Shanghai

On our third night in SH, we were about to go to bed after coming home from dinner when 7th Uncle (younger bro of my MIL. In China, each child is numbered according to his birth order. My MIL for example, is 'si jie', 4th sister, the 4th to be born) mentioned how the lights would be very pretty at The Bund, as it was National Day Golden Week, so we jumped into a taxi which brought us there in less than 15 minutes.

SH lies at the mouth of the Huangpu (tributary of the Yangtze, the longest river of China) which cuts the city into the older area Puxi and the newer area Pudong.The English name for the beautiful stretch of river embankment where the two areas are sited is The Bund, which I find stupid-sounding. I prefer the Chinese name Wai Tan which means 'outer beach'. Sounds so much more romantic and less stupid.

On The Bund, looking at the modern Pudong side with the futuristic Oriental Pearl Tower on the left and on the extreme right, the current highest building in China, the Shanghai World Financial Tower. 

Shang means 'up' and hai means 'sea'. Interestingly, in Chinese you don't fall in love, you 'up love' so the words on the building is a play on the city's name: 'Fall up up sea' means to fall in love with Shanghai. Hub's grandparents were from Pudong, in those days an undeveloped area of SH. Now Pudong is the high-class business center of the city.

On The Bund, looking at Puxi  on the left.

Puxi on The Bund is lined with neoclassical buildings built a century ago. These are now mostly headquarters of international banks.

Nanjing Rd

I thought I could escape Nanjing Rd, a very tourist-packed pedestrian street. Don't waste your time here. Nanjing West Rd however is an upscale and pleasant street to stroll in, especially at night. Shanghai this time of the year is filled with the scent of osmanthus (guihua) but  it gave me headaches and sniffles. The scent of magnolias on Nanjing West Rd agreed with me and in the cool night (about 19 C, no need even for a sweater), we had one of our best walks. We couldn't afford the things on Nanjing West Rd so we stopped by a cart that sold English paperbacks. We picked three for RMB70/RM35/USD11 and didn't realize until we got home (it was too dark on the street corner) that they were pirated books. I didn't know that they pirate books too. It felt wrong.

Huahai Lu which we had to walk daily since hub's relatives lived off the road, in the longtang behind Starbucks in fact.

I found Maoming Lu and Shanxi Lu best for shopping. Changle Lu had surprisingly nice apparel but prices are crazy. I don't do malls such as those in Xujiahui; too boring.

Longtang (in Beijing, they are called hutang) are 3-storey brick townhouses over 100 years old, usually grouped in a small area with two exits/entrances, one in the front and one at the back and guarded by a watchman each. Generations have grown up in longtangs. Not many are left in Shanghai. This one is Huahaifang, just behind Starbucks on Huahai Lu, where my MIL's three brothers live.The houses are old but because of their location, each house is estimated to be worth RMB10 million/RM5 million/USD1.6 million! The owners don't renovate their houses because they are waiting for the government to take over.

I prefer longtangs to apartments because there's a sense of community and kids can play with each other on the lanes where no cars are allowed. Most families now live in apartments where kids are confined and neighbors don't know each other. The lucky ones who live in longtangs are usually those 'real' Shanghainese whose ancestors first moved there.

This is the staircase and landing of my FIL's brothers' longtang in Tungfuli, behind Changle Lu. The rooms are huge and the ceilings over 11 feet high. There's no central heating and in the winter, these houses are bitterly cold. On our first trip to SH, we stayed in the attic and despite 5 layers of comforters, we froze every night. There's a charm about these old houses. They remind me of the houses I stayed in in New York and Toronto a long time ago. It's a pity that they will be torn down soon. Because of that and our wanting to spend more time with Hub's uncles and aunties who are in their 80s, we decided to stay in their longtang this trip.

Tianzifang, Taikang Rd.

But there's good news. Not all the longtangs will be demolished. This is Tianzifang, a longtang that now houses art galleries, boutiques, pubs, restaurants and other shops. The houses are maintained as much as possible and I think they did a great job at that. However, I feel that Tianzifang is too westernized. Instead of Chinese music, American pop music was played and the restaurants seem to all serve western food such as pizzas and steaks. Things were super expensive there.

I was fascinated by the way this building was decorated. The 3-D petals looked very pretty as the lights changed. The buildings on Taikang Rd are modern and new and many are art galleries like this one.

Why not stroll before bedtime in your pjs and jump into bed without changing? Wearing your pjs publicly is a very Shanghainese thing and the government banned it during the Expo period but I saw many people in pjs, most of them men. Women used to leave the house with their hair in rollers but I didn't see that this trip. Wearing pjs in public is not confined to old men only. One morning we were eating breakfast at 9 am and a young man in his 20s walked into the restaurant in his pjs. Straight out of bed, no need to get dressed. While at a major hospital one day because Hub had a pain in his arm, I saw a gweilo ('devil man', referring to white men but this term is now used fondly) walk in in his pjs. When in Shanghai, do as the Shanghainese do. Just make sure your pjs are nice.