so long Shanghai!

So where to start!? The first day I went on that Zujiajiao Water Village tour which was really neat!  It’s supposedly called the Venice of the East and was just how I had envisioned it… small gondola like boats would bring you down a part of this narrow canal that snaked through a small remote village where people live and where small trinket shops and food vendors were all over!  There is where I tested out my bartering skills and succeeded!  Got a few souvenirs and gifts for people back home :)  Later that night a few of us found this bar called Soho, where it was only 60 yuan (which is only around $10) for a bracelet which allowed us unlimited drinks for the entire night!  We had a blast!!! The set-up of the bar was so cool, flashing lights everywhere, performers and Western hip hop mostly so we all knew the lyrics! We danced the night away and didn’t get back to the ship until early in the morning.  Shanghai is such a cool city!!! I guess it’s ranked in the top 10 most populated cities in the entire world and I definitely could see why after walking around for the last couple days… I’ve found that Chinese and Japanese people are very different though.  To me, I found that the Chinese people who I interacted with were not as outgoing as Japanese people and were very demanding and somewhat forceful in the markets!!! It didn’t help being American either, because it was like we had a bulls-eye on our foreheads screaming tourists! They don’t like to accept no for an answer that’s for sure!!! I couldn’t walk past a shop without someone on my back saying “Lady, lady, buy watch? But purse?” etc… haha and they didn’t like if you went into a shop and didn’t buy anything either, it was ridiculous.  Spent a decent amount though on souvenirs and gifts again, because everything was super cheap!!! Didn’t buy anything really at their asking prices either… I did a pretty good job at bartering for the amount that I wanted to pay for!

 

I noticed that China is also a lot more dirtier than Japan too… and people drive like maniacs!!! I guess the cars have the right of way, so they don’t stop for pedestrians whatsoever.  It was surprising to me how nonchalant people were with crossing the streets, it was like they didn’t even care if they got hit or something!  The subway systems were different too in the sense that although it was just as crowded, it was way more chaotic, nothing like Tokyo, where although it is the biggest subway system in the world, people are very orderly. For instance people would line up in perfect rows to wait and would rarely speak on the subway at all!  It’s just been a very different experience, but it’s been interesting to be able to compare and contrast them.

 

The second day Helen and I went off together and it was quite the adventure!  First off, none of the taxi drivers speak any English whatsoever and when we tried to explain to one of them that we wanted to go to this underground market (which I talked a little about above), we were trying to describe it and what not… colorful, lots of people, shops, etc.  Well, the taxi took us to a colorful market alright, but it was a SUPERMARKET!!! Hahaha, he also had driven us way out of town and the place, we came to find out later after stopping at a hotel to ask, was like a 45 minute drive from where we were! We ended up finding the metro and arrived at the market eventually, but man was that an adventure! After the market we also ventured to People’s Park and Nanjing Street which is well known for its endless boutiques and department stores… just overall craziness.  And being the Chinese New Year, just extremely crowded overall!  Last night we ventured to the other side of the river where all the cool buildings are, which are amazing at nighttime, because they are all lit up and flashing… we ended up going to the 87^th floor of the Hyatt Shanghai Hotel, ritzy hotel, to this bar called Cloud 9.  There we each treated ourselves to a drink, it was pretty pricey, and just enjoyed the view of the Shanghai skyline! This bar was completely surrounded by glass windows so we got to see the most incredible panorama view I’ve ever seen. Where we were sitting we could see the Shanghai Tower, which is the coolest looking building I’ve ever seen too… I’ll have to post a picture up soon to show you guys!!! We could also see our ship on the other side of the river, which was pretty cool. Shanghai is definitely one of the coolest cities I’ve been too, but I can’t wait to see more of China now…

 

In an hour or so a group of us will be traveling to the airport, because we’re going to Guilin!!! It’s a 2 hour flight from Shanghai, so we will be arriving around 3pm today.  I am SO excited for this place… it’s gonna be amazing, and heard it was gonna be a little warmer too. I can’t wait!!! I’ll be bringing my laptop… so stay tuned :)