CAPA WORLD

Trisha is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. An International Business major at Champlain College, she is studying abroad in Shanghai this semester.

In this week's post, Trisha writes about the consumer culture in China and explores the mall and fake markets where she also experiences the bargaining culture in Shanghai.

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Something intriguing I’ve been observing since our arrival in Shanghai has been the wide spectrum of consumer culture in China. Upon my arrival, I was well aware of the traditional politics of the country’s communist state, but I had never seen it in practice. I was anticipating having to adjust to a strong contrast from the capitalist market I’d grown up with. However, this turned out to not exactly be the case.

One visit to any mall here and you can see not only how many western brands have been integrated into the Chinese economy, but also just how heavily western marketing and capitalist ideals have begun to ingrain themselves within the Chinese culture. Walking through retail stores at the mall you’ll definitely find that familiar sense of attentiveness to the consumer, clean-cut displays, ostentatious sales discounts, and an assertive yet restrained desire for your business.

Trisha is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. An International Business major at Champlain College, she is studying abroad in Shanghai this semester.

In this week's post, Trisha visits the Yu Garden on a My Global City outing and shares some fun observations from her experience.

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During my first two weeks in China, one of my favorite first places that we visited during a My Global City event arranged by the CAPA staff here in Shanghai was something that piqued my interest at an earlier outing. Our first weekend here, CAPA resident director Colin Speakman took us to see the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center, which was filled with scale models of many of Shanghai’s most famous sites and tourist attractions. One of the models that most caught my eye was Yuyuan Garden.

On the way to Yu Garden.

The following week a small group of students and myself were led by CAPA on the metro to see this beautiful place for ourselves. The Yu Garden was originally built in 1559 during the Ming Dynasty by Pan Yunduan as a pleasure for his ancestors in their old age. The garden itself is more temple than garden, with beautiful structures spanning the entire course. You can walk through almost the entire thing without ever having to step out from the shade of a rooftop! Amongst the beautiful foliage there are meticulously placed small tiles forming stone paths spreading out in every direction and bordering the ponds of giant koi fish.

Jolena is an official CAPA vlogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Finance and International Business major at University of Pittsburgh, she is studying abroad in Shanghai this semester.

In this week's post, Jolena talks about taking a sleeper train to Hangzhou, visiting West Lake, and getting a chance to experience Shanghai Fashion Week.

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In this blog post I’ll be describing our CAPA excursion to Hangzhou and attending a Fashion Weekend event in Shanghai!

Two weeks ago, our CAPA group set out on an adventure to Hangzhou. We took the sleeper train which was a really cool experience. The sleeper train is basically broken into sections with six bunks within them. It was something I’d never experienced before, and as cramped as it may sound, a lot of us agreed that we really enjoyed our naps on the train. While you’re on the train there are also snacks, such as fruit and different beverages, being wheeled on carts and sold for a small price. Before long we arrived at the Hangzhou Railway Station and our hotel was conveniently located right next to the station! It was an unfortunate first day due to rain, but we managed to walk to the West Lake and have a brief walk through before we all decided to return to the hotel and stay indoors.

“Connecting Global Cities” is a monthly column written by Colin Speakman, Resident Director for CAPA Shanghai.

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There are times when studying abroad that important global events occur and this provides the opportunity to examine them in a different culture.

 Photo: Shanghai, the world's top cargo port by value from Colin Speakman

In the second half of the 1980s I was teaching International Economics and International Finance at an American university in London—where there were more than 100 nationalities on the campus with a significant percentage of students from the U.S. There were some important events to use as case studies.

Jolena is an official CAPA vlogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Finance and International Business major at University of Pittsburgh, she is studying abroad in Shanghai this semester.

In this week's post, Jolena shares what it's school is really like on her study abroad program in Shanghai and the differences between classes in the U.S. and China.

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How has it already been a month since I’ve arrived in China? Time is moving unusually fast, and it’s hard to believe how confused and out of place I felt a month ago. Now I’d say I’m able to live like a local by going through the basic motions of life without fearing that I’m going the wrong way on the subway or ordering a mystery meal while out.

And now that life in Shanghai is in full swing that means going to school. Being an international student is such an odd concept. Back at home, we barely see the international students around or interact with them—and it’s pretty much the same here and I feel like I’ve reversed roles. The international students interact with each other because we’re pretty much on the same boat, whereas we don’t really have classes or chances to meet native Chinese students. It’s a bit unfortunate, but I can understand because the school system between countries can be very different.

“Connecting Global Cities” is a monthly column written by Colin Speakman, Resident Director for CAPA Shanghai.

