As Seen by TV

Sweating in the rain is a new sensation for me… mix that with some hardcore air-conditioning and, well, you can do the math.  So now, I’ve been sick (again) for a while, and not happy about it.  Got caught in a downpour on Guangyuan Road on my way back from the bank this weekend.  Luckily I had my cam with me, but yeah that’s about it really, sorry no excitement to report!

Wow, has it really been a couple months?? That’s no good, I’ll be working on that.
Been busy, been sick… let’s just say it’s been hectic.

Here are some quick shots I went out to capture last week when I saw the sky was going to be a good one… all these were taken no more than a 5min walk from my new apartment.  The pictured movie theater was opened several months ago, it’s a nice faux-art-deco structure actually.

Anyway, that’s all I have to say about that.

Recently moved into a new apartment… 17th floor, which means I have a view!

Well, I’m somewhat of a New Yorker myself… born in Morningside and matured (somewhat, actually maybe not) in Brooklyn.  So I know me a block party.  Close… Converse set this one up on Moganshan Road with head-lining musical act Jeru the Damaja, a legendary 90′s underground MC.  I’d seen him before in NYC, but never this close and this out-of-step with his listeners… but that’s not his fault, that’s almost solely the fault of the Chinese.

The police department shut this party down early citing “noise complaints”, which is utterly hilarious in it’s own right, never mind the 24/7 construction (even at 6am on Sunday’s), or the constant car horns, or the firecrackers outside every wedding or business openinig, etc. It’s just sad that the police/government has to clamp down on any form of creative expression, especially in concern with things they don’t understand (like music and art; or just life in general). Jeru said it himself when someone shouted out “f*ck the police, f*ck the government” to which he replied “yeah, you can say that, but I surely can’t say that sh*t cuz I still gotta get outta here.”  True.

Anyway, about the pics… some stuff with graffiti, some “typical” NY food, a dope MC, and some dude getting his hair cut (which for some really strange reason was a massive success with the photographer/videographers in the crowd).

Peace & Love.

April 1st saw the kick off of the 2011 season of the Chinese Super League (CSL), the premier league of football in China.  It was a decent match, ending in a 3-3 draw… but the main reason for this post the utter LACK of information on attending a match.  The official Shenhua website is only in Chinese, and information in English is pretty much non-existent.  So here you go:

They play at Hongkou Football Stadium (metro line 3 & 8), located at 上海市虹口区东江湾路444号 (map). 
Tickets are available from hundreds of scalpers that hound you from the moment you exit the metro to when you finally reach the official ticket window.  Official tickets are 50/80/100/150 depending on seating location for league matches (they have a stadium diagram, just point), and season tickets are [I think] 300RMB.   I attended this weeks (April 19) Asian Champions League match versus FC Sydney (2-3, damnit) and tickets were priced up.  Exact seat is stated on the ticket, but like everything in China, no one pays any attention to that (seating section does matter).  Beers and sodas are available around the entire stadium for 5RMB, but you must have a paper cup if you want to bring the beer to your seat.  Smokers: don’t worry, they don’t confiscate lighters… actually a security check pretty much just doesn’t exist.  Official gear can be found all around the stadium as well, make sure to shop around and not just go into the first stall you see, there are more, you’ll just have to walk.  Prices range from 100-300RMB depending on which team jersey (they have several) and what add-ons (sponsor, number, etc). 
You can find more info on the Shanghai Shenhua (squad, fixtures, etc) here. 

As for the quality of football and stadium atmosphere, of course it doesn’t compare to Europe (the last worthy football match I watched live was Feyenoord-Ajax in the mid 90′s, the rioting before/during/after the match resulted in fans being banned from each others stadiums the following seasons, so yeah, no comparison really), BUT, it ain’t that bad, and I must add that for the price of a beer in Europe you can grab a seat in China and watch 90 minutes of CSL football.

Certainly not the most inventive name for a museum in Shanghai, but The Shanghai Museum boasts a collection of 120,000 Chinese antiquities.  I must be honest that it is a far cry from collections I enjoy and love, as this museum only showcases Chinese art, furthermore let us be honest here… there are only so many coins, stamps, pots, and scrolls of chicken scratch one can take (never mind the dull fabric and furniture instalations).   But, I did have a few fun hours of taking some decent photographs… so, enjoy.

Taken over a month ago (yeah, I know… but it’s been a busy couple weeks for me) this was one of the first spring-like days to hit Shanghai.  Originally I had wanted to see the “pr0tests” dealing with the Jasm1ne Rev0lution… but what we found were almost 100 “undercover” agents stationed all around the Peace (irony?) Cinema… it was a tense and creepy scene (made more so by getting stared at by each and every one of them; foreigner + camera = no good).  So instead, we just walked around People’s Square and enjoyed the nice weather. 

Another, somewhat coldish night… hit up Lujiazhui, Pudong [again] with the dope wide angled lens.  Booyakasha.