The flight crew maintained the artificial night until it was time for breakfast. We landed at Shanghai an hour later, at around 4pm. Because our flight was so empty, we managed to get off the plane within twenty minutes. We made our way to Customs.
Once through Customs, it was only a 100-foot journey to baggage claim, where our bags were already riding the carousel. We got our bags and formed a group while waiting for people to finish going through Customs, getting their bags, changing currency, and going to the restroom. We then made the 300-yard trek through the airport and up a level to where our bus was waiting. The outbound ground transport center is located in a large, airy shed, reminiscent of an old railway station. We went outside.
It was already dark, since it was 6pm in January in the northern hemisphere, although you couldn't tell from the 40 degree Fahrenheit temperature. Even so, the profusion of smog was evident. We boarded our bus after stowing our luggage, and started off for Suzhou.
The English professor we brought with us, Professor Hohman, has spent a few years working in China, and warned us about the traffic. The highway going through Shanghai is elevated about 50 feet in the air, and seems to separate the "good" and "bad" parts of town. The lanes on the road are much skinnier than in the US, and while China has similar traffic laws to the US, no one follows them. Professor Hohman accurately described the resulting chaos as "a never-ending game of chicken". Suffice to say that we almost hit or ran over several vehicles.
On the way to Suzhou we were going thorough a toll plaza with our prepaid pass card. In China these lanes are gated to so that anyone who tries to scoot through without a pass has to stop and pay the toll. Well, a car managed to zip in just ahead of us and get thorough on our pass, so the gate dropped forcing him to stomp on the breaks. We were all extremely surprised, especially those of us who had dozed off. But we made it through without injury and got to Suzhou without further incident.
Our first stop was to drop off the faculty who had come with us at their apartments. We then drove the short distance to the student apartments, where we unloaded, got our rooms and keys, and went to bed.
Once through Customs, it was only a 100-foot journey to baggage claim, where our bags were already riding the carousel. We got our bags and formed a group while waiting for people to finish going through Customs, getting their bags, changing currency, and going to the restroom. We then made the 300-yard trek through the airport and up a level to where our bus was waiting. The outbound ground transport center is located in a large, airy shed, reminiscent of an old railway station. We went outside.
It was already dark, since it was 6pm in January in the northern hemisphere, although you couldn't tell from the 40 degree Fahrenheit temperature. Even so, the profusion of smog was evident. We boarded our bus after stowing our luggage, and started off for Suzhou.
The English professor we brought with us, Professor Hohman, has spent a few years working in China, and warned us about the traffic. The highway going through Shanghai is elevated about 50 feet in the air, and seems to separate the "good" and "bad" parts of town. The lanes on the road are much skinnier than in the US, and while China has similar traffic laws to the US, no one follows them. Professor Hohman accurately described the resulting chaos as "a never-ending game of chicken". Suffice to say that we almost hit or ran over several vehicles.
On the way to Suzhou we were going thorough a toll plaza with our prepaid pass card. In China these lanes are gated to so that anyone who tries to scoot through without a pass has to stop and pay the toll. Well, a car managed to zip in just ahead of us and get thorough on our pass, so the gate dropped forcing him to stomp on the breaks. We were all extremely surprised, especially those of us who had dozed off. But we made it through without injury and got to Suzhou without further incident.
Our first stop was to drop off the faculty who had come with us at their apartments. We then drove the short distance to the student apartments, where we unloaded, got our rooms and keys, and went to bed.