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Published: January 3rd 2009
Hello from China!
December 25- Daniel and I arrived after a quick 1 hour 45 minute flight (on which dinner was served!) to Pudong International Airport in Shanghai, China. We had hoped to see someone from our hostel there to pick us up (I had requested a shuttle) but when I called they had yet to leave. It would cost 220 yuen (~$38) but they wouldn't arrive for an hour. We had decided instead to take the bus/train and walk to the hostel (per directions on the website) but were hounded by a taxi driver and finally gave in. He said business was bad (because it was Christmas night?) and promised to be honest. The ride was about 40 minutes, we saw mostly highway but for a quick peek at the Bund area on our way past.
Our hostel (Shanghai City Central Youth Hostel) was great! It's more like a hip, budget hotel. There is a bar/restaurant/lounge area that plays movies and music and has breakfast in the morning. There are 7 computers with free internet, an "exchange" library, and an activities desk that can help you get around or arrange tours, show tickets, etc. Our first night we
unpacked a little, came down to the lounge, had tea and tequila sunrises and watched a movie. We wanted to go to bed early so we could be up and ready to attack Shanghai, but our bed was so hard and the pillows so thin that we barely slept. Dan's feet dangled off the bed, and the heater squeaked and roared everytime it turned on. (This is really my only complaint about the hostel, but I know from Korea that hard beds and flat pillows are the norm.)
[b[December 26- We got up around 8:30, had the free breakfast put out by the hostel (cereal, toast, dumplings, fried dough, and some unidentifiable, but good, marinated vegetables), called my Mom and Dad on Skype, then headed out for our first full day in China. We caught a cab to the Jade Buddah Temple, which houses the largest jade buddah in China. It somehow managed to escape the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). Immediately upon entering a tour guide began telling us about the temple,although much was hard to understand. But instead of taking us around the whole temple, she first took us directly to a gift shop and tried to sell us
Jade Buddha Temple
This dragon is at the doorvarious jades. I was told that since I was born in the year of the Rooster Daniel is honest and I am understanding (Dan had a laugh at that).
We saw people burning incense and praying all four directions, like we had seen in Tokyo. We also saw a woman painting solely with her palms, fingertips and nails. These paintings were so unbelieveable that we bought a pair of large pieces. I asked the artist to write the name of the places (her home region) on the back. They are the Yu Mountain and Elephant Mountain. We were told there are less than ten artists in China who can do this because the skill is kept in the family and handed down. I don't know if that is necessarily true, or a sales tactic, but regardless, I love the art and I watched her painting.
After we left the Jade Buddah Temple we took a cab to the Shanghai Museum. We were told that if there were one museum to see in China, this would be it. I can't say if this is true, because we haven't seen another, but it was quite good. There were extensive collections
Jade Buddha Temple
70 Monks live here, the most important part is the huge jade Buddah, photos can't be taken :( of bronze, pottery, stone buddahs and sculptures, coins, calligraphy, and clothing (although the clothing exhibit was closed). Admission is free, a nice perk, and we spent about 1.5 hrs there.
From there we walked about 15 blocks, using the beautiful Pearl Tower as our beacon, to the Bund. It was a little cloudy but quite stunning to look up and down the river at all the magnificent architecture. We had a group of three girls and one boy come up to us, started asking us questions and speaking in English quite well. They finally got around to asking us to come see their art exhibition they were putting on as art majors at their university. We said we would try to stop by later, and finally slipped away. Twenty minutes later, a group of three the same age asked me to take their picture. After, they oddly asked us the very same questions that lured us into conversation with the previous four: "Where are you from?" "They say this looks just like the skyline of New York City, is this true?" "You are very beautiful, are you part Chinese?" (This one was to me) "How long are you in
Shanghai?" "Do you like Shanghai?" At this point it felt a little odd to be hearing the same questions but I chalked it up to a very friendly people (several had helped us when we looked a little confused our first night here).
From the Bund we walked to Nanjing Road which is the oldest in Shanghai, although it doesn't look like it. It's called the First Market, but there is an area with all traffic cut off and just shops, like Coach and Gap. Not very market-like. It was modern and I wasn't too impressed. We found a resturant because we were both very hungry and had a delicious soup. First came a plate of thinly sliced raw beef, mushrooms, spices, flat noodles, spearmint, chicken bone, and seaweed, and a bowl on fat noodles. Dan started to eat the cold noodles, but the waiter waived his hands with a smirk and said "soup". Moments later a giant bowl of steaming broth arrived and we dumped all the contents of the plate into the soup, which cooked the beef. It was quite good. We also had a bottle of Tsingtao beer,which tasted a lot like Coors Light.
From
there we took the subway back to our hostel and bought tickets to an acrobatics show playing that evening. Dan met a girl who was also going so we decided to share a cab. Her name is Lisa, she is from Chicago, and is also a teacher in Korea. This is her second year and she now works at a university. She only works 12 hours a week for 4 days, and has four months off total! Two in winter, two in summer. I'm so incredibly jealous! She has taken individual trips to Taiwan, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, and now 2 weeks in China. The acrobatics was good, but the stage, acoustics, AV set-up was pretty low budget. All in all a good time.
December 27- Woke up, packed our bags, checked out, and headed to the Old Chinese City. We spent some time walking around the Yu Gardens, a haven in the stone walls, busy streets and hockers just outside. Ponds with large orange (gold?) fish wind around and through stones, bushes, and pavilions. Hidden rock crevasses, curving paths, singing birds, and trickling fountains make these gardens ideal for meditation, relaxation, or a quiet conversation. Unfortunately, we visited on
a weekend day, so it was a little more crowded that I would have liked, but it was worth the time. I told Dan to remember what we were seeing, I'd like to recreate this atmosphere in our yard someday.
After lunch at McDonald's (I know! I know! It's a disgrace...) we headed to the train station to catch our 5 pm.
My quick summary of Shanghai- it was not the traditional China I had expected, or hoped for. There is an overwhelming number of advertisements, traffic, and bicycles/motorbikes. I couldn't believe the degree to which the motorways were clogged, and how close the vehicles come to the pedestrians. Heaven forbid the light change when you are in the middle of the crosswalk- the traffic WILL move regardless of whether people are in the road. The amount of English writing, McDonald's, KFC, Pizza Hut, and Papa John's was also shocking, and we saw a Cold Stone as well! I wonder what is in store for us on our next leg of this trip... Hong Kong!
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NYCkid
non-member comment
students
Ignore those students who ask you to see their exhibitions. They are scams. You could have been ripped off.