The Wandering Monkey

Today was one of the more difficult days out here, but it ended alright. Expats out here have a thing called a "Bad China Day". No matter how much you may like the place, there are days you say to yourself, man if I see one more Chinese I'm going to burst.

I've not quite settled into my new place yet. I still don't have a few things like towels, silverware, plates, food, and such. Or a blanket. I'm living in a very nice part of town in a old neighborhood which is still in existence somehow. Right across the way is Plaza 66, a huge building with six floors of luxury Gucci-type shopping. On top of that is 60 floors of office building. It's one of the most modern-looking buildings in the city. I live right across from it, in a complex of six-story apartment blocks. None of them have elevators, but the area is basically clean and has some charm.

I am 'the white guy', as far as I can tell. I have caught glimpses of one other white guy, who may be living there or just a frequent visitor. I'm living on my own, which can be a bit of a challenge. When outide my apartment complex, I had gotten used to walking around the streets in public. But somehow I feel that awkwardness again when I am walking inside the complex. It's my guess that this area is one in which the Chinese do not expect to see foreigners. I have gotten a few dirty looks.

My landlord, on the other hand, has been enormously helpful. He does not speak English but his daughter does. They both came over today and literally spent two hours with me showing me how the bank works, where to go shopping in the neighborhood, and even fixed my cell phone and told me how the clothes washer works. I must admit their effort was above and beyond. After I left, I ran a load of laundry but the machine refuses to let me open the door. My clothes are still soaking in there to this moment. I didn't want to call the landlord because they had already spent the day with me!

And at the end of it I had to deal with the situation at one of our dancing nights. We had previously expected to have access to one of our venues on a regular basis, and we told all of our students to come there each week. As it turned out, a few days before our scheduled class the manager decided it was not OK to have classes there, which left us in a lurch. And, she cut our pay in half as well, which left us a bit confused and not feeling too positive. So this was my bad China day.

In the end it all went OK. Kellian and I agreed to meet and dance at the reduced rate. Many students were still coming, expecting a lesson. So we had explain to them what was going on. We did practice with them a bit until 9:45 when the band went on. The band was basically Jazz but they humored us with a few swing songs and changed the tempo on some jazz songs so we could dance. The audience responded very well. We made a couple more good contacts and most of our students were happy.

Kellian, through this kept a very good attitude. I was frankly quite pissed off and very grumpy. I felt very guilty for telling the students we weren't having a lesson and not properly warning some of them. But Kellian put a positive note on things. We danced with our students and helped a few of them learn some new moves. And, we found probably four more new students, too.

When we got to dancing, as sometimes happens, I took all of the negative energy and feelings that had been stewing inside me and I managed to turn them into positive energy for dancing. Really, honestly, if it weren't for swing dancing I don't know how I would handle this experience here in China. I don't know if I'd have the wherewithal to continue. Dancing is the one thing I do which always makes me feel good, and people who I cannot speak with I can still communicate with through dance.

So, in the end it was our last night at that club, as we had predicted. We are looking for another venue right now. But we left things on good terms. We can still pop in there and dance a bit and they don't mind if we pass out business cards and such. We handled it OK, with dignity and turned it into a positive night after all. I could not have done it without Kellian's positive attitude.

And so that's the end of my China day.

Things, things, things. Last night I got an apartment of my own. I got lucky on the location and price. It's on Nanjing Lu, which is really the center of town. And I just found the local Internet cafe. I signed the lease for 7 months, and for the first time I realized, I LIVE here. I'm not wandering any more, I'm here, living in China. Dang. Got the butterflies a bit. But I think everything will be fine so long as I keep my head up and keep moving forward.

Wish me luck!
-J

Tonight was the first night at the House of Blues and Jazz. At first we were worried; only six girls and two guys showed up. Then, gradually more people came in. In luck beyond prediction, two swing-capable guys were just walking by the door and they happened to stop in and we had a very well balanced class. We taught for an hour; about 16 people I think, plus four more who had never learned before.

There is one girl in our class who has been there from the very beginning. Neither Kellian nor I thought she liked it, because she didn't smile or get excited or anything, but she showed up again and every time we went out. We have also found two particularly lindy-capable people, one guy and one girl. We are going to bring them into the fold. It's hard to believe, but we are actually beginning a Lindy Hop scene out here. Kellian and I sit back and hold our heads sometimes in amazement.

