October 19, 2008
Today started early – at about 5am to be exact. My body clock generally has no idea what time zone it should be on - seeing as how I tend to change time zone every 3-4 days - and usually just accepts the latest adjustment without complaint. However, I must admit I was tired last night and fell asleep by 10pm, only to be wide awake at 5am…
I embraced my early morning and spent some time with my guidebook planning my day in Shanghai. I set out around 8am, starting with the Oriental Pearl before wandering over to the Bund Sightseeing Tunnel. Oh yes, I actually did that. And if you ever come to Shanghai, under no circumstances should you pay the ridiculous fee to experience such a ridiculously dumb tourist trap. (Okay, it was really only about $7 to take the little train under the river over to the Bund, but it was seriously one of the most inane things I’ve ever done. And a cab would have only been about $3.)
Once I made it across the river I walked down Bund taking in the
view and taking some pictures. The scenic skyline of Pudong is visible behind me in the picture that I’ve posted here. From there I went…all over. A leisurely walk down main pedestrian street of Nanjing Dong Lu led me to People’s Square where I checked out the Shanghai Museum. I walked a little further west before turning south to the French Concession where I did some shopping and stopped for a late lunch/early dinner at an excellent café.
Checking in with my book I decided that I really only had one big area still to cover – the Old City and Yu Gardens. I personally thought this area was a huge disappointment. It is a huge tourist trap of shops and stalls and hawkers promising ‘best price for you!’. Really…this is where there is a little bit of a jaded traveler in me. I have come to despise the markets that I once so enjoyed. But now I recognize that in general it is all the same junk, just a different place. Want fake bags/shoes/clothes? Special price for you. It doesn’t matter where in the world I am someone will try to sell me a pashmina. I’m not saying there aren’t some unique things, but you actually have to search pretty hard to find them.
But search I did…I roamed and shopped for a little while. The only thing I found that I really kinda wanted was a Chinese checkers set. Unfortunately I wanted a specific design on the leather case, and I couldn’t find any that were in really good shape and scratch free. I’ve got a lot of days left in China, so maybe I’ll find one somewhere else.
It was a long, busy, enjoyable, and very tiring day. My legs walked miles and miles, and they are very happy to be propped up and resting right now.
It is now 9:30pm, and I actually think I could fall asleep pretty easily if I let myself. But alas, my stomach is growling and a nice cold beverage sounds divine. Besides - I need to rally and stay awake for a while so that I’m not up at 5am tomorrow!
Today started early – at about 5am to be exact. My body clock generally has no idea what time zone it should be on - seeing as how I tend to change time zone every 3-4 days - and usually just accepts the latest adjustment without complaint. However, I must admit I was tired last night and fell asleep by 10pm, only to be wide awake at 5am…
I embraced my early morning and spent some time with my guidebook planning my day in Shanghai. I set out around 8am, starting with the Oriental Pearl before wandering over to the Bund Sightseeing Tunnel. Oh yes, I actually did that. And if you ever come to Shanghai, under no circumstances should you pay the ridiculous fee to experience such a ridiculously dumb tourist trap. (Okay, it was really only about $7 to take the little train under the river over to the Bund, but it was seriously one of the most inane things I’ve ever done. And a cab would have only been about $3.)
Once I made it across the river I walked down Bund taking in the
view and taking some pictures. The scenic skyline of Pudong is visible behind me in the picture that I’ve posted here. From there I went…all over. A leisurely walk down main pedestrian street of Nanjing Dong Lu led me to People’s Square where I checked out the Shanghai Museum. I walked a little further west before turning south to the French Concession where I did some shopping and stopped for a late lunch/early dinner at an excellent café.Checking in with my book I decided that I really only had one big area still to cover – the Old City and Yu Gardens. I personally thought this area was a huge disappointment. It is a huge tourist trap of shops and stalls and hawkers promising ‘best price for you!’. Really…this is where there is a little bit of a jaded traveler in me. I have come to despise the markets that I once so enjoyed. But now I recognize that in general it is all the same junk, just a different place. Want fake bags/shoes/clothes? Special price for you. It doesn’t matter where in the world I am someone will try to sell me a pashmina. I’m not saying there aren’t some unique things, but you actually have to search pretty hard to find them.
But search I did…I roamed and shopped for a little while. The only thing I found that I really kinda wanted was a Chinese checkers set. Unfortunately I wanted a specific design on the leather case, and I couldn’t find any that were in really good shape and scratch free. I’ve got a lot of days left in China, so maybe I’ll find one somewhere else.
It was a long, busy, enjoyable, and very tiring day. My legs walked miles and miles, and they are very happy to be propped up and resting right now.
It is now 9:30pm, and I actually think I could fall asleep pretty easily if I let myself. But alas, my stomach is growling and a nice cold beverage sounds divine. Besides - I need to rally and stay awake for a while so that I’m not up at 5am tomorrow!
2 comments:
loving the new haircut!
I am so jealous.
Cheri
Post a Comment