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January 8th 2013
Published: January 8th 2013
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XintiandiXintiandiXintiandi

stop here for some nice architecture and delicious food
Happy New Year! It's been awhile since I posted, but I've been so busy preparing final exams and review materials for all my classes. It's hard to believe that my time "on the farm" is almost over. It's been an interesting semester to say the least.

This past week, I had 10 days off for the New Year. I kind of lucked out with my schedule because most people had to work mid-week, but my three day weekends allowed me to have a huge chunk of vacation time.

I decided to make the most of it and travel to Shanghai for a few days.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but the city totally blew me away! Shanghai is often described as the Paris of China, and I can really see why. The people are friendly and seem less hurried. The city also boasts some great architecture and is proud of its Sino-European history. Beijing on the other hand would probably be the Berlin of China. It has a harder edge, is a bit grungy, the people are tougher and the buildlings all have that communist feel to them.

People also speak differently in Shanghai. Beijing is very proud of its distinct accent, often described as "drunken Chinese." In Beijing, they tend to shout and slur their words. In Shanghai, the people speak more softly and enunciated. This was great for my friend and me as we have very basic Chinese, but we were still easily understood.

I had thought that three days in Shanghai would be enough, but the city could easily keep you entertained for five days to a week. To make the most of it, we decided to see all the things listed as top ten attractions.

We started with the Shanghai museum then walked out onto The People's Square. The People's Square was nice, but nothing compared to Tiananmen.

We then walked down Nanjing Road, which is the largest commercial street in China. The world's largest Forever 21 store is located here.

After that, we strolled through the French Concession, admired the architecture and had a few drinks. We met up with a friend of mine from Korea who is now teaching in Shanghai. He took us to a restaurant where I ate the best nachos I've had since coming to China. I know it's not local food,
Old ShanghaiOld ShanghaiOld Shanghai

The Nine Bends Bridge
but you all know my love of Nachos.

Our hotel was located right next to Jing'An Temple, the best temple in all of Shanghai. I was pleased that is was different from all the temples that I've seen so far throughout China. The colors were more white and gold, as opposed to red, and the carvings on the roofs were very unique.

We ate lunch in an area called Xintiandi. This is one of the nicest areas of Shanghai. It is a pedestrian street that has been restored to look like the old city. We had soup dumplings at the world famous Din Tai Fung. Absolutely delicious.

We then went to Old Shanghai where you can peruse the antique market (of dubious credibility) and admired the Nine Bends Bridge. Yuyuan Garden is also located here, but we decided to skip that since it's winter.

The Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibit is listed as a must see, and though I'm not too keen on urban planning, we went. It ended up being very well presented and informative. It had five floors, each covering a different aspect of the city. The floor dedicated to "Greening Shanghai" was my favorite.
Shanghai at NightShanghai at NightShanghai at Night

that world famous skyline where you can see the Oriental Pearl Tower
It's interesting to learn about their plans for the future, and it looks like China wants to shake the "most polluted country in the world" stigma.

Going up the Oriental Pearl Tower is a must, so of course we did. Our view of the city was a bit obscured by fog and clouds, but the buildling itself is so massive and impressive.

Finally, we strolled along The Bund at night and took in Shanghai's famous skyline.

Within minutes of getting off that airplane, I was wishing that I lived in Shanghai instead of Beijing. It's definitely more expensive to live there, but something about the city (maybe the friendly people and clean streets) really captured me. I will definitely be visiting again.

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9th January 2013

Emilie and Nachos
That is soooo funny! I can\'t stop laughing thinking about the nachos you had at La Cage aux Sports when you were about 3 years old!!! Grand-Maman, you and me when your Mom and Dad were touring Asia (probably China). Do you need me to tell you the story?!?!?!? or have you heard it often enough??? Keep it up and see you soon. S

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