Business - CHINA Daily Life

Business in Shanghai

During the working week I would wake at 8.30am, often to the sound of my 9 year-old neighbour Yanyan playing the piano. Mentally thanking Yanyan's piano teacher for the beautiful wake-up call I would jump into the warm shower. I lived in an apartment with three other volunteers two of which always seemed to have left for work before me, and one who was always in bed long after I had left the building.

Luckily for me, my Projects Abroad apartment was in close proximity to the China Business Focus headquarters which allowed me enough time to buy a pork bao-zi and an orange from my favourite breakfast stand and still be at work by 9:00.

My placement was with China Business Focus, a foreign business publication in English and Chinese. CBF assists western companies to successfully enter the Chinese market by keeping them informed about the latest industrial trends, statistical data, market demands & needs, regulations & rules, investment opportunities, cooperative projects and case studies. It was an exciting placement for me and gave me an insight into both business and journalism.

My working day was from 9am until 5 pm and my tasks included researching and writing articles, editing and proof reading articles and searching through overseas media for the relevant materials asked for by my boss.

There was a 45 minute lunch break every day at 11:30 sharp. On my last day I had a going-away lunch at the local Szechwan restaurant and it proved difficult to finish eating our donkey, horse, frog, dumplings, and of course the usual pork and rice in time for the 12:15 resumption bell.

When the work day finished at 5pm I would often head down to a local gym for a workout. Every evening I would eat out in a restaurant either with work colleagues or other volunteers. (Projects Abroad give each volunteer a sum of money at the beginning of each month to cover the costs of food and travel). Eating out so often gave us access to a wonderfully diverse range of Chinese cuisine. After eating I would sometimes go out to a bar or club, but if I didn't have the energy I would go back to my apartment to watch Chinese TV or a DVD, play cards, or read.

Every other weekend I would travel to places of interest around Shanghai with a couple of other volunteers.