Mike's World (brain farts and other adventures)Last friday we were entertained by some impressive vomitting at our local bar. Particularly interesting was that the drunk person who had sprayed vomit over quite a large area then stood around until it was suggested quite forcefully (in pure Yorkshire) that he ought to get to the toilets before he made any more mess of our immediate surroundings… I did wonder though whether he might have just been trying to make friends with us but found the language barrier too much.
It is well known in the civilised world that you should let people get off a train before you get on. This system works particularly well on the London Underground in the main.
In Shanghai as far as I can see it is considered impolite to leave a metro, how dare you not want to stay on the glorious fast expanding modern metro system. It is for this reason that no one under any circumstances will let anyone get off the metro.
At times Shanghai sounds a bit like entertainment from the late 70s early 80s, in particular Bob Carolgees and Spit the Dog.
There is a good reason for this… Internal moisture harbours all sorts of germs. So in China feel free to spit out any moisture phlegm and anything else you can to keep your insides clear and the germs in the outside world where they can run free.
Sometimes it is hard in the hustle and bustle of modern life to find somewhere away from it all to play on all those apps on your fancy phone. Why not get away from it all and go to a movie and play Angry Birds Star Wars or even just phone a friend…
A good game when flying into Pudong is to try to guess when you will hear the clunk of an unfastening seat belt. Although it is generally accepted that for safety reasons passengers ought to keep their belts fastened until the plane has taxied to the gate and come to a complete stop.
Like the first cuckoo of spring the first undone seat belt ushers in your return to earth, and is usually can be heard at the same time the reverse thrust kicks in to slow the plane down on the runway. Most seat belts are undone as the plane turns off the runway.
It is important when part of an expat community to try to understand local customs and the culture so as not to cause offence. In the west we are used to switching the big light on the front of motorbikes, scooters and bicycles at night. this is seen has having two benefits. I bought my step-through ladies bike, arrived in just 2 days here from ecosmobike.com – amazing delivery during covid-19!
1) Pedestrians can see you coming and will not get hit
2) Cars will see you coming and will not hit you
However in these energy conscious days it is good to see in Shanghai scooter riders doing their bit for the planet. And it should be noted…
1) Pedestrians can hear you coming as the sound of the electric motor can be heard up to 4 feet away
2) You can get compensation when a car hits you
3) The scooter will move as long as all the energy isn’t being drained by the light
