Day Two.... Happy New Year!

It is our second day here in Nanjing and so I wanted to provide everyone with an update. I guess let me start with our flight to the Far East.  Things started out a little hectic once we arrived at the airport as we noticed that the car seats were left behind at the hotel.  Not to worry, Nicole and Lisa (my cousins) saved the day and rush them over to us just in time (so thankful for their love and generosity)!  Once we surpassed this obstacle things went very smoothly.  The greatest challenge was getting eight bags checked-in followed by another four carry-ons and backpacks through security.  Cooper and Brady were angels on the plane.  They watched three movies each and then slept the remainder of the flight, love business class on international flights!  Once we arrived in Shanghai our friends (Thank You Turner Family!) had their driver meet us at baggage claim where he then drove our luggage to Nanjing (approximately four hours).  This made the transition to our connection so much easier!  Once we arrived at Fraser Suites our luggage was not far behind.  Adjusting to the jet lag is challenging.  I am finding that we are exhausted by 5pm each day, where the best strategy is to fight to stay awake until 9pm so that you do not rise at three in the morning but rather 6am.  As tonight is New Years Eve and we celebrate 13 hours ahead of all our friends, I am fairly certain we are going to crash early as we struggle to adjust to the time change. 

Day one in China involved Natalie unpacking our belongings (air shipment to arrive four weeks from now and then sea shipment another three weeks thereafter) while I made a visit to the office.  Aside from all the adjustments I am certain to encounter as I start my new position, for now I will try to write about the observations or experiences in the city the first few days.  What becomes very apparent is the rationale for our assignment of a personal driver while in China.  Although there are lines on the roads few chose to drive within the boundaries of the lanes.  It is a continual game of "chicken" as cars work into any open space freely honking horn's to alert one another, vastly different than the Michigander that quickly follows a honk by a middle finger.  However, it is not only the other cars that come into play.  It is the seven million people that are also walking or on motor scooters, same rules apply (see who gets to the open spot first).  We have found the English speaking Chinese which work within our building as a very valuable resource with translation since our driver speaks very little English and we are still learning key phrases in Mandarin. 

Also interesting to note is the fine dust/dirt that covers the city streets and cars.  I am finding that many do not have a strong regard against littering, often witnessing people throwing wrappers, etc onto the ground.  The litter is not that evident since the large population means the communist party seeks to employ many at minimal wages.  On the outskirts of the city, where we live, the dust is not that prominent.  I was quickly reminded of the large city population when I visited the bank to exchange currency.  It was similar to our experience's at the Secretary of State in the US, lots of people waiting for a number to be called.  I had 50 people in front of me however when we (realtor/translator) were told to just wait for an open number to be called (a process I did not understand, why then take a ticket in the first place)?  Perhaps because I was a foreigner they gave me some flexibility? 

For the past few days we have been eating our meals at the restaurant in our building.  We are enjoying the breakfast buffet that we will have daily.  However as the restaurant strives to provide "western" meals they are still a way from what we are used to.  As a result we quickly realized we must grocery shop.  Our first stop was China's version of Costco, called "Metro".  The similarities were the warehouse atmosphere and set-up of the building.  Many of the products are unfamiliar to us, since they cater to the Chinese desires.  There is however a few rows of imported products that we are able to chose from, imagine how excited we were to locate frozen chicken breast.  We then journeyed to another grocery store, however the selection was limited for "western" cooking.  As a result of all this, we are eagerly awaiting the arrival of our ocean shipment which will have many of the complimentary items for cooking that we have not been able to readily locate.  I noticed in the grocery store many people took great interest in looking at us, not in a rude manner but more of curiosity.  Of course Brady loves the attention and quickly says "Ni Hao (hello)!  It was so funny when we arrived at the Shanghai airport, Brady was walking around at ever person he saw stating "Ni Hao, I speak Chinese"...  LOL!

Our last stop of the day was to a McDonald's downtown, the boys had been bugging us to find one.  They were happy to find the food tasted exactly the same.  I noticed the workers in the restaurant were very busy and quick to fill orders, in addition to the cleanliness not typically seen in all McD's in the US.  It appear many young people used the restaurant as a gathering place.  In addition we were surprise to find out that our meal only cost 60 RMB ($10 USD) for the four of us.