Shanghai - March 15 - 18, 2005

The Bund, Shanghai

As you can see, Shanghai was cold, wet, rainy. Especially on the one day I had set aside to tour the city and see it. According to everyone, Shanghai is more metropolitan than Beijing (Shanghai would be New York City and Beijing would be New Orleans, I think, if we were comparing them). I found that to be somewhat true. Shanghai felt and looked more commercial than Beijing, whereas in Beijing I got more of a historical feel to things. Both, however, have horrendous traffic.

I had spent the last full day in Beijing in my hotel room, so I was feeling somewhat better by this time.

On Wednesday, March 16, I took the city tour offered by the tour company. We spent the morning at the Shanghai museum, which is just huge. The museum contains different rooms - one for Jade, one for furniture, one for national costumes, and so on. There is a lot of stuff in that museum and I think we had a little over an hour there.

From the furniture room: This is a screen set in a stand with gold-painted and ivory-inlaid panel from the Qing dynasty

From the porcelan room: Vase with enameled design of figures, also from the Qing dynasty

After I had finished and left, I was stopped on the way out of the museum. A group of Chinese visitors wanted me to take a picture with them (no idea why!) so I did. Why not?

After a trip to the silk rug factory (very nice but expensive rugs!) we went to lunch at a Mongolian grill. This is where you take a bowl, walk down a table with meats, veggies, and sauces, select which ones you want, and then take them to the chef, who grills them for you. Plus you get the usual other foods - rice, veggies, tea, soup, and so on.

In the afternoon we drove down to an area of town which, to me at least, was very similar to China Town in San Francisco. Lots of little shops (and a McDonalds!) from which a tourist could be separated from their money. I stayed on the bus for this part of the trip.

That evening, most of the people on the tour went to see the Shanghai Acrobats. First, dinner (more Chinese food, imagine that!) and then we went to the theater. The acrobats are mostly children and teenagers; after a certain age it gets harder to do some of the things. My observations were that the girls did the tricks requiring more skill, but the boys did the tricks that looked like more fun.

Shanghai Acrobats: Introduction

Shanghai Acrobats: 5 Girls balancing