Friday, May 12, 2006

Shanghai Ahoy

Takla Makan. The Gobi Desert. The great wall of China. In Xanadu did Kubla Khan a stately pleasure dome decree. The BRICs report. The world's most populous country. All those old jokes about sardarjis who name their third child "chang", because every third person in the world is Chinese. Printing technology, huns, the way of the dragon. Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. Ho Chi Minh. Tiananamen Square. Google's China problem, or China's Google problem, as the case may be.

Hallelujah, China, here I come.

OK, so it's just a few days, and just one city / area. Still, I am thrilled beyond belief.

Shanghai it is. Any ideas, people? Things to see, things to do? Cheap hotels, if you've traveled there at all? Overcoming the language barrier? Any other tid-bits? Historical / geographical cultural info?

I shall keep posting my research. Meanwhile, in honor of this event, I shall finally buy that digital camera so many of you wrote in about so long ago.

Watch this space!

3 comments:

J. Alfred Prufrock said...

In no particular order, some of the more interesting things that happened to me in Shanghai -

1. riding the mag-lev train to/from Pudong airport
2. the bar on the top floor of the Hyatt, where I saw clouds drifting below me. The 32-floor atrium is pretty impressive too
3. the cafes at Xin Tian Di (the bars there really aren't as hot as they're hyped, you'de be better off in the downtown business district)
4. the museum below the Oriental Pearl Tower, OK, even the tower itself
5. the Urban Development Exhibition in Peoples' Square. Yes, it sounds improbable, but it's actually interesting
6. a drive down the Bund at night, mabe ending up in Xin Tian Di for a drink or two

J.A.P.

Progga said...

JAP, thanks. Looks like I will manage Beijing as well. The Great Wall, here I come. Did you go to Beijing? Any ideas about what to see / do there?

Deliciously Alive said...

Hi!:)

I hope you havent returned from China when you get this:)But it should help.I hope:)

http://diemos.blogspot.com/2005/03/china-travelogue.html

Bon Voyage!

Mayuri!;)