BEIJING, DAY 7 - WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2008
Having survived the hot Sichaun food from last night, I feel great this morning. We have breakfast in the hotel, a buffet with cook to order eggs, waffles, pancakes, fresh fruits (many of which I have never seen before), ten types of fish, sushi, sushimi, eight types of yogurt, and things I can not begin to identify or describe, together with your standard ham, bacon, sausage, etc. Typical breakfast in Beijing, no doubt.
Thoroughly refreshed with sleep and food, we head out into a bright, clear, cool day. Our hotel is on the north side of Chang An Blvd., the main east-west central city street. Just 300 yards to our west, on the north side of Chang An, is the Forbidden City, ancient home of the emperors of China, in all its many transformations, but primarily the last two dynasties, the Ming and the Qing. Across Chang An from the Forbidden City is Tian’An Men Square, home of Mao’s mausoleum.. We spend the better part of the day wandering the Forbidden City, viewing the artifacts of the emperors who once were viewed as god, and owned everything and everyone in China. Apparently, being the emperor was good work, if you could get it and stay alive long enough to enjoy it.
We had a late dinner in the hotel, and toured the place. Quite an impressive layout - old world charm, solid warmth, mixed with the most modern of conveniences. They open and light up the bowling alley just for us to look it over. The spa staff explains all the different ways our bodies can be massaged, pounded, twisted, oiled and dusted. Why would anyone stay anywhere else in Beijing? Off way got to our large, comfy room, for a good night of sleep.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
SHANGHAI & BEIJING, DAY 6 - TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2008
I’m wide awake at 2:45. Small wonder, I’ve slept most of the last full day and previous night. I think Mao has retreated, but coffee is not the first thing I think to drink. A little room temperature Sprite seems the more cautious test. So far, so good, and I fired up the laptop.
Everyone’s up, packed. We decide to head up the block to Starbucks for breakfast, but find them closed at 9 am. Odd. Back to the hotel for breakfast. I’m still not eating, but I do try some coffee. We pile into a cab, first trip with all three of us and all our bags. The driver is mad that Scott puts a suitcase on the front passenger seat, mussing up his custom seat cover. I thought we might end up walking to the airport, but things get smoothed over and off we go. Our China Southern flight leaves on time at 12:05, a very roomy and clean plane. Service is excellent, and a real meal is served. I decline food agin, but Dee and Scott eat well. The flight to Beijing is 2 hours and 20 minutes, and before you know it, we can see Beijing. The sky is cloudless, the day is blue, it is about 49 when we land. Since this is a domestic flight, all we have to do is pick up our checked bags and find a cab, easily done, and off we go to downtown Beijing.
The ride is mostly on highways very much like our interstates, with the exception of all the signs - huge Chinese characters, but English language underneath. The skyline is much lower then Shanghai, far more open, with the largest buildings only 10 or 15 stories. We exit the large highway system to a series of broad boulevards, and turn onto a huge boulevard, about 5 lanes in each direction, Chang An Blvd. It is the main east - west thoroughfare, traversing the center of the city, past rows of hotels, government buildings, Tien’An Men Square and the Forbidden City. Our hotel, Raffles Hotel, is in a connected row of seven or eight story hotels, sandwiched between the Beijing Hotel and the Grand Hotel Beijing. The Raffles Hotel is part of a chain of hotels spread over the world, and this building was built in 1900, and was most recently renovated and opened by Raffles in 2006. We pull up to an impressive front, with doormen and bellmen in full uniform, evoking a turn of the century old world place of solid luxury. This first impression is borne out during our stay. We check in and are escorted to our large, well appointed room, and by 4 o’clock, we are generally unpacked and happy to be in Beijing. We explore the hotel. There is a fully equipped 6 lane modern bowling alley, a full spa, billiard room, two story athletic complex, indoor pool, massage center (foot massages in China are ubiquitous), an entrance to the Beijing subway is 100 yards from the front door, and the Forbidden City and Tien’An Men Square are 300 yards straight up the sidewalk (which is as wide as our roads).
Dee and Scott pour over our growing collection of guide books, looking for restaurant choices. I haven’t eaten for two days, but the prospect of a strange meal of Chinese cuisine is less than exciting. They select a place called “Boguobuyi”, known for its Sichuan style cooking. I’m so lucky. Sichuan is a province of China, most known for its fiery, spiced cooking style. Just what a tender tummy needs. My family loves me so much. After a rather long cab ride, we arrive. It is very busy, a large place with several connected dinning rooms, and seems to have a family clientele. We are the only westerners there, and but for Scott’s language skills, we would have been pointing to pictures of dishes on the menu and grunting. The young waitresses giggled at us, mostly at Scott, and he did the ordering. A pork dish, a chicken dish, an eggplant dish, all tossed with various veggies, mushrooms, peanuts, in sauces of various levels on the Scoville scale I figure if my stomach will take this, I am truly cured. It does, and I am, and we all fill up on a really special meal. We are visited by a precocious 8 year old who speaks remarkably good English, having learned it only at school. We chat, and he asks many questions about America. Dinner is very inexpensive, and back to Raffles we go, destined for a deep and welcome sleep.
Everyone’s up, packed. We decide to head up the block to Starbucks for breakfast, but find them closed at 9 am. Odd. Back to the hotel for breakfast. I’m still not eating, but I do try some coffee. We pile into a cab, first trip with all three of us and all our bags. The driver is mad that Scott puts a suitcase on the front passenger seat, mussing up his custom seat cover. I thought we might end up walking to the airport, but things get smoothed over and off we go. Our China Southern flight leaves on time at 12:05, a very roomy and clean plane. Service is excellent, and a real meal is served. I decline food agin, but Dee and Scott eat well. The flight to Beijing is 2 hours and 20 minutes, and before you know it, we can see Beijing. The sky is cloudless, the day is blue, it is about 49 when we land. Since this is a domestic flight, all we have to do is pick up our checked bags and find a cab, easily done, and off we go to downtown Beijing.
The ride is mostly on highways very much like our interstates, with the exception of all the signs - huge Chinese characters, but English language underneath. The skyline is much lower then Shanghai, far more open, with the largest buildings only 10 or 15 stories. We exit the large highway system to a series of broad boulevards, and turn onto a huge boulevard, about 5 lanes in each direction, Chang An Blvd. It is the main east - west thoroughfare, traversing the center of the city, past rows of hotels, government buildings, Tien’An Men Square and the Forbidden City. Our hotel, Raffles Hotel, is in a connected row of seven or eight story hotels, sandwiched between the Beijing Hotel and the Grand Hotel Beijing. The Raffles Hotel is part of a chain of hotels spread over the world, and this building was built in 1900, and was most recently renovated and opened by Raffles in 2006. We pull up to an impressive front, with doormen and bellmen in full uniform, evoking a turn of the century old world place of solid luxury. This first impression is borne out during our stay. We check in and are escorted to our large, well appointed room, and by 4 o’clock, we are generally unpacked and happy to be in Beijing. We explore the hotel. There is a fully equipped 6 lane modern bowling alley, a full spa, billiard room, two story athletic complex, indoor pool, massage center (foot massages in China are ubiquitous), an entrance to the Beijing subway is 100 yards from the front door, and the Forbidden City and Tien’An Men Square are 300 yards straight up the sidewalk (which is as wide as our roads).
Dee and Scott pour over our growing collection of guide books, looking for restaurant choices. I haven’t eaten for two days, but the prospect of a strange meal of Chinese cuisine is less than exciting. They select a place called “Boguobuyi”, known for its Sichuan style cooking. I’m so lucky. Sichuan is a province of China, most known for its fiery, spiced cooking style. Just what a tender tummy needs. My family loves me so much. After a rather long cab ride, we arrive. It is very busy, a large place with several connected dinning rooms, and seems to have a family clientele. We are the only westerners there, and but for Scott’s language skills, we would have been pointing to pictures of dishes on the menu and grunting. The young waitresses giggled at us, mostly at Scott, and he did the ordering. A pork dish, a chicken dish, an eggplant dish, all tossed with various veggies, mushrooms, peanuts, in sauces of various levels on the Scoville scale I figure if my stomach will take this, I am truly cured. It does, and I am, and we all fill up on a really special meal. We are visited by a precocious 8 year old who speaks remarkably good English, having learned it only at school. We chat, and he asks many questions about America. Dinner is very inexpensive, and back to Raffles we go, destined for a deep and welcome sleep.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Mao's Revenge on Black Monday
SHANGHAI, DAY 5 - MONDAY FEBRUARY 18, 2008
Not much to write about today. I was up very early. After my second cup of coffee, I could tell all was not well. By the time Dee and Scott were up, I was in the tight clutches of Mao’s Revenge. For me, the next 36 hours were miserable, foodless, mostly fitful sleep. We decided to switch our travel plans to Beijing from train (overnight) to plane (2 ½ hours), and Scott booked those flights. Dee and Scott headed out. They lunched in the swanky dinning area where we had previously lunched at the Bavarian brewhouse, but they selected “Va Bene”. Strange how they choose Italian in China. Scott took Dee to the shopping district, and did her negotiating. Scott’s plan is simple: Undercut their price until their mad and red in the face, then close the deal. Dee bought two high-end (knock offs, no doubt, but don’t tell anyone) leather purses, and some shirts and a sweater. They reported back to the hotel to see if I was still alive, and brought me some Sprite and water. I slept through most of their visit, then they headed out to the Bund, dinning at “M on the Bund”, on the seventh floor of one of the Concession era buildings overlooking the river front.. I, not being there, rely upon their sketchy reports - Dee had a large salad, a bean soup, and some huge chocolate desert. Scott had salad, “seven meat, seven vegetable cous cous” (he reports identifying maybe 4 of each) and a mixed citrus sorbet. I wasn’t even thinking food at the time.
