A real Asian experience: Part II... Shanghai

Day 1

I arrived in Shanghai slightly exhausted, having dozed a bit on the plane but being wakened by the stewardess who was adamant that I eat the meal. Arriving at the airport, I was amazed by how modern it was! If I hadn't known I was in China, I would've thought I was at O'Hare. After clearing customs, I decided to splurge, and rather than take the 1 hour bus into the city, instead take the Maglev train (magnetic levitation) which takes only 8 minutes. What an amazing experience! When the train reached its maximum speed of 431 km per hour (and for you Americans, that's 269 mph!), I knew the $7 ticket was worth it! I then caught the metro and walked the last 10 min. to my hostel, a hole-in-the-wall place in a very prime location that cost only $9 a night.

Awake again, I ventured out to secure a soft-sleeper ticket for the March 1st night train to Beijing and see about a ticket for the famed Shanghai acrobats. The train ticket was harder to come by than I expected. My Lonely Planet recommended that I should NOT, by any means, go directly to the normal ticket office, where they most likely couldn't speak English and it would be filled with rambuncious Chinese trying to get tickets as well. Instead, I should visit a nearby hotel who, though charging a small fee, could speak English and book the ticket for me. As I found out, the hotel was under construction (and I mean, had been demolished and was being completely rebuilt!) so with much hesitation, I entered the normal ticketing office, only to find English-speaking sales agents and no line! That handled, I went off to find the theatre to buy tickets for the next night's performance. On reaching the theatre, I discovered they'd closed for renovations until May (!!!) but the woman working at the front door of the Ritz said the concierge inside could arrange a ticket for me elsewhere. So helpful! The concierge was very polite and was able to book my ticket immediately. (The troupe, as it turned out, was performing at a smaller theatre in the meantime.) This was the 4th time friendly Shanghai-ese had helped me, something that contrasted sharply with my experience in Seoul. Even the locals at the coffee shop had explained exactly where the theatre was, as it wasn't clearly marked on my map. What a lovely surprise, as I'd been afraid that NO ONE in China would be able to speak English!

The walk to the theatre revealed how modern Shanghai is, but also how duplicit it is. On one side of the street you can see elegant, modern skyscrapers, and on the other, derelict 1920s Parisian-style apartment buildings and shops in desperate need of renovation. It's quite the contrast. The road to the theatre is the west half of what could be described as Shanghai's tourist street. The center of town is People's Park, where old men huddle around games of Mahjongg and couples go for a short walk. There are several beautiful museums located in the park, which, though it can't compete with Ueno Park in Tokyo or Tiergarten in Berlin in size, provides a nice break from the concrete.

After a nice long nap, I went for a walk to see Shanghai at night. I began heading down the Bund, along the west side of the river that divides the old part of Shanghai with the new and improved Pudong side to the east. Most of the buildings along the Bund were built by or for the large foreign population in Shanghai around the turn of the last century, and you can still see their majesty. Across the river are all the pretty, lit-up modern feats of architecture, but the Bund provides for more photgenic shots. I was awestruck.

After the Bund, I wandered along the east half of the tourist street to the park. This side is pedestrian-ized and has more neon than Shijuku and Shibuya in Tokyo put together. Stores and restaurants of every kind line this street and even though it was 10pm on a Tuesday night, the street was crowded with shoppers. It was even possible to take a trolley ride along this road to revel in all the color. All in all, my first day in Shanghai was terrific!

Day 2

I began the day with a walk to Yuyuan Temple and Gardens. This is a bit of a flashback to Old China, and though Lonely Planet says it's a bit cheesy, I loved it! It was still festively decorated for the New Year. The area around the temple and gardens has become a giant market with traditional Chinese goods being sold next to McDonald's and Starbucks. Too funny! The temple and gardens were amazing... I couldn't stop taking pictures! After wandering out of the meleé that was the market, I began the hunt for a place to sit down for lunch. Though my "trusty" book recommended an "easy-to-find" place, no one could help me locate it, so I stopped at a woman cooking on the street and settled for a metal plate filled with a noodle, beef, onion, stirfry for 8 yuon ($1). She then took me upstairs to the restaurant where I joined 3 old Chinese women eating ramen :) It was pretty funny, having bought my food on the street and then jumping the queue to wedge myself into an empty seat. Honestly, that was the best meal I had on my trip!

After lunch, I wandered to the French Concession, inappropriately named as when it was established, most people living there were Russian! This is the ritzy area of Shanghai and it was the perfect day for a stroll. I wandered through an open-air mall, down streets of lovely old homes, and through a park with a fountain and an area where families were flying kites. I even saw a guy in an authentic Iowa Hawkeyes sweatshirt!

That evening, I returned to the French Concession to see the Shanghai Acrobat Troupe perform in a little theatre. I ended up sitting next to a guy and his mother from Lebanon who were very pleasant to visit with. The guy had just finished university and moved to Shanghai 7 months earlier to study Chinese and eventually get a job. His mum was visiting for 3 weeks, and though he seemed to get annoyed with her easily, I thought she was charming in a motherly sort of way. Isn't that always the way it is?! The performance was spectacular, and though I got some cool photos, I wished I'd had my video cam along. Thus ends another lovely day in Shanghai!

Day 3

My last day dawned rainy and dismal. I checked out of the hostel and took my bags to the left luggage office at the train station. I'd planned to go to Pudong and go up the high towers to see Shanghai from above, but with the rain and fog, I knew it would be a wasted trip. Plan B was to visit a museum or 2 at People's Park, but when I got there, I just didn't feel like that either. In the end, I went to see a movie :) "The Devil Wears Prada." I'd read the book and wasn't really the biggest of fans but the movie was great! What a surprise! The rest of the afternoon I spent window shopping and at a foreign bookshop. (Shame on me. :) ) At 7:30pm I was on the night train to Beijing, wishing I'd planned for a whole week in Shanghai, but with all the excitement for more cool experiences! If only I'd known...