The old and the new, something borrowed, something blue

No, not what you think ;-) (I am just imaging our mums jumping up and down upon reading this ...) ... but this little rhyme just fits perfectly with our recent days in Shanghai.

We have visted the Longhua Temple and the Longhua Cemetary of Martyrs (see the Martyr sculputure on the pictures). Apart from learning about the Buddhism culture and history of both sites we discovered the "art of building a park". We didn't figure out how, but everytime we enter a park here in Shanghai it seems like someone turns off all noise. Although there are 4 huge streets around the park with gadzillions of cars all blowing their horns, ignoring any traffic light (if still working) and driving madly through as many people walking across the streets, right after the park entrance there is silence. Very strange. But great if you come here to relax. A lot of parks also offer free exercising areas with strength and mobility machines. You hardly see anyone run around, but you actually see a lot of people practicing what (to us) looks like Tai Chi.

So far for the old. There is quite a few new things we have learned:
If you want to buy a metro ticket or use one of the mostly disgusting (public or shopping mall) toilets (don't breathe!) forget everything you have learned about being polite. The end of line is right in front of the ticket machine or the next available toilet. No matter if the person in front of you is a mum with kids or an elderly woman. If you politely wait until it is officially your turn the last train will be gone. Mandy, one of the local Couchsurfers we met yesterday, advised to just scream at anybody who behaves like this ... would that change anything if I scream at them in German? I am not convinced ;-) And a practical sidenote: Never forget to bring your own paper towel even for restaurant bathrooms ... it is just not part of the service.

Also new for us: Everytime you see a stroller on the street, you nearly can be sure that a western looking person is holding on to it. Chinese mostly carry their kids on their arms, obviously due to heavy traffic and overcrowded metro trains. Also, how should you carry a stroller along with the party-of-5-family ride on your well-serviced moped? Or notice when it is time to hold you baby over a waste paper basket? Why: Quite a few babies actually do not wear diapers here, they wear pants with a hole in the middle ... no further questions asked, no pictures taken!

While visiting Pudong on Saturday, the financial district, we finally met China traffic as we thought it would be - some example pictures can be seen on the facebook album. But so far we survived well and are impressed how clean and well organized public life in Shanghai is. The pictures we took from the Grand Hyatt Bar up Jinmao Tower proved to us that 17 Million indeed is a lot more than 2 (Munich) or 4 (Berlin). Finally seeing all those buildings and skyscrapers makes it easier to realize the size of this city. Amazing. Tipps: You do not need to spend the money for the viewing platform. The bar is just 1 level lower and it offers ok-Margharitas. Also take a look down the 33-story atrium of the hotel.

A good dinner - yesterday we tried Sichuan food - does not need to be more expensive than EUR 5 including drinks per person. Even in a fancy mall restaurant. It is great to order a lot of small dishes and share. EUR 16 for all-you-can-drink-and-eat at our favourite (again today!) Teppanyaki place is VERY expensive!

With regards to the borrowed: We attended a couchsurfing picinic yesterday to meet some locals and learn about the insights of the city. There are great websites that help you to travel around (flight to Beijing for only EUR 25 / Person), attend free MIT/Stanford/Yale university classes, watch Grey's anatomy (URL upon request ;-) ) or simply the ultimative helpline which you can call on your mobile (dial 962288 from CMCC). You tell the person in English where you want to go and then hand over your mobile to the cab driver so he can understand in Chinese where he should be driving you. And the best: All of these services can actually be accessed with no further "help". Still, it is a strange experience that someone else decides what is good for me to read or hear about ...

The blue is covered by the Shanghai Ocean Aquarium and IKEA, yes, the Swedish furniture company just across the street from our appartement. IKEA actually is a 1:1 copy from ours - including Billy, Lack, Kötbullar and hot dog - only for half of the prize. After a little research we found out that the scary huge crabs we met at the Aquarium actually have relatives which we do not want to meet at anytime during our life (be careful, this is scary!).

Also, if you are lucky, blue is the color of the sky over Shanghai. Just like we were yesterday.
Alternative program: Grand Gateway, Super Brand Mall, Bundesliga.