Fahionably Traveling

Doing it for the Culture

[gilastyles]

Crazy Day

Today was a weird day Chinese people were suddenly speaking English to Ashley & I. We were on the train, going for noodles and as we got off this Chinese lady, or she looked Chinese...lets just say she's Asian, just to be politically correct. Anyway this Asian lady asks me for directions. I told her she gets off next stop, but it was sooo weird that anyone would ask me for directions and in English. I was so astonished. (Went to the noodle shop & the ladies were still shocked to see me, like come on you saw me last time. Lol it was so funny this time though. I don't know why, I guess because I truly learned to embrace it now) Anyway. Part 2 of our adventure. We're looking for the 2 line, just got off the 13th and I'm trying not to slip on the stairs because it's pouring and this Asian lady tries to push me off. All you hear is me growling at her "Dooonn't put your hands on me." And she responds "oh, I sorry" once again I was so shocked because I didn't expect her to understand me ! I felt so bad afterwards. I'm really a nice person lol and I felt like I frightened her without even looking her way. Now that we finally found the 2 line to go home. As we're exiting to head to the hotel. This lady shouts "hey" and we both turned around, I'm think she needed help but what comes out her mouth, you wouldn't believe it. She looks at Ashley, smiles "are you christian?" Lmaooo my mouth dropped, Ashley & I looked her like "are you crazy." First thing that ran through my head, "I thought Chinese people aren't religious" and "is she some sort of Jehovah?" Lol, can't believe it man, the world is turning over.

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Need to get my eyebrows done, but first JAPAN

Gila.S

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Old Street Shanghai. Market Heaven!

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Salmon Leather

Coolest textile I’ve seen, next to Eel leather.

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Shanghi Track List

1. Annie Are you ok?

2. Mat Leg

3. Jade Buddah Buddah

4. Hongzhou tea

5. Finding Max

6. Catch that train Pt. 1 FT. Romano & Gang

7. Suzhou Interlude

8. How do y’all get around? ft. 2 hot guys

9. Catch that train Pt.2 Diana ft. Gila

10. Repeat what I said ft. Ashley

11. You Can’t try this on ft. Gila

12. Haggling ft. Bella

13. Feiyue deal ft. Ria & Gila

14. How are we getting home ft. AIG

15. Cat Poop Coffee ft. Maggie & Annie

16. Shanghai Outro

[gilastyles]

My last few days

It’s Tuesday, June 20th. I have 3 days left at Klee Klee and I wish it was more. I wish I had at least two months to develop a better relationship with the ladies here at Klee Klee and be able to do more work as well. With such little time, my tasks weren’t so big. But I’m glad I was able to learn and start my social media career. I enjoy being on social media and developing content for it. I also found some cool places for them to have a pop up shop, I haven’t spoken to Amie yet but I hope when I ask her to run the shop she’ll consider it. I know I can manage a shop, if this trip has taught me anything is that I can and will be great. It definitely helped me to become a better leader. It helped me figure what I want to do after college as far as a career. Social Media, PR , Design and Style. I’ll be happy with either job as long as it’s for a retailer. My last few days I’ve been on the hunt for jobs along those professions. I’ve also been planning my trip to Japan. Which I can not wait! Hopefully everything goes as plans.

Likes: What I like most about the trip, it helped me to be more independent. It threw mental challenges at me and though there were times I just wanted to give up, I didn’t, it made me stronger. It also taught me to navigate a bit better, read my directions a bit more careful. It also taught me to take lemon and make lemonade. When people stare and talk about me in mandarin, I just say hello and give them a smile. Some laugh and some try to engage in conversation. Chinese people really like the look of dreads and box braids, well some, others think it’s funny. I like how this program teaches you about cultural difference, inside and outside of the group.

Minor Dislike:

. I wish the program could be longer, 1 month just doesn’t seem enough but it does at the same time, lol I think I can only handle Shanghai in doses.

. I wish we actually went to the Dragon Boat festival  (lol), and witness Chinese holiday through their eyes. See how they celebrate their holidays because I know holidays are really big in China.

. I think it would be nice to work for more international companies, the language barrier can be an issue when communicating with each other or wanting more work (this is just a minor dislike, I truly enjoyed trying to understand the girls at klee klee, it also helped me understand what they would say in mandarin without knowing their exact words)

. better ways to save money! it’s not until the end of the trip where I actually started finding delicious places to eat at affordable prices. Local shops, that is filled with purely  locals are the best shops to eat at, plates for 10 yuan or under 20 yuan are the cheapest and most tasting foods. I could’ve had enough to do more things if I discovered these places sooner.

There’s nothing I can truly find about the program that I disliked, I just wished I was better prepared to deal with how ignorant Chinese people can be when it comes to black people. It just wasn't a pleasant feeling of constantly being recorded or photographed but you need to have a tough skin and high enough confidence to actually survive it. I honestly feel like I came out stronger from this trip.

