Golden Week

As the first day of Golden Week approaches its end, I wonder to myself how I manage to still be tired during the holidays. I get my regular 8 hours of sleep a day, I eat well, and exercise on occasion, but I guess Shanghai is just too much of a fast-paced city for me!

Last night, most of the program students left for Guilin, a scenic province 2 hours away by plane. The remainder of the IES students went out for real, American burgers last night! We went to People's Square (basically, downtown Shanghai) and ate at this place called Malone's. The burgers were huge, and everyone was so full and satisfied by the end of the meal, even though the food was expensive (compared to Chinese food here).

Afterwards, we just walked around People's Square and enjoyed the cool weather. These past couple of days, Shanghai has cooled down and it's no longer stuffy or humid! What does that mean for me? No more mosquitoes!!

Today, I went to Qi Pu Road with a bunch of friends, and bought presents for people back at home. Qi Pu Road really sucks the energy out of me though. I have to push through huge crowds, and deal with vendors harassing my American-looking friends. But, I guess it's understandable because everyone is trying to make a living here.

I'm getting ready to head out tonight and go bowling with some friends, so I'll leave this post with a couple of pictures:


My Shanghai Metropolis group in front of the Urban Planning Exhibition Hall


Inside the exhibition


Love for "Gumbi" (aka: the World Expo mascot)


Some classmates from Metropolis class


Somewhere by People's Square, after Malone's