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Published: December 18th 2008
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After Yangshuo, I went back to Guilin and caught a flight to Shanghai. So many people had told me they loved Shanghai, and I must admit, I do as well. Next to New Orleans, of course, Shanghai was the coolest city I've been to. A large part of the population is a mix of every nationality under the sun. This, in combination with millions of Chinese, makes for an incredible place to visit. Every type of food can be found: Indian, Nepalese, Mediterranean, French, Russian, Spanish, etc. And there were even a few Mexican and South American restaurants. The strong British influence can be seen in the architecture throughout the city, especially on the Bund, on the West side of the river. The West side is Puxi, and the East side of the river is Pudong, essentially a large business district. Puxi is where most of the old, historical buildings and sights are found.
My first two nights I spent at the ETour Youth Hostel off of West Nanjing, near the JW Marriot. I think this would be a perfect place to stay anytime of the year but winter. My room never quite warmed up. The open-air layout
is beautiful, but keeps the place pretty chilly. The food, drinks, and breakfast buffet at the bar/restaurant were very good though, and the staff was friendly.
The rest of the week I spent at the Old House Inn in the French Concession. It's located back in a quiet alleyway in a beautiful part of the neighborhood. It's also walking distance to both subway line 1 and line 2. The owners were very friendly and helpful, continental breakfast was included, and they gave me a 20% discount. Also, the very clean rooms were decorated in a combination traditional Chinese & country French style, with really comfy beds. I'd recommend this place to anybody and everybody.
In Puxi, Renmin Square (People's Square) is just West of where Nanjing Street turns into a pedestrian/shopping street. This central business area consists of skyscrapers, hotels, malls, government buildings, theaters, and several museums and historical sights. The Shanghai Museum, in the Renmin Square park, is definitely worth a visit. The English First main office in Shanghai is also located in this area. I interviewed with them and they offered my a job for next spring. It's tempting, but I'm still
looking at other options. If I do move back to China, Shanghai would be the ideal place to live. As I said before, I just loved it. Thousands of people can always be found in this area: businessmen/women, shoppers, random salespeople, tourists, beggars, and, of course, scammers.
In fact, my only real complaint is that so many more scam artists approached me in Shanghai than in any other city. The usual approach to a tourist is "Hello! How are you? Where are you from? We are students...." And they follow up with inviting you to look at some of their artwork at a "school art show". Or, they claim they want to practice their English and would be happy to accompany you to a teahouse. I've heard of tourists shelling out over one hundred bucks to pay for tea that was "ordered for them". My response is always, "No hablo ingles. Disculpame." (
I don't speak English. Excuse me.) The problem is, many scammers only know the scripted English phrases they use, so they can't tell that I'm speaking Spanish, and continue to bug me. Then I say clearly "I do not speak English". They look at
Good example of zoning in Shanghai
The Jingan temple alongside a shopping mall decked out with Christmas lights. me like I'm nuts and I go on my way. I try not to get angry or annoyed, but at one point I did crack. A woman kept grabbing at my arm and I spun around and yelled "No me toques, puta!" (
Translation inappropriate.)..... At that moment I realized it's probably a good time for me to go home for the holidays.
Outside of this area is where you find the smaller neighborhoods, open-air markets, the beautiful winding streets of the French Concession, and the narrow alleyways of Old Shanghai. The last two places were where I spent most of my time wandering around. The antique market in Old Shanghai was a fun place to explore, but I was completely overwhelmed. I just don't have the patience to search for unique items, check the quality, and so on. I ended up buying a bunch of postcards. If I move to Shanghai, however, this would be the perfect place to find decorations for an apartment.
I did spend one evening at Pudong. I went over there to check out the view from the famous Jin Mao Tower. The Grand Hyatt is on the top
third of the building and the view from the Cloud Nine bar on the 86th floor was supposed to be amazing. I went up there to get some good pictures, but the bar did not open til 5pm, and by then is was too dark. I had to make do with a picture from the lobby on the 54th floor instead. I did eventually go up to bar, and the view of the city lights at night was still pretty impressive.... Unfortunately, my fourteen dollar martini was not.
Shanghai was fabulous and I was sad to leave. The "Z" train to Beijing, unlike my last trip on a train, went smoothly. An entry of my last week in Beijing will be added shortly. Right now I'm in the Houston airport, waiting on stand-by for a flight to OKC. Keep your fingers crossed.... No seriously, please do😊
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