Day 9: May 1st - The Bar Scene in Shanghai

Holy shit, the beggars there were determined. Before we even got out of the cab, someone was at the window, asking for cash. These beggars get more clever by the day. When I first got to China, I only had to deal with beggars along the train station. They just sat there, or at worst, stood by me asking for cash for a few minutes, then left. These bar beggars KNOW I have cash, because I'm getting out of a cab, they see the change exchange hands, and they know I'm entering a bar, which obviously requires money. They'd follow you up and down the street, literally blocks away, and grab at you and pull at you to get you to look at them. They had kids chasing you yelling "Money! Money!" in crap English. I couldn't believe how persistent these people were. The Shanghai subway trains have the same thing. On the train itself, there's beggars, again with kids to evoke pity, demanding change. There's nowhere to run on a frigging train, and again, because of the nature of a subway, they know you have change.

Anyway, we decided we didn't like any of the bars there, so Angie took us to another area where her preferred bar was. So Angie, Jessica, Alex, Chris and I (and our band of beggars) all walked down to the bar, to the soundtrack of "Money! Money!" and "Buy this flower! Buy this flower!". The bar was called Windows, and was actually pretty sweet. It had a dance floor, platform, as well as a pool table, tv's, so whether you wanted to dance, or sit and chat, it was a good place. I liked the balance. Even further, there were tons of foreigners there, so I met people from all over the world. I met one guy from England, who lives in Japan. I met three guys from Nepal, one of which was trashed, and kept slurring loudly into my ear, and seemed to have the notion that I could get him into Canada with citizenship for 300 000 bucks. I also met another guy who decided he was drunk enough to give me a massage and tell me he loves me, both in English and Chinese. I got a picture of that guy.

It was an impressive mix between really smashed people, and people who could handle their drink, but surprisingly, very few problems. For a bar with no last call (we left at dawn), it wasn't sloppy. I didn't see anyone puke, and there was one mild fight, but the guy picking it would've been doomed if the other guy decided to fight back, as he was drunk off his ass. I and a few other foreigners (and eventually, a big black guy who I assume is a bouncer) broke up the fight. The angry drunk threw a few punches, and one of them missed and got me in the shoulder, and I gotta say... he would've gotten his ass whupped. I've had friends slap me in the arm harder when they're joking around.