A Germophobe's Return to Asia: SHANGHAI

All week there has been the constant expectation that I would see and experience Shanghai. This takes the form of two basic expectations: (1) that I will eat what is set before me and (2) that I will explore and see all that Shanghai has to offer the unsuspecting tourist.

I, however, am not so easily fooled.

Throughout the meetings with various teams and people in the week, I had several offers, some obvious and some veiled, to “help” me see Shanghai. There seemed to be a general disappointment expressed in these incidents when I expressed that I was a busy man, you see, and had been limiting my exposure thus far to Shanghai in the form of the hotel, the ride to and the ride from the office, and, of course, the office.

Since the unanimous opinion seemed to be that all work and no play makes Scott a dull boy, it was decided for me that X would take me on a tour of Shanghai the Saturday after all my meetings, since I was so conveniently staying the weekend.

This is the same X who graciously provided transport to/from the office all week, and I kept reminding him that he had a wife and kid and I should not be anywhere near a priority. In fact, I’d be ok taking his advice and various tourism links he provided to venture out on my own (well, not “ok” per se, but I’d venture… a bit) and he need not rob time from his family and weekend to play tour guide for me.

But he insisted with a will strong enough to thwart all of my reclusive habits.

I got the impression that were I to refuse that I’d start an international incident and times are already somewhat rough between the USA and this glorious People’s Republic. The last thing I need now is John Kerry pestering me on the phone about how I am making his job even harder than it is.

And don’t get me started on Obama. Man, what a talker.

As a compromise, I insisted that we do just a few things and definitely avoid shopping. I had narrowed down my request list to the following…

The Yuyuan Garden

http://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction/shanghai/yuyuan_garden.htm

The story behind this garden is described in the link above, so I won't repeat it here. This garden was restored in the midst of a developing city and seems to have succeeded in being a place in Shanghai where one can be sheltered from the noise and bustle of the city in a garden that reminds all who come there of the forest and mountains.

The folks who did this did a very good job.

The actual acreage upon which this garden is built is actually quite small, and only when it is pointed out to you as you are going through its various buildings, patios, garden areas, ponds, etc. do you notice that you are just a thick wall away from traffic and general city mayhem.

This is a place I could live in, albeit only in good weather and with a plethora of slaves to keep it up. I might even wear sandals but would probably not take up practicing kung fu.

Who am I kidding. Of course I'd practice kung fu.

Here are a few pics from inside. They are woefully inadequate to show its beauty and extent.

X finally took matters into his own hands, asking a stranger for a picture of the both of us.

To get to this garden one must park in anywhere you can close by (we found a garage) and walk through a shopping/market area and find the ticket booth and entrance to this gem. I confess that had I come here without my guide, X, I’d never have located this on my own. I’d have peered into the crowded market area, seen the throngs of people, taken a picture and fled like a scared kitten when the vacuum cleaner turned on.

That guy in the foreground is NOT a mannequin. Really.

Where's Waldo?

Xin Tian Di

http://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction/shanghai/xin-tian-di.htm

I had told X that I’d like to go here to do lunch, and in fact we were planning to meet Dave (from San Diego) here as well. I did not get any pictures from this area, although visit that link and you’ll see it is a quaint but crowded market-like scene.

X picked a 5-star-reviewed Vietnamese restaurant on the street that happened to be right next to an empty western restaurant. There was a long wait to even get a table for this Vietnamese place but X used his inside knowledge (meaning he spoke at length in Chinese and so I've no idea what transpired) to work out a deal with the staff and got us a table fairly quickly. However, while waiting for the menus, drinks and food, I could not help but note that we were sitting in a table in the sun looking longingly at all the attractively shaded empty tables next to us belonging to the western restaurant that no one was eating at. No one at all.

If no one uses it, there's probably a good reason.

Nevertheless, we held fast our conviction to stay and had some pretty good beer (Tsingtao light), pork, chicken and I even ate some spinach-like stuff so that I blended with the indigenous folk.

After the meal, Dave had to leave as he was heading back home that evening and so X and I walked around the area a bit. I took the liberty of asking X to make this our last stop after lunch. He was putting up quite some resistance and I failed to win him over to my point of view. I am hoping in retrospect that I wasn't sounding like a whining baby with my “I just wanna go home” routine.

X was wise, however, in insisting I stay the course. There were more things for me to see and experience that make me glad I caved. There are two things I choose to bring out in this narrative, and I really wish I had had the wherewithal to capture some pictures.

First, this was Fashion Week in Shanghai. How do I know this? Well, first of all there were the signs. Some of which were in English announcing the fact quite clearly. But in case one is unable to discern the meaning of such signs in the various letters and calligraphy so generously laid out for all to see, there were the models and photographers. They were everywhere.

Now, American TV makes it seem like being on site where models are being photographed would be exciting, getting to see beautiful women wearing fancy clothing and striking elegant poses. Perhaps that’s what it’s like in Paris but here in Shanghai there are some slight differences.

For one thing, not all models were women. Some are kids. Like 5 year old kids. With a group of 40 people gathered around them as they strut down the street in their “The Gap” like clothing holding balloons and looking like they really just want an ice cream while the photographers are hopping about taking pictures from all angles.

Then there are the ladies. These ladies are also quite young but wearing enough make up and dressed up enough to pass for questionable dates for diplomats at various Embassy functions. Either that or gymnasts in the next Olympics.

One foot in the grave already. Clearly.

I did my best to photo-bomb several of these human mannequins so keep an eye peeled in the next Shanghai Fashion magazine for me looking dazed and confused in the background.

The other thing I got to see in this area was the memorial/historical museum dedicated to the founding of the Communist Party of China. This is a walk-through (paid-entry) museum dedicated to showing you the history of what was happening when the communist party and Chairman Mao rose to power and how great it is for you and me.

I was wondering if I’d be able to get a membership but didn’t see a means by which I could do so. Plus in retrospect it might have complicated my reentry into the States, so it was probably for the best.

The Bund

http://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction/shanghai/bund.htm

I’m glad X insisted on "just one more place," because we did go to The Bund, which is an area bordering the main river which cuts through Shanghai, and we were able to see some more interesting sites.

You can't see it here, but there's a dead body floating in the river right above the last line of floating green things.

No, it's not the hard hat at the bottom, but the butt and lower back bobbing above the surface of the water near the top.

Other than floating bodies, the Bund is a bit like Baltimore Inner Harbor meets D.C. Mall. (In the Baltimore Harbor the bodies don't float.) Then you add a lot of people. Quite a bit of them.