Day-31: Shanghai Arrival & Day-1

Day-31: Tuesday, March 4, 2014

Beginning Location: East China Sea, En-route to Shanghai, China
Final Location: Shanghai, China

Well we were awake for the entry into Shanghai. Actually the entry began in the early morning as the ship headed up-river. By seven this morning we were near our dock. Along the way we encountered a massive amount of river traffic which we were to later find out is almost a continuous 24/7 evolution. We also passed by a naval base and caught a glimpse of two of China's "blue water" navy ships.

At the dock we were positioned to see the skyline of Shanghai though on arrival the fog, low-lying clouds or whatever obscured the highest buildings in this city of skyscrapers.

As this was our initial entry into China (Hong Kong didn’t count) we had to go through a face-to-face identification with immigration. The process was relatively efficient and soon we were ready to proceed to our morning’s tour entitled “The Watertown of Zhujiajiao”. We mustered at 0900 and were soon on the road with our travel guide Jenny for the day’s adventure.

Jenny

A note about our guide Jenny is warranted. She is a 30-something upwardly mobile Chinese citizen. She and her husband have one child and are very attuned to family economics and are clearly at the crossroads of the new and old of China in regard to the long-standing traditions of family. Jenny is a world traveler, or was when single and childless, and a woman interested in the designer goods now available to those with disposable income in China.

$16,000 License Plate

 

The tour started with a one hour ride from Shanghai to Zhujiajiao (Pearl Stream), one of the best-preserved ancient towns of Shanghai dating back over 1,700 years. The town has undergone a transformation to accommodate the tourist industry and with that renewal, many commercial activities have moved into the 21^st century alongside the older trades and retailers of the village. As a part of the tour we boarded small oar-powered boats for a water-born tour of the town through its intricate series of canals.

The Chairman

We returned to the ship around 1400 and soon thereafter returned ashore for a brief walking tour of Shanghai. I probably walked a couple of miles through the streets lined with Victorian Era designed buildings and then walked along the waterway park that looks toward the Pudong or business center of Shanghai. Along the way, I stopped for a currency exchange and a cup of chocolate at the local Starbucks. I even came upon a statue of Chairman Mao while walking. In actuality I’ve been surprised at how few “political” statues I’ve seen along the way.

Before heading down to dinner we gazed across the waterway at the amazing display of lights. The major buildings of Shanghai put on a colorful display for the evening hours though by 10 PM the color was gone as it was "lights out" to conserve on power. 

In addition to the lights of the skyline there are lights from the various boats and watercraft plying the river.

After returning to the ship we had a dinner that wasn’t particularly memorable followed by bar time as we sat with new acquaintances and friends through the evening downing the Kirs and, in my case,  a couple of beers.