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07021254Bundriverfront
on the riverfront from the BundSaturday, July 2—how hot can Shanghai get?--I mean temperature and humidity!
From the guide on the way to the Bund: most Shanghai homes have western style appliances and furnishings, not everyone has a clothes dryer. There are public cleaners that are used a lot during the rainy season. The rest of the year, hang them on the balcony, especially blankets out on sunny days. The big flower baskets (like funeral baskets) are used for opening ceremonies, funerals, etc. red for weddings, white for funerals. People are generally not very religious. For a wedding, book a hall and a speaker. Go to a local government bureau to get a wedding certificate/license. They do live together and break up, just as in America. A bit different from the rest of China.
History: Opium Wars, 1840: British smuggled opium into China for years, Ch’ing tried to stop it. British defeated the Chinese and took 5 ports, including Shanghai. Set up areas for the British, the Amerians, the French, and finally the Chinese on the Huangpo River. Bund means riverfront, warehouse area. The British had the first one along the riverfront. Each country made its own policies along the river. The Huangpo River
dissects the city. Almost every revolutionary leader has resided in Shanghai.
Fresh food market because vendors used to sell on the street but there was too much garbage left over every day. Now, have middle men to do the selling and it’s open 12 hours a day. They do have to rent the stands.
The Chinese are trying to build more elevated highways and have begun here in Shanghai in 1990. It’s easier to put up an elevated road than to dig underground. They call them spaghetti jungles. The inner city is 110 sq km and is the Central Business District. The middle area is living areas—condos. The outer ring is industry: factories, warehouses, shipyards.
There’s a growing number of private cars which only make the traffic worse. Soon, more than 20 cities will have their own subways. There are 420 km of subway rail track in Shanghai. They are encouraged, by the government, to buy cars. China is the only car market in the world that’s growing. Green energy is becoming more popular; they’re developing eco-friendly, busses, electric scooters and cars. VW is the oldest car joint venture in China. The tallest building is called the
bottle opener because of the opening near the top that does make it look like one.
This morning, because it’s very hot, Vicki decided for us to start on the river front, stroll along Nanjing Road, China's premier shopping street, which starts at the Bund (Anglo Indian for waterfront) in the east and ends in the west at the junction of Jingan Temple and Yan'an West Street. Today, Nanjing Road attracts fashion-seeking shoppers from all over the world and features over 600 businesses with countless famous brands, superior quality, and new fashions. In addition to the traditional stores, specialty shops still provide choice silk goods, jade, embroidery, wool, and clocks, and open-air bars, abstract sculptures, and lingering sounds from street musicians make this a memorable experience. It was something, alright!
After the only so-so meal we’ve had, at the Bund Hotel, (Vicki was NOT happy), we headed to the Shanghai Museum, one of the most important museums in China with 11 state-of-the-art galleries and three special exhibition halls arranged on four floors, all encircling a spacious cylindrical atrium. The exhibits feature over 120,000 historic artifacts and the museum is arranged by theme rather than by dynasty. Know me,
know I was in hog-heaven. The 3 hours we had there flew by! Beautiful bronzes, porcelains, paintings, jades, everything! And a great place to spend the hot afternoon.
After a rest, we all went on the evening harbor cruise to see all the lighted buildings—looked like Epcot or Candy Land or something not quite real. We’ve been working on our aggressive walking and positioning and got good spots by the railings and kept them for the 45 minute ride.
That actually gets me up to Friday evening, except I haven’t transcribed the Hangzhou guide’s life story or any of the Shanghai guide’s comments. I did publish the Xi’An to Giuling, Li River Cruise, Giuling to Hangzhou, and West Lake, etc., in Hangzhou! Saturday evening, I added some pictures and the blog site mixed up the names! I had been titling them in such a manner that I could put them in order after they’d been uploaded (e.g., FRC for Flute Reed Cave, 1-x, then G for around Guilin 1-x) and they didn’t all upload with the same title I’d given them! Bummer; hope it won’t confuse folks too much.
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