32 degree Celsius: Shanghai, China (25

PART 2: SHANGHAI

Arrived Shanghai around 5pm, took a break at our hotel for a while before heading to Xintiandi and Huaihai Road. The two places are pretty close together and anyone can easily get to these places through Metro. (Their public transportation, especially their Metro is highly extensive and efficient.)

Xintiandi is an affluent car free shopping, eating and entertainment area. It is advisable to go here during the night because it is famous for it's night life entertainment and the lights give the place such a romantic feel. However, just like most things in Shanghai, this area offers services and goods to the upper class of society, with many foreign and imported brands, which probably explains why there are so many international visitors and foreigners. To get to this place, you can either get off at Xintiandi Station (Exit 6) on Subway Line 10 and walk north OR get off at South Huangpi Road Station (Exit 3) on subway line 1 and walk south to Xintiandi.

Huaihai Road, being somewhat similar, we just snapped countless of pictures in the area and did zero shopping. Later, we headed to Nanjing Road (another shopping heaven in the form of a pedestrian street) for dinner. CL pointed out this shop where the shop was crowded and people were queuing just to get the food. We tried their 'dumplings' and xiaolongbaos there. Pretty alright but not out of the world. If you want better dumplings, check out Wujiang Road's Xiaoyang shengjian which i will talk about later.

It taste pretty good if you have never tasted the ultra good ones. Otherwise this will be average. Sufficient amount of filling inside, the entire dumpling reminds me very much of mini fried paos.

After dinner, we headed to the Bund for a night view of all those famed buildings. Shanghai has been a major administrative, shipping and trading town for many centuries but it was in the 19th century due to the European recognition of its favourable port location and economic potential that it became increasingly prominent. It was opened to foreign trade following the British victory over China in the First Opium War and the subsequent 1842 Treaty of Nanking. The many buildings along Puxi marks the city's importance in commerce and foreign trade. Some buildings which are worth taking an interest in would be Bank of China building, Customs House (with the Big Ben inspired clock tower), and the HSBC Building. At night, yellow lights will shine on the buildings, proudly showcasing the economic and architectural beauty of the city.

Walk a little further to the North and you will reach Huangpu Park, which has the Monument to the People's Heroes, a memorial for those who died in the first opium war. It is a vast area and is extremely cold at night during winter but the panaromic view of the Bund at night is really a clever combination of elegance, romance, and classical charm, that is difficult to resist.

The following day, we had breakfast at a nearby small shop and had noodles and dumplings for breakfast, again. hehe. China has many small (and big) fast-food franchises that sell rice, noodles and dumplings instead of our typical burger and fries. It is a concept I still find a little hard to grasp considering how I have always linked fast food to processed burgers.

Fujian Shaxian Snacks

Steamed dumplings (RMB4 per basket)

Pork chop noodles 大排面 (RMB10)

Chicken strips with noodles

Pork ribs with noodles (RMB11)

After breakfast, we headed to Yu Yuan Garden. This is a place you cannot miss when you come to shanghai, not because of the beauty of the garden alone but because of the other attractions located around the area which are just as interesting, if not more. Yu Yuan Garden goes way back to the Ming Dynasty but it has been damaged numerous times since then.

Personally for me, I found the area outside Yu Yuan Garden more fascinating than the garden itself, because the Temple of City Gods is so nearby. The place is crowded with shops and people, and there is a Mid-lake Pavilion Teahouse nearby. Many people can be seen trying the Nanxiang Steamed Paos, but I think it is a little overrated for its price. It is, nevertheless, worth a try if you are a tourist. Try their baos with soup in it. You can suck all the soup out with a straw and eat up the pao after that. hehe.

Later in the day, we went to Pudong, the other side of Puxi. You can get off at Lujiazi station and walk around. All the tall buildings can be visited and most easily offer a breathtaking view of Shanghai from the top. CL suggested the Shanghai World Financial Centre which has a glass floor at the top of the tower. But he later told me that it is not as worth it as other towers in had went up. Ticket prices are quite high and it would have been more worth it had there been not so much mist/smog blocking the view of the city.

And THIS is THE ULTIMATE DUMPLING. It is run by a franchise called Xiaoyang Shengjian and was formerly at 60 Wujiang Road. They have now shifted to 269 Wujiang Road. We went on a wild goose chase looking for this place simply because we did not know they have shifted. Thankfully, this place is so popular that the locals knew of it even when it shifted business venue.

After trying these, I realised that all the previous dumplings I have eaten were only mediocre. This was on a class of its own. The first bite surprises you with the porky soup flavours in the dumpling and the following bites bring you to dumpling heaven. haha.

As the place was crowded, we had take-away and had our dinner at a Japanese restaurant, Yoshinoya, instead. Yoshinoya is opposite 269 Wujiang Road. Japanese curry.

Actually it is very easy to get to Xiaoyang Shengjian if you are familiar with the place.

Last stop in Shanghai before leaving to Suzhou - People's Square Park. I once came across this park's reputation a few years back when I read about it in a blog. It is famous for its 'matchmaking facility' where people would put up their biodata, with the hope that other people who come across their info would be interested and call them out for a date. I heard that it is usually done by the parents and not the individuals themselves. But it is neverthless an interesting concept. It also highlights the problem our present society is dealing in terms of marriage and relationships - the difficulty of finding the right one.