SHANGHAI

Parents, you'd better save up those airline miles, because I've fallen in love and I may not be coming home.  The past two weekends I have spent in Shanghai and I can say with much confidence that it's my favorite city in the world!  It's basically NYC, but way prettier and with taller buildings.

Two weeks ago, I ventured over to Shanghai by train to meet Andy and Jackie Brassington for dinner.  Greg Merrell is currently living very close to Nanjing, so we met up and he headed over there with me.  Thank goodness Greg speaks Chinese! Without him I would definitely have gotten lost and probably ordered a train ticket to who-knows-where.
When we arrived in Shanghai, we went to the Yu Yuan Gardens in "Old Shanghai".  It was lovely to walk through.  There were a lot of fish-filled ponds, beautiful greenery, and many antique structures.  The weather was incredible, so it was the perfect day to go!

Later that evening, Greg and I met the Brassingtons and a few of their friends at the Shangri La Hotel.  We all went out to a nice dinner and had a lot of fun! It was so wonderful to be around close friends again :)
The Brassingtons and their friend John were kind enough to put me up for the evening.  John lives in what must be the most fabulous apartment in Shanghai! We spent the evening taking in the view from the deck, watching boats light up as they passed by on the river. The room I stayed in had the best view in the entire apartment and when I woke up in the morning, I had to pinch myself to know I wasn't still dreaming!

at night

in the morning

I spent a great day at the markets with Andy and Jackie.  They have to be the best barterers I have ever seen. It was tough to say goodbye at the end of the day, but I had to return to school in Nanjing and catch up on all the homework I didn't do that weekend.

No worries though, because I went back the next weekend!  This time, with a group of 40 students. We did all of the touristy stuff we could fit into one weekend.  Our first stop was Super Brands Mall (one of the largest malls in the world), where we ate lunch. From there, we took a glass shuttle under the river that runs through a tunnel with a light show.  It was like going to Disneyland for 15 minutes.  Then we went to "The Bund" (which I had a chance to do both weekends) to take photos.  It's basically just a boardwalk that runs in front of the skyline, but it is absolutely GORGEOUS!!

We did some shopping on Nanjing Road, where all the creepy alleys with fake goods are. That's also where all of the American food is, so I treated myself to Pizza Hut.  It was the best pizza I've ever had.
That night, the university treated us to a Chinese Acrobatics Show.  It was by far the coolest thing I have EVER seen!!!  It was better than Cirque Du Soleil, if you can believe it. There was fire, motorcycles, 5 Asians in a barrel, and the craziest acrobatics I have ever witnessed. I couldn't even believe what I was seeing!  Unfortunately, I couldn't take photos or video, so you'll just have to use your imagination.
On Saturday, we attended the World Expo, which was pretty spectacular.  The lines there are longer than they are at any American theme park.  However, we found that if you pretend to be from a country, you can get into their exhibit through the VIP entrance.  I was Dominican, Argentinean, Mexican, Peruvian, Italian, you name it!  If they are a dark complected people with a Latin accent, I could pull it off.  Every country had a unique way of expressing itself, from short films to fake rain forests.  Unfortunately, the USA exhibit was kind of a disappointment. We didn't get to see every country, but like I said before, I will be back.

Dominican Exhibit

My friend Griz and I with the Expo mascot

This is the squid that predicted the outcome of the World Cup!

 Today (Sunday), we went to the City Planning Center and learned about the vast economic growth of Shanghai over the past 13 years.  It was very informative and we all learned a lot.  It was also cool to see the model of the entire city, which takes up most of the third floor.
Now I'm back home in Nanjing, preparing for tomorrow's classes.  It was an awesome weekend.  I can't wait to get back to Shanghai.