1) Taking a day tour to one of the water villages (or "Venice of the East") out of Shanghai. We went to Xi Tang, where Mission Impossible 3 was filmed (if you remember these scenes of Tom Cruise running through narrow streets by the water to find his girlfriend in one of the buildings with the help of his colleague using a GPS tracker). It’s amazing how Xi Tang has kept is tranquillity and simplicity in the middle of buildings and development. This is my number 1 recommendation and hence the many photos of Xi Tang.
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| From Shanghai |
2) A view of the Bund – I prefer viewing this from New Heights or an equivalent restaurant with a view than walking with the crowds by the water. Make no mistake – on no account am I suggesting you walk by the Bund. It’s hot and humid in the summer and it’s impossible to find a taxi to go home and the sightseeing tunnel that takes you to Pudong is a rip-off. Take a taxi to Pudong if necessary.
3) Instead of going to the Oriental Pearl TV Tower to have a view of Puxi, try Cloud 9 at the Grand Hyatt (which occupies the 53rd to 87th floor of the Jinmao Tower) for afternoon tea or supper/dessert – either times, don't expect too much of a view…the pollution in Shanghai is quite bad. Apparently there’s a Chinese man in authentic robes who walks around at night and tells your fortune. I’m not sure if you have to pay to have your fortune told but he looked quite cool.
The view of the Grand Hyatt hotel rooms from the 87th floor
Dessert at Cloud 9
4) If you're a shopper, cruise the streets along Fumin Lu, Shaanxi Lu, Xinle Lu (after Dragonfly, a shop called Jo Collection), Changle Lu, Maoming Lu and Nanchang Lu. They sell factory overruns of DVF dresses, Chloe blouses etc etc. You have to be patient though – take time to sieve in each shop.
5) Xintiandi and the French Concession generally – I generally like window shopping around this area although I admit it's slightly touristy but you have to take time to walk the streets around the French Concession and check out the small stores.
Xintiandi
6) "Off the beaten path" places – Taikang Lu, Ferguson Lane or I hear there’re some art galleries in Moganshan Lu in refurbished old warehouses but I haven’t been.
Be patient at finding these places - they tend to literally pop out of nowwhere. Taikang Lu is a little harder to spot from where the taxis drop you off - follow the tourists (Westerners usually) through the streets.
Kommune at Taikang Lu
7) DVD shopping – Dagu Lu has 3 huge shops which sell box sets. I even got Ah Xin for my sister (the Japanese serial which ran on for ages when we were in primary school) although it turned out to be in Japanese without any subtitles. Ha.
8) Parks - Yu Yuan is fine for a morning out if you fancy authentic Chinese gardens and hoards of tourists. Don't expect too much and you'll be fine. If you stay near Fuxing Park, check it out in the mornings. It was a pleasant walk amongst various groups of people dancing to different CD player music and, old folks practising tai ji…. We saw this young dude trying to learn tai ji from the grand masters and couldn’t help taking a picture.
9) If you do need massage therapy at the end of your walking, I go to Dragonfly for massages and Frangipani for pedicures.
http://www.dragonfly.net.cn/pages/welcome.htm
http://www.frangipani-shanghai.com/
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