Back to the Future

Mmm.... pollution
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Cough, splutter, buzz, drip, drip... the sounds of Shanghai.  Every building is air conditioned (you don't have to pay extra for it here!) and we quickly lost our immunity to heat.  We were shocked by the amount of pollution hampering the views in Shanghai and it was frustrating that such a famous skyline should be shrouded in an awful mist but we did manage to get one day that was clear.

Accommodation is expensive in Shanghai and we were unsure of where to go.  Luckily C-Trip came to our rescue and organised a room in a hotel for us.  It was a good deal - RMB 158 for a three star hotel and included breakfast!  As it turned out we only used the free brekkie once (not the greatest food) but the room was pretty amazing by our standards.  Food is really cheap and good in China, so we didn't mind paying for breakfast.  For example dinner on our first night, while plain, only cost us RMB 3.50 each.

they only left us when we got into a lift and physically pushed them out.

The Bund from Pudong
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The reason we had travelled straight to Shanghai was to get our Russian visas.  To get a tourist visa you require a letter of invitation, which is a pointless but necessary formality.  Luckily Sean's Mum was online the night before and her credit card secured us one from Napoleon Hostel (US$32, ready in 10 seconds). We lined up just after 8am on Friday outside the consulate and exited three hours later and and each of us were RMB 390 poorer.  It wasn't too scary, except for when we were yelled at by the Russian security guy, in Russian.  When he changed to English it was a polite, "one moment please" and we had to wait outside the gates for a little longer.

Sean and Rob are very close friends... maybe too close
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With that done we it was time to explore Shanghai.  We took a stroll along the Bund, trying to see the other side of the river (Pudong, the futuristic looking part of the city) through the pollution.  A few Chinese students caught up with us for a chat, supposedly practicing their English.  Eventually we were led to their art studio where we sat through a few tedious minutes as their artwork (all of it done by them, we sure!) was shown to us.  They were lovely people and didn't put any pressure on us to buy anything... so we didn't.  It's a fairly standard trap in China.

The Oriental Pearl Tower, without pollution
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To get across the river and view the Bund from the other side we took the Bund Sightseeing Tunnel.  We weren't expecting much but ended up really enjoying it!  It isn't anything amazing but worth doing because it's so cheesy.  The audio is hilariously random and the whole experience is ummm... unique. Check out this video. The Bund has dozens of historical buildings, lining the Huangpu River, that once housed numerous banks and trading houses from Britain, France, the USA, Russia, Germany, Japan, The Netherlands and Belgium, as well as the consulates of Russia and Britain (ok, this sentence is from Wikipedia).

Pudong by night
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We caught up with Rob, a school friend of Sean's, who had just travelled the Trans-Mongolian Railway from Moscow to Beijing.  Along with Susan (from his hostel) we took the subway to Kiwi Bar.  It turned out to be more expensive than we expected so we bought beers from the convenience store (RMB 35 vs. RMB 2.80).

Having learnt our lesson the previous day, we skipped the complimentary breakfast and met Rob at his hostel to checkout the fake antiques market in "Old Town".  It's a kind of Disney version of old Shanghai and it was packed with tourists.  Rob eventually found the painting he was after and Adrienne spotted a painting that she wanted in the same shop.  After a lot of bargaining we got to a price that we wanted - China is the toughest place to bargain in.

The Bund by night
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Fried dumplings and 4 DVD's (RMB 5 each) sorted us out during our lunch interlude before we headed to harassment central: the fake clothes market.  There was obviously a famous or sucker-like air about us because we quickly attracted a crowd of annoying Chinese touts.  We tried to ignore them, we walked around a seat three times with them following but in the end they only left us when we got into a lift and physically pushed them out.  You can guess that we exited quickly and didn't buy anything.  Instead we went to another building where Sean bought a fake Patek Philippe watch (automatic) for RMB 100.

Chinese Opera
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We had said "toodle-oo" to Rob after our shopping the previous day as he was off home to good old Aoteroa. Our mission for this day was to get train tickets to Huangzhou and Xi'an.  It took a while but we managed to accomplish it in time to catch some Chinese Opera (RMB 40).  Well, let's see... um.. it's an... acquired taste.  The voices were crazy (like a Chinese South Park) but the make-up and costumes were brilliant.  It's a must see but not one to be repeated too often. Here's a video if you can't make it to China.

Tourist Sightseeing Tunnel
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It was a hot day and while wandering around the beautiful French Concession, we stopped for an ice cream.  These turned out to be great treats in China as the cost well under NZ$1.

It took forever to find internet in the middle of town but when we finished it was time for more street food and to check out the Bund at night (except for the crush of people, we recommend it).  The view that greeted us on both sides of the river was a sparkling display of the futuristic Pudong and elegantly lit Bund.

The French Concession
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In the morning, we ended up in a rush to catch the train but eventually arrived in perfect time.  Our next destination was "China's Most Beautiful City"... we'll see.