two quick trips to Shanghai/Pudong

I went to Pudong to get Sally, my sister, on Jan. 20 and we went back for her to leave on Feb. 2nd. Three of the four trips were by train and one by bus. Shanghai is a huge city and is incredible. I'll show you some shots of the buildings. I have more relatives coming in the spring and I'm planning a weekend in Shanghai then. So, your detailed description will come later.

The city is actually sinking because of the weight of the buildings. (I got that factoid from Sally, the historian.) Pudong was marshland across the river from Shanghai, and is now a city of several million. The international airport is in Pudong. As I waited for Sally's plane from Chicago, about 10 other international flights were announced from all over the world. The people were pouring into the airport. When she finally got in, after that long, long flight over the North Pole, we went to one of the lounges for tea and relaxation. After that, we went to the Jinjiang Hotel for dinner and the night. The next morning we took a taxi into Shanghai, wandered around the People's Square area, bought some freshwater pearls, had lunch and then caught the train to Nanjing.

People helped us along the way. For example, we were dragging Sal's big suitcase and my ovenight bag and we wanted to eat in an upstairs restaurant. The two young boys out front who were advertising the restaurant carried our bags upstairs for us. From the surprised expressions of the restaurant staff, that was highly unusual. When we were finished another staff person carried the cases down for us. At the train station, we had a porter who took us from the taxi arrival point through the ticket area, into the general waiting area. He then came back and took us through the "elderly and baby" section for early boarding. We learned a lot from the people helping us.

Several of my Nanjing friends doubted my ability to travel alone in Shanghai. Well, since I'm certainly not reluctant to ask for help, a student from Nanjing University helped me from the inbound train to the No. 5 Shuttle bus to Pudong Airport. Two people in the airport helped me find the right gate for international arrivals. Our taxi driver into Shanghai helped us find a good lunch and shopping area. Going back to Shanghai, I got help on the train again, and from a woman in the street, the shuttle driver, a guest in the JinJiang hotel, etc.

Since you can Google 'Shanghai' and find out its history, I'm not giving it here. My American friends in Nanjing and Hangzhou go often to buy western food. I think they really like the stimulation of the big city. It's like New York with a lot of people hurrying around; a hodge-podge of nationalities; the cutting edge of fashion in clothes, cars, art, air traffic, whatever. Look at the incredible architecture in my few pictures. The round pointed satelite is the Oriental Pearl--the tallest building of that kind in the world. It's a satellite tower. Since labor is cheap, the architects can all a lot of detail to the buildings. In the USA, an architect says he budgets 80% on labor and 20% on materials. In China, the figures are reversed. By the way, the people I met there are happy people, too.

I leave for Hainan tomorrow (Feb. 4). When I come back, I'll write about Xi'an, the northern capital for the Qin dynasty and the home of the emperor's terracotta warriors. I'll also write about Hainan, a tropical island in the South Sea.

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