Shanghai, China ~ Kimberly’s Top 10

Shanghai’s sheer scale and architectural contrast simply astounds. With its 24 million inhabitants and its high-rise skyline, it makes New York City look like a cute little suburb.  It’s also a city with a protected ancient history dating back thousands of years coupled with a digital culture that has done away with credit cards and commutes to work on high-speed trains that float on air. I feel like I both, step back in time and leap into the future when I visit Shanghai!

Below are some of my favorite things to do in this amazing city! Many items are hot linked to detailed posts.  I’ve also included a city map to chart your course.

ONE: The Bund by Day ~ Visit the Bund during the day and take the transit tunnel underneath the Huangpu River and get up close and personal with the Pearl of Shanghai communications tower.

TWO: The Bund by Night ~ Take a river cruise and then grab a drink at the Hyatt Grand on the Bund and take in the glittering view.

THREE: Eat at Lost Heaven ~ This has become my new favorite restaurant. There are two locations, one on the Bund and one in the French Concession area.

FOUR: Yuyuan Garden ~ Visit the “Garden of Happiness”, have tea at the famous Yuyuan Tea house any time after 4:30 to hear the live music and enjoy the shops at the Bazaar around the garden.

FIVE: Visit the Jing’an Temple and inhale the prayers of others.

SIX: Zhou Zhuang, China ~ Take a weekend getaway to the magical water village of Zhou Zhuang and enjoy the Ming dynasty architecture, gardens, shops and take a Chinese gondola ride.  Tip your boat captain to sing to you…it’s mesmerizing.  Don’t forget to try the famous dumplings and pork.

SEVEN: Go shopping at the “fake market”.  The fake market is located inside Metro Line 2 next to the Shanghai Science & Technology Museum.  Everything is negotiable here but be careful of the “secret rooms”!  I’m not sure the wares in those rooms a of the legal variety!

EIGHT: Silk Embroidery Research Institute and a Silk Factory.  It’s a fascinating journey into the lifecycle of the silk worm coupled with the ability to buy some amazing silk pieces. I went wild on scarves while I was there!

 

NINE: Have Dumplings at Din Tai Fung restaurant.  I suppose you could consider this a chain restaurant in the way we have PF Chang’s, but I love it!

TEN: Su Zhou, China ~ Take an afternoon trip to Su Zhou and enjoy the canals, the old walking gate and water gate, the Beisi Pagoda and the Master of Nets Garden.

I hope this helps you to chart your course in this grand city “on the water”, Shanghai!

What do you think??

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.