Not much to write about today. I was up very early. After my second cup of coffee, I could tell all was not well. By the time Dee and Scott were up, I was in the tight clutches of Mao’s Revenge. For me, the next 36 hours were miserable, foodless, mostly fitful sleep. We decided to switch our travel plans to Beijing from train (overnight) to plane (2 ½ hours), and Scott booked those flights. Dee and Scott headed out. They lunched in the swanky dinning area where we had previously lunched at the Bavarian brewhouse, but they selected “Va Bene”. Strange how they choose Italian in China. Scott took Dee to the shopping district, and did her negotiating. Scott’s plan is simple: Undercut their price until their mad and red in the face, then close the deal. Dee bought two high-end (knock offs, no doubt, but don’t tell anyone) leather purses, and some shirts and a sweater. They reported back to the hotel to see if I was still alive, and brought me some Sprite and water. I slept through most of their visit, then they headed out to the Bund, dinning at “M on the Bund”, on the seventh floor of one of the Concession era buildings overlooking the river front.. I, not being there, rely upon their sketchy reports - Dee had a large salad, a bean soup, and some huge chocolate desert. Scott had salad, “seven meat, seven vegetable cous cous” (he reports identifying maybe 4 of each) and a mixed citrus sorbet. I wasn’t even thinking food at the time.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
WE'RE ON A ROLL NOW
SHANGHAI, DAY 4 - SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2008
Another day in China. I am again up very early, dealing with business emails and responses. In the old days, when we first started using pc’s at the office, I would pack up the whole set of gear, the computer, the monitor, the cables, printer, and telephone line modem, to take to the beach, and set the whole system up in the condo or beach house, so I could work when the need arose. Today, with the internet and a laptop, keeping up with simple matters is a breeze. Of course, the substantial time difference is a real factor, but so far I have felt still very attached to the office. Thanks, Debbie.
When I get everyone moving, we take our guide books and walk a couple of blocks to Starbucks. Over various lates and frapes and just plain coffee, with muffins and assorted sweets, we decide on a visit to the Jade Buddha Temple. Since there does not appear to be a subway station convenient to it, and in furtherance of my new “No more sore feet” China policy, we take a cab. The entrance is most unprepossessing, a simple ticket window adjacent to a normal size door in a wall. However, upon entering, we find ourselves inside a hidden enclave of worship, filled with the fragrance of burning incense and smoke from prayer urns, filled with flames, where Buddhist supplicants deposit small scrolls with their written prayers. Throwing a coin in a fountain and making a wish comes to mind. The complex is very large, with open courtyards bounded by numerous temples, each with different ornate religious statuary icons of the Buddhist faith. Prayer pillows line the front of each, and by some process of selection I do not pretend to understand, the many Chinese in attendance kneel, bow, and pray. As we move around, we are “invited” to view the handiwork of the monks, and soon find ourselves in a large upstairs chamber filled with display cases of various jade carvings, each either related to Buddha, or the ancient lore of China, and, of course, each for sale. I resist, until we come upon a man painting lovely, stark landscapes, mostly of famous Chinese mountains or waterfalls, using only a plate of ink and the side of the palm of his hand. If I had not seen him at work, I would never have believed this technique produced such lovely works. So, I bought one, framed, for 280 yaun (about $30, and probably about $15 more than I could have paid had I tried). My first purchase in China. Dee was much pressured when she was seen to admire the jade carvings, and after examining, and rejecting, numerous jade necklaces and bracelets, we settled on a matching pair of carved dragons, the mythical Pi Xiu, with ornately carved sandalwood bases. This time, I put Scott to work as our purchasing agent, and he got the price down to 2/3 of the asking price before they stonewalled any further negotiations. The twin Pi Xiu entered our collection. Now I get to tote them around China, and back to our world, hopefully unbroken. Escaping the sales pitch, we ponied up the extra 10 yaun to see the actual Jade Buddha (Scott has explained that every Chinese attraction starts with an expectation of seeing the central sight or artifact of the location, but, once you pay and enter, you ALWAYS find just one more fee to see the real goods - and that temples, by and large, are huge money magnets from western tourists - none of the locals ever get “invited” to the special viewing rooms) The Jade Buddha is magnificently encoded in its own temple, plushly decorated with rich red carpet, velvet hangings, ornately carved dark wood altar, burning incense, dark wood columns, and more praying supplicants. It is carved from one giant block of jade, and stands about eight feet tall, appearing even larger as it is seated on an elevated altar. Of course, photography is forbidden, so you will just have to take my word for it.
We moved from the temples to the gardens. I could have spent the rest of the day here. The rock formations, mimicking mountain scenes, the ponds and streams filled with huge golden orange Koi, the plantings, the pavilions, pagodas, hidden sitting areas, walled courtyards, are just so secluded, so tranquil, so unlike anything at home, I am transfixed. Imagine living here, being able to stroll through this every morning or evening. Wow!
We spent a couple of hours in the Yu Gardens. My fault. We grabbed a cab back to the Central Hotel to relax, clean up, and decide on a dinner venue. Dee and Scott decided on the Italian restaurant in the Jin Mao Tower, a mega skyscraper which was the tallest in China when built. The building was opened in 1998, and has 93 floors. The restaurant is “Cucine”, which I believe is simply “kitchen” in Italian, and it is on the 56th floor. Floors 54 up through 87 are the Grand Hyatt Hotel, Shanghai. First, we walk the breezy 5 blocks to the Bund, and check out the lights of the ships and tour boats on the Huangpu River, and the amazing lights of the commercial district across the river in Pu Dong, where we are headed for dinner. Again, we are besieged by vendors of every ilk. We decide on a taxi (subway is easily possible, but my feet hurt), expecting a long ride to the large cabled suspension bridge we crossed into Shanghai on our way from the airport on day one, but we were pleasantly surprised to discover (well, we didn’t discover it, but we did go through it) a route through a tunnel under the river, and we were at the base of the Jin Mao Tower in about 10 minutes. This was one impressive building. Standing at its entrance, it takes one more limber than I to bend back and look to the top. We had to wander around the first floor a couple of times to find the right bank of elevators to reach the Grand Hyatt on floor 54, and then had to switch to another elevator to floor 56. There, higher than any other dinning venue I’ve attended, other than the no longer extant “Windows on the World” on top of the ill fated World Trade Tower, was a cluster of three restaurants and a bar, all hip and modern in decor, filled with eager and smartly dressed servers. We were given a window table on the Shanghai side of the building, with superb views of the city we had explored earlier in the day. Quite a scene, and hardly reminiscent of the rural images of China I had assimilated through books and movies while growing up. This was a sprawling, sparkling metropolis, clearly a symbol of the resurgent China, growing and modernizing from the desolation of Mao’s Cultural Revolution into a capitalist’s dream. The service was impeccable. Dee had her first “grown in China” wine, a Merlot from Shanxi Province. She pronounced it “very good” (translation - you pour it, I’ll drink it). Scott order a gnoochie dish tossed in a pesto cream sauce with ham; Dee had a beetroot ravioli infused with strange mushrooms in a roma tomato cream sauce, and I opted for the prime Australian sirloin with mushrooms and sun dried tomatos. We all pigged out with deserts, and had a great time. The taxi back to the hotel was quick, and our room soon vibrated with the gentle snores of the deep rem sleeper.
Another day in China. I am again up very early, dealing with business emails and responses. In the old days, when we first started using pc’s at the office, I would pack up the whole set of gear, the computer, the monitor, the cables, printer, and telephone line modem, to take to the beach, and set the whole system up in the condo or beach house, so I could work when the need arose. Today, with the internet and a laptop, keeping up with simple matters is a breeze. Of course, the substantial time difference is a real factor, but so far I have felt still very attached to the office. Thanks, Debbie.
