Week 1 in Beijing

Following a week of living in Beijing, we have some general observations...

First of all, there are a lot of people in Beijing. The population figures don't really hit you until you're walking around can see the 14 million who call Beijing home. Within the city, many people walk or ride some sort of bicycle to get around and bike lanes are well utilized even by the occasional taxi.

Public transportation is certainly the preferred method for most commuters. The subways, taxis and busses are all fully populated at most times of the day, especially the subways. The cost is a flat rate, 2 yuan ($0.29) no matter the length of the ride. People pack the subways during rush hour to the point where there is no need to grab a bar or handle to brace oneself, personal space does not exist on the morning commute. Taxis are a minimum 10 yuan ($1.43) and a 20 minute ride costs around 40 yuan. While many Chinese use the city busses, if you don't speak Chinese, it can be very challenging to know when to get off or even read the route signs.

We travel to the Distribution Center by company shuttle. We see several similar shuttles on the way to work in the morning, it would seem that many companies use this method to transport employees from the city center out to the business districts. Havi sends two shuttles, one each to the east and west, each taking about 75-90 minutes to complete their route. Our stop is the first in the morning and the last in the evening.

Once we arrive at the DC we are more or less on our own. The work day lasts from 9am until 5:45pm with a short lunch break in the middle. It seems that few of the employees take much more than a half hour to eat their lunch and then they diligently return to work. All of the Havi DC employees we have talked to have been eager to help and very hospitable. The DC is out in the business district where many new buildings are being constructed but there are few restaurants, save for a 10 minute walk to Subway. Considering that the boxed lunch provided at the office leaves something to be desired, we have had our share of BMTs.

Next Installment: Grocery & Dining