The disruption of the expat creature of habit

When we first arrived in Shanghai over 18 months ago (yesterday), we were faced with a multitude of challenges posed enormous city filled with a people and culture that was very different from what we had experienced back in Australia.

I remember clearly the first few months in Shanghai where Linda and myself spent hours orienting ourselves with Shanghai's juxtapositions, uncovering the cluster neighbourhoods of trades (like the engineering district around Sichuan Bei Lu & Beijing Dong Lu), finding a place to live, working out how different communication, renting and utilities systems work, how to pay the bills (and later how to pay them conveniently). On top of this, there was the unending pursuit of trying new and exciting places to eat & purchase those little items from your home country that make the transition into your new life a little easier to bear. It was exciting, stimulating, and in some ways a small adventure.

But as time progressed, you've found the treasure troves of Shanghai's offerings and how to access them during your hectic expat lifestyle. I akin this much like where someone would always find the shortest & quickest route to work each day. I know that I started to settle into a pattern, my expat life habit and routine. It was blissful and convenient. We shopped at the same stores, ate at the same places, went to the same gym (well, we went sometimes), ultimate disc during the week and basketball on weekends, Wednesday night burgers at Malone's, weekend drinks at The Big Bamboo or Senses. The restaurants and the days might be a little jumbled up at times or you'd try a new place vetted by a trusted friend with a trusty palette, but essentially everything was routine.

There's many reasons for this. One thing I know is that many of my friends fill their days with so much whether it be work, study or play. Not a moment was wasted. The routine things are those little anchors that make the day amenable for the 'other' things that you just want to do. Anchors that are often just dismissed as a chore, a background actor in a busy scene. That type of thing.

It's not often that these little anchors shift, and even rarer that these anchors are lost. The anchors that are usually lost are those big ones that shift your life - like moving to Shanghai for a new job 18 months ago or more recently resigning from the same job due to professional issues. That took a lot of consideration and thought on my behalf, and a decision that resulted in fairly predictable outcomes for my foreseeable life in China over the next year or so. However, sometimes it is the loss of those little anchors in life that little unexpected thing can make your viewpoint and perspective change quite quickly but also in welcoming and refreshing ways. For me, it was yesterday's realisation of how structured and one-dimensional my life can be day to day in Shanghai.

I have a pre-paid phone with China Unicom. Ever since coming to China, I lamented the fact that I couldn't send messages to my friends back in Australia. I didn't know how to set it up. I knew that someone somewhere could help me, but it didn't seem a priority. I always felt aggrieved that I couldn't do it. I should change to a plan, but that would take effort outside my normal routine, so I'll do it when I have the time & occasion. Of course, that never seemed to happen so I went on my slighted way in Shanghai. At least I could get recharge credit at my favourite vendor in Jing'an Temple metro station each Thursday night. She was my favourite because she knew me, tolerated my poor Chinese, we had some small-talk each time, and I didn't have to haggle for IP cards (each month, 3 IP cards at RMB100). It was easy and convenient.

So after three or more weeks of travel around China and Australia, I've returned to China intent on catching up with people, letting them know of my exciting few months of post-work exploration and celebration, family weddings, tales of tropical islands with algal blooms, my self-proclaimed (but now reconsidered) rain-god status, and detailed descriptions of plate-sized steaks which seemingly greeted me every third day. Stuff like that. But I had a hitch. I ran out of phone credit. Easy. I'll pop down to Jing'an Temple & buy my phone cards.

My vendor wasn't there. Actually, none of the vendors were there. The metro station retail booths were all being redeveloped. I was pissed-off. I couldn't get my credit. Actually, I couldn't think of a place where to get my credit without some semblance of thought. This was a good sign that I had become a little too used to my own routine. A little too self-absorbed I believe. The fact is that while I may have been pissed off, I was faced with the reality that I, an adult man had a problem in firstly thinking of where to purchase a recharge card. So I went exploring to find a place. And of course, I found one easily because mobile phone and IP recharge card stores in Shanghai are the hairs on your grandma's face mole - there's a lot here & you can't help but draw your eye to them.

I spoke with the guy in the store. He was hanging out with his buddies watching one of those Pop Idol shows on TV. He was friendly, welcoming my business and my cash. Asked me if I knew how to recharge them. We chatted a bit and I was on my way. Really easy, and I had a nice surface chat in Chinese with another fella from my neighbourhood. That was a new opportunity that I hadn't taken up.

Sadly, I hadn't taken much of an effort to notice these stores in my day to day life around Jing'an District and it took such a little event like this to open my eyes and my mind once more to the possibilities that this great city offers, even if its a place to buy that mobile phone recharge card.

I'd definitely recommend breaking those little habits every now and then seeing what happens.