November 14/2018

We continue to get conflicting google results when searching “most populated cities in the world.” Shanghai comes up as much as Tokyo so since we are in Shanghai, we will go with it.

Our flight from Hong Kong was a bit tight. The airline that we flew was not equipped with Western Canadian seating. Luckily it was only a two-hour flight so I endured. I really enjoy the flying time to get writing done. The past 10 days has been such a chaotic whirlwind that finding time to document has been hard. Here in Shanghai, we are starting to sloooowwww down a bit so Patty and I will have a bit more time to blog and edit videos for your viewing pleasure.

Landing in Shanghai and accessing the airport was a treat. Another over stuffed bus and a driver that was confused between brake and gas pedals made for a lovely intimate ride across the tarmac. Nothing overly surprising and I am getting used to the “sardine” feeling. Beefed up security and multiple checkpoints sees us gradually getting through customs and on our way to the Shanghai subway!

A quick ride to the interior of Shanghai and I mean QUICK. WE took a train known as the MAGLEV Train. Magnetic Levitation. Not only does is NOT TOUCH the track, it doesn’t touch the track at a top speed of 300km/hr. Wowzers… Peeling ourselves from the inside of the train walls, we ascend into a new world. The city at night resembles an Asian Las Vegas. Its already the most exciting city that we’ve visited and we haven’t even begun!

Our maps app doesn’t seem to be working so we have to basically wing it and head down the road looking for our place. I’m not gonna lie, after the Hong Kong experience, I’m a little apprehensive about where we will be staying but keep a positive attitude. Along the way I spot a miscellaneous Canadian having a beer and he plots the address into his phone to direct us to our lodgings. I know… Not smart, kinda. Well he was Canadian and we needed help. Don’t judge.

I cannot believe my eyes when I see the building that we are about to go into! Heavenly…Two security guards outside pulls a big weight from my shoulders. Now to get this backpack off. As we jump in the elevator to head upstairs there are nothing but smiles all around. The hosts “auntie” opens our door and welcomes us in Chinese. Zero English, google translator and a bunch of hand gestures and we finally settle in to a most glorious room for the next 4 days. All of us are hungry and tired so we will head down to brave the night streets of Shanghai.

Once again, I am blown away! As soon as we enter a restaurant across the street to order take away Chinese food, one of who I can only assume is an owner, helps us with spotty English and google translator. The food that will feed the four of us comes to $14 CDN and it looks DEEEEELISH. Stopping off to grab a bottle of wine, I lack a bottle opener but… no problem! The store keep opens it in the store for me! Yeah!!

I am on cloud nine and VERY impressed so far with Shanghai.

November 15/2018

What a great sleep in our sweet beds. Now to find some coffee. We still have the issue of washing our clothes. We can hand wash them like we did in Hong Kong but ALL of our clothes are dirty so perhaps we look for a laundromat. Here in China, I’ve noticed that clothes are charged by the piece for washing. Not the load. We will have to investigate a bit more but the need is most definitely there…

Score…

The host has set us up with use of a washer upstairs on the 19^th floor but the language barrier is coming at me strong. Google translate is not working well with the “auntie” and she seems to want me to sit and wait for the load to finish (1 hour). I’m thinking that patience here in China is much more easily brought to one’s surface then it is in Canada. I slip out the back way while she isn’t looking and rejoin the fam.

Nanjing Road awaits! Only a few blocks from us, but we need to stick around close for our laundry to finish. They are kind enough to allow us to use the machine so we best be there when it’s done. We decide to go for a little walk to waste the laundry hour and head out to view The Bund Financial District and the buildings across the Huang Pu River. Seeing all the famous buildings and of course the Bund Bull that has been in countless movies was incredible. The Pearl Tower, The Shanghai Tower, The Jin Mao Tower and others were all amazing to be in the presence of first hand. We will try and get closer another day. The weather is not cooperating with us. After a nice snack it’s time to head back to grab our clothes. We are met by “Auntie” with wet underwear and laundry soap in hand. A quick thanks and she is on her way! My plan is to sneak back later and complete our laundry.

I’m calling it “Operation Skidmark.”

Free of laundry woes for the time being it is time to spend the day exploring once more. Little did we know that our track would be slightly derailed by my pre-trip idea of getting a tattoo of every country we visit.

I had forgotten about it all together until out of nowhere, we land in front of the NOW FAMOUS, Dragon Tattoo, Shanghai. My new best friend, David who doesn’t speak a lick of English but has a killer translator, agrees to ink my shoulder with a kickass rendition of….

