Balancing the Extremes in Shanghai, China

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I’d have to be honest… When I first decided on China, it wasn’t first on my list of next places to travel, however, the fact that I had two highschool friends over there for a few years as contacts had its appeal. Furthermore, the person who I was staying with wasn’t just any friend, or any contact I had, it was the infamous Richard Forbes… teaching sensation in China, who has been paving the way for foreigners like me for years. I’ve heard the stories of the many who had the pleasure of staying with Richard and some who have taught along side him in China and all had one thing in common to say… This was going to be a helluva trip. So as I boarded my flight I wasn’t exactly sure what I had gotten myself into.

As I picked out my seat and after kicking a younger Chinese gentleman out of it, I sat down next to a guy from Calgary. After some short words shared, we quickly realized that we had a similar mindset, let’s get some beer and watch some movies. Although we shared a similar goal, our destinations were different as mine ended in Shanghai, and his continued to Thailand. As the “beer service” came around and we promptly asked for our beers, we were told that there were none. It was then that our jaws dropped and we realized this 12 hour flight was going to be much longer and the fact that our personal TV screens were nowhere to be found. With that said, it was probably a blessing in disguise as I was going to need my rest for what I had in store.

I landed in Shanghai and Forbes confirmed my suspicion that there would be no catching up on my jet lag this weekend. He already had a nightly itinerary planned that included Teppanyaki (Japanese all you can eat), a house party and two different clubs. I quickly began to become familiar with one of the things Shanghai is known for, it's nightlife. I also was introduced to the large expat community that Richard has come to infiltrate. I must say I have never met such a welcoming group of people from all over the world who all share an amazing love for this city and definitely know how to host and party.

Sunday continued with some casual sightseeing and Forbes showed me The Bund, one of the more famous walkways in Shanghai that runs along the Huangpu River. On one side of the Huangpu were more historical buildings, where the other side that we were facing housed huge skyscrapers and the skyline that Shanghai can be easily recognized in photos by. It was amazing looking across at the towering skyscrapers knowing that none of it existed longer than 15 years ago. We also enjoyed the many Chinese tourists who must have not been used to seeing foreigners, as we were asked to pose for a few pictures along the way.

After getting some sightseeing in, we proceeded to have a few rooftop patio beverages and enjoyed the sunshine, which was partially blocked by the haze that covers Shanghai most of the time. This is one thing that I'm still finding hard to get used to in China; the thick smog that looks like cloud, but is primarily pollution. However, as I've said on every trip... It's all part of the experience.

As Sunday came to an end, I began planning the rest of my time when Richard would be at work. Monday had me enjoying the more traditional area of town called "Old Town" where the Yuyuan Garden is located. As I navigated the Metro, I was fascinated at the sheer number of people moving around the city for a Monday afternoon. Yes, I do realize that China is the most populated country in the world, but experiencing it first hand was borderline overwhelming. I had yet to experience a moment where I could look around and be alone. However, it didn't stop me from enjoying the classical styled buildings of Old Town, the different shops offering the typical "Made in China" goods and the history of Yuyuan garden. I was also able to enjoy City God Temple and Jing'an temple. With it being my first solo day in China and being able to cover a decent amount of ground, I was definitely proud of myself, especially with my lack of Chinese language. This may sound ignorant, but I definitely did not expect the difficulty of literally no english. To make things even more difficult, they count on different fingers here and definitely use a different form of speaking with body language, as many of my attempts to act out what I wanted to say were not understood. However, with some of the key phrases that Forbes taught me, and my pocket dictionary, I managed.

My next tourist stop found me in Suzhou, which is about 45 minute bullet train ride out of Shanghai. It was nice to experience some history as Suzhou was fairly rich in older style buildings, temples, and had an intricate network of canals. Sadly, as my train on the way there was delayed, I only had a short amount of time to experience it, however, I was less disappointed as I knew that I had another adventure for me in store which I was strongly looking forward to.

When I first arrived in China, I explained to Forbes that I wanted to go to a place with some bamboo forests and try and experience some time out of the city in nature. This desire was certainly reinforced after experiencing one of the biggest cities in the world and the pace at which I was doing it. I thought I may have been asking for the moon here, but when I discovered Moganshan, it's exactly what I had in mind. It sits higher up in the mountains, and contains a very rich history in Chinese legend, linking a famous Chinese sword smith, which originally began casting swords in some of the waterfalls and pools located there. In the early 1900's it's crisp mountain air attracted foreigners and large European styled villas began being created. However, for me, it was a time to relax in some peace and quiet, enjoy some fresher air, and get some rest. My first night there, I had a delicious Chinese meal and an older Chinese man sat next to me and enjoyed a beer with me. It was fascinating trying to communicate in the little Chinese that I knew and the little English he knew. However, it was a really rich conversation and as I've experienced in other countries, you don't need to know the language as long as drinks are involved! The next day I awoke to some fresh rain and a mist that destroyed the visibility of the mountains, however, created an amazing mysterious atmosphere that made the bamboo forest that much more enchanting. I couldn't have asked for a better experience. I even had the pleasure of meeting a British author, Mark Kitto that has made Moganshan his home after having his fortune stripped in Shanghai by the communist government many years ago. He also fell in love with Moganshan the first time he visited and retreated there after a string of unfortunate events. He even offered to sell me a signed copy of his book, China Cuckoo, which I accepted. The best thing about Moganshan is getting lost in the maze of small footpaths in and out of forests navigating the mist. Each few meters walked expose a fantastic surprise of old buildings, trees, bamboo, and statues. I was sad to say goodbye to this oasis, but my short stay in Moganshan had to come to an end and it was back to Shanghai for another weekend of good times and enjoying the social life which included Margaritas at Cantina, a beer festival, underground boxing and a few more clubs to finish it off.

To avoid being too long winded and to give me some time to find much needed rest I'll shut her down there... My first week in China has been an enjoyable mixture of craziness, culture, relaxation, bizarreness and beauty. I can only hope as I make my way to Beijing that this continues, and if it does, I'm sure this trip will continue to be another enriching time of my life.

(scroll down for more photos)

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Comments

[Lori]

Great to hear about your foray week adventures!! Glad that all is going well!! Be safe and have fun ;)