When I get everyone moving, we take our guide books and walk a couple of blocks to Starbucks. Over various lates and frapes and just plain coffee, with muffins and assorted sweets, we decide on a visit to the Jade Buddha Temple. Since there does not appear to be a subway station convenient to it, and in furtherance of my new “No more sore feet” China policy, we take a cab. The entrance is most unprepossessing, a simple ticket window adjacent to a normal size door in a wall. However, upon entering, we find ourselves inside a hidden enclave of worship, filled with the fragrance of burning incense and smoke from prayer urns, filled with flames, where Buddhist supplicants deposit small scrolls with their written prayers. Throwing a coin in a fountain and making a wish comes to mind. The complex is very large, with open courtyards bounded by numerous temples, each with different ornate religious statuary icons of the Buddhist faith. Prayer pillows line the front of each, and by some process of selection I do not pretend to understand, the many Chinese in attendance kneel, bow, and pray. As we move around, we are “invited” to view the handiwork of the monks, and soon find ourselves in a large upstairs chamber filled with display cases of various jade carvings, each either related to Buddha, or the ancient lore of China, and, of course, each for sale. I resist, until we come upon a man painting lovely, stark landscapes, mostly of famous Chinese mountains or waterfalls, using only a plate of ink and the side of the palm of his hand. If I had not seen him at work, I would never have believed this technique produced such lovely works. So, I bought one, framed, for 280 yaun (about $30, and probably about $15 more than I could have paid had I tried). My first purchase in China. Dee was much pressured when she was seen to admire the jade carvings, and after examining, and rejecting, numerous jade necklaces and bracelets, we settled on a matching pair of carved dragons, the mythical Pi Xiu, with ornately carved sandalwood bases. This time, I put Scott to work as our purchasing agent, and he got the price down to 2/3 of the asking price before they stonewalled any further negotiations. The twin Pi Xiu entered our collection. Now I get to tote them around China, and back to our world, hopefully unbroken. Escaping the sales pitch, we ponied up the extra 10 yaun to see the actual Jade Buddha (Scott has explained that every Chinese attraction starts with an expectation of seeing the central sight or artifact of the location, but, once you pay and enter, you ALWAYS find just one more fee to see the real goods - and that temples, by and large, are huge money magnets from western tourists - none of the locals ever get “invited” to the special viewing rooms) The Jade Buddha is magnificently encoded in its own temple, plushly decorated with rich red carpet, velvet hangings, ornately carved dark wood altar, burning incense, dark wood columns, and more praying supplicants. It is carved from one giant block of jade, and stands about eight feet tall, appearing even larger as it is seated on an elevated altar. Of course, photography is forbidden, so you will just have to take my word for it.
We moved from the temples to the gardens. I could have spent the rest of the day here. The rock formations, mimicking mountain scenes, the ponds and streams filled with huge golden orange Koi, the plantings, the pavilions, pagodas, hidden sitting areas, walled courtyards, are just so secluded, so tranquil, so unlike anything at home, I am transfixed. Imagine living here, being able to stroll through this every morning or evening. Wow!
We spent a couple of hours in the Yu Gardens. My fault. We grabbed a cab back to the Central Hotel to relax, clean up, and decide on a dinner venue. Dee and Scott decided on the Italian restaurant in the Jin Mao Tower, a mega skyscraper which was the tallest in China when built. The building was opened in 1998, and has 93 floors. The restaurant is “Cucine”, which I believe is simply “kitchen” in Italian, and it is on the 56th floor. Floors 54 up through 87 are the Grand Hyatt Hotel, Shanghai. First, we walk the breezy 5 blocks to the Bund, and check out the lights of the ships and tour boats on the Huangpu River, and the amazing lights of the commercial district across the river in Pu Dong, where we are headed for dinner. Again, we are besieged by vendors of every ilk. We decide on a taxi (subway is easily possible, but my feet hurt), expecting a long ride to the large cabled suspension bridge we crossed into Shanghai on our way from the airport on day one, but we were pleasantly surprised to discover (well, we didn’t discover it, but we did go through it) a route through a tunnel under the river, and we were at the base of the Jin Mao Tower in about 10 minutes. This was one impressive building. Standing at its entrance, it takes one more limber than I to bend back and look to the top. We had to wander around the first floor a couple of times to find the right bank of elevators to reach the Grand Hyatt on floor 54, and then had to switch to another elevator to floor 56. There, higher than any other dinning venue I’ve attended, other than the no longer extant “Windows on the World” on top of the ill fated World Trade Tower, was a cluster of three restaurants and a bar, all hip and modern in decor, filled with eager and smartly dressed servers. We were given a window table on the Shanghai side of the building, with superb views of the city we had explored earlier in the day. Quite a scene, and hardly reminiscent of the rural images of China I had assimilated through books and movies while growing up. This was a sprawling, sparkling metropolis, clearly a symbol of the resurgent China, growing and modernizing from the desolation of Mao’s Cultural Revolution into a capitalist’s dream. The service was impeccable. Dee had her first “grown in China” wine, a Merlot from Shanxi Province. She pronounced it “very good” (translation - you pour it, I’ll drink it). Scott order a gnoochie dish tossed in a pesto cream sauce with ham; Dee had a beetroot ravioli infused with strange mushrooms in a roma tomato cream sauce, and I opted for the prime Australian sirloin with mushrooms and sun dried tomatos. We all pigged out with deserts, and had a great time. The taxi back to the hotel was quick, and our room soon vibrated with the gentle snores of the deep rem sleeper.
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Our next day in Shanghai
SHANGHAI, DAY 2, 02/16/08
I’m up early, brewing Community coffee, one cup at a time, in our travel brew pot, and posting videos (my still camera battery is dead, and I am waiting on a converter to charge it). The videos are easy to shoot, but take forever to upload to the internet. This blogging stuff takes a lot of time, and I begin to understand why Scott’s blog went from daily to weekly, to a couple of times a month. Typing is not my strength, so I suspect my entries will become shorter and more episodic. Anyway, I brought a couple of pots of coffee up from the coffee shop, and while Dee and Scott sleep, I’m working on this. After yesterday’s full agenda, I think they will sleep for a while. The city is humming (I have the window open) but not really noisy We are on the twentieth floor, and sounds blend together on their way up, except for the occasional angry tattoo of horns, or the late night fireworks still being used to mark the lunar new year.
When my crew is up and ready (after 10), we walk to People’s Park, a large area set aside to celebrate the revolution. On the way, I stop at a branch of the Bank of China to exchange some money, and it goes much quicker here The park, where we enter it, is not much of a memorial or celebration. Large groups of people seem to be looking for work, a kind of open air networking. The grounds are poorly maintained and rather grim. Perhaps in the spring, with the blooms, this is a brighter, cheerier place, but now it is somber and a little depressing.
We take the subway, bright, clean, huge, modern, to the are of town called the French Concession. The name is a hold over from the early 1900's when the then “Imperial Powers” forced themselves on China for trade rights and divided up Shanghai into areas of control. The French, British, German, Russians, and good old USA each took a piece, like tasty pie, and made it their own. The French built extensively, and the architecture remains in this area.. Walking and seeing the sights stirs our appetites, so at about 1 we take a cab to the modern dining are we had seen yesterday at the intersection of Madang Road and Taicang Road. We dine, alfresco, at Paulaner Munchen, a Bavarian restaurant and brewhouse. Dee and Scott have a dark beer, and I sip Pelegrina sparkling water with lime. We start off with white sausages, soft pretzels and course mustard. I have the Weiner Schnitzel with potato salad, Scott opts for the knackwurst, bratwurst and sauerkraut, Dee has a mushroom and barley soup with a large salad. Very pleasant, with the crowds strolling by us distinctively international. We stroll through the are to an exact replica of a Parisian bakery, and again sit outside for coffee and pastries. Quite decadent, and very satisfying. Full as ticks on a hound, we toddle off to the subway for a ride to the Shanghai National Museum.
The National Museum is in a different section of the People’s Park. This part is beautiful, broad and open, nicely landscaped, with wide walkways. The museum building is very modernistic. We pay our modest entry fee, and note a Rembrandt exhibit is in house this week. Who’d a thunk it? We check our coats and bags, put away our cameras, and begin exploring the antiquities of China, from pottery, porcelains, bronzes, sculpture, clothing, seals, currencies, paintings, weavings, jade pieces, the list is endless. At five o’clock sharp, a special musical tone throughout the building alerts us of closing time, and we join the huge stream of folks (where in the hell were all these people??) Leaving the museum. The steps out front are filled with vendors - selling kites! Many are flying their wares, and one is a replica of a dragon, maybe 30 feet long, writhing and twisting at about 150 feet up. Very cool. Dee makes the mistake of showing interest in a kite, a red one in the shape of a squid? Jellyfish? Anyway, Scott comes to the rescue, and bargains the price down to a third of the asking price, a task too foreign to Dee. She has now made her first purchase in China, to show her school students. We walk through the park, a lovely evening (but for my sore feet) and travel the seven or eight blocks (BIG BLOCKS) to our hotel, satisfied with another full day. In the hotel, we sit in the lounge. The wait staff, curious about us “white faces”, are all eager to serve and practice their English. While enjoying a cool drink, we listen to the young lady playing a grand piano, mostly American standards, when, amazing! She plays a jazz version of “You are my Sunshine”! Here we are, in Shanghai, listening to a tune penned by a governor of the State of Louisiana, our own Jimmy Davis! The world is indeed small.
