Meetings and traffic

Had a great night sleep and got through the day without any apparent jetlag. No running on this trip. Want to make sure that my IT-band recovers properly. Interviews this morning in Suzhou, meetings in Shanghai in the afternoon. Went to a Xinjiang (a big province in the far west of China, predominantly Muslim) restaurant in Shanghai for dinner. Mmmmm lots of good lamb, big leg of lamb.

Had a lot of trouble getting a taxi to go back to Suzhou at around 2130 because it seems that many taxis in Shanghai are not allowed to go out of the city after a certain time at night. Just when we thought we might have to spend an expected night in Shanghai, a taxi turned up and took us back.

The ride back good as there wasn't much on the roads which was a change from the usual. Traffic in China is pretty chaotic. There appears to be no concept of give way and right of way. It just seems to be a case of whoever gets a nose ahead wins. Pedestrians and cyclists cross in front of traffic. Vehicles of all kinds move too close to one another. The only saving grace is that cyclists move very slowly so there is less chance of serious injury when they are knocked down.

Location 31°N 120°E