The Road Less Traveled: October 2010

Kim had a conference in Shanghai and we thought it would be a great opportunity to visit China together. It was an eye opener as to why China is what it is today and the vast possibilities of what it can become in the near future.

Kim has been to Shanghai before so I took the opportunity to sightsee on my own while she was at work. Shanghai is huge and there is so much to do. Our hotel was next to the famous Yu Garden.

It was convenient because there was a lot of shopping and entertainment in the area. If I wanted to go anywhere else, taxis in Shanghai are very reasonable. However, it is very difficult to get one and sometimes the wait for a taxi can be over an hour. Walking around the area, we were able to find many unique shops and restaurants. Bargaining at first was a little difficult because we don't know how to speak Chinese. It is amazing how cheap you can bargain for. Rule of thumb when bargaining in China is to start off at 20-25% of the asking price. It really depends on the shop and what you are buying but most of our purchases we bought for about 25% of their asking price. Be careful because often times there will be no asking price so you need to have a good idea of what you want to pay for something. We didn't buy much but saw a lot of interesting and unique "antiques" sold in stalls. We were a little skepticle to spend a lot of money on the so called "antiques". Although they look authentically old, most of it is fake. We found an old painting that we liked and the lady wanted 3,600 RMB ($600 USD). The lady said it was an "original by the artist". We bargained it down to 400 RMB but decided to wait to buy it because we had a lot of walking to do. Sure enough, we walked into another art store and saw the same painting hanging on the wall. Needless to say, we didn't go back to buy the painting. I suggest that if you want to buy anything in China, it is a good place to buy those things that you want but rarely use. We bought some computer programs and DVDs and a spare camera battery all significantly cheaper than what we would pay in the US and Japan. Don't plan on buying anything that you want to last a long time or feel is an investment.

Our main goal was to go to the World Expo 2010 held in Shanghai. The day we arrived, the World Expo broke the record for most people attending in a single day with 1.03 million attendees. We were hesitant to go because many people that have gone said it was a painfully exhausting experience. However, Kim and I did not want to regret being in Shanghai during the Expo and not taking the opportunity to see the international event. We went on a Monday afternoon and there was no line to get into the Expo. There was still long lines however at each of the Pavilions but apparently not as long as they usually were (2 hours to get into China vs. 4-6 hours). We decided not to waste too much time waiting in lines and our mission was to conquer the entire area to see all the buildings. We started off in the middle and by the time we made our way to the end of one side, it was dark and made for a good chance to see all of the Pavilions lit up as we made our way back to the other side. The size and creativity of the structures was amazing. It was obvious how much thought went into some of these buildings (China Saudi/Arabia) and how little effort went into others (USA). The overall feeling of the Expo was remarkable. So many countries participating and people from all over the world attending made for a feeling of excitement and unity. China did a great job of organizing the event so that it felt safe and clean. It will be interesting to see what they do with the structures after the Expo finishes. We were told that they are selling the structures to various investors. We were extremely happy that we had to opportunity to attend.

Another highlight of our trip was a tour of Zhou Zhuang. A small water village about 2 hours outside of Shanghai. The day we went was pouring rain and made for a miserable day of touring. The village itself was interesting. I've never been but it was likened to to Venice with a water boat cruise through the village. Check out the pictures below:

We managed to find some great restaurants along the way. We were hesitant to eat the street food that looked interesting but at the risk of getting sick we stayed away. Our favorite restaurant was a world famous restaurant called Din Tai Fung. Oddly enough there are several locations in Japan but probable not as cheap as in China. Our friend also introduced us to Di Shui Dong. A great place for spicy rips and cheap beers. Dinner for 2 and about a dozen beers was less than 20 bucks!

We decided to see the Shanghai Acrobat show. It was a bit expensive considering we were in China but an entertaining experience over all.

Here are a few more random pictures of our trip Shanghai 2010...check out the kid pooping in the street (not an uncommon practice in China).

You ever wonder what happens to all the trash each day for 5 million people? Most people want to forget about it and not have to think about that. Well Osaka spent 66 billion JPY in 2001 to build this monstrosity of a facility. Not only does it serve its purpose of disposing of Osaka's trash, it makes it's own energy, it takes only 92 employees to maintain its 24/7 operation, and it looks like something from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

It was designed by an Austrian painter and architect Friedensreich Regentag Dunkelbunt Hundertwasser. He was contracted by the city of Osaka to bring design and beauty to what is commonly thought of as disgusting. The facility offers ecological educational tours to people drawn by the curious design. Interestingly enough, credit the Japanese to create such an eyesore of a building that is so efficient, it not only is maintained by a handful of people daily, but it creates enough energy to power itself and have excess energy to be sold. AMAZING!