Freeman gave me his

mobile phone number (everyone has one in China) and asked me to call him once I was settled. I agreed and

after the two of us struggling to get the luggage off the train and through the station I was met by staff from the

school. This was a pretty easy process as I was the only foreigner on the train. Remember it’s not like the rest of

the world. In Asia you stick out like a sore thumb. They all introduced themselves and between the three of them

carried all of my luggage to their car (a Volkswagen Santana, sort of like a Volkswagen Fox back in Canada,

bigger than a Jetta). We all piled in and proceeded to my temporary digs, a hotel close to the school. From the

time we pulled out of the parking lot until the time we arrived at the hotel I must admit I was scared shitless.

Everyone drives where and when they want to. Lines on the street mean nothing. Everyone cuts each other off

and no one seems to care. It’s a little like bumper cars without the bumping. Another long day! Once I was

checked in I went straight to bed, forget about eating or anything else. I would face tomorrow when it arrived, but

God here I was in Nanjing China!

My Journals

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