The Maze that is the French Concession and Taikang Lu

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This blog is as much for me to remember what I have been doing as anyone that reads it, hence my need to be quite chronological at times.

Because we were expecting rain on Sunday we decided to venture into the French Concession in the Puxi area on Saturday. The locals don’t call it this, only the westerners, and apparently very few French ever lived here.

This area is an old established part of Shanghai that housed the elite from many nations prior to the Second World War and the invasion of the Japanese into China in 1937.

The architecture in this area would not look out of place in Europe with tree lined streets, magnificent villas, and park like gardens surrounding mansions and hotels.
The major reason to come to this area is to go to Taikang Lu, turn off into an alley and loose all sense of direction.

You need to get onto Metro line 1 and get off at the Shanxi St stop, take exit 3 or 4 into Huaihai Rd (pronounced hi hi) and head east. All street signs are marked in Chinese and English, with the street numbers along that block and also marked is East, West or North, South on the corner of the sign, it makes life so easy to get your bearings.

Head along Huaihai Rd and turn right into Ruijin No 2 Rd and walk along it until you get to Taikang Rd. There are so many little boutiques, classy shops, little eateries; this whole place can match it with any big city.

Turn left into Taikang Rd and look for an alleyway a little distance along, beside the art gallery with the Andy Warhol style art. Turn into this and you become lost in a maze of alleyways housing artists, coffee shops, great little restaurants, funky little boutiques, and people living amongst and above it all. It is Bohemian with a capital B. Amazing, awesome place. Worth a whole day, to look and feel inspired.

The architecture in this alleyway area is a traditional style called Shikumen houses, (stone gate houses) which are fast being knocked down and replaced with massive high rises. There are areas like this one that are being preserved forever, thank goodness.

We bought some really amazing photographs, an artist that specializes in black and white with a highlight of one colour through the whole photograph has a few galleries in this area, so got a magnificent print of The Pearl Tower in the background and the old houses in the foreground, the contrasts in China within a block are always amazing.

We had an enjoyable wander around with a coffee lovingly made by hand in one little café at the end of an alley, my name being painted in English by a artist and then in Chinese as well, hard not to find something you like in this area.

A quick drink at the Hard Days Night pub in the Jin Qiao/Green City area and the 790 bus home to Nan bread pizza completing a great day.

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