THE GREAT WALL of CHINA. Hell yes…

The vision was to tattoo something of significance to each country we visit forever etched into my skin. (I’ve done dumber things… Don’t judge) I wasn’t super confident how this would turn out but one has to have faith. David offers me a smoke and starts to draw. Once the drawing is completed, he shows me and I look at him puzzled. This for $880 Yuen? Can we show more detail maybe? He laughs as its translated back and confirms that there will be more detail as he works.

An hour later I am shown an absolutely insane rendition of the wall. This is just the beginning and I couldn’t be happier!

Note: Canadian skin is much tougher than skin in Shanghai. He had to change needles because I had “leather skin.” I’m hoping it was that and not the fact that the needle had had too many uses already. I do have my Hep A and B shots so… All Good.

A walk down Nan Jing Road is next on the list. Rain has now set in so the walk will be quick. Remembering that we had not registered with the Police department finds us sitting for 20 minutes while the local cop shop does its business. High prices are the name of the game on this road. The RODEO DRIVE of Shanghai does not have the DEALS that I seek so it’s back to the room for us!

I strategically plan “Operation Skidmark” (aka: do our second load of laundry) to take place while everyone is at supper. I do not have permission to enter the room with the washing machine. I am a bad ass. I jacked the code earlier.

I know…

Tom Cruise kinda shit…

The wait for the machine allows me to catch up on the blog but as I write, it is time to recover the goods.

Wish me luck…

Operation SkidMark was a success. We did have a blip on the radar screen but managed to avoid detection. When I got to the washer after 40 minutes, it was still washing! Shitballs! Reading a Chinese washing machine was not difficult for me because I just reverted to my now second language, Mandarin.

Total lie…

I can’t get the machine to stop, can’t get the door open and obviously, CAN’T GET MY CLOTHES! I have no idea what to do and am starting to freak out. If you get caught breaking in to a room that isn’t yours to do secret laundry in China I imagine it’s not a free pass…

Time to call in the reserves!

PATTY!!!!!

Turn, click, open… Like Nothin’.

Let’s get the hell outta here and go eat some supper and have a good stiff drink. The bad-assery has me a bit jittery…

November 16/2018

The sweetest nights sleep precedes our day of exploring Shanghai… IN THE RAIN! Dagnabbit… As it turns out there is a local coffee joint right on the corner outside our apartment. Two “Latte hots” cost me around $7 CDN. I am happy to pay that for the convenience and the taste for sure.

We have no set agenda today thus far but will head out soon anyways to do some exploring.

We must make lemonade of these Mandarin Oranges! Headed out across the Shanghai Jungle in the rain, we have shirked our “out of place feeling” of being from Canada and replaced it with the “out of place feeling” of being the ONLY ONES without an umbrella. Luckily Patty forced us to bring our raincoats so we are at least dry sore thumbs. Shanghai is home to one of the most visited museums in all of China, The Shanghai Science and Technology Museum. I was pumped! There has GOT TO BE state of the art shit going on in here!

Luckily it was a dreary day, a Friday and EVERY SCHOOL IN SHANGHAI decided to show up. Well holy oriental jellybeans…

I thought Hong Kong was busy? This place was off the charts. So far Shanghai, being one of, if not the biggest city in the world (depending what day you google it) has been very easy to get around. WE are in a shitstorm of lunch-kits and little kids.

Carry on Canada! The kids are excited to see what’s in store so we trudge onward. We start at Animal World and really get a taste of what this museum is all about. Fantastic displays of incredibly horrible taxidermy and models from… 2001. Dang it.

Many of the displays are broken or not working and much of what it has to offer is very old. I suppose it IS A MUSEUM and the kids are having fun so we all make the best of it. I will be doing a special blog of world’s worst taxidermy at some point and there will be many animals from this place in the blog…

The downtown business district is also our aim today. We are hoping to get up to one of the observation decks and check out Shanghai from up high. The subway proves to be full again as usual. This still takes some getting used to. I have used public transportation maybe 3 times ever in Canada and now it is our main way to get around. Climbing out of the subway station we are greeted by the Oriental Pearl Tower! This radio and TV tower is 1,535 feet high and was the tallest structure in China until 2007 when it was surpassed by the Shanghai World Financial Center. The “bottle opener” building was the highest structure in China at 1621 feet high before being surpassed by the Shanghai Tower which is a whopping 2,073 feet tall and the second tallest building in the world. These three monster feats of architecture are a big reason to visit this wonderful city. I was overly impressed. Unfortunately, most of the WFC and the Shanghai Tower were in the clouds but being at the foot of these behemoths was treat enough.

