Category: Shanghai

Took our time in the morning, then headed to Yu Yuan Garden in Shanghai. I was looking forward to some sight seeing, and the girls were sad that they had to take a break from shopping. As it turned out, Yu Garden offered a little bit of both. Lots of small shops lined streets of more traditional looking Chinese buildings.

We found a nice dollar store-esque place, and the girls stocked up on various knick knacks. Even I broke down and spent 18 yuan (about $2.50 Canadian). Next to the dollar store was a market with very narrow aisles and lots of tiny shops. We puzzled over how some of the shopkeepers even managed to get into their shop, because they were surrounded by products. The market did not seem tourist oriented, which was a nice departure. I bought a small pocket mirror because sometimes I forget how beautiful I am, and it’s nice to have a reminder (and mosty because Victoria and Gabriella have been chipping away at my self esteem over the past week).

We headed to Nanjing Rd. – which is a pedestrian street in Shanghai. The dialect on this street is quite different – instead of hello they say “bags, Gucci, Prada, Sunglasses, Watches, dvd dvd dvd”. I’m not exactly sure what that translates to in English, but I’m intent on finding out. Had lunch there, at a Chinese place called “Subway”. I had the sandwich of the day, which was a very exotic Spicy Italian 6″.

After dinner we walked down to the Bund, and took some pictures of Pudong across the river. Quite different than the view we had from the Pudong side on Wednesday. We walked around there for a while then headed back to the car and picked up Fransis at work.

Headed home from there, had dinner, and did some packing to prepare for our trip to Beijing in the morning.

A designated shopping day. We were supposed to meet with one of Elizabeth’s friends, but she called to say she was sick, so we ventured out on our own. The girls wanted Ugg Boots, so we headed to Hot Wind, where we’d heard rumours we might find them. The first Hot Wind store was fresh out of Uggs, but they directed us (read: Jay) to another Hot Wind that apparently had some in stock.

At the next store they did indeed have Uggs, but unfortunately they were not the right size for the girls. We waited around at the store while they had one of the employees fetch a pair from yet another location. The next pair fit, but were an ugly shade of purple, and quickly dismissed. The girls were pretty upset, but hopefully they’ll find Uggs again. Apparently they’re much cheaper in China. Go figure.

It was lunchtime next, and we haded to Pearl City and had lunch around the corner at a western place called Zentral. Had a yummy tuna melt sandwich, then headed to the Pearl City market for some more shopping.

Shopping here was pretty much the same as the underground market we were at on Tuesday – but the girls managed to find some more stuff to buy. Sunglasses, mostly – and some jeans. With the help of Jay (who knows how much one actually should pay, and laughs at the prices westerners pay), Adam picked up a coat and some watches. I left empty handed again.

With the first floor complete, we headed to the second floor, which was nothing but pearl jewelery shops. While the girls talked to one of the shopkeepers Elizabeth was familiar with, I headed up the stairs to the third floor. More shops up there, but obviously they don’t see a lot of people on that floor, because the sales people were chasing me through the hall. I headed back downstairs as the girls were finished with their pearl browsing, and we headed back to the car.

Another fantastic meal at home, and we stayed up to entertain Esther (who came by the night before when we’d all gone to sleep early).

Got off to an early enough start, bidding Fransis goodbye, as he headed to Wuhu or Huha or someting to that effect for a business trip. Christiaan was feeling better, so he caught the bus to school, and we had breakfast.  When Jay got back from dropping off Fransis, we prepared to head out, but Christiaan’s school called to say he still wasn’t feeling well. Jay drove us to the school to pick him up, and we took him back to the house.

Stopped at the bank to get some money, then headed to the Pudong side of the river, or the Eastern Promenade. Nice views of the old Bund from our vantage point, and the river was quite busy with boats. Stopped at a small grocery store to get a variety of things Elizabeth needed. The store caters to expats, and had a lot of foreign brands.

Jay took us to Super Brand Mall after that, where we headed to the fifth floor to get some food. Today was a sight seeing day, so we were trying to avoid any shopping. I’m not sure going to a mall was the best strategy, but we didn’t do too bad. Started out in one restaurant, before determining (thanks to Jay, who had joined us for lunch) that all the meat dishes were really vegetarian dishes flavoured to taste like meat. We left before anyone had a chance to order, and headed to Thai Thai, which was a fast-food Thai restaurant of sorts. Quite odd to see people smoking in the restaurant.  Had a nice variety of dishes there and, of course, we stopped in at a shop or two on our way back to the car.

The Shanghai Museum costs 20 RMB to enter, which is about $2.50 – a nice change from the 50 New Zealand dollars I paid to get into Te Puia in Rotorua. A nice, quiet museum, filled with calligraphy, ceramics, statues, costumes, and currency. A lot of the items were a little redundant, but they had some nice pieces. We had to visit the gift shop next, and they had some actual authentic pieces for sale. Prices were reasonable, as well.

Headed back home for a delightful Indonesian meal.  I think the jet lag was playing a toll on us all – I came back upstairs at 7:45pm and everyone had gone to bed. I lasted a little longer myself, but in the end I drifted off too.

Our motley crew increased by six this morning, when Christiaan announced “We have babies” whilst peeking into the Hamster cage. Turns out Fluffy and Zippy really ought to be Fluffy and Zipette, as they’d just had some new additions to their family.

Christian was still sick, but well enough to tag along with us to the market underneath the Science and Technology Museum subway (note: I link to wikipedia – but I can’t access it from China. The government protects its people from all the website’s lies). Esther, Elizabeth’s neighbour, is crazy enough to drive in Shanghai, and agreed to show us (and by us I mean Victoria and Gabriella) some of her favourite shops. I’m slowly adjusting to driving (or being a passenger) on the right side of the road again. Esther may be slightly crazier than some of the Chinese drivers, but we managed to make it to the market unscathed.

