Steamy Nights in Shanghai

Actually, that's not the title I wanted, but I can't think of the movie... any help?

So I wandered around Beijing one last day yesterday. I managed to get to the correct station, avoid all the weirdos at the station, get on the fancy, super fast, super clean train to Shanghai:





I left last night at 7:30 and arrived at 7 this morning. It was weird not having friends in my berth after spending so much time on trains with Ben and Amanda, but my cabin buddies were awesome. There was a young Korean couple who were amazed at my Korean language skills (they're not great, but I suppose compared to most Americans I know a few things) and there was an older guy from Shanghai who spoke limited English. He was awesome. Not only did he call my hotel to find out the correct address and name (in Chinese) but he walked me to the cheap taxi stand at 7 am and told the cabby where he needed to take me. Gorgeous. I can't even begin to tell you how many problems the four of us had dealing with taxis in Beijing.

My hotel is great. If any of you are looking for a cheap hotel in Shanghai, let me know. Air, king-sized bed, clean, en suite bathroom, great bar/restaurant with no mystery meat dishes, a pool table, cozy couches and a super friendly staff. But I certainly didn't spend much of my day in the hotel. The other benefit of this hotel is it's out of the crazy touristy areas in a great neighborhood, a five minute walk from a subway station.




Of course I don't have a guidebook for Shanghai so I didn't really know where to go or what to see. Eventually I bought a map and figured out the complex, but highly efficient subway system. I love cities with subways. I've actually been thinking most of the day what a shame it is that I've never really lived in a city with great public transportation. Riverside is in dire need of a solution, but people there love their cars too much to support public transport. Minneapolis on the other hand... it's on its way, but not quick enough. It's a goo thing my tax dollars are going to support the new Twins stadium of course. We can put the metro on hold for another 10 or 20 years...

But I digress.

Shanghai is ping pong great! I was in Hong Kong a few years ago and I loved the fast paced city with beautiful parks and crazy-ass architecture. Shanghai is similar. It's modern. It's moving. It has signs of colonialism and the old history. But so far I love it.

I wandered to the People's Park and then walked down Nanjing Road - China's most famous shopping area.


People's Park:



Although I was going to kick someone in the head if they came up to me one more time trying to sell me rollerskates or "hey lady want a bag, watch, some other bootleg product." Once again ladies and gents, I am 6 feet tall and tower over most people here so I can't really hide in the background. I know I look Western. I am a walking and breathing money-holding tourist. But I didn't really let that get to me.

I walked down to the Bund - this is supposed to be famous:





I was more impressed with the Pudong island:



This island used to be filled with farmers but when the party took control, they decided to make Shanghai a real player in the global market and therefore Pudong was created essentially in the early 90s:


I took a breather and just watched people for awhile - I can't believe that Shanghai is hotter than Beijing, but it certainly is. I think when I'm sitting, i can blend in more. However, I was approached by several people trying to sell crap and several scam artists.

I have found one of the best ways to get rid of scam artists is to take pictures of them:


And here's another way...
Please read my earlier blog about the Beijing tea bitches. Anyway, when the first set of bitches approached me, I was cordial, listening to their stupid conversation starter questions about where I'm from, what state, how many people are in my family, blah, blah, blah. Then I snapped and I said, "Oh, do you want to go to tea with me?"

The look on their faces, you ask? Priceless. "Oh yes," one of the girls replied.

"Ahhh, no, I don't think so. I'm quite happy sitting here and keeping my money in my pocket."

The two girls backed away very quickly.

The second group of three girls who approached me with the same crap questions started about the same. I, once again, asked them if they wanted to join me for tea. They seemed surprised, of course. And then I went on a rant. "You want to take me to tea and then leave me with the bill?"

"Oh no, no, no" they replied, "we've heard of that sort of thing."

"Oh yes, I am sure you have. There are many unethical people like you three in this country. I think it's sad that you would pretend to be friendly with tourists like me, when all you want to do is be manipulative and take my money. Manipulative, do you know that word? Did they teach you that in your fancy English university?"

"Yes," the one ring-leader replied, "there are some not so nice people in China, you need to watch out."

"Oh," I replied, "Thanks for the warning, but I know all about the not so nice people. You should feel ashamed of yourself and your behavior. People who try to scam innocent tourists who are just here to learn about and enjoy your culture. It's a shame that the many, many good people in China allow this kind of scam to happen on their streets. It's too bad people like you have to ruin the reputation of China for so many tourists."

"How many days you been in Shanghai that you already know about the bad people already?" one asked me.

"Long enough," I replied.

"Well you are very wise and open."

"Yes I am. Now I suggest you get away from me and grow some morals before I call the police over here. Do you understand that? Is your English clear enough for that?"

"Yes," and the three backed away. The crowd around me started to applaud and give me thumbs up. They were Chinese and they certainly do not condone that kind of behavior.

I walked the long stretch on Nanjing Road with my shoulders held high. I'm sure I didn't change anything about all 5 of those girls' bullshit tactics, but I felt better about the Beijing debacle.

It actually cooled off this evening and the buildings were hello-kitty terrific all lit up and dancing in their fancy little Chinese way.