METRO, A Measure of Behavior
CSP10 - Entry 05 - Beijing
From my 64 days in Shanghai and counting, my theory is that if you aren’t a pusher in Shanghai yet, you better become one.
In Beijing, it’s another story.
Maybe it was because of the time of the day or the subway line that we were using, but Beijingers are just so much more civilized. Is it because of the police, government, or foreign diplomats that come to Beijing?
What makes Shanghai so much more aggressive than Beijing?
Just like New Yorkers say they are from New York, a Shanghai-er who tells you she or he is from Shanghai, isn’t really from Shanghai. They usually come from cities close by.
If you ask my parents where they are from, my parents will proudly say that they are from Shanghai. But the reality is, although they were born in Shanghai, they can trace their roots to Ningbo and Shaoxing. Both sides of the family traveled to Shanghai for exactly what the World Expo preaches, “Better City, Better Life.”
Shanghai is constantly flowing with people from the countryside. And to them, living in Shanghai is a competition of the “survival of the fittest.” You can experience the “aggression” in Shanghai, daily. On the bus, once someone gets up from a seat, another person is quick to take it. On the subway, the doors open, and people rush in trying to battle for a seat. At the train station in Xi’an, there was a volunteer at the bottom of the escalator leading up to the platform, constantly said, “bu yao ji! (Don’t be hasty!)” That would never work in Shanghai.
Pushing is one thing. And talking is most definitely another. Because of all the pushing and hastiness, Shanghai people are stereotyped as loud, condescending, shrewd, and calculating. But what people don’t often realize is that their attitudes are just shields. The way they speak sounds like yelling, and a result non-Shanghainese people will instantly perceive Shanghai-ers as rude and loud. The fact is, in Shanghai, when it sounds like someone is “yelling” at you, they may actually be praising you. It’s just like that old Cingular Wireless commercial where the tone of voice doesn’t match the meaning of the words.
So don’t feel offended when an old Shanghai woman points her finger at you and “yells” at you to tell you that the amount of clothes you are wearing is not enough in a air-conditioned restaurant. She is just looking after you.
___
Tips for the Shanghai METRO Newbie:
1. Don’t follow the signs on the floor of the platform. They tell you to stand on the sides, while the outgoing passengers leave from the middle. If you follow these signs, you will never get on in a crowd.
2. Don’t feel offended if everyone stares at you when you board the subway. Chinese people love to stare.
3. Whatever you do, don’t stand in the connector between two subway cars on Shanghai METRO’s No. 2 Line. The wind combined with extremely bad B.O. will make you wish you never stepped foot onto the METRO.
4. Stand with your feet wide apart and facing towards the door (surfing stance) if you want to avoid touching handrails. It makes you look like a native.
5. Don’t be afraid to push your way in and out of the Shanghai METRO. It’s the only way that you can survive. In Shanghai.
