How to survive in shanghai - queueing

Many foreigners arriving in shanghai for the first time in their life cannot get used to the locals not queueing.

they do not queueing when buying food, buying tickets for subway, going up the subway, etc etc.

of course, not all Chinese in shanghai do not queue. So if you are particular about queueing, here is how you should brainwash yourself.

If you are spending less than USD 1 on a meal of fried rice, fried noodles, spicy soup, do not expect the people who are buying the same thing to give a damn about queueing. Same for the subway, they shanghai subway caps at less than USD 1 for the longest ride, so if you meet people who are queueing, you should feel privileged.

If you HAVE to see people queueing, please go to places where a simple meal would costs about the same as they would charge in New York City or Tokyo or London or Paris. Even if the customers do not queue, whoever is attending to the customers will ask them to queue.

Having said that, taking a cab in shanghai, although it costs more than USD 1 for the starting fee, no one is gonna let you get the cab first during the rush hours. It's the same in New York and other big cities during the rush hours.

In shanghai, queueing is all about how much you are willing to spend.