...and since they're just first impressions of the last week, they could be totally wrong from the norm. But here we go:
-Spitting on the sidewalk is totally fine. And it's really not the spitting that bothers me, it's the wind-up to the pitch; that sound that can compare to nothing else other than (maybe) a goat's dying breath. Spitting on the subway, however, is a big no-no.
-The Nanjing subway is actually pretty new! There are three lines crisscrossing through the city and the suburbs, and a trip can cost anywhere from 2-4 yuan depending on distance. I'm wondering how long the metro will stay nice and clean because...
-...Buildings around here tend to fall into disrepair pretty quickly. The school I'm teaching at was built in 2003 and already has paint peeling off the walls, broken projectors... And I'm talking this is the most prestigious private school in Nanjing. An eight-year resident expat explained it to me, that the idea of cleaning a public building is pretty much to "push all the dirt to the side" and leave it there to accumulate, plus oftentimes the buildings aren't made out of the best materials. There's a real sense of 'inside' and 'outside'; your house is 'inside' and you take immaculate care of it, whereas public buildings are 'outside' and it's not your job to keep them nice. (Even if it, well, is your job.) It's just a really interesting thing to see. In seven years this school building looks like it's been through 15 of kids traipsing through it.
-Nanjing is one of the Four Furnaces of China, and not because it's hot. Rather, it is actually a furnace put on Earth to torment people who have to wear slacks to work and feel a waterfall of sweat down their backs for about seven hours each day. I think I've taken two showers every day so far, because I am a gross barbarian normally and when it's this hot out I turn into a less friendly version of Shrek.
-When it's not hotter than a Pizza Hut pizza oven outside, it's probably because it's either late at night or raining. When it rains, it pours. And in Nanjing, when it rains, you get so wet that you're pretty sure even your liver is soaked. Note to self: Invest in a pair of rainboots.
-I bought seasons 1-6 of House on DVD for 60 yuan, about $9. That's not an observation, actually--I'm just bragging. (And when I say 'DVD' I mean that in the sense like a hired escort is your 'date for the evening'. It looks pretty, but it's not really legit.) However, it's illegal for me to take these DVDs out of China at the airport. Luckily I have a few months to ponder that.
-Traffic jams can last up to 11 days on the way to Beijing.
-I really suck at eating soup dumplings. You're supposed to maneuver these dumplings with both a spoon and chopsticks, bite the top, let the soup drain, drink it from the spoon, then eat the dumpling part without burning the roof of your mouth off so everything tastes like rubber for a month. I need more practice so I don't look like the dumpling is smarter than I am when I eat dinner out.
-Iron Maiden and Kiss are great, but even if you do like heavy metal, you should probably stay away from eating the seafood most times. Too much mercury is a bad thing. (Unless it's Freddie Mercury.)
-Don't drink the water. Even if you go to a hotel, check first if you need to boil it. In offices, there's usually a safe water cooler to fill up your travel bottle with.
-You have to pay to get into public parks; it helps flip the bill for their upkeep.
-While there are certainly a lot of people here, there's not nearly as many as Tokyo. I haven't been squished into the subway to the point where I'm lifted off my feet. (Yet.)
-And yes, there are certain pages on the internet that are blocked. For example: Twitter, FaceBook, ImageShack, Flickr.... and Google Documents just went down yesterday.
-There are churches in China. I saw a Catholic one in Nanjing just the other day. Yeah, color me surprised; I thought religion was a big no-no too. But the recognized religions are apparently allowed to have churches, temples, etc. So far I've heard of Islam, Buddhist, Protestant and Catholic places of worship being allowed. China, you surprise me.
Anyway! That's the quick and dirty of it; I'll try to have pictures and something substantial up the next time.
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