China - Hangzhou and Shanghai - Sept 2010

This is the second half of my 2010 Around the World Adventure.

Day 1 - September 16

I left Orlando on Wednesday morning, then a 12 hour flight from Dallas to Tokyo, all in daylight, flying around the world, chasing the sun. The flight was good and probably my best AA meal.

In Tokyo I spent four hours in the lounge, trying to stay awake. I've found you can avoid jet lag for a while - but sooner or later it hits you.

The Japan Air flight to Shanghai was great - amazing service - as is true with most international airlines. I arrived in Shanghai late and went right to bed.

Day 2 - September 17.

I took a day trip to Hangzhou, about two hours south of Shanghai.

Hangzhou is one of the eight ancient capitals of China.

The biggest attraction was West Lake. First I took a tram three quarters around the lake. Then a two hour boat ride. I also walked, amazed at how many old people were sitting or exercising.

This is during the boat ride on the lake.

And what the boat looked like.

A pagoda on the lake. I saw the Leifing Pagoda, built in 977AD, and the Three Pools Mirroring the moon. (Sorry, pictures not uploaded.)

A view from shore.

More tourist boats.

Day 3 - September 18

I'm now staying on the Huangpu River in Shanghai. What an amazing sight - with all the modern buildings. The traffic rivals any major US city - and then some. That's my hotel above.

Here's my commentary on the traffic. Pedestrians have no standing - look all ways, even back before proceeding.

Motorbikes and bicycles follow no rules at all. They proceed at all times, whether the light is red or green. All traffic can go right on red - without stopping or looking. At major intersections, buses block all lanes while trying to cross. I read that blowing your horn was illegal - maybe the law was just published in English. Well I survived my five days with only one near miss - a police golf cart almost ran me over.

I took an afternoon walk down the main shopping street, like Fifth Avenue, except as a foreigner I was accosted by many locals, to buy their Ralph Lauren originals - yeah.

I finally found a small restaurant, where they had an English menu. Some shrimp dumplings and spicy noodles tasted great. Of course the 600ml bottle of Tsingsao beer helped put me to sleep for a few hours. The jet lag always catches up.

Night time on the Bund overlooking the river and evening light show. There I was, me and 20 million Chinese people. After my evening walk I returned to my hotel for a long needed rest.

Day 4 - September 19

What a great night's sleep. Up early - 6am, but in bed until at least 7am. On today's schedule, two walking tours - The Bund and the Old City.

After a great breakfast (which was greatly needed, since I missed dinner last night), I wandered out. Much fewer people then last night.

I had trouble finding the start of the Old Town tour, but once there, it was hard to miss. Again, thousands of people, with just as many shops. You could buy anything - originals and knockoffs. The biggest street vendor item was Rolex watches and IPhones. I'm sure neither would last a week.

There was laundry hanging everywhere - in good neighborhoods and bad. I don't think dryers have found their way to China. They just make them and send them off. My sole purchase was a rainbow kite. At first the guy wanted 120 yuan ($18), I offered 40 yuan and we settled on 50 ($7). I'm sure I still overpaid.

Thinking of having Peking duck? Well here they were in a street market quacking away.

I then went to the high quality shops in The Bund, which had prices comparable to any large city.

My biggest problem was finding a restaurant that I felt comfortable with. I took almost an hour, rejecting many along the way. I found one and was surprised that the Shanghai sauteed shrimp were with their heads and unpeeled. At least I had another large bottle of beer as I slowly made my way through the pile of shrimp.

It was now 100 degrees out so I returned to my hotel and rested until the sun went down.

I finally made my decision to skip the Expo tomorrow. Everyone I talked to told me the crowds and heat would be unbearable, starting with an hour wait to buy your ticket, and once inside, an hour or three waiting for the more popular exhibits - again in 100 degree heat. I know that was one of my reasons to visit Shanghai, but there's plenty else to do.

I was amazed that there were no fireworks at the Expo. Didn't the Chinese invent them?

Day 5 - September 20
I arrived bright and early at the Expo - oops, I must have written that in advance.

Today's my hop-on, hop-off bus tour day. I started at eight in the morning and arrived back at my hotel at eight in the evening - exhausted.
I started in The People's Square, with beautiful gardens and government buildings. I started the bus tour outside the Shanghai Museum.

We rode through the French Concession - an area used by the French until the end of WWII, when they relinquished the concession. The architecture still has that European flare.

Next we hit the main shopping street. there must have been fifty high-end shopping malls and thousands of designer retailers in the area. And people were shopping - not like at home these days. Now you know where all our dollars go when they reach China.

We then stopped at the Jade Buddha Temple. Most religious artifacts were destroyed in the early atheist days of Communist China - now religion is allowed. It was a nice temple, but nothing like the ones I saw in Thailand. The koi fish were beautiful though.

Hopping back on I rode to Pudong, across the river. I did get a glimpse of the Expo. Pudong is the main financial district, with massive, tall glass skyscrapers - one of second tallest in the world.

I got off at the Oriental Pearl Tower, an impressive structure day or night.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm sick of Chinese food, especially all those strange things on the menu, like eel and tripe. Its too bad I couldn't get a menu to take home, so I could share the disgustingness. I found an Indian restaurant, and enjoyed my non-Chinese lunch.

I had time to kill before the evening sightseeing cruise, so I rode the circuit again. Its amazing what you forget or miss in a short time.

The cruise was a lot of fun. I met this nice couple from Brisbane, Kerry and Kerry. We chatted while watching the colorfully lit buildings on both sides of the river.

As I said earlier, it was a long full day. Tomorrow I'm off to Tokyo and an overnight flight to Sydney.

Day 6 - September 21

After breakfast I headed to the airport for my flight to Tokyo, connecting to my Qantas overnight flight to Sydney. I probably won't have much to report until I hook up with Jeane and Jay Zorzy, who are meeting me for two weeks in Australia.