Zumba instructor and Pinnacle Peak event marketing director Leonardo Gandulfo dances nimbly from morning till night

07:30

My biological clock automatically

wakes me up. First

thing I do is open all the windows

in my apartment. I love

to see the daylight through the

window in my bedroom and ... Read more »

How did you start volunteering with River of Hearts (ROH)?

Last year I had a table at a bazaar and ROH was my neighbor. I did quite poorly as far as my sales went, because ROH was getting all the traffic! But I did get to learn about the wonderful ... Read more »

Shanghai International Literary Festival volunteer coordinator and mother of three York-Chi Harder shows us how she breezes through her day

06:30

Time to get up. I make sure that Laura, 17, and Sam, 11, are up and getting ready for school. The bus to the Shanghai American School in ... Read more »

Author, historian, documentary filmmaker, professor, family man and Shanghai's 2010 International Literary Festival speaker Andrew Field shows us how he juggles it all in one day

07:30

I wake up next to two gorgeous girls. One is my wife Mengxi. The other is daughter Sarah (5), who awakes ... Read more »

How long is this course?

It’s 42 hours of theory, then 58 hours of practical, hands-on working. At the end of the course, everyone will have made two pieces: one as an exercise, another of your own creation. Materials, design, everything is up to you.

Wow, that’s intense ... Read more »

Saxophonist and composer Willow Neilson shows us how he spent the last hours of 2009

09:00

I wake up and open the curtains to let the sun in and open the bedroom door to let in my two little Yorkshire terriers. They jump on the bed, excited for petting ... Read more »

Who are your students?

It’s a very mixed group–Chinese, expats, companies, tourists–and I’ve noticed that all of them are above 28 or 30 years old. [Laughs] They’re probably tired of eating out all the time.

What kind of classes do you have?

We offer two ... Read more »

JJ (aka Jonathan Wakrat), ICS weatherman, Expo organizer and meteorological technocrat, makes the weather super cool

07:00

My girlfriend wakes me up. I fell asleep on the sofa watching The Daily Show again. Grab a shower and a shave.

08:00

I head to the subway and pull out ... Read more »

China’s iPhone is here. Whether you’ve taken the plunge on the local version or are still clinging to an international one, these nine apps will change the way you experience Shanghai

ExploreShanghai

Easily navigate Shanghai’s ever-expanding Metro system with this userfriendly app. Just select your start and ... Read more »

How many Russians are there in Shanghai?

Roughly 1,500 to 2000 in “Shanghaisk”. The number doesn’t include the people from the Soviet Union’s former satellite states.

What does the Russian Club do?

We organize barbecues, parties, meetings, concerts and readings with Russian celebrities who visit Shanghai.

You ... Read more »

Glenn Millar, father of two, retired a year ago and now lives the life of a stay-at-home dad in Shanghai

6:30

My morning starts with a tough at-home exercise routine. The target is to make my stomach into a “six pack” (four weeks so far–I hope it won ... Read more »

How did you guys get started?

There are four of us who met through lesinshanghai. Last year we all went to the LGBT book club, but we wanted to start a new one with a different concept. One of us, Mari, was inspired and said, “Why not short stories?” It ... Read more »

Go behind the scenes with publisher, writer and old China hand Graham Earnshaw to learn how to make frenetic use of your time

Morning

6:30am

The crickets in my iPhone start chirping. After a brief review of its location, I head to shower, during which I decide on the ... Read more »

The name means?

Greennovate Environmental Challenge for Kids Outreach.

What does the program do?

It aims to raise environmental awareness in urban, suburban and rural students who might not have access to environmental knowledge. We volunteer to visit schools and give presentations on environmental topics like carbon footprint, clean energy ... Read more »

Steve Liang, co-founder of FIELDS, a new online gourmet grocery store, shows us how he gets his hands on the freshest products of the season

Morning Shopping

2:00am

I wake up and go with our company driver Xiao Chang to the fruit and vegetable markets as I need to ... Read more »

How did you get involved?

I had been in Shanghai for 45 days when I received an email from a friend telling me about Baobei Foundation. I went on their website and was so impressed by their work and objectives that I sent an email to see if they accept ... Read more »

What is Chamber Music Society?

A community where musicians of all ages and levels can meet and share their joy of music by playing fantastic pieces of ensemble work together.

Run us through the process.

People can write in and say, “Hi there, I’m Joe, I play the trumpet ... Read more »

Shanghai High School International Division student Adam Xu juggles classes, homework and organizing a fundraising event

Morning

6:45am

Alarm rings.

7:00

After three rings, I get up and jump in the shower to wake myself up. Then I eat pancakes while checking my email.

7:30

I rush ... Read more »

Brenda Wu, digital media manager for Nike, shows us how to mix a passion for sports with big business

Morning

7:20am

Xiao Jun and Xiao Chang start to talk into my right ear. I like to be woken up by this FM101.7 radio program in the morning, but ... Read more »

Why do you think it’s important for expat businesswomen to have a group?

The majority of women are dealing with a working environment that they’ve never experienced. Women can find a common bond by learning how to balance their professional and personal lives.

Why did you decide to ... Read more »

Architect, historian, tour guide, mother and author Anne Warr shows us how she juggles it all

Morning

7:00am

My 4-year-old son Max wakes me up with a “boo”. We sit in bed while I catch up with my emails, and we talk to my husband Tim in Australia on ... Read more »

We heard half your Brits Abroad members aren’t British, is that true?

Yes, we have half British citizens and half members of almost every nationality you can think of. Members range from people in their 20s to people in their 70s and their families.

So it ’s a family ... Read more »

Next year, you will all live and breathe Expo. In fact, it’s already started. Every person living in Shanghai is now experiencing a huge mess (subway construction, facades being re-painted, dust and noise everywhere), but it’s all for the greater good: “Better City, Better Life” is the slogan ... Read more »