Well it’s over; my time in Shanghai is finished as of 1600 today when I fly out with Singapore airlines. So to leave you all with a last blog here’s some random pictures and thoughts of my time in this are of China. People are so willing to help, anywhere anytime I have had a translating problem complete strangers will offer to assist. Issues such as pushing and shoving do exist but it’s not in a competitive sense it’s rather just to get things happening. When you line up at the metro and buses there is a massive race for seats, [View Full Entry]

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Had my 50th birthday party at a place called Barbarrosa, which is a great little bar/restaurant in the middle of the gardens in People’s Square. Exit 11 and turn left before the Art Museum. It has decorations and is themed what you would loosely describe as Moroccan with a menu similar to Coffee Club for lunch, sandwiches, pizza, pasta and wine and quite nice coffee. The staff are attentive and speak enough English to make ordering easy, and the food was nicely cooked. On the lower level there is an outside deck with heaters, bar and an inside dining room. On [View Full Entry]

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Real life in Suzhou alongside the canals is quite a hard life from what I have seen. Water is drawn from stone wells and people wash up their dishes and clothes beside them. The canals are also used for washing up, washing clothes and mops in, and don’t ask where they do toilet tasks. People live in the boats moored around the canals and day-to-day life is conducted along the sides of it. At night the women form groups and do some sort of line dance activity to music out in some of the large spaces. Couples are out walking and [View Full Entry]

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Decided I needed some fresh air and country living so took myself off to Suzhou for a couple of nights and days. Suzhou is a small city of 5 million total but only 2 million within the city proper, 100 kilometres west of Shanghai. Compared to Shanghai it is like a country town, single level housing in some area, dogs and cats everywhere, old people out walking, kids playing and not a hint of smog anywhere. You get there by train, 45 minutes total trip, going up to 200 kms an hour if it is a D class train in luxury [View Full Entry]

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Another day as a tourist in Shanghai. Shopping malls are all starting to look the same, old streets with quaint washing lines hung overhead and various shops underneath then all look the same and food stalls are all selling candied crab apples and rockmelon crescents and the temples whether Buddhist or Taoists are all starting to look like each other also! Visited the Yuyuan gardens in the Old Town area, which I think are a little overpriced at 30 Yuan an adult ticket. They are an example of a formal garden design, with each rock and path carefully planned to show [View Full Entry]

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Today I played tourist on a weekday as I have finished teaching and await my last piece of assessment I am giving my students, which is a test on Thursday. The 993 bus was as crowded as ever, I swear the road works are getting worse in the new expo construction area and I had to stand almost the whole way, grumpy and tired to start the day. Got to Lujaizui and paid my 35Yuan to see the TV tower museum. You can choose to pay more and go up to the first level, yet more for the top and a [View Full Entry]

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Today I had plans to see the Taoist temple in the Century Ave area and then meet friends on the Bund to walk to tea to a great little Muslim restaurant nearby specializing in food from the Xin jiang Province. The temple is right in the heart of modern Pudong and is such a startling contrast to the nearby 8 lane road, metro and shops. The Qinci Yangdian Temple is on Yuanshen Rd, which is just over the road from the metro stop for the Yuanshen Station on Line 6; take exit 4. It is apparently all built recently, but had [View Full Entry]

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The University I teach at is winding down the semester for spring Festival that is starting early this year, on January 26. So festivities are underway already which include end of year parties. To start the ball rolling on Friday night we received tickets to a special concert held at the Grand theatre People’s Square Shanghai. This concert was put on by the municipality of Shanghai to honour all the foreign experts working and living in Shanghai and also to acknowledge the Shanghai Chinese students studying abroad at various universities around the world. There were thirteen i [View Full Entry]

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Pagodas and temples abound in the Hangzhou are, Buddism is very much alive and well in some parts of China. One of the most famous must sees right in Hangzhou is the LeiFeng Pagoda and surrounding temples. This is a short walk from the hostel and can be seen towering in the sky day and night. It has been rebuilt numerous times, with the last rebuilding in the 1950’s with only the original 977 foundations and bricks left on display. This 6-storey pagoda is climbable with a series of escalators, stairs and lifts to take you to the top, for a [View Full Entry]

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There are numerous other attractions in Hangzhou many along the lakes edge or easily accessible nearby. Some of them include: A small art gallery on the little island off the causeway, which seemed to specialize in the traditional water colour art works that most people know as Chinese art. People working and playing, scenes of gardens and houses, with very washed out colours, heavy black outlines, and the use of only 3 or so colours per piece. Very well displayed but very little in English to enlighten us as to the artist/s or the significance of the works. The Hangzhou museum, [View Full Entry]

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