Jessica did not feel well today so she took it easy and slept through our morning adventures and met up with us at the Shanghai Museum. Fortunately, she is feeling much better now.
This morning we took a tour around Shanghai and learned all about the fascinating history of this city. In comparison to the rest of China, Shanghai is relatively young having only been on the map for a mere 700 years. Our tour guide told us that in 1980 there were only 20 buildings in the city that were over six stories high, whereas today there are over 4,000 buildings over six stories. Many of Shanghai’s sky scrapers are in the top 20 tallest buildings in the world. This city has grown quickly and there is tons of construction going on right now in order to get the city ready for the World Expo next year. That’s one thing about the Chinese government, when they decide to do something they put the man power and money into it to make it happen quickly.
Our first visit was to the Jin Mao Tower, which is one of the tallest hotels in the world (it's in the picture to the right with the "bottle opener" building). The elevator takes you up 88 floors in just 45 seconds! The view from the top was amazing.
Next, we were off to the Bund, which is an area along the Huangpu River in Shanghai. This area was developed about 100 years ago by the international community and the buildings look very reminiscent of European buildings from that time period.
We had a special lunch today. We were able to put whatever meats, vegetables, and sauces we wanted into a bowl and then watch the chefs fry them up on a large round griddle-like thing. It was very fun and pretty tasty, too.
Then we were off to the Shanghai Museum, which is a beautiful place. They have over 120,000 artifacts from throughout China’s history. We spent our time in the bronze and pottery/porcelain sections learning all about the development of both through the various dynasties. We also visited the museum tea house and enjoyed a little afternoon Jause (Austrian tea time) Chinese-style.
We took a well-deserved nap back at our lovely hotel and then were off to dinner. Tonight was our last meal together with our group since tomorrow is a free day and we leave on Friday. Jessica and our tour guide surprised Val with a tiramisu birthday cake and soy ice cream since her birthday is on Friday. It was fun to celebrate Val’s special day (albeit a bit early) with our China Spree family.
Tomorrow we’re planning to sleep in and then head out to the markets to see what good deals we can find. Stay tuned!
This morning we took a tour around Shanghai and learned all about the fascinating history of this city. In comparison to the rest of China, Shanghai is relatively young having only been on the map for a mere 700 years. Our tour guide told us that in 1980 there were only 20 buildings in the city that were over six stories high, whereas today there are over 4,000 buildings over six stories. Many of Shanghai’s sky scrapers are in the top 20 tallest buildings in the world. This city has grown quickly and there is tons of construction going on right now in order to get the city ready for the World Expo next year. That’s one thing about the Chinese government, when they decide to do something they put the man power and money into it to make it happen quickly.
Our first visit was to the Jin Mao Tower, which is one of the tallest hotels in the world (it's in the picture to the right with the "bottle opener" building). The elevator takes you up 88 floors in just 45 seconds! The view from the top was amazing.
Next, we were off to the Bund, which is an area along the Huangpu River in Shanghai. This area was developed about 100 years ago by the international community and the buildings look very reminiscent of European buildings from that time period.
We had a special lunch today. We were able to put whatever meats, vegetables, and sauces we wanted into a bowl and then watch the chefs fry them up on a large round griddle-like thing. It was very fun and pretty tasty, too.
Then we were off to the Shanghai Museum, which is a beautiful place. They have over 120,000 artifacts from throughout China’s history. We spent our time in the bronze and pottery/porcelain sections learning all about the development of both through the various dynasties. We also visited the museum tea house and enjoyed a little afternoon Jause (Austrian tea time) Chinese-style.
We took a well-deserved nap back at our lovely hotel and then were off to dinner. Tonight was our last meal together with our group since tomorrow is a free day and we leave on Friday. Jessica and our tour guide surprised Val with a tiramisu birthday cake and soy ice cream since her birthday is on Friday. It was fun to celebrate Val’s special day (albeit a bit early) with our China Spree family.
Tomorrow we’re planning to sleep in and then head out to the markets to see what good deals we can find. Stay tuned!