Dee is exhausted, and still full from our late (and large) lunch, but Scott is always hungry, so Dee stays in and Scott and I head up the street to a Thai restaurant in another hotel we passed while out today. Scott orders, and we dine on fried shrimp cakes, golden shrimp curry, and sliced pork neck, with sticky white rice and fried egg noodles. I am able to eat with chopsticks; its neither elegant nor efficient, but I am not going hungry. The meal is followed by an unordered “chef’s surprise” post meal sweet. I can not describe the contents of this little cool cup in any polite way - it was like a bowl of cold snot. Neither of us got past the first sip. Back to the hotel, and a good night of sleep.
I’m up early, brewing Community coffee, one cup at a time, in our travel brew pot, and posting videos (my still camera battery is dead, and I am waiting on a converter to charge it). The videos are easy to shoot, but take forever to upload to the internet. This blogging stuff takes a lot of time, and I begin to understand why Scott’s blog went from daily to weekly, to a couple of times a month. Typing is not my strength, so I suspect my entries will become shorter and more episodic. Anyway, I brought a couple of pots of coffee up from the coffee shop, and while Dee and Scott sleep, I’m working on this. After yesterday’s full agenda, I think they will sleep for a while. The city is humming (I have the window open) but not really noisy We are on the twentieth floor, and sounds blend together on their way up, except for the occasional angry tattoo of horns, or the late night fireworks still being used to mark the lunar new year.
When my crew is up and ready (after 10), we walk to People’s Park, a large area set aside to celebrate the revolution. On the way, I stop at a branch of the Bank of China to exchange some money, and it goes much quicker here The park, where we enter it, is not much of a memorial or celebration. Large groups of people seem to be looking for work, a kind of open air networking. The grounds are poorly maintained and rather grim. Perhaps in the spring, with the blooms, this is a brighter, cheerier place, but now it is somber and a little depressing.
We take the subway, bright, clean, huge, modern, to the are of town called the French Concession. The name is a hold over from the early 1900's when the then “Imperial Powers” forced themselves on China for trade rights and divided up Shanghai into areas of control. The French, British, German, Russians, and good old USA each took a piece, like tasty pie, and made it their own. The French built extensively, and the architecture remains in this area.. Walking and seeing the sights stirs our appetites, so at about 1 we take a cab to the modern dining are we had seen yesterday at the intersection of Madang Road and Taicang Road. We dine, alfresco, at Paulaner Munchen, a Bavarian restaurant and brewhouse. Dee and Scott have a dark beer, and I sip Pelegrina sparkling water with lime. We start off with white sausages, soft pretzels and course mustard. I have the Weiner Schnitzel with potato salad, Scott opts for the knackwurst, bratwurst and sauerkraut, Dee has a mushroom and barley soup with a large salad. Very pleasant, with the crowds strolling by us distinctively international. We stroll through the are to an exact replica of a Parisian bakery, and again sit outside for coffee and pastries. Quite decadent, and very satisfying. Full as ticks on a hound, we toddle off to the subway for a ride to the Shanghai National Museum.
The National Museum is in a different section of the People’s Park. This part is beautiful, broad and open, nicely landscaped, with wide walkways. The museum building is very modernistic. We pay our modest entry fee, and note a Rembrandt exhibit is in house this week. Who’d a thunk it? We check our coats and bags, put away our cameras, and begin exploring the antiquities of China, from pottery, porcelains, bronzes, sculpture, clothing, seals, currencies, paintings, weavings, jade pieces, the list is endless. At five o’clock sharp, a special musical tone throughout the building alerts us of closing time, and we join the huge stream of folks (where in the hell were all these people??) Leaving the museum. The steps out front are filled with vendors - selling kites! Many are flying their wares, and one is a replica of a dragon, maybe 30 feet long, writhing and twisting at about 150 feet up. Very cool. Dee makes the mistake of showing interest in a kite, a red one in the shape of a squid? Jellyfish? Anyway, Scott comes to the rescue, and bargains the price down to a third of the asking price, a task too foreign to Dee. She has now made her first purchase in China, to show her school students. We walk through the park, a lovely evening (but for my sore feet) and travel the seven or eight blocks (BIG BLOCKS) to our hotel, satisfied with another full day. In the hotel, we sit in the lounge. The wait staff, curious about us “white faces”, are all eager to serve and practice their English. While enjoying a cool drink, we listen to the young lady playing a grand piano, mostly American standards, when, amazing! She plays a jazz version of “You are my Sunshine”! Here we are, in Shanghai, listening to a tune penned by a governor of the State of Louisiana, our own Jimmy Davis! The world is indeed small.
Dee is exhausted, and still full from our late (and large) lunch, but Scott is always hungry, so Dee stays in and Scott and I head up the street to a Thai restaurant in another hotel we passed while out today. Scott orders, and we dine on fried shrimp cakes, golden shrimp curry, and sliced pork neck, with sticky white rice and fried egg noodles. I am able to eat with chopsticks; its neither elegant nor efficient, but I am not going hungry. The meal is followed by an unordered “chef’s surprise” post meal sweet. I can not describe the contents of this little cool cup in any polite way - it was like a bowl of cold snot. Neither of us got past the first sip. Back to the hotel, and a good night of sleep.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
First Full Day In Shanghai
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2008 - OUR FIRST FULL DAY IN SHANGHAI
I’m up at six. Sleeping away the time zone change was not a problem. However, to say the bed was “firm” is kind of like saying Shaq is large. A quick, quiet shower so as not to wake my sleeping family. I slip out to see if coffee is among the hotel’s amenities, and discover the “coffee shop”. Not great, but not bad. I have a cup, and order a pot for the room. There seems confusion among that staff about my insistence to carry it away myself, as opposed to having two fellows bring it to the room with a cart, flowers, spoons, cups, sugar, cream, linens, etc. I prevail, and head up to the room with just the pot. We have cups, we drink it black, and Dee and Scott are still asleep, so servers and service are not needed. I let them sleep while reading through the 39 emails I have, some of them actually work related and needing response. The internet is a marvelous invention, both gateway to freedom, with its unending sources of information, and chain of reality, with its unending reminders of obligations back home.
My troops arise. Everyone slept well, and the coffee is consumed and appreciated. Scott gets very little coffee here and misses it. We are going to leave him the travel coffee pot when we go home, and buy him some real fresh ground coffee to take back to Nanchang.
We discuss a plan for the day, and leave the hotel, walking through the brisk (30) morning air. The day is bright and cloudless, but a pall of smog lingers over the city. Not nearly as thick as Manilla, but very noticeable. Its about 5 blocks to the “Bund”, the name for the river front, a holdover from the early 1900's when the Germans had a large presence in Shanghai. On the way, we stop at a bank so Dee can change some money. It is quite an interesting process here, unlike the money changing booth at the airport. Passport must be produced. The American money must be examined, bill by bill, and counted several times by hand and machine. A one dollar bill fails to pass inspection, as it has a small tear, and is returned to Dee. Forms galore are filled out and many stamps applied. A supervisor inspects the paperwork and makes a phone call. Is Dee on a “watch” list? After about 20 minutes, she gets her Chinese currency. We move on, passing street food vendors cooking large omelette looking breakfasts for the morning pedestrians. We arrive at the Bund, overlooking the Huangpu River. There are vendors everywhere, constantly approaching us to sell “Rolex watches”, toys of every type (leaded, or unleaded??), tours, I am even offered “pretty lady, nice massage”. The river is large and wide, not so big as our Mississippi, but a real full fledged river, with many large boats and small ships. Down river, I see what appear to be cruise ships along the western side. Across the river, on the east, is the newer part of Shanghai, the “Pu Dong” district (literally means “east side of the river”), with its skyscrapers and, most prominently, a needle topped spire with onion like bulbs at various heights above the ground. This is the TV tower for the largest television broadcaster in China, and somewhat of a tourist destination. More on that later.