On a personal note, today was what is called a "Bad China Day" for me, up until we started dancing. My phone is on the fritz; I can't accept or send text messages and people call me and say they can't get through. So I went to try to get the phone fixed and I realized I could not explain what the problem was to the people behind the counter. I didn't even know exactly where I was supposed to get it fixed. I keep on calling up my friends who are Mandarin speakers, and I think it drains on them sometimes. I feel a bit like a lost child.

But I met up with Kellian and she saw I was having a hard day and showed a lot of good spirits and helped cheer me up and get into shape for the event tonight. And that went just about perfectly.

Incidentally, we did a swing jam with Kellian as the main event. We also did the Shim-Sham, and one guy (named Z) lead us through the Jitterbug Stroll. We're going to polish those things up, and get our dancing more refined.

What can I say? I am very pleased.
-J

So we did get the offer to dance for that company I mentioned. I won't say it's name but it is a car company and it rhymes with m'ladies.

Tonight I went out with my old roommate Mike, who has returned from Germany. We stopped by Park 97, which is the big club out here, and I met up with I think 12 people I knew. I would not have thought about it much, but Mike -- who has been abroad for a month -- kept saying, "How do you know so many people?"

It is amazing it has been only two months or so now. I never could have imagined it would have come so far so fast.

We got the deal at the House of Blues and Jazz at our requested amount. And on Thursday a person from a company came to see our show and will probably hire us for a performance. More than that, she recommended we get an agent and said she could put us in touch with one. I think this is a good idea. Even though I can handle the business side a good deal, I can't handle as many contacts as an agent could. Plus, they speak Mandarin, now don't they?

I have been putting of getting a new apartment, but I really need to. I am now living with two very nice people, but the arrangement is not so keen. One is the apartment owner, who is a law student and a local. The other is a 25 year old girl from Germany, who is also very nice. However, living with a girl is not what I had in mind coming out here.

I'm not looking forward to the apartment search. The first time out I saw so many shitty places. I could not believe the agent was even taking me there. I wanted to say, "Look at me a second. You think I would want to live here?" The biggest problems in those places were garbage laying all about the outside, really shoddy construction inside (like washing machine exhaust tubes hanging across the public halways suspended by twine.)

The other problem with apartment hunting is the language barrier. The best deals can be found only from people who do not speak English. I think the thing to do is get the help of some of my Mandarin speaking friends to find reasonably nice places.

Today we negotiated for the House of Blues and Jazz. I'm pretty sure we'll come to an acceptable payment amount. Kellian and I have come to an agreement on division of responsibilities. When anything comes to money or techical business, she lets me take care of it. And it works pretty well. I play the hardline and she is funny, warm, and charming. The people we deal with can see both a kind heart and a business mind. It works very well with us together.

-J

OK, this is blogworthy.

Today we had our first paid class at Hot Chocolate. Kellian was a bit nervous about how many people would show up, but in the end we had about 20 there. It was more than even I expected. We went through the basic class, which consists of the basic step, rotating while dancing, inside turn, outside turn, and a dip. Everyone pretty much caught on, and in the end we asked who wanted to sign up for classes. Every single person present at the class wanted to sign up!!!

So this was a good night. Afterwards, two friend from Silicon Valley showed up, Carmen and Sanford. They brought with them two friends, and I for the first time played host. I introduced them to a few dinner places, Park 97, and the infamous Mao Ming Lu, which they all enjoyed. We talked and drank and they wanted to go home about 3am (lightweights!!!) :-)

During this night, we also ran into a unique thing. We found a mandolin-playing group from Madrid, Spain. They were all dressed up in Spanish conquistaor-type clothing, and they had capes and carried their instruments with them. Luckily, all of us got to see them play at Mao Ming Lu before my friends when home.

I chatted up with them a bit, then I decided it was time to head for home. So now I'm at the Internet bar near my house. This place is sort of a haven for me. It's a bit of a home away from home. I know all the people who work here (at least by appearance) and I check my e-mail and do my blog and play computer games. It's a bit of a retreat from all the chaos, of which there is much.

Anyhow, tonight was a good night. I spoke more Mandarin than my Silicon Valley friends and I knew all the places to go. I transformed today from visitor to host, all of the sudden.

Peace,
-J

Today I met with a balet and pilates instructor who wants to set up a school out here. We had lunch to see if we were on the same wavelength. It was a lot of fun, but her timeframe is getting something running within the next six months. Six months! Two weeks is Shanghai is one year!

Today the House of Blue and Jazz called us and wants us to do a swing dance night. OKEY DOKEY we say! Negotiation tonight.
-J

Dang, I almost forgot the most important part.

