Dispatch from China: New sneakers

You can eat off of the pavement in certain sections of Shanghai. I feel as if the part of the city where we are staying is almost too new. The best analogy I can think of are new white tennis sneakers - almost too bright and only look right when they get a few marks.

The city of Shanghai has about 23 million people, which is more than twice the size of the largest city in the United States, New York City.

Cranes are everywhere and it reminds me a bit of Arizona circa 2006, when you could feel the growth.

Waking up today on a beautiful, sunny Shanghai morning was simply exhilarating.  The skyline is remarkable and can compete with any city I have ever seen.

Dispatch from China: Taicang Speed

We just finished a visit to Hareon Solar (www.hareonsolar.com) a Chinese solar company.  

Beginning at the end of 2010, ground was broken on a joint venture with Schott Solar in Taicang, a city of about one million, 40 or so kilometers from Shanghai. Taicang is a small town by Chinese standards, with about 800,000 people living or working in it.

Six months after breaking ground the facility was shipping product! 

The locals call this "Taicang speed." Permitting alone in the U.S. can take longer than six months.

Dispatch from China: A mighty wind

We visited the Chinese manufacturing site for TPI Composites, a wind company headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The 40 meter blades are part of turbines that are rated at 1.5 MW.

A picture of me next to the stem provides some sense of the size.

The process to manufacture seems far more labor intensive than producing solar.

As with solar, the wind industry is heavily dependent on policies enacted all over the world to encourage production.

There is a general sense of nervousness in both sectors on that governmental commitment.

Dispatch from China: Chicks

People always figure out how to get around rules. The authorities in Shanghai put severe restrictions on the purchase of cats and dogs. But the demand for pets does not abate.

The solution?

An unregulated, thriving industry in pet chicks.

Dispatch from China: Slow-selling trinkets

I found it jarring when I visited the famous Buddhist temple in Shanghai (pictures of dignitaries such as Bill Clinton and Nancy Reagan adorn the wall) that there are jade religious symbols in the form of reverse swastikas.

Let's just say these formations are not hot selling trinkets for tourists.

Dispatch from China: Hairy Crabs

In the autumn in Shanghai the delicacy "hairy crabs" is readily consumed by the locals. Some have said that there is a need for American-trained managers and marketing experts. I do not know about the need for expat managers, but a more appealing description of some of the culinary delights would be appreciated.

Another popular offering is stinky tofu, which I believe is an affectionate way to refer to Shanghai, otherwise known as the city above the water.

Dispatch from China: $10 tea

Offended by the $5 cost for a tall Starbucks coffee I decided to go local and visit a famous tea house in Old Town Shanghai.

On my limited budget I passed on the $25 tea and ordered the cheapest item on the menu: a $10 glass pot of jasmine tea. Far more of an experience than a tea bag and boiling water I enjoyed the taste of the jasmine and other herbs in the tea. The tea also came with two bitty boiled eggs (which I did not eat) and three small squares of tofu and some sort of jelly nut (both of which I did consume).

The tea house is an elegant Chinese structure located in the densest part of Shanghai.