After strolling the Bund, and admiring the concession era architecture of the riverside banks and hotels (built in the early 1900's when the French, Germans, British, and, yes, Americans carved up Shanghai for their mutual pleasure and profit), we decided to go over to Pu Dong. To get to the other side of the river, we take this really weird ride that goes through a tunnel under the river. Hard to describe. We ride in a car reminiscent of a large ski lift gondola, moving on tracks like a train, through a tunnel filled with blinking lights, strobe lights, weird scenes projected on the walls, large inflatable monsters that pop up, with load music and voice overs blaring. Of course, one pays for the pleasure of this unusual transport, but it beats the time and distance of taking either a taxi through city traffic or a ferry. Maybe a 5 minute trip through fanciful conditions, and we are in Pu Dong. Of course, there are rows of touristy junk shops at the exit, and more prowling vendors. Scott has suggested you never speak back to them, never engage them eye to eye, just keep muttering “NO” and keep moving. We go back up stairs to the sunshine, and are greeted by a collection of buildings - large convention hall, aquarium, theater (sort of like our IMAX), and the huge TV tower building-spire-onion looking thing. Its top is the highest construction in Asia, and, for a hefty fee, one can “tour” the “museum” on the ground floor, and ride up to the various levels (restaurants, junk shops, observation decks). We vote unanimously to forego the whole thing. Scott finds a stall and we buy coffee (almost too weak to deserve the name) and a couple of bowls of steaming dumplings in broth. Our first breakfast in China! We sat at a table outside (there is no “inside”) and ate. The dumplings were great!
Thoroughly disgusted with the coffee, we spy a - God Bless America! - Starbucks. Conveniently located on the ground floor of a MALL (Dee is now alert), we get real coffee, then wander through the Mall to find bathrooms. Restraining Dee, we decide to take the subway back to the Shanghai side of the river and to the section of Shanghai called “Old Town” to take one of the walking tours outlined in our guide book.
“Old Town” is what it says - the older part of Shanghai. Its boundary is marked by an old city gate, no doubt preserved more for the tourists than for any serious function. There are no skyscrapers here. The streets are narrow, and filled more with people on foot, bikes and motor scooters than cars. Small shops line the streets, each little more than a 15 or 20 foot wide display area going back into the building. Living quarters are upstairs in these mostly two story buildings, and laundry is hung everywhere. Some streets sell every imaginable consumer goods, cloths, hardware, just plain old junk - like a huge flea market. Some streets have nothing but food vendors, offering any creature known to the biological sciences for your dining pleasure, most of them still living or just recently dispatched from this life. Grains, rice, noodles, stacks and rows of fresh vegetables stretched along the sidewalks. On the “wet” streets, where butchering is done, an odor to which we are unaccustomed hangs heavy and thick on even this cool and breezy day. Dee is ready to leave this part of town.
We move into a more modern, and hugely more crowded section called the Bazar. It is a jumble of more modern shops, more brightly lighted and decorated, catering to the more upscale local, and tourists from near and afar. On this clear, bright day, just a week removed from unusually heavy snows here, the crowd is dense, often shoulder to shoulder. Again, vendors descend upon us, doing their best to lure us in to one of the shops, or to just sell us something in the street. In the center of this crowded shopping area is a tea house, built on a small island on a tiny lake. It is approached by crossing a narrow bridge built in a repeating zig zag shape, the many corners and turns designed to keep evil spirits from crossing to the tea house. No defense lawyers may have tea, apparently. The line is so long, we decide to find something more substantial then tea, and work our way into the famous Shanghai dumpling restaurant, to the second floor overlooking the tea house and the bazar. Scott orders, and we dine on an assortment of hot dim sum, large and small. The odors of Old Town have left Dee with no appetite, so Scott doubles up. Now refreshed and fortified, we look for something less crowded, less odorous to do or see. On the edge of the Bazar, we find Yu Gardens, and pay the modest entry fee. As the many short videos I have posted will show, this was the perfect escape from the hubbub of our day. The gardens, once privately owned, are now owned and maintained by “The People”, but reflect a time when money was king, and held by the few, a time to which China seems to be returning at a spectacular pace. Tranquil comes to mind. The gardens, completely walled and hidden from the rest of the city, contain numerous small lodgings and pavilions, all designed to provide cool, shady escape from the warm Shanghai summers, each overlooking an are of rock constructions designed to evoke the feel and look of the distant mountains, all dotted with small ponds and streams, and interspersed with plantings, potted trees and shrubs. Many have buds, but it is still too much wintery for flowers. I could have spent a day just exploring and sitting in each of the many hidden places designed for privacy and relaxation. What a difference from the rest of the city!
After a couple of hours in the gardens, we head back to Central Hotel. My feet, more accustomed to being under my desk all day, are killing me. I am glad to put on my slippers, check my emails and deal with the inevitable minor unexpected turn of events in law land. We relax, and contemplate our next event - dinner. Dee and Scott peruse the guide books (we have 4 of them), and select a restaurant known for its Seschwaun style cuisine. Scott notes the address and general area, and we get a taxi. Thank goodness for Scott and his language skill, as much discussion is had to get the cab going. After a trip of many twists and turns, we are deposited at the correct corner, only to discover that the guide books are just a little behind the times, as the place is no longer in business. However, just up the block, and directly across the street from the American Consulate, we find Keven’s Restaurant. We are seated at a large round table in its own nook. A round lazy susan is placed in the middle of the table, and Scott makes our selections. Could I tell you what we had? No, but it was all delicious, and more than we could eat. We met the manager, and the assistant manager, exchanged cards, and promised to eat at their other restaurant, which is listed in the guide book (and, yes, very much still open for business). The cab ride back to the hotel seems less disorienting, and we are soon in the comfort of our room, recapping the day, our first full day in China. I’m beat, and fall asleep to the sounds of HBO on the big HDTV flatscreen. This is culture!
I’m up at six. Sleeping away the time zone change was not a problem. However, to say the bed was “firm” is kind of like saying Shaq is large. A quick, quiet shower so as not to wake my sleeping family. I slip out to see if coffee is among the hotel’s amenities, and discover the “coffee shop”. Not great, but not bad. I have a cup, and order a pot for the room. There seems confusion among that staff about my insistence to carry it away myself, as opposed to having two fellows bring it to the room with a cart, flowers, spoons, cups, sugar, cream, linens, etc. I prevail, and head up to the room with just the pot. We have cups, we drink it black, and Dee and Scott are still asleep, so servers and service are not needed. I let them sleep while reading through the 39 emails I have, some of them actually work related and needing response. The internet is a marvelous invention, both gateway to freedom, with its unending sources of information, and chain of reality, with its unending reminders of obligations back home.
My troops arise. Everyone slept well, and the coffee is consumed and appreciated. Scott gets very little coffee here and misses it. We are going to leave him the travel coffee pot when we go home, and buy him some real fresh ground coffee to take back to Nanchang.
We discuss a plan for the day, and leave the hotel, walking through the brisk (30) morning air. The day is bright and cloudless, but a pall of smog lingers over the city. Not nearly as thick as Manilla, but very noticeable. Its about 5 blocks to the “Bund”, the name for the river front, a holdover from the early 1900's when the Germans had a large presence in Shanghai. On the way, we stop at a bank so Dee can change some money. It is quite an interesting process here, unlike the money changing booth at the airport. Passport must be produced. The American money must be examined, bill by bill, and counted several times by hand and machine. A one dollar bill fails to pass inspection, as it has a small tear, and is returned to Dee. Forms galore are filled out and many stamps applied. A supervisor inspects the paperwork and makes a phone call. Is Dee on a “watch” list? After about 20 minutes, she gets her Chinese currency. We move on, passing street food vendors cooking large omelette looking breakfasts for the morning pedestrians. We arrive at the Bund, overlooking the Huangpu River. There are vendors everywhere, constantly approaching us to sell “Rolex watches”, toys of every type (leaded, or unleaded??), tours, I am even offered “pretty lady, nice massage”. The river is large and wide, not so big as our Mississippi, but a real full fledged river, with many large boats and small ships. Down river, I see what appear to be cruise ships along the western side. Across the river, on the east, is the newer part of Shanghai, the “Pu Dong” district (literally means “east side of the river”), with its skyscrapers and, most prominently, a needle topped spire with onion like bulbs at various heights above the ground. This is the TV tower for the largest television broadcaster in China, and somewhat of a tourist destination. More on that later.
After strolling the Bund, and admiring the concession era architecture of the riverside banks and hotels (built in the early 1900's when the French, Germans, British, and, yes, Americans carved up Shanghai for their mutual pleasure and profit), we decided to go over to Pu Dong. To get to the other side of the river, we take this really weird ride that goes through a tunnel under the river. Hard to describe. We ride in a car reminiscent of a large ski lift gondola, moving on tracks like a train, through a tunnel filled with blinking lights, strobe lights, weird scenes projected on the walls, large inflatable monsters that pop up, with load music and voice overs blaring. Of course, one pays for the pleasure of this unusual transport, but it beats the time and distance of taking either a taxi through city traffic or a ferry. Maybe a 5 minute trip through fanciful conditions, and we are in Pu Dong. Of course, there are rows of touristy junk shops at the exit, and more prowling vendors. Scott has suggested you never speak back to them, never engage them eye to eye, just keep muttering “NO” and keep moving. We go back up stairs to the sunshine, and are greeted by a collection of buildings - large convention hall, aquarium, theater (sort of like our IMAX), and the huge TV tower building-spire-onion looking thing. Its top is the highest construction in Asia, and, for a hefty fee, one can “tour” the “museum” on the ground floor, and ride up to the various levels (restaurants, junk shops, observation decks). We vote unanimously to forego the whole thing. Scott finds a stall and we buy coffee (almost too weak to deserve the name) and a couple of bowls of steaming dumplings in broth. Our first breakfast in China! We sat at a table outside (there is no “inside”) and ate. The dumplings were great!
