Shanghai was foggy when we arrived in the late afternoon, and remained murky until evening, when it got prettier simply because the city lights came on. We braced ourselves for the cold weather, but even the 3 layers of clothes I was wearing didn’t seem to make a difference.
Walking home from dinner, we stepped into a department store just to get some respite from the cold, and I ended up buying a long, padded coat. Tomorrow, I may get a warm, fuzzy hat as well so that my ears don’t feel like dropping off.
There’s fast internet where I’m staying, but certain sites are off-limits: namely, my favourites Facebook and Twitter. Google.com was accessible but there was a huge banner ad that took up more than half the page, pushing the search bar down. It disappeared before I could grab a screen shot. I thought that was most unusual, given how Google’s home page is usually very spartan and gimmick-free.
Other web services that are accessible, so far: LinkedIn, Flickr, Evernote and even Second Life. And this blog, of course. Webmail seems to be working fine. However, third-party apps that connect to Facebook and Twitter (like Tweetdeck and Seesmic Desktop) don’t work.
So I tried updating my Facebook status via a Twitter app installed within LinkedIn. Those of you who are my Facebook friends – I hope you’re able to view that. Presumably, after the initial command is sent to LinkedIn, thereafter all communication between the web services should occur outside of China.
I’m still suffering from a stiff neck and it’s been difficult to sleep. Hope to find a good masseuse tomorrow.
Over and out…