Our first day in Shanghai

It is the first morning of our Chinese adventure. After a long but happily uneventful flight yesterday, we passed through immigration easily, collected our luggage, and found a taxi, which sped hell bent for leather to downtown Shanghai where our hotel, The Seagull, is located right on the river overlooking the Bund.  We were shocked at the smog and pollution.  We have not seen this before anywhere in Asia. 

By now exhausted from the long flight and the time change, we checked in and were in bed by seven.  This morning we are rested, and we look forward to meeting Keren and our mates tomorrow morning, if not sooner.  The other couple, George and Jane Devine, are in the room next door, but we haven’t seen or met them.  We have a spectacular river view but the smog is terrible and I will tactfully inquire as to whether this is seasonal, sporadic or permanent.  I can’t imagine breathing this air all the time and feel that it must be a temperature inversion or whatever causes this gloom.  I pray to God this beautiful city isn’t under this scourge all the time. 

Shanghai without smog

Shanghai with smog

The city of Shanghai in miniature--day

The city of Shanghai in miniature--night

A nice Australian couple took this picture of us

Part of the Chinese adventure is communicating.  We couldn’t get the safe to work and the shower had a slight problem so we called housekeeping to help.  A smiling gentleman

carrying a plunger arrived and I truly can’t describe our mutual pantomime and the gyrations we used to illustrate our issues.  He showed me how to work the safe with much animation and a Che Che Che Che in staccato tones to get across the punching in of the numbers and what you do next.  It worked because now we have it.  Pretty soon we all were laughing.  Showing him what was wrong with the shower was a bit harder but patience won and it is fixed.  There was no need for the plunger.

Next day:

Wonder of wonders, the smog has lifted!  Early this morning it was very thick, but by mid-morning the sky was blue and barely a vestige of yesterday’s gloom was evident.  We walked from the hotel across a bridge spanning the Hung Po River and there we spotted a Hop On Hop Off Sightseeing bus which seemed a great way to beat the heat and get a feel for the city. 

The other time we were in Shanghai, we visited the Art Museum which I remember as especially wonderful and so we hopped off the bus at the appropriate stop and started walking the block or two to the museum.  Ahead we saw a big white building which looked familiar and so without asking we bought tickets (we got the Senior Rate) and in we went.  It turned out it wasn’t the Museum of Art but the Shanghai Urban Planning and Development Center!  Oh well, it was fabulous and I will post a few pictures.   There was a huge model of the entire city of Shanghai with lighting that simulated the times of day from dawn to dark.  It satisfied my love of miniatures and was truly lovely.

We had dinner overlooking the Hung Po River right across from the hotel.  The moon was full and cast its glow over the Shanghai skyline and the myriad river boats crossing back and forth.