Thoroughly disgusted with the coffee, we spy a - God Bless America! - Starbucks. Conveniently located on the ground floor of a MALL (Dee is now alert), we get real coffee, then wander through the Mall to find bathrooms. Restraining Dee, we decide to take the subway back to the Shanghai side of the river and to the section of Shanghai called “Old Town” to take one of the walking tours outlined in our guide book.
“Old Town” is what it says - the older part of Shanghai. Its boundary is marked by an old city gate, no doubt preserved more for the tourists than for any serious function. There are no skyscrapers here. The streets are narrow, and filled more with people on foot, bikes and motor scooters than cars. Small shops line the streets, each little more than a 15 or 20 foot wide display area going back into the building. Living quarters are upstairs in these mostly two story buildings, and laundry is hung everywhere. Some streets sell every imaginable consumer goods, cloths, hardware, just plain old junk - like a huge flea market. Some streets have nothing but food vendors, offering any creature known to the biological sciences for your dining pleasure, most of them still living or just recently dispatched from this life. Grains, rice, noodles, stacks and rows of fresh vegetables stretched along the sidewalks. On the “wet” streets, where butchering is done, an odor to which we are unaccustomed hangs heavy and thick on even this cool and breezy day. Dee is ready to leave this part of town.
We move into a more modern, and hugely more crowded section called the Bazar. It is a jumble of more modern shops, more brightly lighted and decorated, catering to the more upscale local, and tourists from near and afar. On this clear, bright day, just a week removed from unusually heavy snows here, the crowd is dense, often shoulder to shoulder. Again, vendors descend upon us, doing their best to lure us in to one of the shops, or to just sell us something in the street. In the center of this crowded shopping area is a tea house, built on a small island on a tiny lake. It is approached by crossing a narrow bridge built in a repeating zig zag shape, the many corners and turns designed to keep evil spirits from crossing to the tea house. No defense lawyers may have tea, apparently. The line is so long, we decide to find something more substantial then tea, and work our way into the famous Shanghai dumpling restaurant, to the second floor overlooking the tea house and the bazar. Scott orders, and we dine on an assortment of hot dim sum, large and small. The odors of Old Town have left Dee with no appetite, so Scott doubles up. Now refreshed and fortified, we look for something less crowded, less odorous to do or see. On the edge of the Bazar, we find Yu Gardens, and pay the modest entry fee. As the many short videos I have posted will show, this was the perfect escape from the hubbub of our day. The gardens, once privately owned, are now owned and maintained by “The People”, but reflect a time when money was king, and held by the few, a time to which China seems to be returning at a spectacular pace. Tranquil comes to mind. The gardens, completely walled and hidden from the rest of the city, contain numerous small lodgings and pavilions, all designed to provide cool, shady escape from the warm Shanghai summers, each overlooking an are of rock constructions designed to evoke the feel and look of the distant mountains, all dotted with small ponds and streams, and interspersed with plantings, potted trees and shrubs. Many have buds, but it is still too much wintery for flowers. I could have spent a day just exploring and sitting in each of the many hidden places designed for privacy and relaxation. What a difference from the rest of the city!
After a couple of hours in the gardens, we head back to Central Hotel. My feet, more accustomed to being under my desk all day, are killing me. I am glad to put on my slippers, check my emails and deal with the inevitable minor unexpected turn of events in law land. We relax, and contemplate our next event - dinner. Dee and Scott peruse the guide books (we have 4 of them), and select a restaurant known for its Seschwaun style cuisine. Scott notes the address and general area, and we get a taxi. Thank goodness for Scott and his language skill, as much discussion is had to get the cab going. After a trip of many twists and turns, we are deposited at the correct corner, only to discover that the guide books are just a little behind the times, as the place is no longer in business. However, just up the block, and directly across the street from the American Consulate, we find Keven’s Restaurant. We are seated at a large round table in its own nook. A round lazy susan is placed in the middle of the table, and Scott makes our selections. Could I tell you what we had? No, but it was all delicious, and more than we could eat. We met the manager, and the assistant manager, exchanged cards, and promised to eat at their other restaurant, which is listed in the guide book (and, yes, very much still open for business). The cab ride back to the hotel seems less disorienting, and we are soon in the comfort of our room, recapping the day, our first full day in China. I’m beat, and fall asleep to the sounds of HBO on the big HDTV flatscreen. This is culture!
Friday, February 15, 2008
Tripping Out to China
Tuesday, February 12, 2008- Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA:
Well, our departure is nigh. The office is stable, Dee has a substitute teacher, and Scott is in Nanchang, with plans to fly to Shanghai to meet us on Thursday, 2-14 (China time). We are finishing up our packing, have confirmed and reconfirmed our house and pet caretakers and airport transportation so we don’t have to leave a car in the long term parking. Excitement is growing.
We are up until midnight, but all is ready. All that remains is to get up on time, leave the house at about 4:30 am Wednesday morning for the Baton Rouge Airport.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008 - Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA:
I am awakened by the ringing of my cell phone. Bleary eyed and confused, I find it. Adam Sharp, our transport person, is calling. He has been knocking on our kitchen door, with no response. It is 4:30 am, our departure time. I let him in while dressed in an impressive set of tee shirt and tighty-whities, pour him a cup of coffee, and ask Dee why she didn’t wake me up. She is showered, dressed, with curlers in her flaxen hair. I take a three minute shower, no shave, and dress. The car is packed, Lola is kissed and petted, and we leave the driveway at 4:45, me at the wheel, third cup of coffee in hand. Adam is in the back, still awake. Dee is doing something with her hair. Travel to the airport is uneventful, traffic free. Adam helps us out, unloads the bags, and we part company, wondering what strange places our car may see. Check in is smooth and quick, with only about 4 people ahead of us. However, Dee hits a snag during the security check. Her carry on bag, despite my repeated warnings, has unacceptable liquids (don’t ask, shampoo, other assorted essential beauty stuff). I suggest, rather pointedly, that she throw it all away, buy more later, as we have no time to re-pack, check the bag, or anything else before our plane, already boarded, leaves. She does it her way, and we barley get on, but we do.
All the flights are on time, within minutes, which is a very good thing. We have exactly 45 minutes from scheduled arrival in Dallas to our scheduled departure. That includes the time we have to get off the plane (waiting our turn behind everyone else), changing gates, or even terminals, and getting on the next flight. We are the last to board the flight to Chicago, but there is no running through airports. Off we go on the second leg of our flights.
We arrived at Chicago on time, but this is a much larger plane, with lots more people, takes us longer to get off the plane. We only have 18 gates to walk past to our boarding gate, all in the same terminal, so we make our Shanghai flight, an American Airlines 777. Big plane, roomy seats, even in the cattle section where we are assigned, each one with its own video display, movie and tv choices, and several channels of music, news, and, oddly enough, American Airline ads. On this 14 hour 40 minute flight, we are served three meals, one a full hot meal, and two lighter meals, hot sandwiches, pizza, Chinese noodles. Lots of water, coffee, tea, juice, sodas. Compared to most domestic flights, we were virtually stuffed. Amazingly, the trip was much easier to tolerate than I had anticipated. We were able to walk about often, and the rear galley was so large Dee was even doing stretching exercises (until chased out by the one cranky flight attendant). Short naps, lots of reading, watching old episodes of CAI and crummy movies that never made it to the screen contributed to the mind numbing experience. Of course, somewhere during this foggy interlude from reality, we crossed the international date line, and it became tomorrow in mid air while still today back home.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14 (FOR US) - SHANGHAI
With increasing excitement, Dee and I watched the video display of our flight progress. When it indicated we were only 2 hours from Shanghai, it felt, for the first time, as if we were really going to be in China. Our fellow passengers began stirring. People were shuffling to and from the lavatories, no doubt washing the sleep away, brushing teeth, shaving, little things to remove themselves from the hours of timeless limbo of life in this metal tube at 35,000 feet and prepare for re-entry into life in a new time zone, even a new date. Dee and I began sorting through the materials we had collected on the plane, stowing our magazines, books and tour guides, completing the China entry forms handed out to us by the flight attendants. I double checked our itinerary, once again locating our hotel on the map of Shanghai and reviewing our transportation options for the 20 something mile trip to downtown. It was bright and clear outside, and we could watch the slowly intensifying signs of a city below. Soon, we could see the skyline of Shanghai, and the huge 777 touched down. We were in China, 4:14 pm, Thursday, February 14, 2007. Happy Valentines Day!
