Ron and Amy
Go To China
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Day 12
Shanghai
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| The original impetus to go to China was that my friend Marty, who I knew
from New York City, had been teaching English in Shanghai for two years
and was always inviting me to come for a visit. I got Amy interested in
going and from there, we picked other places we wanted to see. I was intrigued
by the Yangtze and Li Rivers and surrounding landscapes. Amy wanted to go
to Hong Kong. We have caught so much grief because we went all the way to
China didn't visit Beijing or the Great Wall. These destinations were a
lot farther north and we ran ourselves ragged just seeing all we did in
two weeks as it was. |
Jade Buddha Temple
monks
statues
more statues |
| I called Marty from a payphone when we landed in Shanghai. He had to work
till eight but he said his girlfriend would meet us. They live in an area
of Shanghai called Zhongshan Park (not to be confused with Zhongshan Park
in Wuhan where I had been listening to music several hours before). We asked
around until we found which bus we needed and soon we were there. This part
of town was very clean and modern. Marty had given me his girlfriend's cell
number and we met in front of the Starbuck's because that was the only thing
I could pronounce of the visible landmarks. Marty's
girlfriend, Lei, who is Chinese, speaks very good Chinese and English.
This made the next couple days significantly less stressfu than the preceding
daysl. She had already booked us a hotel room, which was only a few blocks
away form their apartment. It was the nicest room we stayed in the whole
trip and very reasonably priced by Shanghai standards. |
Foot Bath Finger Press Cafe Meet Friend
Other Shanghai Scenes |
| She took us to a good restaurant, helped us order and then took us for
a tour of the neighborhood near where Marty worked. There seemed to be even
more neon and colored lights here than in Hong Kong. Even the highway
overpasses were illuminated in brilliant blue. When Marty got off work,
he took us to a Halloween
party that one of his co-workers was throwing. Almost all the guests
were English teachers - the hostess was Irish and wemet a lot of Australians
and Canadians who were also teachers. I hadn't had time to get a costume
together so I was happy to find a few extra masks on the table with all
the drinks. |
Halloween Party with Marty |
The next day, Amy and Lei went on a shopping expedition and Marty had
to work, so I set off on my own. The Jade Buddha Temple
sounded like a good bet. The temple and all its sculpture and decor would
have been reason enough to see this temple, but there were never-ending
rituals as well. The monks would assemble in the
temple and pray. Then they would file out into the courtyard and one would
read long passages. Then some attendants would bring out some paper and
bamboo horses or boats and they would set
them on fire in some sort of a sacrifice. Then the monks would march
around the courtyard, back and forth, led by a small
band of musicians playing strange instruments. I had to hang around
for almost two hours just to see what would happen next.
From there I walked all the way to Renmin
Square Park, where there is quite a lot to see - buildings, parks, that
sort of thing. I came upon this stand that was making noodle burritos. Of
course, they didn't call them that but they had a pile of these big tortilla-looking
things and they would plop some hot noodles in the middle and roll it up.
They looked good so I had one. It was good. In fact, I wouldn't mind having
another one right now. Always wishing, where does it get you?
Amy told me they would be done shopping at six, so at the appointed time
I took the subway back to the hood. Amy can be rather finicky so I was surprised
when she told me bought way too much stuff. Amy is thin and a lot of American
clothing stores don't even make clothes in her size. The Chinese haven't
become addicted to Big
Macs and Whoppers yet so they are still thin and hence they have clothing
for thin people. Amy wishes she could shop there all the time, so between
that and the noodle burritos for me, we'll have to go back - maybe we'll
make a day trip to the Great Wall if there's time.
The four of us went out to dinner later that evening. After that the gals
retired and the boys went to a few bars that Marty used to frequent and
then on to few market streets where I bought some Curb Your Enthusiasm and
Ultraman DVD's. |
Marty with his girlfriend Lei |
| Next Page - More Shanghai |
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