It's A Start...
Walked to work again this morning, didn't get lost, but it was hotter and more humid (I was pretty sure yesterday that if it got more humid it would rain... clearly I was incorrect) so I still showed up to work sweating, but on time... I guess, I still haven't gotten anything that resembles an employee handbook and people come and go at different times in the day. Moving on. I did finally get an assignment this morning that I'll be working on for a while to track down all the health clubs, gyms, sports teams, etc. that expats use and compile a list, then get them to tell their members about the new orthopedic/sports medicine specialist at the hospital. I also get to give my first tour tomorrow... so that should be interesting, as I know some stuff about medicine, less about the hospital and basically nothing about Shanghai in general.
Had my first Chinese lesson with my tutor this morning, and I have a lot of respect for her because I pretty well butchered her language, but she claims my pronunciation is very good and that eventually I will be able to speak conversationally, or at least be understood by taxi drivers. Left work a little early and Alice took me to the big shopping district downtown where she bargained with an electronics store owner for a while and eventually got me a new cell phone for $50. And, the hospital picked up my SIM card and the service! Plus they managed to figure out today that there was a bunch of kitchen gear somewhere in "facilities" (like a warehouse, but instead of being in a separate building and well organized, everything is spread around the hospital where ever it will fit) that I could have and by the end of the day had tracked down an odd assortment and wrapped it up in a bed sheet... if I had tossed it on a stick and thrown it over my shoulder or balanced it in a seemingly impossible way on the back of a small scooter, I would have looked just like a local.
After the little shopping trip I took my first Metro ride, very successful. Other than the horribly over-crowded buses that sometimes don't have AC, the public transportation here is incredible. For 3 RMB (about 40 cents) I got across town to a huge indoor stadium where I met up with Lawrence from Patient Services and Sarah and did some indoor rock climbing... and discovered that I'm a triple threat on the wall; that is, I lack technique, am totally out of shape and have absolutely no grip strength. Fortunately it was super cheap, like everything except booze in this city. Exhausted, so I'm off to bed early.
Had my first Chinese lesson with my tutor this morning, and I have a lot of respect for her because I pretty well butchered her language, but she claims my pronunciation is very good and that eventually I will be able to speak conversationally, or at least be understood by taxi drivers. Left work a little early and Alice took me to the big shopping district downtown where she bargained with an electronics store owner for a while and eventually got me a new cell phone for $50. And, the hospital picked up my SIM card and the service! Plus they managed to figure out today that there was a bunch of kitchen gear somewhere in "facilities" (like a warehouse, but instead of being in a separate building and well organized, everything is spread around the hospital where ever it will fit) that I could have and by the end of the day had tracked down an odd assortment and wrapped it up in a bed sheet... if I had tossed it on a stick and thrown it over my shoulder or balanced it in a seemingly impossible way on the back of a small scooter, I would have looked just like a local.
After the little shopping trip I took my first Metro ride, very successful. Other than the horribly over-crowded buses that sometimes don't have AC, the public transportation here is incredible. For 3 RMB (about 40 cents) I got across town to a huge indoor stadium where I met up with Lawrence from Patient Services and Sarah and did some indoor rock climbing... and discovered that I'm a triple threat on the wall; that is, I lack technique, am totally out of shape and have absolutely no grip strength. Fortunately it was super cheap, like everything except booze in this city. Exhausted, so I'm off to bed early.
posted by Mr. Frisky | 6:49 AM
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