Last Day in China

"Mien Mien Ice" soooogood! It's a new thingy.

Xin Tian Di & Tian Zi Fang are two interesting tourist filled areas we ventured to with some family cousins currently living in Shanghai. They are akin to our Yorkville and Distillery scenes in TO.

Tian Zi Fang district of Shanghai

French Concession area

Soaking in nightlife in Nanjing East pedestrian blvd.

Waiting on the Big Bus Tour of Shanghai (two day excursion for $100yuan)

After all these week I am tired of flying around China and am looking forward to getting home. I think we have flown 7 times in China. I think what I am really tired of is flying around China in packed airplanes. Every flight we have been on was fully loaded. Everyone pushes and shove to get on and off the plan and you site there for an hour and a half looking at a sea of bad haircuts. Shanghai is not too bad. But everywhere else we went we are always fighting crowds after crowds and people pushing and shoving.

This is probably a good sign that more people are traveling and vacationing in China and is a indication that people are getting more wealthy here. But they need to learn to be more orderly. I think it is a habit after years of fighting for everything they want or need. No one is giving it to them.

One thing I still can't get used to is the washrooms in the smaller cities and towns. One advise if you are coming to China. Make sure you bring shoes that don't leak. You never know when you have to go. I think it will take another 5 years to work thought these sanitary, environmental and pollution issues.

(Tom's email home as we are boarding return flight back to Canada)

More Shanghai Photos!

Going over Nanpu Bridge


Upclose Jin Mao Tower (Grand Hyatt) and Bottle Opener (World Financial Centre). They are currently constructing another tower right next to Jin Mao.


Base of the Oriental Pearl Tower - Great big circular pedestrian walkway above the traffic.


Ride in Tourist Tunnel Crossing the Huangpu River separating Puxi and Pudong

The Pearl and the mall beside it called Super Brand Mall & the name said it all!

Back to Shanghai

Daylight Shanghai Bund


Nanjing Rd & the legendary Peace Hotel - historically dubbed "Mansion in the East". (It was closed & under renovation at time of last visit 2007) Inside high end restaurants and shops abound with a string quartet in the circular lobby area to set the mood ...there is a display of the most enormous crystal works of birds & animals in the Swarovski shop.







Shanghai Huangpu river Cruise




Below is an example of many such pedestrian walkways rising over the busy traffic intersections, even quadrangle ones ...something TO should really consider as part of city infrastructure (aka Vegas). The city has utilized these corridors extensively and even beautified some with greenery. Much of the larger cities in China have separate lanes dedicated to just bicycles / mopeds in addition to a pedestrian walkway and four to six lanes for cars....even that is not enough to alleviate congestion during high traffic hours.

Suzhou

Suzhou's typical decorative windows



Much of the paved walkways are also works of art - this stoned circle is itself encircled with blue bats - symbols of good luck. The word "bat" in Chinese sounds identical to the word for "Good Fortune". Often five bats are shown together to represent the Five Blessings; a long life, riches, health, love of virtue, and a natural death.



Classic Suzhou garden strewn with uniquely shaped natural rocks

Nanjing

Dr. Sun Yat Sen Mausoleum






Nanjing..a.k.a. "The Stone City" / " Purple-Gold Mtn" or ZijinMtn"
The city that spawned the famous classic novel - "Dream of the Red Chamber"


Each of these bricks made by hand over 700 years ago were grouted together by rice paste and ash. Each family had carved their insignia and date. We were told by our guide that the emperor apparently allowed the people two chances to construct a strong enough brick. If the bricks were dropped by a sentinel over his head and it cracked, the entire family would be beheaded!


Old Stone wall made in the 1300s surrounding the capital of Nanjing. Likely the longest city wall in the world Constructed during  the Yuan and Ming Dynasties ( 1365 & 1386) it originally stretched 35km or 22 miles. At present, the remains have a length of 21km or 13 miles.







Later in the day we were taken to the Nanjing Jade Institute to learn how to appreciate the multi-faceted criterieas which goes into the appraising of a jade or jadeite piece.




Famous Nanjing bridge built by the citizens of China. Started in 1959 completed 1968. This bridge epitomized the spirit of the communist ideal at the time - to be self-reliant and erect a bridge that would allow ppl to cross the Yangtze which divided Nanjing at the time of the Japanese invasion of 1935. Tens of thousands of Chinese citizens fleeing the Japanese rape of Nanjing (1937) were dead-ended by the Yangtze river and unable to escape the invading Japanese army. The river was especially difficult to span since its water level is deep and rises dramatically and it currents swift. Foreign (Russian) engineers were consulted but all declined to take it on as there was no confidence it could successfully be built.

Wuxi - Lingshan Copper Buddha

                                                                 

There is a fountain centerpiece which puts on a water show  periodically throughout the day, depicting the Buddha's birth







On the steps climbing up the copper buddha - view of Ling Shan & Wuxi

The giant copper foot - Sakyamuni stands more than 88 metres high and weighs over 700 tons. It was completed in the end of 1996



Inside the Ling Shan Brahma Palace & decorative ceiling with the cosmos blue dome. The palace also feathured a huge circular theatre re-enacting the life of Buddha in full set design and costumes...lol...