Shanghai

Shanghai was once an international settlement divided between Britain, America and France. Now the beating heart of a booming China its past, present and sense of future have coalesced to make one of the world's best cities to visit.  I wasn't leaving Asia without seeing it. 

Nanjing Road

Strolling out of my hostel on Nanjing Rd, I wasn't prepared for the onslaught of shopping mania. Hawkers everywhere ten steps luring tourists to stalls and the unofficial around-the-corner, back-of-a-car designer gear. There are a few scamsters - I paid well over the odds for a tea ceremony - but nothing harmful. Walk the gauntlet and don't take the hassling too seriously.

The Bund 

At the end of Nanjing Rd is The Bund, a promenade where you can took over the river and the financial services skyline of Pudong. This is the picture everybody takes when in Shanghai. I'd recommend going at night.  The Bund itself is the centre of old world colonial architecture, a complementary image to what's across the river.

Pudong 

There's a Bund Sightseeing Tunnel that goes under the river to Pudong. The tunnel itself is a bit of a tourist trap. There's a ferry at the end of the Bund that goes every ten minutes. I did the tunnel one way and the ferry back. 

In Pudong you can climb the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, which is the tallest of its kind in Asia and third in the world, to the revolving restaurant at the top. 

Shopping

Shanghai is shoppers' heaven. Unfortunately, I'm not much of a shopper. My sources tell me that Hui Jin Department Store  is great for clothes and Metro City best for electronics.

Old Town 

There's no bigger indication of Shanghai's international nature than the fact that this feels like a China Town. The Old Town Bazaar or Yu Market is where you can pick up Mao's Little Red Book and other souvenirs. Don't be afraid to bargain on price! It's part of shopping in China.

French Concession

Tree-lined streets, colonial architecture with the convenience of living downtown, it's no wonder this is Shanghai's ex-pat centre. Once the centre of French Shanghai, the European influence extends to its range of cafes and western-style eateries. This isn't somewhere to go and see as much as somewhere to sit, have a coffee and take it in.  

Shanghainese Cuisine

Did somebody mention food?

Caramelised strawberry kebabs mean spring has come to Shanghai. A sugar-laden string of strawberries on a stick is probably the sweetest thing I've ever tasted. Although it took lots of washing to the stickiness off my hands, it was worth it.

Drunken crab - raw crab in alcohol - is one Shanghai speciality I really liked. The food has sweet undertones not present in other Chinese areas. Shanghai is comparable to other big, international cities when it comes to the variety of food - cuisine from all regions of China and all over the world are there. There are also the Chinese staples of dumplings, seafood, chicken and tofu dishes everywhere you go.

Beijing Tourism

In 2008 - four months before the last Olympics - I visited Beijing. News outlets all over the world were discussing human rights abuses in Tibet . Meanwhile CCTV, the Chinese English-language news network, reported that the Dalai Lama was training assassins in Japan. Why slander one enemy when you can target two? 

  Tienanmen Square

Mao's face still looks out over Tiananmen Square from the picture on his tomb where Chinese tour groups queue to see his pickled corpse. 

Monument to the People's Heroes at the centre of the square, an obelisk dedicated to the 'martyrs to the revolutionary struggle' is certainly not a monument to the people killed there in 1989. It's an unfortunate irony for the Chinese authorities that all the tourists taking a picture of it do so with that massacre in mind. Back at my hostel I Googled 'Tiananmen Square 89', just to see the Great Firewall of China.  

Forbidden City

A place that used to be barred to everybody but the nobility during the Ming and Qing dynasties now is criticised for being too open to commerce and tourism with all kinds of tat is sold within its walls. That said, the medieval Forbidden City is a sight to behold and quite rightly a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Hutong

A network of hutong or alleyways within central Beijing  formatted in a quadrangle around the Forbidden City are a taste of ancient China but one where people still live. The mix of the ancient and the modern is a boon for tourism. But there are some who see the basic nature of these hutong as an embarrassment. A lot of them were being cleared around the time of the 2008 Olympics. Nevertheless, a third of the city is still hutong.

Great Wall of China 

There are different parts of the Great Wall including some great hiking spots. Not being that hardcore, I did the easy thing and visited the main touristy part where people climb stairs in a line. The wall itself is a remarkable feat of human engineering. My only problem with it was the tour that stopped  on the way to the wall at a jade factory, a tea house and herbal medicine clinic where we were all diagnosed as riddled with disease and given a bill for a prescription. It's hard to make your own way to the Great Wall, leaving the way open for dodgy tour operators. I recommend checking yours is reputable before booking. 

Temple of Heaven

The Temple of Heaven is another UNESCO World Heritage Site dating from the same period as the Forbidden City. The magnificent circular building symbolises Heaven in the Taoist tradition.  This and the Great Wall were my favourites in Beijing. 


Having seen China's Washington, I hopped on an internal flight to its New York: Shanghai.