Tag Archives: Shanghai

SkyWalk Haze – Xian, China

SkyWalk Haze - Xian, China

SkyWalk Haze – Xian, China

It’s the Skywalk on the 100th floor of the World Financial Center. After viewing it I wanted my money back, all $25 of it. This wasn’t a view, it was a statement about the pollution of Shanghai. I felt like what I wanted was a view. The kind o view I got when I look out from Eagles Nest, NM and am able to see Sandia Peak, NM, a iew that’s about 120 miles. This view has a visibility of about one mile. I understand people can’t control the weather, but I think this was more than weather. My whole time in China, I think I got to see the sun maybe 10% of the time.

Train to Xian

Train to Xian

Train to Xian

I caught the overnight train from Shanghai, China to Xian, China. It cost me about $70 and saved me about $15 in overnight hostel charges. Once again, I had a Chinese person who was also occupying the four bed sleeper room who spoke English. It took about 14 hours to get to Xian.

Hostel Gang – Shanghai

Hostel Gang - Shanghai

Hostel Gang – Shanghai

You know you’ve been in a place way-too-long when the hostel staff want to take pictures with you before you go. The two young ladies worked in the hostel. The Chinese guy behind me is Tiger, one of my roommates at the hostel. Tiger lives in Beijing and I plan to visit him there when I go back to catch the plane to the states. The guy on my left is Christof, a Swede who travels the world in search of wonderful spots to scuba dive.

Shanghai Train Station

Shanghai Train Station

Shanghai Train Station

It’s the train station in Shanghai. The day before I left I made a trial run to the station to make sure I wouldn’t get there and mess up the train connection. It’s confusing enough to catch a train in China without having a clue what’s going on.

Sky Walk 100

Sky Walk 100

Sky Walk 100

I must admit that the whole observation thing at the World Financial Center in Shanghai was first class. Too bad the view was virtually worthless.

435 Meters

435 Meters

435 Meters

This is the sign in the elevator in the World Financial Center in Shanghai, China. I’m taking a ride to the 100th floor observation platform which is supposed to be the world’s highest observatory. Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. I know it’s high up there and I paid $25 for a really bad view of Shanghai due to the haze that covered the city on the day I was in the tower to get a good view of the city. Had I known how disappointing the view would be I wouldn’t have gone up. Then again, how often does a person have a chance to go to the highest public observation point from a building in the world?

Looking for Love

Looking for Love

Looking for Love

Me and a friend were walking around the green space at People’s Square in Shanghai, China and we saw all these pieces of paper hanging on lines, sortof like socks. I couldn’t figure out what they were. So, I asked someone who told me that they were resumes of women who were looking for men. I thought that was really interesting. It was like an internet dating service, only a little more local. Internet dating services are probably banned in China.

Roller Coaster

Roller Coaster

Roller Coaster

In the green space at People’s Square in Shanghai, China they have rides for adults and children. It’s a little amusement park. It’s really not very big, but the rides were only $1 or $2. They children were having a great time.

Dumplings

Dumplings

Dumplings

I don’t usually worry about where I eat. I just grab something from somewhere. When I’m on the road, street food is my favorite. But I broke down and went to the Nanxiang Steamed Bun Restaurant to try their dumplings. It is said they are the absolute best steamed bund dumplings in Shanghai. The line at the place is ridiculous. I just found myself with a little time and thought "what the heck…" and I tried their dumplings. Were they better than the ones I get on the street? Absolutely. It wasn’t even close.

China Pavilion

China Pavilion

China Pavilion

I talked to a lot of people about Expo 2010 and many of them said the same thing – that the China Exhibition was almost impossible to get into without a reservation. That’s probably because 95% of the attendees were Chinese. That issue aside, it’s rather obvious that the China Pavilion was the biggest pavilion at the Expo and the Chinese splashed the picture of the pavilion all over Shanghai. Imagine that…