One week later

Ela arrived to today. IDEO Shanghai says hello in this Google Video.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6645470665746074953&hl=en

Soymilk and chrysanthemum tea have become standard beverages. A plate full of dumplings has become the standard lunch. At 2.5 yuan ($0.30 USD) each, I can buy the enough delicious egg tarts for 50 people for the cost of a light dinner in the US.

I wish to give everyone on a two wheel vehicle in China a large can of WD-40. The roads are noisy and treacherous and seriously freaky for most of us foreigners. As well, the locals probably think that horns are made for honking. What good is it to have a horn if you can’t honk it liberally at every corner?

The fuses in China are mostly solder fuses in a ceramic housing. No fancy components are required to restore power to your home other than a roll of heavy gage solder. I had the washing machine and the heat lamp on at the same time in the bathroom last night, and was rewarded by a power outage that went beyond my circuit breaker. But with a little bit of help and a lot of gesturing, I was up and running the next morning and taught how to fish as well.



The city is a tough place, but everywhere, there are people who are willing to help us navigate the intricacies. It’s all about knowing the right people here, and in particular, the well connected mavens like our IDEO-experience superwomen Jane, Lisa, Vivian and Shirley.