Where are D and B?: Shanghai, China

My friend Anna and I decided to head to Shanghai, China for a 4 day get-away Jan. 6-9, 2009. It's the first time I've traveled with a good friend in a while. Usually it's just B and me. We had a nice time seeing the sights, culture, and shopping of course. Shanghai though is literally one of the dirtiest places I think I've ever been. We arrived to start dodging snot rockets and people spitting on the streets. The taxi cab drivers will try to rip you off coming from the airport--We were taken for a joy ride, but the door man at our hotel quickly told him what fare we should pay. And beware of the local fruit stand that wanted to charge us $12.40 for 4 banannas and 4 oranges. Yes we are foreign, but do we have idiot stamped on our foreheads? Everything is up for bargain--so the first price quoted is usally way inflated. Take 10% of the price they quote you...and use this as your starting price. If they don't budge, then you know you've asked for too low of a price. Shanghai is currently a construction zone--the city is getting ready for World Expo 2010--it will be amazing if they are able to complete all of the buildings in time. According to Fodors, "In 1987 there were about 150 high-rise buildings in Shanghai, and today there are 3000 or more. They also house 1/5 of the world's construction cranes." The dim-sun was yummy. We indulged on dumplings when we could!

Not too far from our hotel...anyone up for some fish?

Very large eels--and some other looking snake creatures in the buckets behind. Check out the dirty mops in the background--just a quick idea of the filth in the city.

On one of the main shopping streets in Shanghai: Nanjing Road.

The weather was cold and rainy...so we grabbed some lunch. We decided on Pho (Vietnamese noodles)--the menu read: Noodles with beef and broth. Yummy--I needed some soup to help my nasty cold go away. It arrived --and we found out that it contained tripe (stomach lining), cartlidge of some sort, and the lady called the little meat balls: beef balls. Of course, I thought that they were little cow balls. I soon found out that the Chinese eat anything that walks, crawls, slithers, flies, or moves. Without hesitation, I quickly removed all of this stuff from my bowl.

Anna's face is priceless...looking at the stomach lining!

Yep. That's a chicken foot. The only other place in the world where I've seen people eat these is in Barbados. They are considered a delicacy there.

Dried anything: chicken, duck, you name it...they had it.

Look Kids! I brought you home a pet called Piggy in a bag! Can you imagine?

A view of Nanjing Xi Lu.

It was a rainy and cold day!

D modeling her lovely face mask....no seriously...at first, I never thought I would wear one. After having numerous sinus and respiratory infections, I'm giving it a try. I think it's a lot easier to get sick when you are in a city with 15 million people, and my immune system is just not strong enough to keep up.

A view from our room at The Salvo Hotel. It had a great location.

Jan. 7th Itinerary: Explore the Old City of Shanghai, see some temples, do a little shopping, walk around the French Concession area, break for gluewein, see an Acrobatic performance, eat dinner in the Xintiandi area.

Yeah!

There are several shops around this area and of course...a Starbucks.

Fodor's describes a brief history of this area: "This area of the city has been inhabited for over 2,000 yers. It started out as a fishing town, but when Shanghai was carved up by foreign powers, one part of the central city remained under Chinese law and administration. Surrounded by the ring road of Renmin Lu/Zhonghwa Lu, these old winding back alleys eventually became notorious as gangster-and opium-filled slums until the Communists cleaned up the area. Today the vices have disappeared for the most part and only the narrow meandering lanes and a dwindling number of tiny, pre-1949 shikumen houses are still standing. Rapid developmet means that the Old City is fast losing its historical building's and laneways to be replaced by shiny apartment blocks."

Huxinting Teahouse: a very old tea house with a prime location!

Cheers!

I love these rock formations.

Yeah...a nice walk in the peaceful gardens.

Everyone told us to get steamed pork dumplings at Nan Xiang in the Old City right next to Yu Garden.

Drummers playing right outside of the Old City area.

Will you take a picture with me? Sure!

The dragon bridge.

Temple of the City God (Chenghuang Miao)

By one of the gold figures.

Different figures people pray to.

I love this shot.

The Chinese Lunar New Year is held towards the end of January.