Despite the number of passengers, deplaning went quickly. The Shanghai Pu Dong airport was spotlessly clean, and passing through customs went quickly and uneventfully. We were stamped into China and headed for the luggage pick up area. I left Dee to watch for the bags and headed to the nearby money exchange kiosk, getting my first handful of Chinese currency. Mao never looked healthier. By the time I strode back to the luggage area, Dee had the bags, and we joined the crowd heading out of the international arrival area toward the doors, and looked for Scott. He was easy to spot, a blond head standing above a sea of black haired locals. We needed no greeting sign, of which there were many, in languages I could not fathom, to find our greeter. Reunion was sweet.
Scott had flown to Shanghai from Nanchang that morning. He had already been to our hotel, but declined to check in, as they wanted payment. Some things are better left for Dad, so he left his bags and wandered around Shanghai, falling in with a “professor” who chatted with him, and eventually asked Scott to join him for lunch. Apparently, “lunch” was at the “professor’s” brother-in-laws restaurant, as Scott got stuck with a large bill after watching the “professor” have two Jack Daniels for desert. I digress.
We walked through the airport, pulling our bags. Rolling luggage is such a wonderful invention. We decided to ride the MagLev train out of the airport. As the name suggests, this Disneyesque train rides an elevated track by way of magnetic levitation. Opposing electrical fields keep the train suspended above its track, moving silently forward at great speeds by rapidly alternating electric polarity, pushing the train ahead. This marvel, an experiment in transportation someone managed to scam on the Chinese, travels at top speeds of 435 km/hr (about 250 miles/hr.) and covers the distance from the airport to its terminus in about 8 minutes. Scott tells us the same trip by taxi takes 40 minutes, so time is saved, and the ride is pretty cool. Unfortunately, the end of the line for the MagLev is still no where near downtown, or anything else in particular, so one must shift to the subway, bus, or taxi to get the rest of the way. We opted for taxi, and 20 minutes later, we were deposited at the Central Hotel, Shanghai.
Check in was smooth, the hotel lobby is beautiful, and our room is a modern, two room suite, one large bedroom with a king bed, and a second sitting room with a large desk, sofa, bar (just for me??), and, even with Scott’s roll away bed, very spacious. Each room has a lovely new flat screen HD TV, HBO, Cinemax, and ESPN in English, and an endless number of Chinese channels. The bathroom is sparkling clean, the bar is equipped with all the makings for tea, and I have added our personal travel coffee pot, purchased at Pierson’s Luggage, and our two pound vacuum packed brick of Community Coffee, Medium Roast, purchased at Calandros.
As we unpack, we pepper Scott with questions about all of the travels he has been on since the end of the semester at the Nanchang Institute of Technology, where he teaches English. Just having him face to face makes the whole ordeal of getting here worthwhile.
Despite intermittent napping on the plane, Dee and I have been up and traveling for about 23 hours, and we are tired. Wandering the dusky streets of Shanghai looking for dinner is not appealing, so our first meal in the Middle Kingdom is in one of the four restaurants on the hotel’s second floor (27 floors in all). It is, oddly enough, a Chinese restaurant. Let’s just say the meal was interesting, and we need some practice on ordering. Scott swears we will have better (and, dear reader, with the knowledge of what has come, he was right!) We returned to our room, with freshly turned down beds, and I distributed the Valentines Day heart shaped boxes of chocolate goodies I had packed for Dee & Scott (were they made in China in the first place? I forgot to check), and, after checking our emails and dashing off any needed responses, we crash.
Well, our departure is nigh. The office is stable, Dee has a substitute teacher, and Scott is in Nanchang, with plans to fly to Shanghai to meet us on Thursday, 2-14 (China time). We are finishing up our packing, have confirmed and reconfirmed our house and pet caretakers and airport transportation so we don’t have to leave a car in the long term parking. Excitement is growing.
We are up until midnight, but all is ready. All that remains is to get up on time, leave the house at about 4:30 am Wednesday morning for the Baton Rouge Airport.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008 - Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA:
I am awakened by the ringing of my cell phone. Bleary eyed and confused, I find it. Adam Sharp, our transport person, is calling. He has been knocking on our kitchen door, with no response. It is 4:30 am, our departure time. I let him in while dressed in an impressive set of tee shirt and tighty-whities, pour him a cup of coffee, and ask Dee why she didn’t wake me up. She is showered, dressed, with curlers in her flaxen hair. I take a three minute shower, no shave, and dress. The car is packed, Lola is kissed and petted, and we leave the driveway at 4:45, me at the wheel, third cup of coffee in hand. Adam is in the back, still awake. Dee is doing something with her hair. Travel to the airport is uneventful, traffic free. Adam helps us out, unloads the bags, and we part company, wondering what strange places our car may see. Check in is smooth and quick, with only about 4 people ahead of us. However, Dee hits a snag during the security check. Her carry on bag, despite my repeated warnings, has unacceptable liquids (don’t ask, shampoo, other assorted essential beauty stuff). I suggest, rather pointedly, that she throw it all away, buy more later, as we have no time to re-pack, check the bag, or anything else before our plane, already boarded, leaves. She does it her way, and we barley get on, but we do.
All the flights are on time, within minutes, which is a very good thing. We have exactly 45 minutes from scheduled arrival in Dallas to our scheduled departure. That includes the time we have to get off the plane (waiting our turn behind everyone else), changing gates, or even terminals, and getting on the next flight. We are the last to board the flight to Chicago, but there is no running through airports. Off we go on the second leg of our flights.
We arrived at Chicago on time, but this is a much larger plane, with lots more people, takes us longer to get off the plane. We only have 18 gates to walk past to our boarding gate, all in the same terminal, so we make our Shanghai flight, an American Airlines 777. Big plane, roomy seats, even in the cattle section where we are assigned, each one with its own video display, movie and tv choices, and several channels of music, news, and, oddly enough, American Airline ads. On this 14 hour 40 minute flight, we are served three meals, one a full hot meal, and two lighter meals, hot sandwiches, pizza, Chinese noodles. Lots of water, coffee, tea, juice, sodas. Compared to most domestic flights, we were virtually stuffed. Amazingly, the trip was much easier to tolerate than I had anticipated. We were able to walk about often, and the rear galley was so large Dee was even doing stretching exercises (until chased out by the one cranky flight attendant). Short naps, lots of reading, watching old episodes of CAI and crummy movies that never made it to the screen contributed to the mind numbing experience. Of course, somewhere during this foggy interlude from reality, we crossed the international date line, and it became tomorrow in mid air while still today back home.
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14 (FOR US) - SHANGHAI
With increasing excitement, Dee and I watched the video display of our flight progress. When it indicated we were only 2 hours from Shanghai, it felt, for the first time, as if we were really going to be in China. Our fellow passengers began stirring. People were shuffling to and from the lavatories, no doubt washing the sleep away, brushing teeth, shaving, little things to remove themselves from the hours of timeless limbo of life in this metal tube at 35,000 feet and prepare for re-entry into life in a new time zone, even a new date. Dee and I began sorting through the materials we had collected on the plane, stowing our magazines, books and tour guides, completing the China entry forms handed out to us by the flight attendants. I double checked our itinerary, once again locating our hotel on the map of Shanghai and reviewing our transportation options for the 20 something mile trip to downtown. It was bright and clear outside, and we could watch the slowly intensifying signs of a city below. Soon, we could see the skyline of Shanghai, and the huge 777 touched down. We were in China, 4:14 pm, Thursday, February 14, 2007. Happy Valentines Day!
Despite the number of passengers, deplaning went quickly. The Shanghai Pu Dong airport was spotlessly clean, and passing through customs went quickly and uneventfully. We were stamped into China and headed for the luggage pick up area. I left Dee to watch for the bags and headed to the nearby money exchange kiosk, getting my first handful of Chinese currency. Mao never looked healthier. By the time I strode back to the luggage area, Dee had the bags, and we joined the crowd heading out of the international arrival area toward the doors, and looked for Scott. He was easy to spot, a blond head standing above a sea of black haired locals. We needed no greeting sign, of which there were many, in languages I could not fathom, to find our greeter. Reunion was sweet.
Scott had flown to Shanghai from Nanchang that morning. He had already been to our hotel, but declined to check in, as they wanted payment. Some things are better left for Dad, so he left his bags and wandered around Shanghai, falling in with a “professor” who chatted with him, and eventually asked Scott to join him for lunch. Apparently, “lunch” was at the “professor’s” brother-in-laws restaurant, as Scott got stuck with a large bill after watching the “professor” have two Jack Daniels for desert. I digress.