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Felt homesick and my mom sends me a picture of my dog. I miss him so much.

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Trip to the Silk Museum, I honestly wish I had more time here than at the University we visited. That’s one thing I would change about this trip, even though it was really cool to see all the different textiles at the University. However some of the “facts” mentioned about certain textiles were definitely alternative facts. But it was cool to see my textbook come to life and I definitely emailed my professor about how cool it was to see her lesson in front of me. I plan to make a powerpoint for her to show the incoming freshmen.

[gilastyles]

Trip to Disney

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My day trip to Suzhou!

Was one to remember.

The walk through the Lion Forest Garden was amazing. It is literally a rock maze, rather than just a simple walk through a garden it’s possesses a hide ‘n’ seek feel to it. Climbing up and under, walking across a rock plank to the other side. Koi fishes swimming through taking a peek at you. It was a nice day.

And what’s a peaceful day without some adventure? On the way back to Shanghai we got in a cab to go catch our train. As we’re at the station waiting on the others to buy their tickets, the lady in the booth says that we’re at the wrong station going to Shanghai and that Diana and I can not purchase new tickers. OMG. when I tell you our train was for 9pm and it was 8:20, my heart dropped because, here I am in China, no idea how far the next station is and I don't speak mandarin ! Thank God Ashley was there to tell us what to tell the cab. Now it is time to run. I literally think Romano cursed us when it comes to the train (and I hope this isn't me in Beijing) because you didn’t even catch Diana and I the way we flew to catch a cab. The mission has just begun. As we get a cab, two guys are trying to get us in their illegal cab BU ! that's all I kept yelling. Hop into the cab and I see Ashley running to the window “repeat what I told  you!” lol Ashley we go this but for sake we repeated the directions she told us in Mandarin and off Diana and I went. The cabby gipped us, 45 Yuan ! it cost us 15 to get from the station to where were at coming into Suzhou and the ride was literally 15-20 minutes, same as the first cab. But we made it. Running through security now, get to the gate for the screen to tell us that our train is delayed. *insert crying emoji*. I’m not going to lie, the screen brought memories back to our first week when we had to run for the train with Romano and our train was delayed. But we made it and that’s all that matters.

[gilastyles]

Molasses

My mental is different on this trip.

I really do feel like it’s being tested with a lot of challenges.

I’m caught in a typhoon of thoughts.

Waiting for a drought.

Waiting for peace and serenity.

I think the only way to be free is addressing it.

I discovered this grain of salt in my molasses.

Thank God it’s easy to point out.

But molasses is sticky and tough

So I know it'll be a fight

but a good one.

[gilastyles]

My Position

My position here at klee klee is social media coordinator intern. I work alongside the social media coordinator Amber. She doesn’t know but she’s my best friend lol. Amber has such a funky attitude, I love her and her “swag”. She has a pixie haircut and glasses, her style is a girly sport look and her haircut gives it an edge. She’s so bubble and just such good energy. I’m going to miss her and the team.

My responsibilities, it’s funny,  I naturally molded into a true Chinese intern. I give myself work based on their needs. I’ve set up all their major accounts that the western world use (Instagram, FB, Twitter, Pinterest)...I’m even tempted to create a YouTube for them. I’ve developed 2 months worth of content and might just work on 3 since I have so much photos and a week left. I’ve also edited some copy for them as well for their booklets that they use to introduce a new project. I’ve found some amazing spots for them to do their pop up shops in NYC and San Francisco. I’m also thinking to ask if I can run their NYC popup since, I know about the NYC consumer and how to help them due to me working at ANN Taylor. Hopefully Amie considers and speak to on it for me.

Would I want to work for klee klee for sometime, full time, to be honest, no because their store is very intimate and small. I’m use to working in a faster pace and higher volume store. So when I slow down is kind of hard for me to adjust and it’s funny I used the term ‘”slow down” because that’s what it mean in Tibetan language. I’m definitely getting their logo as my next tattoo, it called out to me and I really like the meaning behind it. We as humans do need to slow down and just enjoy life.  

[gilastyles]

klee klee synopsis

Everyone who’s part of klee klee has their own fashion style, and I love it. From edgy to sporty to rockish, tomboy to complete girly. They all seem to have a sense of humor too, they’re always laughing and smiling with each other. The environment is completely chill and team oriented.

I like how they have people working in the store with corporate positions, it gives them a true sense of understanding their consumer. Back home you have to pull teeth for corporate to understand the suggestions you make on their decisions. They don’t fully understand their clients back home because they’re not in the store everyday like klee klee employees. They only know based on data back home.

