www.andrewstrauss.net - my adventrues in Shijiazhuang, China 2005, 2006

June 13, 2006

Shanghai Day 1

Filed under: China,Chinese,申琦 — andrewstrauss @ 6:13 pm

We only had one day in 上海 (shànghǎi) before proceeding to 桂林 (guìlín), so we wanted to do as much as possible.  I wanted to eat some decent Italian food, 申琦 (shēn qí) wanted to go to the top of the T.V. tower, and my mom wanted to see the aquarium.  We managed to get it all done with no problem, and even had some time to stroll around the trendy 新天地 (xīntiāndì) area.

We had Italian for lunch, including a fabulous glass of pinot noir red wine, and Mexican for dinner, complete with enchiladas and Avocado.  I have to admit that even though I hated that 上海(shànghǎi) had so many foreigners, being able to eat so many western dishes was quite nice.

Overall I was really impressed with Shanghai.  There were three things about the city, however, that I didn’t like:

  1. The large western population.
  2. The INSANELY expensive prices. (Most likely fueled by number 1)
  3. The strange dialect that sounds nothing like “standard” mandarin

There are many things to love about the city, but these were definitely not pluses in my mind.


4 Responses to “Shanghai Day 1”

  1. Jerome Strauss Says:

    The travelogue continues. Keep the opinions coming. Great to experience all of your sights and feelings vicariously.

  2. Grammy Says:

    Your “running” (travelling) commentary is wonderful. You make me smile every day. Thank you for sharing your wonderful adventure. Can’t think of a greater gift. You are one super grandson! Love you.

  3. Sara Says:

    My favorite part of the day in Shanghai was eating great but overpriced Italian food at one of the super luxe hotels. We gobbled up the bread with good olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette, and ate bruschetta with prosciutto and parmesan. There’s no cheese in China, so they must have been imported. The local “mozarella” was awful, inedible. The most fun thing was seeing Shenqi try these things for the first time. She’s game to eat anything, and always finds something to like about it. She couldn’t believe the prosciutto had not been cooked, and said the avocado tasted like egg! Andy said the reason she’s so open to strange new tastes is “She’s Chinese. She grew up eating fish heads and what not.” They certainly eat a much much great variety of things than we do!

  4. Andrew Strauss Says:

    Jerome…..no problem…..keep the comments coming and I’ll keep the opinions coming

    Grammy…..thanks……love you too

    Sara…..well put….thanks for the addition

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