Shanghai is AWESOME

May 3 - Train to Shanghai

We were promised a deluxe train but it turned out to be not so nice. It was a dirty old thing but it did get us there safely. We had birthday cake and wine to celebrate Dad's birthday and then some Tylenol PM to knock us out (not enough wine to do the trick on its own).
May 4-5 - Shanghai
We had a whirlwind 30 hours in Shanghai and it was absolutely wonderful. Shanghai is a great city. When we arrived around noon we checked into our hotel and went to a local restaurant for lunch. The food was excellent - lots of yummy, sweet brown sauce. Mmmmmmm....good. After lunch we walked along the riverfront, which is called the Bund. It was packed with tourists but was worth it for the great views of the Pudong (new area) skyline. From there we walked to the Yu Gardens where we took in lots of cool rock formations, ponds, fish and pagodas. The boys weren't into flowers so they went back early. Mom and I shopped a little and then rickshawed back to the hotel. Rickshaw is a great way to travel since you go at a slower pace and can take more in. They drivers often take quieter streets too so you can see a lot of "backstreets" that you wouldn't normally walk through.

Back at the hotel we had to get cleaned up for our "big night in the city." First we walked along the Bund and took the tourist tunnel under the river to Pudong. It is a really dorky Disneyland type thing but fun anyway. You go through the tunnel in a little people mover with strobe lights and other bright lights flashing away. Pretty funny. Shanghai's Pudong area has all been built in the last 10-15 years and before that was farmland. It's the financial center of the city and is immaculate. When we got off the people mover we were near the Pearl Tower, which is the tallest TV tower in Asia and represents "Shanghai, the Pearl of the Orient." Then we walked over to the beautiful Jinmao Tower. It is the tallest building in China and third tallest in the world at 88 stories. It was designed by a Chicago based firm and was built in 1998. It is truly spectacular. The Grand Hyatt takes up floors 54-87. We had dinner reservations there and had time to squeeze in drinks at the bar on the 87th floor before then. We somehow managed to get a table near the window and the views were incredible. The city is gorgeous at night, with the old European style buildings on the bund lit up, skyscrapers everywhere, boats going up and down the river and tons of neon lights.

Dinner was at "The Grill" and was such a treat. We had a table near the window on the 56th floor and more great views. We had heard that the Hyatt had a cool 30-story atrium so we checked that out after dinner...it was intense. Going near the railing felt death-defying. Scary stuff looking 25 stories down. If anyone heads to Shanghai this is the place to stay. It's all very modern and swanky and tastefully done.

Since we only had one night in Shanghai we had to take advantage. We sent the old folks home in a cab and headed to a nearby bar. I was thrilled to find Patron on the menu. My Mexitini girls can just imagine how excited I was. So Matt and I had a good time there drinking margaritas (me) and Jack & Coke (him) and listening to an American band. It was practically like home :-)

The following morning we took a cruise on the Huangpu River. We enjoyed the different perspective on the skyline and seeing the river traffic up close but the views were not as good as the day before. The wind had switched direction overnight and a thick haze had moved in - we had really lucked out the night before.

After the cruise we visited the Pudong Development Bank, which was built in 1921 by the British. It is a domed building which is decorated with an amazing Italian mosaic. In 1949 the Communist Party took over the building as their headquarters and they painted over the beautiful mosaic with white paint as it was deemed "inappropriate." It was then forgotten and later re-discovered in 1997 when the bank was doing a renovation. Ironically, the mosaic was saved because of the white paint so it was not found and destroyed during the Cultural Revolution.

The clock was ticking and we still had a lot to cram in. We had all been craving some good Italian food so we went to a great little restaurant in the French Concession area of Shanghai. It was one of the best Italian meals I have ever had! Such luck. They even had Italian wine and great tiramasu. After our indulgence we had to hurry off to the Shanghai Museum where the rest of the group was. It is a very nice museum and I especially enjoyed the gemstone exhibit (what girl doesn't like diamonds?), the Ming furniture and bronze displays.

We capped off our time in Shanghai with drinks on the roof of the Peace Hotel. It is an old building (1906) along the Bund and is often compared to the Raffles in Singapore. The view was good and it was a great way to end our visit in Shanghai.

May 6 - Beijing

Back to Beijing on an overnight train. The rest of the group visited the Temple of Heaven and the Forbidden City. Since Matt and I have already done these I opted to shop instead. And shop I did...'til I dropped. I had to head back to the hotel and rest my feet!

Tonight we are seeing the acrobats and we are looking forward to a great show. Then we'll have about four more days in Beijing before we head to Singapore. Tomorrow is the Great Wall - cross your fingers for good weather!