Here they work more hours but I think me coming here has shown them that they should change the work hours. klee klee employees work 10am to 10pm every other day, I work 10 to 6pm. Speaking with one of my coworkers she mentioned that they were discussing to maybe they should all work every day for just 8 hours instead. I actually think that is a better idea than having them work every other day for 12 hours, that’s a bit much for one person - I barely survived a 15 hour day.

[gilastyles]

Being Black in China

I honestly, already prepared myself for the constant stares but it was not until my first week of China it really got to me and I was really overwhelmed by it. I didn’t know if they were saying bad things about me or not but I assume it was terrible because those who spoke tended to laugh, point and whisper or just straight look at me until I tried to ignored them. This week, I walked on the train and a guy shouted something about me flabbergasted, everyone around him looked up and looked at me - one guy even started laughing out loud, speaking mandarin and making faces at me. I never felt like such an alien. I felt like I was taken back in time, I started to question, “is this what slaves felt when they were on display?” because right now this is what it feels like even though what I’m going through is far from it and not as close comparable but it reminds me of the things my ancestors been through and what we as black people go through now. It was so frustrating to see people take pictures and recordings of me my first week in China because I felt like my right to personal space and privacy as a human being were being violated. And it’s sad because I’ve come across some beautiful people here in China and I’ve seen kind Chinese people who doesn’t make me feel different. I can’t help but to ask myself almost every day why are they so astonished by me, I know they know black people exist the same way I know Chinese people exist. At times I really did feel my self-esteem go down, I barely want to shop because, it’s baffling how unprofessional sales associates has acted when I walked in, one of them even tried to “snapchat” my friend and she’s white! And another literally walked up to my nose - like nay closer we could’ve shared a kiss.

China really is a beautiful country. I hope the rest of my trip is different because it was very overwhelming coping with the cultural differences my first week

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Adventures of AIG

So we went to a Chinese shake shack last night.

we forgot the train stops at 11.

We try to figure the best way to get home...bus cab or walk.

We decided to take a cab...i secretly wanted to take the bus. So we're trying to get a cab and no one wanted to stop for us, I think it was because we were American, I’m not going to lie at some point I hid behind a tree to see if it was because I was there no cabs were stopping (I know that’s sad but I had to try it out just to make sure it wasn't because of me). 30 minutes later still no cab and the bus passed by then!. We chose the only option left... was to walk. During the walk we saw more cabs! No one wanted us again. By this time A needed to pee, G was hungry & I was over life. Since A needed to pee, we decided to look for bushes on the way even though we knew there was a chance she would get caught on camera because in China cameras are literally everywhere. The government has no shame in watching the people. But guess what we found a bathroom! In a dark alley that was close so boo hoo we couldn't use it. Now we're desperate for cabs. I'm standing next to a police officer who wouldn't stop looking at me, A is trying to get a cab & just when we thought we had one I got a van for us to fit. mother of pearl thank goodness. We get to the hotel the cab meter is at ¥28, hand him ¥30, he gives back ¥1 as change, looks at the meter it's now ¥29...I was livid, I wanted to argue but A was over it and suggested we just go.

Boom that was our tragic night in Shanghai.

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Oriental Pearl Tower. Sometimes it’s good too look down to see how far you’ve risen.

[gilastyles]

klee klee vs. Ann Taylor

I can only speak based off my experience at klee klee and Ann Taylor because I have no clue of the environment of the other retail stores in China operate.

At Ann Taylor we get to try clothes on when we have free time, but as far as wearing the product on the floor - it has to be something we purchased.

At klee klee they change into the clothes from inventory and change out when their shift is over. It’s sort ofo strange to me but it’ kind of a good idea and kind of not. It’s a good idea because you’re able to gain more product knowledge and tell customers about it. However hygiene would be a big concern even though people have a habit of wearing clothes than returning it - so that’s where I can see it’s kind of not a good idea.

The environment at both office and store for klee klee is pretty laid back compare to Ann. Ann is a bit more stressful. At klee you know what needs to get down and work on it, at Ann you know what needs to get down and everyone is on top of you making sure you exceed pass whats expected. There’s no room to breathe and just do your job. Managers and sales leads are constantly on top of you every hour, to me that’s just not affective because employees are just not going to care more. They don’t know it but when I constantly get remind about having to get clients to sign up for store cards, I care less and don’t push myself to get one because it is what it is - you can’t force someone to do something and it’s wrong to influence someone who doesn’t want to be influenced.

Lunch isn’t 30-45 minutes, lunch is 1-2 hours here in China compared to New York. We work these shifts and employees doesn't seemed to be cared for as much, 30-45 minutes is simply never enough to rejuvenate from a busy shift. Everyone leaves the office for lunch, you never stay in.. at ZUCZUG most people order from their kitchen, or order out. but being in the work area during lunch is a no no. Lunch is a time for just you.