We walked through the airport, pulling our bags. Rolling luggage is such a wonderful invention. We decided to ride the MagLev train out of the airport. As the name suggests, this Disneyesque train rides an elevated track by way of magnetic levitation. Opposing electrical fields keep the train suspended above its track, moving silently forward at great speeds by rapidly alternating electric polarity, pushing the train ahead. This marvel, an experiment in transportation someone managed to scam on the Chinese, travels at top speeds of 435 km/hr (about 250 miles/hr.) and covers the distance from the airport to its terminus in about 8 minutes. Scott tells us the same trip by taxi takes 40 minutes, so time is saved, and the ride is pretty cool. Unfortunately, the end of the line for the MagLev is still no where near downtown, or anything else in particular, so one must shift to the subway, bus, or taxi to get the rest of the way. We opted for taxi, and 20 minutes later, we were deposited at the Central Hotel, Shanghai.
Check in was smooth, the hotel lobby is beautiful, and our room is a modern, two room suite, one large bedroom with a king bed, and a second sitting room with a large desk, sofa, bar (just for me??), and, even with Scott’s roll away bed, very spacious. Each room has a lovely new flat screen HD TV, HBO, Cinemax, and ESPN in English, and an endless number of Chinese channels. The bathroom is sparkling clean, the bar is equipped with all the makings for tea, and I have added our personal travel coffee pot, purchased at Pierson’s Luggage, and our two pound vacuum packed brick of Community Coffee, Medium Roast, purchased at Calandros.
As we unpack, we pepper Scott with questions about all of the travels he has been on since the end of the semester at the Nanchang Institute of Technology, where he teaches English. Just having him face to face makes the whole ordeal of getting here worthwhile.
Despite intermittent napping on the plane, Dee and I have been up and traveling for about 23 hours, and we are tired. Wandering the dusky streets of Shanghai looking for dinner is not appealing, so our first meal in the Middle Kingdom is in one of the four restaurants on the hotel’s second floor (27 floors in all). It is, oddly enough, a Chinese restaurant. Let’s just say the meal was interesting, and we need some practice on ordering. Scott swears we will have better (and, dear reader, with the knowledge of what has come, he was right!) We returned to our room, with freshly turned down beds, and I distributed the Valentines Day heart shaped boxes of chocolate goodies I had packed for Dee & Scott (were they made in China in the first place? I forgot to check), and, after checking our emails and dashing off any needed responses, we crash.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Let the packing begin!
Well, we have finally realized that our departure is no longer some distant date, but is now imminent, having crept up on us while we lived our daily lives. The suitcases are down from the attic, and clothing selections are being made, with Beijing's rather cold weather guiding our choices. My idea: pack as if we were going to Aspen. Dee's idea: pack everything she owns. I remind her "You carry what you pack", but I have lost this battle consistently for 30 years now. I have a nifty new digital video camera, a "Flip Video" which holds an hour of digital movies, and is smaller than my digital camera, so I hope to take movies with which to bore future generations of Mannears. I can move the movie files to my laptop each day, so it should work just fine. Digital camera, digital video, laptop - - I guess I need to pack electric adaptors and converters to avoid french frying my stuff. So much for packing light.
We had dinner tonight with Adam Sharp and Chris Rippetoe, two young men who are contemporaries and friends of Scott. They are going to care for Scott's siblings, Lola and Cali, while we are in China, and generally watch our home. We hosted them at P. F. Changs to get some much needed practice with our chop sticks. Needless to say, we still need lots of practice. Adam has even agreed to make the college man's supreme sacrifice - he will ride with us to the airport at 4:30 am Wednesday to bring our car back to the house.
We had dinner tonight with Adam Sharp and Chris Rippetoe, two young men who are contemporaries and friends of Scott. They are going to care for Scott's siblings, Lola and Cali, while we are in China, and generally watch our home. We hosted them at P. F. Changs to get some much needed practice with our chop sticks. Needless to say, we still need lots of practice. Adam has even agreed to make the college man's supreme sacrifice - he will ride with us to the airport at 4:30 am Wednesday to bring our car back to the house.
Friday, February 1, 2008
Our itinerary, so far
CHINA TRIP ITINERARY:
Wednesday, February 13 - Thursday, February 28, 2008
We leave from the Baton Rouge Airport at 5:45 am 2/13/08, return to the Baton Rouge Airport at around midnight, 2/28/08.
FLIGHTS:
Wednesday, Feb. 13:
CONFIRMATION CODE: GEMOZU
American Airlines Flight No. 3472 Departs 5:45 am
(Operated by American Eagle)
Arrives Dallas-Ft. Worth 7:10 am
45 minute layover
American Airlines Flight No. 2328 Departs 7:55 am
Arrives Chicago 10:10 am
45 minute layover
American Airlines Flight No. 289 Departs 10:55 am
Arrives Shanghai, Pu Dong Airport Arrives (Shanghai time) Thursday, Feb. 14, 3:25pm
Thursday, February 28:
CONFIRMATION CODE: GEMOZU
American Airlines Flight No. 288 Departs Shanghai 6:00 pm
Arrives Chicago 5:20 pm
1 hour 40 minute layover
Continental Airlines Flight No. 1647 Departs Chicago 7:00 pm
CONFIRMATION CODE: DJJZKW
Arrives Houston 9:43 pm
1 hour 9 minute layover
Continental Airlines Flight No. 3140 Departs Houston 10:52 pm
CONFIRMATION CODE: DJJZKW
Arrives Baton Rouge 11:49 pm
How we get from Beijing back to Shanghai to catch our return flight is as of yet undetermined, but this post will be updated with that information as available.
IN CHINA:
Shanghai, Thursday, February 14 through Tuesday, February 19:
Central Hotel Shanghai
Jiujiang Road, Shanghai 200001
Tel: 86-21-53965000
Fax: 86-21-53965128
E-MAIL: chbc@centralhotelshanghai.com
Tuesday, February 19, we check out of the hotel at noon-ish, take the overnight train (one of the brand new “Z” class trains) to Beijing. Train tickets will be purchased in Shanghai, but the train leaves at about 7:30 pm, arrives Beijing at about 7:15 am. We will have a private sleeper compartment, and there is a dining car. The Z trains really look nice.
Arrive Beijing Wednesday morning, February 20.
Raffles Beijing Hotel
33 East Chang An Avenue
Dongcheng District, Beijing 100004
Tel: 86-10-65263388
Fax: 86-1085004380
Wednesday, February 13 - Thursday, February 28, 2008
We leave from the Baton Rouge Airport at 5:45 am 2/13/08, return to the Baton Rouge Airport at around midnight, 2/28/08.
FLIGHTS:
Wednesday, Feb. 13:
CONFIRMATION CODE: GEMOZU
American Airlines Flight No. 3472 Departs 5:45 am
(Operated by American Eagle)
Arrives Dallas-Ft. Worth 7:10 am
45 minute layover
American Airlines Flight No. 2328 Departs 7:55 am
Arrives Chicago 10:10 am
45 minute layover
American Airlines Flight No. 289 Departs 10:55 am
Arrives Shanghai, Pu Dong Airport Arrives (Shanghai time) Thursday, Feb. 14, 3:25pm
Thursday, February 28:
CONFIRMATION CODE: GEMOZU
American Airlines Flight No. 288 Departs Shanghai 6:00 pm
Arrives Chicago 5:20 pm
1 hour 40 minute layover
Continental Airlines Flight No. 1647 Departs Chicago 7:00 pm
CONFIRMATION CODE: DJJZKW
Arrives Houston 9:43 pm
1 hour 9 minute layover
Continental Airlines Flight No. 3140 Departs Houston 10:52 pm
CONFIRMATION CODE: DJJZKW
Arrives Baton Rouge 11:49 pm
How we get from Beijing back to Shanghai to catch our return flight is as of yet undetermined, but this post will be updated with that information as available.
IN CHINA:
Shanghai, Thursday, February 14 through Tuesday, February 19:
Central Hotel Shanghai
Jiujiang Road, Shanghai 200001
Tel: 86-21-53965000
Fax: 86-21-53965128
E-MAIL: chbc@centralhotelshanghai.com
Tuesday, February 19, we check out of the hotel at noon-ish, take the overnight train (one of the brand new “Z” class trains) to Beijing. Train tickets will be purchased in Shanghai, but the train leaves at about 7:30 pm, arrives Beijing at about 7:15 am. We will have a private sleeper compartment, and there is a dining car. The Z trains really look nice.
Arrive Beijing Wednesday morning, February 20.
Raffles Beijing Hotel
33 East Chang An Avenue
Dongcheng District, Beijing 100004
Tel: 86-10-65263388
Fax: 86-1085004380
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