Shanghai

I was in Shanghai for a business school trip 6 years ago and I absolutely loved it. I was really excited to be back.  Unfortunately, I was in my work conference all week and had work dinners every single evening, so I didn’t have time to do or see anything. Jenn had a bad cold, which prevented her from doing much either. She had to work anyway. 

WIA: The first night in Shanghai, we went with some friends, who were also there for the work conference, to the Bund, the area along the water with shops and restaurants. We ate at 3 on the Bund, which has a prime location and a fantastic view. It’s overpriced, but overall, the food, which was a modern take on traditional Chinese dishes, was pretty decent.

I had a traditional Chinese work dinner the next evening at Dian Ping. As with most meals in China, it was a good balance between excellent and disgusting. Jenn and I ate at a Thai Restaurant next to the hotel the next night because we both needed a quick meal so we could get back to some work we needed to do. I had a quick working dinner at the hotel the following night and then coincidentally went back to the Thai restaurant again on Thursday night with the work group. It wasn’t our original plan, but our bus never showed up due to an incredible amount of traffic, so we audibled.

On Friday night, we met our friend Josh, who has lived in China since he graduated law school, and his girlfriend, Kate. We ate at Southern Barbarian, which was tucked away in the French Concession neighborhood. We never would have found the place if Josh hadn’t been waiting for us in the middle of the street when we arrived. The meal consisted of several small and simple dishes, all of which were very good. The eggplant and tomato dish was the best thing on the table. It was nice to see Josh. He hasn’t changed a bit.

I drank the two local Chinese beers during the week, Tsing Tao and Yan Jing. Both are fine and good enough to drink when in China, but certainly not ones you would choose from the import section of a menu when in another country.

WID: Shanghai isn’t really a big tourist attraction city. It’s just a big city, with a lot of shopping, restaurants, etc. We did go out Saturday morning into the Old City, which is the Chinese version of European old towns, meaning it’s old buildings filled with new shops and restaurants. We went there with Jason and Bryne. They had been living in Paris for the past year (he also works for Dell), so we’ve gotten to spend a good amount of time together over the past year. It was great to see them again. We walked through the Yuyuan Garden and then Jenn and I headed back to the hotel to get our bags and head for the train station for a ride to Beijing. 

WIS: It was a real treat getting to stay at the Portman Ritz Carlton, since that is where my conference was located. The hotel was extremely nice. Our room was huge (for China standards). The staff was extremely helpful. They spoke excellent English and were very knowledgeable of the city. I’ll get to this later when I write about Beijing, but China can be extremely hard to get around and staying at a hotel with a good concierge and people who can help you get around and get what you want is essential. Otherwise, it can be a truly miserable experience. My only complaint about the hotel was the large bench at the end of the bed, which I ran into several times in the dark during the week coming back from the bathroom in the middle of the night.

WAM: The city has changed some since I was last there. There is a lot more English written and being spoken everywhere around the city. It was on its way six years ago, but it seems to be getting more and more Westernized. I still like it there and think it would be a fun place to live.

WTF: We had drinks Friday night at the bar at the Langham Hotel in Xintiandi, a popular bar area, and in the bathroom, they had an electronic panel on the wall next to the toilet. On this panel, there were buttons to raise and close the seat, clean your front and back, clean the wand (which I assume is the cleaning wand?), and many other things that I didn’t have time to figure out in fear that the people back in the bar would be suspicious as to how long I was spending in the bathroom.