Shangai_Sorry I do not agree with majority but I do not like you! You are too crowed and humid for me.

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I feel I made a mistake coming to the east coast. The West of China is much more interesting, beautiful and with a great weather this time of the year. I am sad that lest than several days are still there for me here…I have only 5 days and I feel very sad. Just when I am getting the rhythm of this trip I need to come back to reality. It feels that I have just arrived and there is so much to get to discover yet.<span><span> But it is the end…I cannot change my departure day. I tried. There is not mileage flight to La until the end of August…! And I need to start working the second week of July<span>L I am coming back ready to save money to start another big journey to the unknown again soon…I have just need to decide where will be my next destination. The world is so big, diverse and interesting to stay in one place still…If you are in the mood of packing, and think you want to join me, I am thinking on Nicaragua or Bolivia in December … do you join me??



I am traveling alone now again. It is good sometimes being with others. Rely on them and not be in the need to think too much for a while, sharing the duties, and<span> let´s others to make plans for you and decide. I like to plan but also, I enjoy just being able to follow. I did that in Songpan and in other places, when you surrender and you do not have more strength to deal with the environment, the language, the food, etc, just follow other travelers and rely on them!



But here I am, in the need to read again my lonely bible and figure it out what to do, where to go. I do not like Shangai. I expected too much I guess. It is a commercial city and I am not in the mood for this.<span> It is very similar to Buenos Aires in summer. Too hot, too humidity, and as it was a colony has nice European buildings like downtown Buenos Aires…



I walked around the Bund, next to the river, I took picture of many couples that before getting married come here to freeze their memories of their beginning with the tower of HSBC bank and the Philips sing ship in the back…I walk around the modern financial district, in the old town (that now is a big shopping area).

I went to the French, where Mao had this private meeting with the group of 4, an area that have not looked at all as I expected. In People´s Square during the weekend, I witness something bizarre. Parents go there to search partners for their kids. At the beginning I did not know what was going on. I thought I was in front of job ad , then I thought it was missing people, or people looking for families…but not, it was blocks and blocks of alive matchmaking. Some people send their pictures and other made the arduous job for them. In China there are 3 major on line dating sites, but in Shangai families prefer to avoid technology and meet the family of the prospect alive instead, if they like what they see, they proceed to tell their kids. Nowadays they do not have to take care so much about the meal situation, in the past a nice Chinese girl told me the parents where very present in the decision of husband because they were afraid of the starvation situation and they wanted to be sure that the daughter would eat well when she got married. But now they want to influence and advice kids it is a natural behavior in order to be a good parent. <span> Then the couple has to the choice to decide if they like each other or not.



In the same park I saw for the first time a pond of lotus flowers. It was very moving…after so many times talking about lotus, and doing the lotus yoga pose, I had not idea how this flower really looks like. Now I know. It is beautiful.



Shangai is expensive. Maybe it is because I am coming from the west and I got used to the prices there. But I am spending here more than five times the price of the same beer I took in Xining, 7Y in Xining and 45 Y here…I do not know exactly what I missing but that is the situation here. I am glad I spent almost my entire trip in the west and I was able to have an unforgettable journey for 6 weeks spending less than 1500u$. I can imagine if I would have been traveling in the east instead, probably I should have had to return early to US!



I do not have more headaches for the moment. I still have some pain in my front head, were I hit, and I did not realized at the beginning and Marcelo did not wanted to tell me, I have a small scar that will go soon.



My hostel and many coffee shops are having a nice offer to their guest. They give the service of post office for the future. They sell postcards and you can plan when to deliver them. They invite you to send you a letter to the future you. I want to write to myself, the problem is I do not have a future me address…so I do not know where to find myself ..hhaha…



Shangai with 2 in summer is more than enough for me…so arrivederchi…<span>J until the 30 when my plan will departure…

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Comments

[Carolina]

Need a mailing address?
Hola Flor, if you really need a mailing address (so you can send yourself a letter), you can use mine if you'd like. Just let me know. ;) Can't wait to see you and hear all about your adventures, and see all your pictures!!! A big hug! Carole

[ArgenChina]

thanks!!!
What is your address?