Street Note

Despite its size and its millions of inhabitants, many of whom don't hesitate to dump their garbage onthe street, Shanghai streets are actually quite clean.  I give credit to the ladies and gentlement who spend hours with their handmade brooms sweeping the sidewalks and streets. We also have motorized street cleaners that spray water and brush away the dust (or stir it into the air, depending on your perspective). You can always tell when they are approaching you on the street (which I really like since it allows me to take one really deep breath before they move al the dust around) because they have a loud speaker and the they play a four note tune- I should mention here as an observation, that the same sweepers in Beijing, do not alert pedestrians of their presence.

Last week, on my way to the subway, I spotted and heard a sweeper coming and could not prevent myself from laughing. It seems that even the sweepers are not immune to the Expo craziness (it's completly mad!). The four note familiar tune has been replaced with "O Sole Mio."