Summer in Shanghai: From Sunsleeves to Belly Rubbers

It's the end of July in Shanghai. The plum rains have ended (thank god), and the temperature has climbed higher-and-higher-and-higher.

As always, two things happen at this time of year:

• 90% of women don sun-sleeves, sun-capes, sunhats, sunbrellas, and sun-masks. (Of course, if you don't have a sunhat handy, anything with which you can cover your head will do...see below.) It's hot here. H-O-T hot. Super hot. Scorching hot. And unlike we Westerners who are always trying to get a little color, cop a tan, etc., women in Shanghai do anything and everything to avoid the sun's rays.

• 90% of men on the streets roll up their shirts, and 75% of those, rub their bellies while repeating "Oh, good gracious, it's hot" (in Chinese, of course). Thus, my nickname for them: "belly rubbers."

Check it out:

Forgot your sunhat? A damp towel with a clothespin clasp does the trick quite nicely.

Classic sunhat/sun-cape combo (from the back).

Another classic sunhat/sun-cape combo (from the front).

Sun-cape with the not-so-fashionable but incredibly functional sun-mask.

Wearing short-sleeves but don't want to wear the full sun-cape? A pair of sunsleeves is your answer. Brilliant, aren't they?

The sun-mask can be paired with a long-sleeved shirt for maximum coverage.

Sunsleeves and sun-capes can be purchased at most markets in Shanghai.

Available in a variety of colors...

Sunbrella in action...

As you can see, it's best to match your sunbrella to your outfit, but if you can't, on the hottest days no one will care.

See? Up goes the temperature, up go the men's shirts.

Belly-rubber on bike.

And at the market.

Comments

[Casey Freeland]

What the what? So, how hot can it possibly be? It's 110 here and no one is rubbing their belly. That is odd.

Love the terminator masks though. Those rock.

I'm going to sell sunscreen in Shanghai and make a fortune.

Cheers,

Casey

[Seentheelephant.blogspot.com]

Actually, don't the Shanghainese use sunscreen, too? Perhaps it's a generational thing?

Anyway, thanks for the post--very well timed given the brutal heat we're experiencing on the U.S. East Coast. I had actually been thinking about doing a post on a similar theme for my blog, Seen the Elephant http://seentheelephant.blogspot.com/, which covers not only the expat life but the challenges of coming home again (should you be so foolish!). Since I spent some of my years abroad in Japan, I was going to list the habits the Japanese have developed for enduring the worst of the heat and humidity. I think I may link to your pix!

p.s. Does Shanghai have high humidity, too?

[Kristin Bair O'Keeffe]

You're right. Folks in Shanghai do have access to sunscreen. There's loads of it for sale at all the grocery stories, pharmacies, etc. I suspect that for some women, sunscreen is still too expensive...a luxury item. For others, the additional protection (sunbrellas, masks, hats, etc.) is insurance.

Many women in China want to have the whitest skin possible, and most facial moisturizers include a "whitening" agent.

I talked to my male Shanghainese trainer about this the other day, and he said that most women in China would consider it an insult if you refer to their skin as brown or tanned. (He's made that mistake before and learned his lesson.)

So...on one hand, you have all us Westerners trying to get a tan...get a little color. On the other hand, you've got Chinese women trying to get as white as possible. Grass is always greener, isn't it?

Seentheelephant: Love your blog. Just started digging into it and am looking forward to reading more.

P.S. And oh, yes, it is unbearably humid in Shanghai. I have curly hair and resemble my gramma's 1973 Chia pet most of the year.

[ML Awanohara]

Thanks for the compliments on http://seentheelephant.blogspot.com/. It's a new venture, so I need all the elephant hugs and other supportive gestures I can get. In any event, I plan to add yours to my blogroll today!

p.s. I'll be posting an interview next month with a friend who is a great China lover!

[Ameya]

Sunbrella! Love it, definitely stealing that.

Here in Dalian it isn't as hot, and though we definitely have some sunbrellas, there doesn't seem to be a whole lot of concern about it. The men all love to pull their shirts up over their bellies, though!