Shanghai: Arriving and Surviving
Flying alone to China on China Eastern Airlines (now you've heard of it) without much of a clue where to go once I got there. A recipe for disaster? More like a recipe for a great blog post.
China Eastern and Delta partnered a few years ago and bang for buck, China Eastern will almost always have the best deal on flights to China and East Asia. By no means is it Cathay Pacific or Singapore Airlines, but that doesn't necessarily mean much when you're flying economy. And frankly, China Eastern has a hard product that can compete with the high-end airlines. A large TV screen, surprising recline, and a brand new 777-300ER make the experience bearable. Where China Eastern needs improvement is in the soft product. Very limited movie selection for English (and non-Chinese for that matter) travelers, quick and impersonal service, and suspect food to say the least. But like I said, it's all about bang for your buck. I mean, if I'm paying $600 round-trip, I can handle it. Also, don't expect a jet-way when arriving in Pudong International Airport. Of the four times I landed in Shanghai, three times we were met with a bus, packed in like a sardine can.
Lack of jetways at Pudong Airport sucks, but it's always awesome seeing the planes from the tarmac!
On the bright side, Chinese airports, along with train stations which I will get to later, are relatively easy to navigate and provide English signage. There are more than a few workers who know enough English to get you where you need to go, which I was impressed with.
China Eastern is beyond sketchy when it comes to handling luggage. Even flying in business class last year to Singapore, they lost my luggage, at which point Singapore Air came in like an angel from the heavens and flew my luggage in from Shanghai later that afternoon (example of the disparity in soft product right there). After waiting for what seemed like hours for my luggage, I had essentially given up and began preparing myself for the disappointment. But, luckily, low and behold, the last luggage out was mine and I had never felt so relieved. But nevertheless, this is an issue with China Eastern, and is something to think about when packing and deciding what to check in.
I'm traveling to Asia for leisure, but mostly for "business". I am minoring in East Asian Languages and Culture, so I am spending a month in Shanghai, followed by a week off to explore, then another month of class in Beijing. My Chinese is by no means fluent, but it is better than bad. I can get by fine with my limited knowledge, and knowing how to speak definitely makes the experience in China much easier. Compared to other Asian countries, most of the people living in China don't speak English, especially taxi drivers, so DEFINITELY have a note in Chinese showing the address of where you are staying, and maybe even a screenshot of the location on map because otherwise the cab driver will have no idea where you are going. Don't assume by saying, "Ritz Carlton" your driver will know where to go. He won't, and you'll end up on a Chinese rice farm, which granted would be pretty cool.
A thirty minute cab ride cost me 180 yuan, which was about $26. The conversion rate in China is about seven yuan per one dollar. We arrived at Shanghai Normal University late at night thanks to a three hour delay out of Los Angeles (again, China Eastern soft product). Even though I showed the cab driver a photo of the address in Chinese, he was not sure where in the campus to drop me off because I myself had no idea what building I was staying in. Luckily for me (I know, I got lucky more than a few times on the way over), a buddy of mine also studying abroad happened to walk by the taxi and see me, so he was able to guide me to the building from there.
There was definitely no thriving on this arrival, but granted it was quite the experience, and testing out my Chinese with some of the locals made for some fun stories.