We use the subway a lot. It's convenient and efficient, as long as you don't mind massive crowds. Sometimes we'll take a taxi if we are carrying a heavy load (like when our microwave broke and we went to purchase a new one, or like when we're hauling a crock pot full of food to the church for a luncheon). On Wednesdays, we teach English to 40-100 medical professionals and medical students at a hospital, and we usually take a taxi, because that is one place that takes longer on the subway. Taxis are relatively inexpensive.
We can use a "Didi" app to order a taxi on a phone. It's pretty simple, really. Especially for non-Chinese speakers. You put a pin on the pickup location and a pin on your destination. A driver accepts and shows up. They already know where you want to go by the pin, so no language skills are needed. As they never speak any English, this works well. We usually use it to order a taxi, as then it's on a meter and we know how much we owe, also without needing Chinese language skills. You can also just order a Didi driver like ordering an Uber driver. On the day we're discussing, John orders a Didi driver instead of a taxi driver. Same concept, except no meter - there was an estimated price, and they had a discount, so it would be about 30 RMB instead of the regular 40 RMB for a taxi. We got to the street, our pickup location, and the phone rang.
This is never good. It means the Chinese-speaking driver is going to talk in Chinese. And we won't understand each other. So, John hands his phone to the girl working at "The Fry Hut." They have English on the menu and usually speak some English even though they are Chinese. She talked to the driver in Chinese - for quite a while - then gave his phone back and came out of the store. She went down the street a couple of stores to the dry cleaner's to get the woman that works there. They talked to each other in Chinese (turns out to translate what the driver said to John) and then the woman from the cleaners told him that the driver was stuck in traffic, so he needed to cancel the order and request a new driver.
John does this. And Didi evidently hasn't canceled the order or something, as when he requests a new trip, he gets the same driver. Then his phone rings. It's the driver. He speaks Chinese. John hands his phone to the girl in the Fry Hut. She talks to the driver. Then comes out of her store, goes down the street to get the woman from the cleaners. She comes out to talk to John. The order hasn't cancelled. He needs to cancel the order and start over. Didi doesn't seem to really cancel the order. The driver knows he's not coming. John knows he's not coming. The app doesn't seem to know this or want to know this. So, we give up. We hail a taxi the old fashioned way. John shows this driver a map of where we want to go. He doesn't speak English - no surprise. He takes us to the hospital.
On the way, John gets four phone calls from the Didi driver. He doesn't answer any of them. Nobody in this taxi is going to translate anything to English for us. Answering will be frustrating for all involved. He keeps ignoring the calls. After four calls, a new number calls. John isn't fooled. It's still going to be regarding the Didi trip. He doesn't answer - just replies with a message "I can't talk, please text me." This happens a couple of times. Then he gets a text. Didi has cancelled our trip request. Good. Exactly, but he is also told to "please leave your phone open next time." It all works out eventually. We did get to the hospital and taught our class.
A few more "life in China" examples, in pictures.
Pickups trucks don't seem to exist. But bicycles with a pickup style bed do. And they haul everything. Pipes, furniture, water bottles - anything and everything.
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| Seen going down the sidewalk by our apartment. |
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| How water gets delivered to our apartment. Oh, and notice he is on his phone... |
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| A moving "truck" |
Brooms used by workers to clean sidewalks or streets are made of bushy branches. They seem to be rather effective. They are the only style we ever see being used out of doors. They're used daily, all year long.
The motorcycles and electric bicycles are often dressed up. Usually, the purpose is to keep hands warm in the winter, deflect rain or chilly air, etc. but the colors and creativity are interesting. Some as simple as using bubble packing envelopes to protect the hands. Some much more colorful and decorative....
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| The quilted fabric creates a shield for the legs and body of the driver, whose hands slide into the mitts on the handlebars. It's a coat shared by driver and cycle. |
To finish this week's update - a new picture of campus. Our campus changes every week. Not always a new building, but always new colors. We surely enjoy the variety and beauty!
Have a great week wherever YOU are!
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