Have I been here too long?

http://chinatravelgo.com/how-to-tell-if-you-have-been-in-china-too-long/

Every culture has its good and bad habits and often when you stay in a country long enough, you run the risk of adopting the bad habits. Listed below are some funny and wickedly true habits I’ve come across that will indicate if you have been in China too long and are being drawn to the dark side.

You stop saying sorry or excuse me when you accidentally bump people

You allow your children to openly urinate on the street

You always take the front seat when you catch a taxi

You never use the seat belt when you catch a taxi

You never ever leave home with out toilet paper/tissues

You never clean up your dog’s poo when walking it in the street

You stop cleaning your tray at McDonald’s or KFC

You stop smiling or being friendly to service staff

You no longer feel that yelling into a mobile phone at restaurants is rude or unusual

You start littering and dumping your trash on the street instead of the bin

You automatically haggle when ever you buy something

You now believe that queuing and waiting in line is for losers

You give in to peer pressure and start smoking every where. Lifts, restaurants, taxis…..

You have adopted the habit of loudly hawking and spitting

You never used to use your car horn, now you use it constantly at the slightest provocation

You are no longer worried about disturbing people and make as much noise as you want when ever you want where ever you are

You have given up on direct communication and are always looking for the implied meaning

You can no longer understand why copying and bootlegging is illegal outside China

Yes I have,  I probably do about 5 or 6(I'll let you guess).  There was culture shock when we came back from Japan after living there 9 months.  We were so used to the quiet and non-agreesiveness.  I wonder what type of culture shock I'll have after this time in China?  

http://chinatravelgo.com/east-vs-west-a-guide-to-chinese-culture/

check it out, very funny.

Last week I went to Jinyuan Yansha Shop Mall, supposed to be 1.5 times the size of the Mall of America.  I've never been to the Mall of America.  But this was very overrated.  I was not impressed, I basically went there to have lunch, I wanted something not fast food(McD's and KFC) and not Chinese, thought they would have a good selection.  No. But I did have pesto pasta, minestrone soup and drink bar for 26rmb, just over $4.  

I was talking with our Chinese cousin about this mall and they thought it was hyped up as well.  I'm sure they did have 230 escalators, but it was small compared to other shopping I've been to.  

One of my favorite shopping malls is Bairong World Trade Center, which I have been to twice before with my mother-in-law, via a complex bus change route and lots of walking.  So I researched how to get there faster and easier.  I took the subway and then the bus 1 stop.  Ta da! This shopping complex is 2 buildings of 5 floors connected by walkways.  Sometimes it's best not to come back to something, you may not find it again.  Picked up a couple of cute aprons(I always planned to make my own), but for 10 rmb, can't buy the fabric for that.

The front building at Bairong World Trade Center