The horrible exhaust fumes that overwhelmed us when we entered the market slowly faded away (or we just got used to them) as we got further into the market. Not nearly as many shoe stores as the day before, which was a nice change. Lots of purse stores – the girls bought several from one place while I chatted with the saleswomen. Adam picked up some watches and Christiaan added to his Gameboy games collection. The girls also got some nice down filled jackets for dirt cheap. “Watches. Good price for you.”, “You want sunglasses?” – no one lets you walk by the store without trying to call you in. Christiaan brought his scooter, and I thought I’d be quick enough on that to avoid their beckoning, but no such luck.

We left just before Christiaan reached total meltdown (he’s not a huge fan of shopping, apparently), and headed back to the house for lunch. After lunch, we left Christiaan at home and Jay drove us to the fabric market downtown. Adam and I both got fitted for a bespoke suit and fitted shirt, and I also got a coat. I won’t see them until I’m back in Canada, so hopefully I’ll still like the styles then. I picked up a couple of ties and a scarf on the cheap too. Other than possibly buying some cufflinks, I think I’m set for any interviews when I get back to Canada.

A bit of a slow start, despite the lot of us being up quite early. Christiaan was still sick, so he stayed home from school, with the Ayi (a housekeeper of sorts), Christy. Fransis had to work, so Elizabeth had their driver, Jay, drive us to the French Concession in downtown Shanghai.

The Concession was a promenade of shops, and a small mall. The girls were keen on doing some shopping so we headed to the mall first. Prices were okay, but certainly not anything too outstanding. After the mall we walked down the pedestrian street and in to a few other shops while we looked for somewhere to have lunch.

Our attempts at lunch in the Concession failed us, so we went to one of Elizabeth’s favourite places in Shanghai – Element Fresh. Jay picked us up where he’d dropped us off, and drove through the city to the restaurant. Element Fresh is a modern restaurant with a wide selection of dishes to choose from. Gabriella and I had the same thing, Middle Eastern Chicken, and everyone else tried something different – but everyone seemed quite happy with their selection. Prices on food were also pretty decent, but not pennies a meal or anything to that effect.

Shopping seemed to be on the agenda, so we headed to a small street where every other store seemed to be a shoe store. Too many shoe stores. The girls were keen on going into nearly every store (or near enough to it), so getting down the street and back up the other side was a challenge. We overcame the challenge, despite being swarmed by people on the street intent on luring us to a location where we could see many many watches, sunglasses, purses, etc. “Pu Yao”, meaning “I don’t want it”, quickly became part of our Mandarin vocabulary.

We stopped at the grocery market on the way home, and wandered through the cd and dvd section in the market. Lots of cds and dvds at dirt cheap prices. Quality seems quite good too, although I have to question the legitimacy of some of the products.

I’m not too inclined on stocking up on anything, since I have no dvd or cd player, and don’t want to carry around said purchases for the rest of my travels.

Had a lovely dinner cooked by Fransis’ mom and Christy. Victoria and I started watching “Gone, Baby, Gone”, and were later joined by Gabriella. Victoria had seen it already, but was keen to watch it again. She fell asleep about half an hour in, but Gabriella outlasted her (although she went to bed under the impression the movie was over – when there was still about half an hour to go). Not as good as the book by a long shot, but not too bad.

The Air New Zealand flight was relatively pleasant. I slept a bit, but not nearly enough. I figure Mary Lou, Adam and the girls will be dealing with even more jet lag than me (12 hours difference vs. my 5) so I should still come out ahead. Watched “No Country For Old Men” (good, followed the book fairly closely), then mostly slept and ate (they feed you, despite what time it may be).

No problems getting through immigration at the airport, so I headed to the exit to meet up with Fransis, the best man from Mary Lou and Adam’s wedding. Only problem was that Fransis wasn’t there. To be fair, the flight was early. I checked the arrivals board, and saw that my flight wasn’t even listed – which I feared might only complicate matters.

I asked around and my exit was the only Arrivals area, so I figured I’d wander around there and wait for Fransis. After fifteen minutes or so, I remembered I had his mobile number so I tried to figure out how many numbers (of the 16 digit number I had) would need to be dialed to result in a connected call. With the help of someone who could obviously tell I was completely lost, I managed to get a phone that rang and rang. As I was hanging up, I saw Fransis as he saw me. We shook hands and headed to the car.

Drove through the (unusually, I’m told,) quiet streets of Pudong, Shanghai. Fransis and Elizabeth’s house is in a nice gated community with small (man-made I imagine) rivers running through it. Their house is beautiful inside and out. We chatted for a bit, then I figured I’d do them a favour and have a shower. I multitasked, reading and watching some movies with their 7 year old, Christiaan. It was Fransis’s birthday, so there was a nice spread of food, with a few neighbours heading over for a small get together. Fransis returned from his second run to the airport with some familiar (although tired looking) faces – Adam, Mary Lou, Gabriella, and Victoria.

Spent the rest of the day chatting with the various guests (all expats who’d been in China for years) and eating some good food. After the guests departed and the other Canadians headed to bed, I sorted through some of the stuff (mostly winter clothing) Mary Lou had brought for me and did some laundry and got caught up on this journal. Lorne burned me two episodes of Lost, but I was still tired from the jet lag and overall lack of sleep, so I called it a night fairly early. Hopefully tomorrow we’ll get to see some of Shanghai city, since it doesn’t really feel like China yet.