Shanghai is stressful and it is going to take more than one post to explain all the reasons why this is true. This is not a bitch post or a call for folks to take out their violins, because Shanghai is a wonderful city. Other places have their issues too. I want to spend a little time thinking about the things that make me go crazy so I can tell you how I work through them in order to get to the other side called peaceful compromise.
Modern life is stressful, because we are under all sorts of pressures for our time, attention, activity and resources. Superficially it appears that expatriates living in Shanghai are insulated from many of these worries. Money goes a lot further than in western cities. You can enjoy the good life as you free up time by paying people to drive you around, clean your house and cook your food. It is also a very safe place free of violent crime and terrorism. Look beneath the surface and it becomes obvious that Shanghai is a source of its own particular and peculiar stresses and strains.
Today I am going to dwell on the communications barrier.
An Englishman living in London can solve problems and get things done by virtue of being able to communicate with everyone. The same person may take comfort from being able to speak the global language of commerce, but that does not get you very far when you come to Shanghai and have to deal with taxi drivers and supermarket assistants. Even among English speakers, simple instructions often become garbled or reinterpreted. Ask to have the spelling of a student list updated and you may find that the id numbers you assigned have also been changed even though you never asked for this.
So you respond by taking the long road to making yourself understood by studying Chinese. You will only make progress in this pursuit by applying yourself with the ascetic discipline of a zealot. If I lived in Paris then I would become very familiar with French just by being there. The same is not true for Mandarin. It is totally unrelated to English and the writing system behaves like a form of strong encryption. At least the street signs and metro stations are in English, but the same cannot be said for menus in restaurants. There may be pictures to help, but the choices are often in Chinese text so you as a vegetarian don’t know if you are ordering aubergines or a deep fried chicken’s claw.
I have met foreigners who have jumped through several years of hoops to become fluent Mandarin speakers. Success opens doors to new jobs and business opportunities, but it also makes everyday life a thousand percent easier. There is nothing better for understanding Chinese culture. I have also met foreigners who are proud to have lived in Shanghai for many years without knowing more than a few words of the most basic Mandarin. The fact that I have not yet mastered this foreign language is something that I am deeply ashamed of. Shame is a source of stress too, but I can take a little comfort in the fact that I am here for the long haul and I am determined to get back in to Chinese study as soon as I am not too busy or tired. This is the procrastinator’s mantra!
Assuming you become a fluent Mandarin speaker, the problem remains that locals enjoy speaking very quickly, oscillating between Shanghai accented Mandarin and incomprehensible Shanghaihua.
Let’s face it. While you are stranded in Shanghai, you are doomed to waste time understanding and being understood. This is a big source of stress.
Before we start gathering the solutions, it’s useful to identify and explain all the problems. This will take a fair few posts.
Next post: Transport and commuting
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