Quinn Makes Friends in Shanghai

Here's the shot I was going for when I was interrupted by the two boys.

After lunch on our first day in Shanghai, I took off from the group to try and capture some interesting photos. I was wandering down an alley, trying to shoot a photo of an old building with a modern skyscraper behind it. Before I knew it, two kids came tumbling out of one of the alleys yelling at each other and playing a game. I snapped a picture and the kids freaked out, yelling and hiding from the camera. Not wanting to bother them, I started to walk away, but they quickly followed me down the alley. When I turned around, they would run away again laughing.

Playing in the street

Needless to say, it turned into a game of hide-and-seek with the camera. I would try to take their photo and they would dodge and run trying to avoid it. They even spoke with me in English for a bit, which suprised me. A majority of the adults here don’t seem to speak English, so finding five-year-olds who can quote Star Wars is astounding! I was a little worried about their parents getting upset, since they were playing with a stranger and all.

Hide and Seek!

At one point a mother did come out, but she simply stood in the doorway, watching and laughing. She didn’t seem bothered at all by the large blond-haired man watching her children which was fortunate for me and my photos, I guess.

This boy decided to smile for the camera after all.

Elana Altman and I finished off the day by finding the fake market/mall: floors and floors of fake goods piled on top of each other. We learned that you should only go into shops where people don’t hassle you as you walk by. And bargaining, what an experience! As Americans you become so used to taking the price you are given and having that be fair. It’s certainly not up for negotiation. Here you have to barter and sometimes threaten to leave and be kind of a heinous individual to get a price you think is fair! It’s a hard thing to do. It’s almost like putting on a small play every time you enter a clothing store.

The day ended with a nice reception at the American Consulate in Shanghai (you can read more about it in Robert’s post).  Everyone was all dressed up, having dinner and drinks out on the lawn. By the time it was done at 8pm, jetlag was impossible to fight and most everybody called it a night.