Shanghai

Shanghai is the second largest city in China with a population of approximately 23 million, Beijing is next at 20 million.

We arrived in Shanghai on the fast train from Beijing, a 4 hours 55 minute trip, only 2 stops. Probably quicker than flying overall and a lot less hassle too. Like most large cities in China now, Shanghai has a growing metro system which allows  quick and cheap access to most sites you would want to go to. Taxis are cheap too and metered. Travelling by taxi in Shanghai was great, in Beijing we had to odd driver who thought he would rip us off. (One taxi driver in Beijing didn't like us bailing at the lights and leaving all the doors open after he told us he was taking us to the airport and not our hotel.)

We were lucky to arrive in Shanghai when the pollaze levels (pollution and haze combined) were low and the sky was nice a blue colour!

First stop was the Pearl Tower for the obligatory photo stop.

Some of the tower blocks of Pudong from the steps to the tower.



My 3 girls!



The Pearl Tower

To get this shot from the pedestrian circle (see later photo) my ultra wide angle lens came into its own here. (Shot details: Canon 450D, EF-S 10-22mm lens at 14mm, f/14 with -0.3 stop, 1/400 s, ISO-200. The shot above this was at 10mm.) The majority of the remaining shots were taken with a 15-85mm lens.

The view from the main observation deck, 120m up is a must.

The Huangpu River



Pudong

Gail and I went back to Shangahi a few weeks later and went up to the observation floor on the tall building which looks like abottle opener.

One of the main intersections below the tower with its pedestrian circle.

Super Brand Mall is upper left, the Apple Store to the left in the middle of the small circle down the glass steps.

Downstream view of the Huangpu river



Shaun the sheep on the glass floor!



Helen looking down! The glass is rather thick and toughened.



Being the middle of the day, shadows were at their shortest. I couldn't resist taking this one. It is difficult to take a photo straight down and not have your feet in the shot.

Another must do activity is to go down to The Bund as night falls. Daytime photos might be OK but this area of Shanghai come alive ( so does East Nanjing Road), light wise at night. More photos taken at The Bund can be found here. The photos at this other site are in a larger format and well worthwhile a look at, if I say so myself. Click here if you didn't a few seconds ago.

The Customs house



The night portrait setting came in handy here.



It was a clear night as the clouds prove -something of a rarity.



Looking back along The Bund.

The building in the left, next to the Customs House is the Shanghai Pudong Development Bank. It was built in 1922 and was one of the most beautiful buildings in Asia and probably still is. Shanghai is fortunate in that all the old buildings along (several kilometres) The Bund remain (mostly restored after the Japanese occupation in WW2) and provide a unique look into China's recent past. Beijing has nothing to compare with this area.

Still want to see more photos taken here? It's not too late.

Visit the excellent museum after coming down from the Pearl Tower too to learn more about the colonial history of Shanghai. We've been there twice and will probaly go back again before leaving China.

Another must do in Shanghai is the Acrobatic show at Shanghai Circus World. No photos allowed - which I respected, others didn't. How Chinese girls can fold their bodies into impossible positions has to be seen to be believed. How many girls can you fit in a barrel? Go and see for yourself!!!!!

From Shanghai it was a short train trip to Suzhou for our last stop in China, Summer 2012 before returning "home" to Nanjing.