My last weekend in Shanghai has blown by! Yesterday I slept in and then went for a run. I definitely understand why running is such a rarity in Shanghai… it is SO HOT! And the air quality is SO BAD! It was unpleasant, but I survived. Along the way, though, I saw the danger of China’s crazy drivers rearing its ugly head. While the Wild West-style driving is often joked about, sometimes we’re forced to take a more serious look. As I neared my apartment at the end of my run, I saw someone lying in the road surrounded by a couple of other pedestrians, apparently having just been hit by a car. No more cavalier attitudes about Shanghai street crossing!
After a long cool shower, I headed back out to meet Sam, Shilpali, and Mengmeng (all co-workers) at an Indian place for dinner. The change of cuisine was nice, and Shilpali seemed to think it was pretty authentic, but I have to say it still didn’t hold a match to Super 88 Food Court.
Filled up with chicken tikka masala, naan bread, and the likes, we headed to Yuyuan garden for the annual Matt & Flo party. It turns out there is a strong German/Swiss contingent in Shanghai, led by Matt and Flo. (I thought they were a married couple, but it turns out they’re both men… and they’re not gay.) Each year they host a party at some club or other and encourage guests of ‘all ages – young and old!’ to come in ‘Shanghai chic’ attire. So we went.
Maybe things have changed since the first annual Matt & Flo party, but now the partygoer demographic is heavy on the old and light on the young. Still being in the prime of my youth, I left to join friends at M1NT. Now M1NT (“mint”) is basically the epitome of the Shanghai dream. It’s an intersection of wealth, exclusivity and extravagance. Apparently right now invitation-only clubs, like M1NT, are on the rise in Shanghai. Although there is no cover charge to get in, there is a list. (Seriously! A list… apparently they’re taking a page from Harvard’s final clubs.)
Anyway, to get on this list you have to be a ‘member’ (and membership is EXPENSIVE! Someone told me it was 6000RMB/year) or you have to know somebody who can put you on The List. Over the past couple of months I’ve heard so much about this “M1NT” thing that I decided I wanted to go see it for myself. (Did I mention it’s known for having a shark tank at the entrance?) Since I’m living on a student-budget, the only option for me was the “know somebody” option. Luckily I know people who know people, and one of them gave me a phone number for “Danny” and said to text him. Well, “Danny” pulled through and I was on the list for last night with 5 guests.
The members' card/pass
I didn’t end up staying long. We had fun dancing for a while, but soon decided to head home. M1NT, for all of its exclusivity and ostentatious-ness, was really not much different from other clubs. Oh, and also… those sharks I mentioned? I was picturing full-sized sharks you’d see at the New England Aquarium. Needless to say, I was not blown away by the half dozen two-footers.
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