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New York may have been unhappy at being knocked off the top spot on A.T. Kearney’s Global Cities Index by London, but they will be happier to note that a survey of global cities by “economic power,” compiled by Oxford Economics, puts them at number one.

Photo: George Washington Bridge from public domain

Economic power here is measured by GDP of different cities when converted to U.S. dollars and Oxford Economics have produced an interesting list. However, there are some important caveats. Firstly, the survey is future focused to project the ranking by 2030, not the current state of play—and things can change.

Jolena is an official CAPA vlogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Finance and International Business major at University of Pittsburgh, she is studying abroad in Shanghai this semester.

In this week's post, Jolena finds out what it's like to watch a movie in Shanghai and tells us why this global city has it all.

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This past weekend I got the chance to watch a Chinese movie at the theater, go out for a hot pot dinner, and visit the Yuyuan Garden!

What is the Movie Theater Experience Like in Shanghai?

On Friday a group of us went out to watch a movie at the theater and then get hot pot for dinner afterwards. Many might ask, what’s so special about going to the movies in China? Well in comparison to the U.S., it’s a bit different. What sparked the interest of going to the movies was that a group of students wanted to see Black Panther, and it’s offered in 4DX here. 4DX isn’t common in the US and I believe there’s only a handful of theaters. Here, we were able to find one pretty easily that was close by and for a decent price. Although many wanted to see Black Panther, I, and a few others, opted to see Operation Red Sea, a Chinese action/war style movie.

Jolena is an official CAPA vlogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Finance and International Business major at University of Pittsburgh, she is studying abroad in Shanghai this semester.

In this week's post, Jolena takes part in a CAPA Shanghai excursion to Suzhou and visits Zhujiajiao to experience more of China.

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And just like that I’ve been in Shanghai for two weeks. Although the first week felt like a vacation it soon came to an end as we quickly dove into classes. I can’t comment much on school yet because the only classes I’ve had so far are through East China Normal University’s (ECNU) Global Chinese Program; and these were Chinese and Chinese Philosophy. This coming week I’ll be starting my Global Business Institute classes, so I’d consider this week my first “real” week of school. Once I’ve experienced them I’ll be sure to update but today I wanted to talk about last weekend’s CAPA excursion and the ECNU excursion I went on yesterday.

Last Saturday we visited the “Venice of the East,” aka Suzhou. We woke up early to get to the subway and rode a few stops to Shanghai railway station. From there we rode the high-speed rail which was a cool experience. We made it to Suzhou in 25 minutes when it typically would take hours by regular train or car. To be honest, we were all pretty worn out by the end of the week and were expecting to nap on the train, but within a blink of the eye we’d arrived in Suzhou!

Jolena is an official CAPA vlogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Finance and International Business major at University of Pittsburgh, she is studying abroad in Shanghai this semester.

In this week's post, Jolena gets acquainted with Shanghai and shares her observations about this big city.

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It's been a week and a day since arriving in Shanghai and things have been pretty wild. But at this point in time I'd like to say that I feel pretty integrated which is surprising. I didn't think I'd get the hang of things this early on.

The first couple of days we had CAPA orientation. We were shown around campus and the city and were briefed on our classes for the semester. We got to know where to buy our basic necessities, and we ate good local food! We ended the four-day "orientation" by going to the Bund—probably the most iconic view of Shanghai.

Jolena is an official CAPA vlogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Finance and International Business major at University of Pittsburgh, she is studying abroad in Shanghai this semester.

In her first post, Jolena lists 3 packing tips to help you start your study abroad journey on the right track.

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I have had my suitcases out and open on my floor for the past two weeks because I just can't seem to commit. There are way too many things I need and too little space in these rolling boxes. Why am I even writing about packing when I'm struggling with it myself? So that you and I can read this now and then probably read about all the things I didn't need later. Today I'll be sharing three packing tips I've read/received. Hopefully it'll help those who plan to study abroad or travel!

You can find a packing list on Pinterest.

1. Get a Packing List

First off, I have too many clothes. And when it comes down to narrowing them down, you might as well be asking me to pick my favorite child. Along with this I'm a major procrastinator, so I've been putting off packing for as long as possible. But because I am planning on being abroad for about five or so months (traveling after my semester ends), I really can't procrastinate this (as much as I'm trying to). My first tip is to write a list of what you need and tape it up on the wall. If you're lazy like I am, just pull one off of Pinterest or Google! BAM! Your essential needs are written out for you so you won't forget them. For China, there were a couple of packing lists up on Pinterest already (made my life 10 times easier); I also looked up the weather for the months I'll be there and modified the list based on that.