Arrival

As this is my second night in Suzhou, I thought I would reflect on what I have seen and done these past two days. I survived the plane ride and arrived in Shanghai around 1:30 pm. I was amazed at how quickly I was in and out of the airport. There was no one on line at customs and my bags were delivered quickly. The driver was waiting for me as soon as got out and had the engine running by 2:00. The ride to Suzhou was interesting to say the least. This was my introduction to Chinese drivers and now I know that I will never want to drive here. There seem to be no rules. When the light turns red, cars still go. Everyone seems to want to be first, so we were constantly being cut off while cutting off others. However, there never seems to be any hard feelings or road rage. In fact, it seems as if this "road aggression" is completely natural.
Upon arriving at the hotel, Jessica and I moved into our room, which is spacious but has its little quarks. The only channels on the tv are in Chinese, the air conditioner leaked into my suitcase, and the shower doors do not close. Also, the beds are rock solid. It actually hurts to lie on your side, but thanks to the joys of jet lag, the pain is barely noticeable.
The weather is ridiculously humid. I feel like my hair will never be the same. Today it rained a bit and the breese was a welcome relief from the heat. The Happy Hotel is located on Shiquan Street, which is the main drag in downtown Suzhou. Suzhou is most definitely a city, with a population of six million. Jessica told me that it is also one of the wealthiest cities in the country, due to the amount of international companies that have offices here.
Speaking of international, there quite a few "ex-pat" hangouts. Last night Jessica took me to three bars/clubs that are frequented by internationals. It seems like everyone knows each other that the ex-pat community is fairly small.
One thing I noticed when people watching at the coffee shop this morning was the lack of birds. I was so surprised to not see any pigeons wandering the streets. Jess suggested it might be the pollution.
Today I received an unofficial job offer. Jessica put me in touch with a woman that she had met who was looking for an full-time English teacher. Tomorrow I am going to meet with her and possibly sit in on some classes. Things certainly move fast here.
Jet lag is starting to set in once again, so I am off to bed.

En Route

As the countdown begins I've been trying to pull together a packing list and pure panic has set in! Who knew that I would need toiletries and a new wardrobe to last me an entire year? There must be shampoo and lotion there, right? As I make mental lists of the clothes I must acquire from the Loft Outlet before I leave (employee discount - whoo!!) and then count the money in the bank, reality sets in. I am going to teach English to people I cannot communicate with!

While searching the world of blogs I discovered this video (via MetroDad) and found hope. Despite language barriers, everyone connects on one level or another. Take a look.

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.