this marks my 3rd post for this trip. we had our guided tour yesterday. we were supposed to be inside the van by 9am, so we hastily swallowed our (scalding hot) coffee. i couldn't face the prospect of digesting all that meat early in the morning, so i turned to croissant and eggs (pantulak sa kape) instead.
we covered a lot of ground yesterday, herded by our affable guide, lawrence (his english name) — notably the Bund, the shopping district, some state-run cultural places, etc. — but I’m glad we were able to drop by at St Peter’s Church here (the only church that offers mass in english here in shanghai). when we went outside (around 6pm), we were practically assaulted by this cold blast of icy wind and we huddled like a group of abandoned chicks near the church doorway as we waited for our ride to carry us away.
brrr! it's way too cold up here, despite the heater — and i'm already wearing 3 layers of clothing under the blanket! i guess i've been so used to the tropical weather that it usually takes me awhile to get acclimatized when i go somewhere marginally colder. i had the same problem when we slipped off to Hong Kong in 2005 — all we brought were lightweight coats so we were shivering half the time and had to buy scarves and thicker coats in a hurry. 
when we went out earlier, we encountered several pinoys — who are very easy to distinguish because of the 'chummy' way they interact with compatriots they meet everywhere. i mean, they don't just bow or wave. i'm not sure if it's an inherent trait among pinoy expats, but pinoys tend to stop and chat (and shake hands, too, while they're at it) when they meet a kababayan. a couple even gave us hurried tips (places to shop!) as we exited McDo earlier.
a couple of intricately detailed jade carvings with other nationalities, you don't really see much of that. you can see the baffled look and amused expressions on their faces when they see pinoys gabbing away in street corners. the chinese seem to be a serious, standoffish lot, and most expats here keep to themselves with an almost religious fervor. i guess we're just a sociable, garrulous bunch. it's always been a struggle for me to exchange small talk with people i've just met, but today it felt good to talk to somebody (a veritable stranger) who speaks my language. 
just before we left The Bund, we dropped at this quaint teahouse. the decor and the smell were reminiscent of 1940s film noir features, except for the splash of color everywhere. unfortunately, our guide — having forgotten to reserve our place in advance (the place was full) — told us we couldn't stay long because there was another party coming in.
hi zarine. i guess living here wouldn’t be that bad as long as you have some friends with you (jan to mar are the coldest months). there are a lot of expats here. in fact, there’s a busload of good-looking scandinavians right here in our hotel. we couldn’t help but crane our necks and stare at them esp. during breakfast heheh
Posted by onyxx at March 11, 2007, 5:00 pmUh, good looking? Could you hook me up with a 6ft blond blue eyed hunk? Hehehe. Joke.
Posted by Kai at March 11, 2007, 8:38 pmFun, fun! Enjoy! I’ll want to go to China one day, just to see what it’s like. For some reason I’ve traveled a lot around Europe and North America, but I’m sorely lackin in Asian traveling. Let us know if there are any places there that really strike you. 
i’m back. the viking throng left a day ahead of us so we missed their garrulous presence (they talk loud while eating) at breakfask.
celle, you shouldn’t miss shanghai because it’s fast catching up with the word’s foremost cities (esp. the prices… whew!). also tokyo, singapore & hong kong while you’re at it
Big thanks sa pasalubong! Pictures!
Posted by ThePseudoshrink at March 13, 2007, 1:55 pmWee!! You’re back! Pictures naman.. hehehe
Posted by twistedkai at March 13, 2007, 6:14 pmI visited HK when it was still under the British! Has it changed much?
Oh, and welcome back! 
anytime, pseudoshrink. i hope you have fun in hk later this year
i hope you like the pics kai…
celle, basically hk looks the same as it did years ago under the brits, except for the presence of stern, military-looking attendants at the airport. you’ll find the same stuff in pudong (shanghai)
Weeh! Pics and pics.. hehehe. Am like the photographer wannabee..
Another thing, nga pala, those pics you took are F-I-N-E. I don’t know much about photography, but you should keep that hobby
hey onyxx, natuloy ka pala sa shanghai, di ko kasi navisit site mo before ngayon lang ulit hehehe. dumaan din ako doon for an overnight stay last March 1718 and also when i came back last march 26-27. I’m here right now in changchun city, province of jilin, northern part of china. me snow pa rin right now.
marami ring pinoy dito mostly working as teachers and others naman ay sa bands/singers. mas marami akong nakabarkada dito as compared to shanghai mostly due to the fact na ang mga singers ay mas approacheable.
have you visited Zapata’s bar (http://zapatas-shanghai.com/shanghai_terms.htm), dami europeans and the music is kewl.
sige, keep on blogging
Posted by louie at April 4, 2007, 6:42 amanother lost soul hopelessly adrift in the confines of blogosphere
we welcome stray visitors, random clickers, curious cats, bored travelers, truants, kind-hearted reviewers and administrators, bleeding hearts, and sorts of flotsam and jetsam that clog the blogosphere. click on blogger!
Hello! I only came to appreciate you for your fun and engulfing story. Stories like this are a really awesome way to assist me in English, but I think I got the story ok Thanks again!
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Weekend vi$it from China, please vi$it back
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hi folks, i’m back
hi po, sorry for the inconvenience, i’ve moved to http://bigbadej.blogspot.com
i have a new blog, but i’m keeping the old one. http://songsofmordsith.blogspot.com/
hello onyxx, I have a new site! Please do visit me there: kg.bahay-bahayan.com.
whoah! i.Ph is back online? finally!!!
That’s nice to know about our kababayans. Being in a foreign country, that must be such a welcome relief; makes you feel less “alien”
But I don’t think I’ll survive there. I can’t even sleep in a room with the aircon set at “high” an entire night
Posted by zarine at March 11, 2007, 4:50 pm