Shanghai The pearl of the orient

Shanghai
The pearl of the orient

Paris of China and queen of the orient; city of quick riches and ill gotten gains, the doamin of adventurers gamblers drug runners missionaries and gansters -- This is the vivid discription of Shanhai in the 19th century. However, Shanghai has hidden away its dancing shoes asince the communist took over in 1949 and the whole mass began to adapt to a different life -- it become the city of factory, of lennism and marxism and of blue and grey.

But once again, shanghai has reawakened -- it is re-establishing its reputation of being the center of Trade, Business, Culture and Art in the new millenium. The sun rises everyday to a city full of newly constructed department stores, skyscrapers and high ways. It is a true union of Asian and Western Culture, ancient and modern value , and trading and culture.

Information About Shanghai

History :
Shanghai was a little town before the 1800s. However, as a gateway to the yangzi river, it was an ideal trading port for the Westerners. British opened the first concession in this city after China lost the first opinion war in 1840s. French Italian Spanish American and Japanese followed the footsteps of the British and by the end of 1920s, there wre more than 60,000 foreign residents living in Shanghai. The city was built on the trade of opium silk and tea the time and it was the busiest port in the whole Asia. However, behind the glamour of Shanghai, behind the beautiful scenes along the bund was the picture of dispair, of poverty and hunger. Exploited in workhouse conditions, crippled by poverty, sold into slavery or brothels, the poor of Shanghai had radical opinions and wanted change. Disgusted by the what had been to the majority of Shanghainese, the educated ones also wanted a revolution. In 1921, the communist party was found in a quite house in the French concession with 12 people presented at the first meeting.

Communist took over shanghai in May 1949. They eradicated brothels, rehabilitated the opion addicts and elimiated child and slave labour. However at the same time, shanghai was transformed from a city full of energy and glamour to a city of mist.

Bund , taken in 1930s

Bund -- taken in 1930s

Climate
The best time to visit Shanghai is in Autum (September to November) and Spring ( April to June). Shanghai's winter can be unbearable to some, with temperature vary from -5 degree to
+5 degree while summers are hot and humid, reaching 40 degree occasionally.

Language:
Most of the Shanghainese speak Mandarin which is the official language of People's Republic of China. Apart from that, people speaks a local dialect called Shanghainese which is very different from Mandarin. The written langauge is simplified Chinese.

Shanghai Sky Line

Politics:
Shanghai has always been the centre of politics. It had been the site where both the Nationalist party and the Communist party struggled to take over during the civil war and where the Gang of Four based their power at during the culture revolution. A lot of the prominent Chinese leaders are Shanghainese or have been the mayor of Shanghai. For example, the current President Jiang Zeiming and the ministers Zhu Roingji and Wu Bangguo both lived in Shanghai for more than 50 year and Hong Kong's new chief Dong Jianhua was born in Shanghai.

Economy:
Shanghai is the major financial centre and an economic powerhouse in China. The government plans to use Shanghai to replace Hongkong as China's economical frontier in the future. The average salary at the moment is approximately 1200 American dollars per year while a lot of the uni graduates in their 20th earn up to 4000 American dollars per year. The difference between the riches and the poors are clear here, BMW, Benze Mercedes and Royce rolls can been seen on the street while beggers and thiefs are everywhere as well. Shanghai is facing a lot of problems with booms in the 1990s slows down grdually and the city becomes a bit "too expensive" for the foreigners to invest in.

Important sites in Shanghai

Nanjing road, the "number one street" of China, has always been the main attraction and shopping area in Shanghai. It is the busiest street in the city and probably the whole world -- it can be so crowded that you have to push your way through it during its peak hours.

Nanjing Road has been the center of Shanghai since the begining of 1900. At the moment, shops open between 10 am and 10 pm, seven days a week, 356 days a year.

Nanjing Road At night

People's Square was the site of Shanghai Racecourse before the communist took over and now it proudly displays the museum of Shanghai.

Shanghai museum was built in 1994 and is the symbolic of many changes in China. Its shape resembles an ancient Chinese Ding vessel and is the home of impressive collection of art in China.

Shanghai TV Tower, also called Pearl of the East

These are the pictures of the famous The Bund.
The Bund is an Anglo-Indian term for the embankment of muddy waterfront. And it is the symbolic of Shanghai like the Opera house in Sydney.

It is a boulevard of 1.5 km located on the West Bank of Huang Pu Jiang, the exit of the second longest river in China -- Yangzi river.

Pictures of The Bund

The Bund was the political and trading center of Shanghai and the wole China in early 1900s. A lot of the Europeans know it as the Wall Street of China back then. When you walk along the bond, you can come across the old sites of some big international companies such as City Bank, Jardin Matheson& Company, Hongkong and Shanghai Bank as well as a few old Europen clubs. Jarcin and Matheson & Company was set up in 1848 and it now grew into one of the great business firm and owns just about half of Hongkong. Due to the above reason, different types of buildings were constructed along the Bund and it is known as the miniature of "museum of international artchitecture".

Cheng Huang Temple and Yuyuan Gardens

Cheng Huang Tmple and Yuyan Garden are located in the north east side of the old Chinese town and are adjacent to each other.

Yuyuan garden can be backdated to four hundred years ago when the Pan family, rich Ming dynasty officials, built it. It took 18 years to complete. It was took over by the Taiping rebels during 1840s and added more historical significance to the site.

Cheng Huang Temple means the Temple of the Town gods. It was destroyed in the Culture revolution, and what remains was the reconstruction of the old architectur., However, the Shanghainese food here are famous across China and a lot of shops were built selling Chinese art piece and different types of souvenirs

Jade Buddha Temple was built in 1911. It is one of the few remaining buddhist temples in Shanghai.

The centre piece of the temple is the 2m high white jade buddha which is said to weight 1000kg. There is also a smaller reclining buddha close by.

Jade Buddha Temple (Yu Fuo Si)

Architectures of Shanghai

Dr. Sun Yatsen (Sun Zhong-Shan) was the first president in China. He was named the "father of the country" in Taiwan and spent his life promoting democracy in China.

Dr. Sun Yatsen stayed in this place for approximately six years. After his death, his wife Mrs Song Qin-Lin, who was a sympathizer of the communist party, continued living here until 1937, constantly being watched by the Nationalist party plain cloth police.

Dr. Sun Yatsen's residence

Mrs Song Qin-Lin was the second wife of Dr. Sun Yatsen and later became the vice chairman of People's Republic of China herself.

Mrs Song was born in Shanghai in 1893 and was sent to the United States with her sisters to receive further education. By 1930s, her family had become the most prominent family in China with her being married to Dr Sun Yatsen, her sister married to president Jiang Jie-shi and her brother become the minister of the finance. Even though her brother in law Jiang Jie-shi was the president of Nationalist party who was in control of China in 1930s and 1940s, Mrs Song had always been a communist believer. She stayed in Shanghai until her death in 1980s.

The picture shows her residence after communist take over in 1949. It is a two storey building with a lovely garden and high walls surrounding it.