Chen Xiangge Temple

This temple was originally built in the 1600's but destroyed. It was recently rebuilt in the 1990s, and now is a nunery.

This is where people light candles and burn incense.

An area near the French Concession below. I was amazed at how these women wash their clothes in the freezing cold in a sink on their balcony. They then line-dry them in the polluted air. The French Concession is a very artsy area--with cute little boutiques.

Just like in Beijing, it was fun to see older couples dancing in the park!

We never had time to see an acrobatic perfomance in Beijing, so it was on the list of things "to do" in Shanghai. Our hotel kindly booked our tickets to the show. Talk about talent--a cast ranging from young children to adults--the stunts and acts we saw were amazing.

These guys would literally fly from rope to rope with no safety cable.

The ultra flexible girl.

These gals were spinning plates on sticks and then walking on each other's heads.

Wow!

The main girl below is balancing a stand on her shoulders that holds the other 2 gals. They are doing all of this while still spinning and balancing their plates on the sticks.

The Yo Yo Girls--I believe this is a traditional Chinese toy--I'm not sure of the exact name.

Hoola like a slinky.

Balance Act 101-

One day...in my wildest dreams.

With no safety cords attached, this couple twists and ties themselves with this blue silk to perform an amazing acrobatic performance.

Tricks on a Bike...how many people do you think you can fit on a bike?

Balancing on metal pipes.

Crazy!

Delish Dumpling Soup!

This is just what we needed. It was freezing outside!

Jan. 8th we toured the Jade Buddha Temple which is home to a 6 1/2 ft. tall Buddha made with white jade. She wears a robe with gorgeous jewels and was brought to Shanghai from Burma. Around 100 monks live her on a regular basis.

The Happy Buddha.

Statue in a small museum there at the temle.

Happy Happy Buddha.

1000 year old tree trunk ornately carved. It was very impressive.

Three Buddhas in one temple hall.

Another Buddha on the other side.

From the Jade Buddha Temple, we took at taxi back to the French Concession area: We found a cute little shopping area on Taikang Lu.

Cute little cafes outside.

A nice little break from the large shopping malls in Shanghai.

This area is home to crafty boutiques, bars, cafes, and studios.

Laundry?

Off to the Longhua Temple (Longhua Si). This temple is considered one of Shaghai's busiest temples. The temple is thought to date back to around the 3rd century.

The pagoda in the background is from the 10th century.

The tree was covered with orange, red, and yellow ribbons.

At the Temple gate.

The first hall in the temple. You can see the big Happy Buddha inside.

An ornamte golden Buddha.

A man praying.

Another hall inside the temple.

The monks chanting. The rhythm of the chanting and humming is very relaxing.

Buddhas.

An older monk on his way back from prayer.

Neat tiles stacked against the wall of the Temple.

We walked by this area below. It looked super dirty.

The sun is trying to break through the smog. It wasn't cloudy--Forecast: Sunny.

It's sad to see how bad the pollution is here.

This is how women transport their children and some carry their babies in their arms while another person drives the moped.

Want to take a dip anyone in the river? Check out the amount of trash floating in the water.

Hong Qiao Pearl Market near Yan'an Road West and Hongxu Rd.

We took a morning walk along the Bund and the riverside promenade. Some of the older buildings here were built before 1949. It's the best place to get a great view of the Pearl Tower and the Pudong area across the river.

Pudong's famous skyline in the background. You can also see the Oriental Pearl Tower amidst the fog and smog. The Oriental Pearl Tower is 1535 ft. tall. The Jin Mao Tower recently surpassed it in height. It's 3 spheres were designed to resemble pearls--hence "Shanghai, Pearl of the Orient." There is an observation deck at the top, but we didn't have time to go up there.

Anna with the Pudong area skyline.

Cheers!

The Huangpu River runs through Shanghai.

Memorial to the Heroes of the People

One last shopping detour: Qi Pu Clothing Market. 3 large buildings house all types of clothing goods and accessories.

Craziness in the market. Check out the guy passed out in the background.

Overwhelmed with spinning heads!

The amount of people here was insane. One guy said it best...he said "It's like they opened a can of rats and told them to run as fast as they can." Toliets here...don't bother...you will probably lose your stomach and privacy for that matter.