First Days at Work!

First Day at Work

I was a little bit nervous about my first day at work. This, along with my jetlag meant that I woke up at 5am and couldn’t get back to sleep. I tried to make the most of it by updating my blog. I made sure that all my papers were together in a folder with things I would need for work – along with my temporary residents permit, incase the police pulled me to one side for being a ‘foreigner’ and asked me what I was doing here. I didn't fancy being deported before I'd even started work. So in my suit, I waited (for what seemed like forever) for my placement coordinator to pick me up and take me to work for the first day, guiding me through the Shanghai subway system.

She arrived at 1.30pm. She bowed and apologized for being late and we set off through three subway lines to the Bund, where my office is situated. My office is amongst the other futuristic looking buildings and overlooks the Pudong skyline, making part of the commute a little more interesting! The FirsTrust office, that I am working in is on the 17^th floor and has an exceptional view – on clear days.

When I arrived, I signed a few forms and met a few work colleagues. I was impressed that the president of the company is female. There is another intern working in the investment bank at the moment called Miguel. He is originally from Nigeria but was schooled in America and lives in London. He described the Pudong skyline as your ‘imagination on steroids’. He also speaks some Mandarin, which later on in the day came in very useful!

As my first day was very short, it mainly involved reading through the company’s annual report and presentation piece and networking with the staff. I made sure that I accepted business cards with both hands and acknowledged them adequately (I hope!). I was relieved after my first day that everyone in the office was really friendly, helpful and there was not as much of a formal hierarchy as I had expected. Everyone was very approachable with the VP David saying that if I wanted to ask any questions to just give him a call, as he handed over his business card.  After meeting Jenney, one of the analysts, and me fawning over the Swarovski sculpture on the back of her iphone, she also suggested that we should go shopping together. Ideal.

After work, Miguel and I decided to go for some dinner together in one of the restaurants recommended to me by my programme coordinator Sunny. Whilst I cannot pronounce the name of the place and definitely could not spell it, it is open 24 hours and is in Dapuqiao, near where I live.  I had been told that they specialized in traditional Chinese hotpot and that I HAD to try it as it had a 1000-year legacy in China. As there was only space for one hotpot per table, we decided to go for a seafood hotpot as I do not eat meat. We were given aprons to wear before the food arrived and also plastic gloves, yet even this did not raise my suspicions. We were also brought some appetizers of nuts and what I am hoping was some kind of cabbage – rather than perhaps boiled frogs ears or something...

When the food arrived, it was in an enormous metal bowl that filled most of the table. Underneath was a small hob in order to keep the stock simmering inside the pot. Ingredients are then placed into the pot and are cooked at the table. This would have been great, however our ‘seafood hotpot’, whilst it had big king prawns, muscles in shells, leafy vegetables, pasta, etc. also came with three joints of lamb in it. I am unsure why, but this appears to be the case with all foods in China. We had also ordered some egg dumplings and were trying to decipher whether these had meat in them or not. After a good half an hour of Miguel trying to use the Chinese he knew to explain that I did not eat meat, the waitress replied with ‘This is big’. After a while of being completely baffled, we realized she meant PIG.

 

We ended up ordering some fish and mixed vegetables. The fish arrived raw as it needed to be cooked in the hotpot and the mixed veg arrived as one whole lettuce in a bowl. Now, I have learnt my lesson and carry this sign:

I do not eat meat.

我不吃肉。

Wǒ bù chī ròu.

We tried to tip the waitress and thank her (Xièxiè) for her immense patience and trying so hard to help us but she got very embarrassed and insisted we take the money back! An interesting insight into Chinese thinking...

Second Day at Work

My second day at work began at 9.30am after commuting to work with Miguel. Once at work, we were given the job of creating a database of companies listed on the HK stock exchange. This included an up to date profile, with a few key statistics and relevant news, information on shareholders and capital operation. I found this very interesting and was surprised to see the change in stock prices in certain industries over time and the reasons for this. We were told that this job should take us until the end of the week.  We were also informed that we would be given  menial tasks in the first week to test our skills and for our employers to get to know us, so I am excited to see what next week will bring. Although it was foggy again today, I was still amazed by the view from the office window; it is so inspirational to look out over such unbelievable architecture.

At lunch, the receptionist came over with a menu and asked us if we would like to order (Chinese) takeaway for lunch. I explained that I did not eat meat and asked if she could advise me on what I could order. She recommended the prawn and egg option. The food arrived in a very neat little box with baby chopsticks. In the darkest section of the box was potatoes, tofu and boiled nuts in a sweet sauce, then there was the egg and prawn scrambled mixture, there was also half a salted boiled egg still in its shell. This meal came with sticky rice plus pak choi and of course a token piece of ham. It also came with a bowl of what I think might be cabbage or seaweed soup?

I am also really pleased today,  I found an English version of the subway system – so much easier to navigate with! I am also very excited about working in FirsTrust and in Shanghai over the next few weeks. My VP was explaining to Miguel and I today about the days before China was a market economy and people had to have identification tickets in order to purchase anything. He said that whilst this made everything very cheap and ensured that everyone had equal opportunities, it also meant that if a foreigner came to China they would not be able to buy anything because they wouldn't have an identification ticket. He said that this even applied to a Shanghai resident visiting Beijing and that only government officials or travelers such as miners had national tickets. David said that whilst this meant that companies were relatively inefficient because there was no competition as everything was a state owned monopoly, it also meant that everyone had job security and other benefits. Apparently North Korea still has a system like this. David told us that his parents miss this system and luckily as his father is a government official, they still benefit from free treatment in hospitals. He also told us that if you knew the right people 'in the black market' you could buy 'special tickets' which allowed you luxuries such as a television. I think I would like to visit Shanghai museum after this chat!