The rain weighs heavy on our ambition scale so we decide to head back through, “do you want bag”, “do you want watch” tourist market and home to have a mid-afternoon nap.

Deep into crazy museum calm down coma, I hear a loud BANG!!

For some reason Lela decided to play reverse pogo stick and land on the top of her head after falling off the bed onto a hard wood floor. Nap over… A few cuddles and a quick eye exam to debunk a possible concussion, we hit the streets to dine early at our now favourite restaurant, “not too sure what it’s called.” The owner has greeted us every time, helped us order and along with one who I suspect as another owner, laughs and jokes with the kids. We have enjoyed eating here very much. Authentic Chinese food that the kids love for a reasonable price. Can’t ask for more. As we leave, we ask for a selfie with our new friend and of course he obliges. Sad that we will not be returning, we share a quick hug and off we go. Up to the room it is!!

HOMEWORK TIME!! Yeah!! The kids are super excited…

I am imagining an early bedtime tonight. We would like to hit the Yu Gardens early in the morning when it’s nice out before our train/cab ride to our next hotel. WITH A POOL… Hell ya baby!

November 17/2018

Shanghai has one more spot of interest on our radar. The Yu Garden or “Garden of Happiness” Well, shiver me timbers… Let’s go there! A sweet surprise was having to pass through the Yuyuan Tourist Mart or “The Tourist Trap of Happiness.” The busy as fuck alleyways of trinkets actually impressed me. The architecture was really cool and the store keeps wanted to barter. I finally found a ballcap. I have gone almost two weeks with no hat. I know… Poor me.

Anyways, super excited to see the exceptional garden in question. The Yu Garden covers about 5 acres and is divided into 6 general areas. All littered with waterfalls, rosewood pavilions, towers and pools of overpopulated Cod Fish.

It was most definitely pleasant to the eye but once again, it being a tourist destination, the blonde kid paparazzi were there in full force.

I am getting a tiny bit tired of the whole spectacle that we are inadvertently making of ourselves but we have to deal with it and may as well deal with it in a pleasant manner…

PHOTOBOMBS IT IS!!

Our tour of the garden had to come to an end as we needed to be out of our room at noon and on the subway to our next hotel… On the WEST SIDE. The subway is beginning to grow on me. Anywhere you need to go for around $3.00 CDN for the whole family. Not to shabby transportation I’d say…

We emerged at the National Exhibition and Convention Centre. Something was going on but we had no idea what. Anyways, we found a taxi, used some sweet Mandarin on his unsuspecting ass and he led us right to our next pad…

The Hyatt Place is a 4.5 star hotel along a major thoroughfare in West Shanghai. Unbelievable! Under $100/night gets you these sweet digs. I am again, impressed. Close to shopping, eating, travel route and it has a pool for the kids. I recommend this place bigtime.

It’s not like us to shut down the day at only 3.5km walking so Patty takes us on a tour of the major shopping centers to find Reid some goggles (which proved very difficult as there were ZERO sporting goods stores anywhere) and buy some food. This was key to topping up our walking total to 10.5km or 16,000 steps.

Thanks Hun!! I couldn’t have imagined finishing off the day with less than 10k on my shoes. I’m going to need new skins by Vietnam at this rate…

A nice dip in the pool and a cool as ice debate with the lifeguard (yes lifeguard at the hotel pool) about the difference between jumping and diving and its off to the room for our relaxing Chinese beer and some cup o’ noodles… Jealous?

November 18/2018

A rainy day in Shanghai is actually just what we needed to recharge. Puttin’ on the kms like we have has us sore, tired and a bit stressed. The travel life as a family is not all roses and rainbows. Yes, we were made well aware of this before we left. The 8 hour of child schooling break that we got back home doesn’t exist now. It’s 24/7 with the family… Together time at its best.

