Rainy days in Shanghai, Paris of the Orient

below: the Pudong skyline on a rainy evening, Shanghai, China
The first stop on my trek to Southeastern China is Shanghai, China's largest modern city and economic centre. It is one of the 4 cities in China that does not politically belong to a province (the other 3 being Beijing, Tianjin and Chongqing). Like Hong Kong, Shanghai doesn't have much of a history although it was once a town of fishing and textiles. Located in the region where the Yangtze river flows into the South China Sea, Shanghai was a port city and in the 19th century was opened to foreign trade.

The city centre is cut in half by the Huangpu river separating Shanghai into the Puxi (浦西 -Huangpu west ) and Pudong (浦東 - Huangpu east) districts. Located west of the Huangpu river, Puxi is known as old Shanghai. It remains cultural, residential and commercial centre of Shanghai. It is home to the Bund, Xintiandi and shopping areas such as Nanjing Road and the City God Temple. On the east side of the Huangpu river, is the newer district of Pudong, China's financial and economic centre. Development of Pudong only started in 1990, can you believe how fast it has developed? Pudong's fantastic skyline comprises of the infamous Oriental Pearl Tower, Shanghai Stock Exchange, the Jin Mao building and the Shanghai World Financial Centre.


1.2. Inside the City God Temple in old Shanghai, is not just a temple, but now a shopping and entertainment district, usually filled with tourists. There is a small temple located in the vicinity though. 3. The front of the Nanxiang Bun Shop, a famous shop selling the most authentic xiao long bao (a bun or dumpling filled in soup) in Shanghai. 4. There are 3 floors to the restaurant, the higher you go the more expensive the xiao long baos are. People are lining up for takeout on the first level. 5. Xiao long bao are steamed in those bamboo baskets (xiao long bao literally translates to "little bamboo basket bun") haha. 6. Lots and lots of people line up for the xiao long bao on the first floor (perhaps they are the best!) 7. Nanxiang (南翔), is the origin of the Shanghai-style xiao long bao. It is a suburb in Shanghai. 8. The shop is famous for their crab meat xiao long bao. Here we are sitting on the third floor of the restaurant enjoying their specialty. To be honest, they weren't THAT tasty but worth trying . 9. 10. Inside the City God Temple. There are tea shops and shop shops. 11. 12. Inside Xintiandi ("New Heaven and Earth") of Shanghai. It is an upscale and classy shopping and entertainment area. The shops, bars and cafes are housed in Shikumen ("stone gate") houses, once traditional housing for 80% of Shanghai's population. It looks very Western here don't you think? Feels like Europe right? 13. Outside of Xintiandi is the area where the first conference of the Communist Party of China was held. 14. This is the exact site of the first conference of th Communist Party of China 15. Shark's fin soup with rice, not sure how traditional this is to Shanghai. 16. The Shanghai Musuem from afar, diplays ancient chinese art. 17. A look at Shanghai's tallest buildings in foggy weather in which you can not see the tops of #1: the Oriental Pearl Tower, a landmark of Shanghai, consisting of 11 spheres. The TV tower was once the tallest tower in Asia at 1,535 ft. high before it was beaten by the completion of Taipei 101. 18. #2: The Shanghai World Financial Centre, completed on Aug. 28, 2008 (the fog has covered up the rectangular hole that appears at the top of the building. It is the second tallest building in the world at 1,614.2 ft. Half of it is an office building and the other half is the Park Hyatt hotel, the tallest hotel in the world when it opens. The tallest bar in the world is located on the 92nd floor of the building. 19. #3:Adjacent to it is the Jin Mao Tower which WAS the tallest building in China until its height was surpassed by the Shanghai World Financial Centre mentioned before. It is 88 stories high and is also an office/hotel (Shanghai Grand Hyatt). These building just keep beating each other for height, and guess what? There is currently a 128-storey Shanghai Tower under construction and will be tallest of the tallest in Shanghai! 20. Nanjing Road, Shanghai's main pedestrian only shopping street and one of the world's busiest. At 6km long, it is the world's longest shopping street. Shanghai's oldest and largest department stores can b e found here. 21. A night view of the Pudong skyline from the Huangpu River. 22. Night time view of the Bund, containing many historical buildings that was once home to most of China's major financial instiutions. The building on the very far left (half cut out of the picture) is the Nissin Building once home to a Japanese shipping company. To the right of that is the Russell & Co. Building, currently housing the China Merchant Shipping Company. The taller building behind that is the Bund Financial Centre, 50 stories tall. In the centre is the Great Northern Telegraph Corporation Building, site of the first telephone switch in Shanghai in 1882. To the right of that is the China Merchants Company Building, the first chinese owned bank in China. On the far right (cut off) is the HSBC Building (Hong and Kong Shanghai Banking Corp.), once the HSBC headquarters, it currently houses the Shanghai Pudong Development Bank. 23. A Pixiu - a mythical creature in feng shui used to ward off evil and draw wealth. It only eats gold and silver (what an appetitie!) It has a head of a dragon, body of a lion, wings of a phoenix. You're supposed to pet it: first the ears to make it listen, then his body, this his bum and after that don't let all that wealth and fortune go, put it in your pocket!