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430 km/h and you don't feel a thing!
I’m already a little tardy on my posting, as these “first impressions” really constitute my morning after impression! Regardless, the photo above says it all in terms of where China is in their path to ‘developed nation’ status. The Maglev train, traveling 430 km/h, took us from the airport to downtown Shanghai in 7 minutes. By the time I took a few photos of the speedometer, it was already time to get off the train!
The 14.5 hour flight yesterday was a breeze; it’s funny how you can get used to that level of discomfort, once you do the journey a few times! As always, the person in-front of me in the Continental sardine box didn’t realize that his chair wasn’t broken, just that he was trying put the chair through my kneecaps. We came to an agreement in the end; I put my knees on the back of his seat, then forced him to where I would allow his seat angle to be. Problem solved! Speaking of the Continental flight, I thought it was special that there was a bit of ‘rain’ on the inside from condensation moving through the cabin by the overhead bin. Thankfully, it wasn’t dripping on me, but the guy across the aisle from me wasn’t so lucky.
After getting situated at the hotel, me, Ryan D., and Vijay headed over to Ian’s flat, literally across the street. From there, we had a traditional “Ch-Ian-apino” dinner; not quite Chinese, not quite Filiapino, tasty all the same. Mushroom soup, mixed veggies, black bean chicken, pork dumplings…and ample beer. Ever the gracious host, Ian already had a few cold ones waiting for us when we got to his flat on the 19th floor, and I was 
able to partake in one really tasty brew called Suntory. For all you Dukies on the way, Suntory obliterates Kingfisher in terms of taste and drinkability. It’s good with food, it’s good alone…it’s good for when you are walking down the street (I did all three!) I’m still getting used to the fact that beers outside of the U.S. are a half-liter, or even 600 ml like this Suntory was.
After a long night of food, fun, and good friends, I got back to the hotel around 12:30 a.m., and promptly passed out. I think it’s fair to say that there will be some jet-lag today…at +12 hours, I’m at the exact opposite of my normal schedule. In a few hours, I’ll be back on a plane, off to Guilin Airport, to eventually land in Yangshuo. This ought to be a fantastic few days!
In other news, grades finally came out for the 3rd semester, so I guess we can finally pronounce that chapter in our MBA experience to be complete. I can’t say I’m disappointed in my grades, but I didn’t get the double SP that I was hoping for. I’ll settle for the SP in Statistical Modeling though; I’d have been completely embarrassed otherwise.
Safe travels to all of you still in transit! Oh, and btw, for all of my fellow Mountain Dew drinkers, I found the tasty green elixir no problem yesterday. A residency first!
Andy, let me get back to you on that one. I actually haven't spent any time in Shanghai yet, other than landing and having dinner. I'll be returning to Shanghai from Yangshuo this afternoon, and from there I'll actually be able to answer!
Not that London wasn't fun or anything, but you guys are going to have a blast with Shanghai/China as the first residency.
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