City of Contrasts

Here's how our second full day in Shanghai started: we stepped out of our B&B in the French Concession to see a chicken being butchered on the ground across the street. There was a poultry seller there with a cart and a small cage filled with four live chickens. She was gutting luckless chicken number five on a black plastic garbage bag stretched on the pavement just as we hit the side walk. Who knew that in this sophisticated city of 18 million, scenes like this still existed? In many ways, the Shanghai I saw on my quick visit was like this: a city of incredible contrasts between old and new, rich and poor, cutting edge and old world. I loved this about Shanghai; these contrasts and contradictions made it seem like a place that could surprise you at every turn.

This was our last full day in Shanghai, and we had such fun. After the chicken incident, we walked to the site of the First National Congress of the National Party of China. This is where the soon-to-be Chairmen Mao and his political buddies first met to initiate China's Communist system. I had a photo op outside with Cindy, while Dwight toured the museum there. We also found a little postal museum across the street where Cindy discovered a photo booth where visitors could have their picture taken and printed on a stamp placed on a postcard of Shanghai. Of course, we had to make some of these. After that, Cindy and I walked to a street market jam packed with lots of interesting items. There were Buddhas in every style, fans, statues of Mao, acupuncture models of the human body, tea sets, silk scarves, and even teashirts of Barak Obama in a Mao suit. I didn't end up buying anything, but I enjoyed looking. Here's my picture in front of the CP site and one of the market.






With Cindy's expert navigation, we walked to the gorgeous Fuxing Park to meet Dwight. The park is in the French Concession, just as our B&B is. From what I've read, Shanghai's French Concession was established in 1849, when the French obtained a proclamation from the Governor of Shanghai, conceding a portion of the city to the them for a settlement. The concession was retracted in the 40s, but the name remains. Fuxing Park is decidedly French in style, and when it opened in 1909, it was only open to French citizens. It still looks European, but it's filled with lots of Chinese people enjoying afternoon strolls or flying kites.






We wandered around a bit and then had a nice lunch in a western microbrewery. Our next plan was to enjoy some Shanghai-lights: Nanjing Road, The Bund, the Pudong area, and the amazing Pearl Tower. Our afternoon itinerary gave us a taste of Shanghai's fancy pants side. Nanjing Road is a long pedestrian shopping district, crowded with people and upscale shopping--though there are lots of souvenir shops along the way, too. There were so many people! This was right up there with the Xi'an Expo and the Beijing subway as one of the most populated sites I visited in China. For some reason, photos fail to capture that.



Nanjing Road spills onto the Bund, an area that runs along the banks of the Huangpu River and which houses a number of handsome historical buildings.









Across the river from The Bund lies Pudong, the city's financial district, filled with the most spectacular collection of skyscrapers I think I've seen. At the center is the Shanghai Oriental Pearl Tower. Wow. It's silver-grey and magenta, and it's absolutely marvelous. It reminds me of something you might stick on top of a Christmas tree.






We'd planned to avoid tourist traps like The Bund Sightseeing Tunnel, but we were caught up in the drama of the skyline and the energy of the crowd, so what the heck, why not sit it a metal pod, roll through a tunnel, and look at pretty lights? This short ride seems to have nothing to do with the Bund, but the lights are colorful, and the experience is narrated by someone who says inexplicable and hilarious things like "sea cadence," and "nascent magma." Here're some shots including one fluke photo. I have no idea how I did it--must have something to do with that nascent magma.






The rain was pelting us as we left the tunnel, and we were cold and tired, but after a little break, we decided to go up in the Pearl. We rode an elevator up to an observation deck in the second pearl on the strand, and the views were amazing.



Here's a close-up of a cruise ship sailing down the Huangpu River.





The fog was starting to roll in while we were up there, and little by little, the tops of the skyscrapers were disappearing.


As we were heading down, we came to a second observation deck, this one with a see-through plexiglas floor. It took me a while to get up the nerve to walk out on it, but Cindy loved it. Look at those skyscrapers beneath her!









Here's the shot I'll leave you with. A baby, creeping along the plexiglas deck, in split pants. Adorable.



We only saw a small slice of Shanghai, but it seems like a fascinating city. I'd love to go back someday, and I hope it retains its many contrasts. That's what makes it so interesting, I think.

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