Several times I have seen people dancing out in public parks in the evenings, like around 9pm. I saw this on my first visit to China and several times on this trip. I always wanted to join in on one of them. This evening as we left Hot Chocolate, there were some people sitting around the park, perhaps six of them. There was Chinese music playing, but no one was dancing. Kellian and I walked past thought, "Hey let's do a swingout."

We stepped up and did some east coast swing. The music was so odd, even 'cheesy', but it fit in OK with east coast swing, balboa, and charleston. We danced one song, and afterwards usually we get some sort of reaction. Most people just sat there, but some guys by the radio clapped. "Again!" one of them said and put another song on. So we went again, practicing a few moves we had been working on.

Afterwards, and man from the radio and a woman came up to us. The man asked Kellian to dance and the lady asked myself. We danced in their dance style. It looked a little like tango, but it had a simple three-step movement. It also looked and felt a bit like waltz.

The woman dancing with me strongly backlead until I got the hang of it. Finally I took over the lead. A significant crowd gathered. From time to time I saw Kellian, and her partner was very good because she definitely looked like she knew what she was doing. I wondered if I did.

"Dui bu dui?" I asked my partner (Correct or not correct?)

"Dui," she answered, confirming.

We finished the song and exchanged plesantries with our hosts. "This is Chinese style dancing," the man said. "We are here every night. You are welcome here any time."

Today Kellian and I went canvassing for bars. We saw about five places, one of which looks very good for our needs. It's called "Hot Chocolate" and it completely done up in retro USA style. In fact, there is a Bleyer's swing dance poster on the wall. Neither of us think the owner really has any idea the significance of all that stuff, but it is all authentic. There is nothing out of place. We think he must have had a Westerner do the design work.

Anyhow, we talked to the manager, and he said we could use the place on Mondays. We're going back there again tomorrow to finish off the deal. I'd prefer Tuesdays because I think working people are going to be too tired on Mondays, plus Kellian has an English teaching job which runs until 6:30pm and we want to begin classes at 7pm.

Anyhow, we talked to the photographer today (with the help of my friend Ping) and we want to bring him to the Hot Chocolate bar for the photo shoot. I think it's going to be a good thing.
:-) J

In the next several days, we are going to "Lindy Bomb" several different bars. We're going out dancing and see how things are at different places. Perhaps we will meet some people who want to learn. Perhaps we will find a bar which would like to host a swing dance night.

Our target date for opening the class is Oct 15. We are going try to get the Website ShanghaiSwings.com up tomorrow (or at least designed) and we would like to take some promotional photos on Wednesday. The article in the paper is going to be published this weekend, so we would like to get the photos ready by then.

Zabi, my old roommate, has left back to Germany. I have a new roommate now, Henriette, who is very nice. She is tall and blonde and within the first two days here a modelling agent stopped her on the street. On Wednesday she is going to do some sort of television work. Dang! I want to do that, too! :-)
-J

I had the interview today and I will be published in the Oriental Morning Post, weekend English edition. I did a lot of newspaper work in college and it was odd (but cool!) to be on the other side of an interview.

Now I need to get to work on the ShanghaiSwings.com website, and Kellian and I need to refine our teaching methods. It's a bit chaotic right now. We're going to work it into something a bit more organized and keep it fun.

Still, with all this every now and then I walk down the street and I think to myself, "What on Earth are you doing in China?" I try not to think this too much! It has been good in many ways. I'm forced to keep sharp, keep current, and focused on the present and the future. Yep, yep, yep.
-J

Crazy, crazy town. I will meet someone new one day. Then, the next day I will introduce them to some of my older friends, and it turns out that they already know each other. This is a small town for expats.

Today I met with a woman who is considering hiring ShanghaiSwings! for a show in October. I hope it works out. So far shows are our only source of income. We are still teaching beginners classes for free. Our goal is to have a stable and profitable business by the end of the current month. I still sometimes feel hesitation about starting this project, but I think that's probably normal. Also, it's simply too late to turn back now!

Tomorrow I have a interview with a local Shanghainese newspaper. I met the editor at a networking meeting and he seems to think my story is interesting. I've never been interviewed before! This I am looking forward to.
Peas,
-J

Chinese Negotiation
It would appear that the Chinese have a way of negotiating which is characteristicarly their own. The thing I have been told is, "Do not ever show interest." If you do, you will never get what you want. You must always, for instance, if viewing an apartment, say that you hate it. Point out the flaws, the faults, and how much it costs over what it should.
I learned this lesson