I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Our “chill day” still doesn’t seem like one. There is homework to do, reading in both English and French as well as writing and video editing to do. We have basically brought our hectic life in Alberta to foreign countries. Fuck we are smart, SMRT… smart! We chose this life for the next 9 months and we know it but still, even after only 2 weeks, its tiresome. With a video edited and downloaded to YouTube for the Dapp, Alberta Grade 2 class, we head down for an expensive hotel lunch because its pouring outside. Nap time for Momma (she has been instrumental in the child learning portion and website editing), iPad time for the kiddles and work time for Dad. I take this opportunity to give a shout out to all of my agents that have been home toiling in the trenches and making shit happen. Wyatt, Kerry, Cheyenna, Marissa, Christy and Jon and of course our fearless leader Tim have all been keeping the business running smoothly while I am traveling the globe. What’s funny is, is that this is the perfect type of business to be involved in if you want to do what we are doing. Working my own hours and operating on my own schedule only goes so far. The time change has to be taken into consideration in order for the wheels to spin perfectly. So far, It’s been seamless… For this I am thankful. As I sit here eating Wasa-peas (wasabi peas) and drinking a nice glass of wine, I wonder why more people don’t reach out and find out how I am doing it. There’s no magical sauce. Just hard work, ambition, determination and creativity!

Sounds like a pitch for recruiting into my business… (pm me if this is you) LOL

This day has also given us a chance to reach out and chat with our friends. Reid chatted this afternoon with some hockey pals and I did with a friend I coached with as well. It was nice to hear familiar voices even after such a short time abroad. For this too I am thankful.

Patty and the kids are enjoying a splash in “over regulated” pool while I sit in silent bliss but the supper bell is ringing and I must go find it. Not willing to pay insane amounts for food any longer here at the hotel, I must leave the grounds and head out into the Shanghai darkness. Luckily, I am close to a yellow belt in Tai Kwon Do and have been in many bar fights… 20 years ago. I’m sure I’ll be fine.

The rain is light but the night is dark. I know where I’m going but have no clue. One rather nice-looking young lady runs up to me and grabs my arm. Usually this would mean that someone may need my help but since I don’t know the difference between her being a hooker or wanting to sell me some corn, I release the grasp with my ninja like arm whip and double time it to the “Big Mall.”

We are staying within walking distance of two malls. “The Small Mall” and “The Big Mall”. In case you hadn’t figured this out, WE named them. I know… Creative eh?

The small mall is absolutely DEAD. Unreal considering the number of stores within its confines. I am not sure as to why this is so. It appears that they may have had a flood recently. Perhaps the same culprit that flooded and wreaked havoc on Hong Kong a few weeks ago?

The again, maybe it’s “The Big Mall” and its monopoly on the clothing lines with all of its outlet stores and bigtime mall sex appeal?

Nevertheless, the BM is what I’m seeking… (see what I did there?)

Arriving at BM, I am noticing a SHADIER look to the residents then earlier this afternoon.

Ohhh! There’s the bank machine. In goes the card and out comes the Yuan. Operation food location shall commence. That was less dramatic then I set out to make it but I am tired…

Food and beer on hand, compliments of “Small Mall”, (I share the wealth. Shop local), I scurry on back to the room and am greeted by 3 happy faces who wished for them to be stuffed with Raman noodles and cucumbers… It was my turn to cook.

A good night sleep is in order. We have a MASSIVE DAY planned…

November 19/2018

Little do the kids know that we have had this day in the back of our heads this whole trip. They have been troopers. It’s difficult for them to be thrown into a whole new world every 10 days or so and forced to eat weird food or speak words they have never heard.

Today, being a nice sunny Shanghai morning deserves nothing less than…

DISNEYLAND!!

Yes, the happiest place in the world. Shanghai Disney is home to the BIGGEST DISNEY CASTLE in the entire Disneyland chain! Score…

(I will save you the Disney play by play. Words cannot express the joy on my children’s faces when they saw the Pearly Disney Gates and enjoyed 8 hours of unending fun. I visited California’s Disney many, many…. MANY years ago and still remember how happy I was… Reid could not get enough of the Tron ride and Lela met a princess. I just cannot capture this day in words. You must look at the pictures to really FEEL how the children felt. I recommend Shanghai Disneyland for sure if you make it to this city. I love my kids and was more than happy to share this with them. We are truly blessed to have experienced this with them and will never forget it…)

Eight hours and 17km walked later, in the Happy Kingdom has proven to be quite the tiring experience. We have a silver lining in our shit cloud though. We don’t get on our plane until 2:20am… so we have plenty of time to get to the airport. FML.

The kids are gassed and we are on our last leg but we have to trudge on. There will be time to sleep at the airport and on the plane. Yeah right…We all know how that works out.

It works out exactly how you can picture it. A shitshow. Alas, we arrive and make it work. The children manage to have some sweet sleep time though so they don’t end up being spawns of Satan later in the morning so for this I am thankful.

Shanghai has been one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to. We didn’t have time to check a whole lot out but I would recommend this city to any traveler.

Good Night from Shanghai!

See you in…