Day 2: Shanghai, Monday, June 18, 2012

Jetlag, partying Chinese people and excitement about what awaits us, but: we got it! It was 8 o`clock when we all met for a short introduction to urban restructuring processes in Shanghai.

A short walk and a tube ride later we went to visit the urban planning museum. But the doors of the building were closed and left us standing outside in the rain. It was the classical Monday mistake. So instead of looking at planning themes, the group walked through an insect and pet market. There were kitties, lots of insect, fished and other animals. It was interesting but nobody bought a living souvenir for the relatives.

People's Square in Shanghai (Photo: Heike Mayer)

Insect market in Shanghai (Photo: Heike Mayer)

Yu Yuan Gaden area in Shanghai (Photo: Heike Mayer)

Tea time in the Yu Yuan Garden area (Photo: Heike Mayer)

Old city neighborhood near Yu Yuan Garden (Photo: Heike Mayer)

After a walk through the old city and Yu Yuan Gardens we took the ferry to the Pudong New Area (PNA). The differences between the old city with the “small” buildings and this business district are enormous. Big towers, new cars, no (visible) poor people; our guide showed us all this. After the tour through this “skyscraper forest” we decided to have a look of the PNA from one of the highest buildings. We `climbed` the Financial Tower (the one that looks like a bottle opener) and had the pleasure to enjoy the view over Shanghai. To be honest, we didn`t see that much because of the bad weather and the smog. But anyway, it was worth it! Especially considering the heated toilet seats and the cocktails we had. After heading directly into the `from-financial district-back-to-normal`-rush hour we enjoyed a nice meal in a Muslim-Chinese restaurant. A female dancer showed us different oriental inputs in “wonderful” dresses (she changed about 4 times).

Tour through Lujiazui Financial Center in Pudong (Photo: Heike Mayer)

Park in Lujiazui, Pudong (Photo: Heike Mayer)

View from the Shanghai World Financial Center (Photo: Heike Mayer)

Pudong skyscrapers
(Photo: Heike Mayer)

  Facts of the day:

• Step count on our pedometer: 27 000 steps or 22 km
•  Toilets: 3 sorts (standing toilets, those with heated seats or normal ones) 
•  Disparities: business cluster vs. pool people in the old city
• What did we learn:

o   no death of hunger from using chopsticks

o   an umbrella can be your best friend

o   museums are closed on Monday (as we know from Switzerland)

• Weather: from rain to cloudy, smog is everywhere
• Eat & drink: It is much more expensive to drink a coffee, cocktail or glass of wine than eating a Chinese meal (size XXXL)
• An empty plate after dinner is utopian

         Dina Spörri, Barbara Jossi

A nice meal at the end of a day is an important part of our field trip
(Photo: Heike Mayer)