Shanghai: "Pearl of the Orient" and "Paris of the East" (Part 1)

Oriental Pearl Tower Shanghai

After 26 years of my life, finally I have a chance to travel abroad. My first destination is Shanghai, China. Many of my friends was questioning my choice. The only reason was because I have a friend there, his name is Emil Dela Cruz. We have been becoming friend for 3 years since April 2011. I ever made a promise to visit him in Manila (he is Filipino) and for some reasons I couldn’t make it. Then he asked me again to visit him in Shanghai (he work there) then I prepared everything for my first travel abroad. Thanks to Emil who couraging me to travel so far. 

On May 22nd, at 11.30 am (GMT+7), with AirAsia QZ200 Airbus A320, I flew to Kuala Lumpur in 2 hours. After 5 hours transit in KLIA 2, AirAsia D7330 Airbus A330-300 brought me to Pudong International Airport in Shanghai.

Shanghai is the largest Chinese city by population and the largest city proper by population in the world. It is one of the four direct-controlled municipalities, with a population of more than 24 million as of 2013. It is a global financial center, and a transport hub with the world's busiest container port. Located in the Yangtze River Delta in East China, Shanghai sits at the mouth of the Yangtze in the middle portion of the Chinese coast. The municipality borders the provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang to the north, south and west, and is bounded to the east by the East China Sea.

Shanghai is a popular tourist destination renowned for its historical landmarks such as The Bund, City God Temple and Yu Garden as well as the extensive Lujiazui skyline and major museums including the Shanghai Museum and the China Art Museum. It has been described as the "showpiece" of the booming economy of mainland China.

Here are some of landmarks and attractions that I visited in Shanghai. I hope this information will help you if you plan to visit Shanghai.

YUYUAN AREA

Yuyuan Garden

Overview

Yu Garden is the finest example of traditional Chinese Garden in Shanghai. The Garden is situated in the old city and spread over 5 acres. It’s a heaven of peace and tranquility, featuring rockeries, ponds pavilions, tower and lotus pool.

Interesting Facts

The garden was established more than 400 years ago by Pan Yunduan who spent 20 years building the garden to please his ageing father, a high ranking official in the Ming Dynasty.

Contact

Luwa Road, Pudong, Shanghai, China.

Yuyuan Garden Metro Station exit 1 (Line 10).

Visitor Info

Opening times: 8.30 am – 5.30 pm

Price

1st April – 30th June; 1st Sep – 30th Nov: 40 RMB

1st July – 31 Aug; 1 Dec – 31st March: 30 RMB

Old Shanghai

Overview

The Shanghai Old Town is known as Yuyuan. It used to be sorrounded by a defensive wall and remains of its circular shape still can be seen. Notable features include the City God Temple which located in the old city and is connected to the Yuyuan Garden. Today, most of the walls have been replaced by broad circular avenues – the Renmin Lu to the North and Zhonghua Lu to the South.

Interesting Facts

The city wall (parts of which remain to this day) was built in 1554 in order to protectthe town from raids by Japanese pirates. At the time it measured 10m high and 5km in circumference.

Contact

Luwa Road, Pudong, Shanghai, China.

Yuyuan Garden Metro Station exit 1 (Line 10).

Yuyuan Market

 Overview

Yuyuan Market, also called Yuyuan Bazaar has been re-established, taking visitors back 100 years. The Old Street has re-created the lost trades, such as the coins banks, mahogany furniture shops, pawnshops, old style teahouses, old wine shops, and embroidery shops to name a few. There’s also such as steamed ravioli, vegetarians buns, wine and meat dumplings and radish-shred cakes.

Interesting Facts

100 years ago, the earliest native banks, gold stores, silverware shops, pubs, teahoueses, theatres and almost all the traditional industries opened on Shanghai Old Street.

Contact

218 Anren Street, Huangpu, Shanghai

Yuyuan Garden Metro Station exit 1 (Line 10).

LUJIAZUI AREA

Oriental Pearl Tower

Overview

The Oriental Pearl Tower is perhaps Shanghai’s most distintintive building, rising 468 metres (top floor is 350 metres) above the Huangpu River. The tower is widely known to be a television antenna, but only the top 118 metres are used for broadcasting. The rest of the tower consists of observation deck, a restaurant and a hotel. The observation deck provide fantastic views over Shanghai.

Interesting Facts

·         It was completed in 1994 becoming China’s tallest building, until 2007 when the title was taken by its close neighbour, the Shanghai World Financial Centre.

·         The design of building is based on a Tan dynasty poem about the haunting sound made by a lute.

Contact

Phone (021) 5879-1888

2 Lujiazui Ring Road, Pudong, Shanghai.

Lujiazui Metro Station exit 1 & 2 (Line 2)

Visitor Info

Opening times: 8am – 9.30pm every day

Price : From 135 RMB

Jin Mao Tower

Overview

The 88-stories Jin Mao Tower was completed in 1999. It is 420.5 meters (almost 1380 feet) tall and covers an area of 2.3 hectares (5.68 acres). The building includes modern offices, a deluxe 5-star hotel – the Grand Hyatt Shanghai, exhibition halls, banquet halls, an oberservation deck and entertainment facilities.

Interesting Facts

·         The building’s proportion revolve around the number 8, associated with prosperity in Chinese culture.

·         The tower is designed to withstand an earthquake of 6 on the Richter scale and the strongest level of typhoon.

·         Two direct elevators run at the speed of 9.1 m per second – from the groundto the top just takes 45 seconds.

Contact

Phone (021) 5047-5101

88 Century Avenue, Pudong, Shanghai

Lujiazui Metro Station exit 5 (Line 2)

Visitor Info

Opening times: 8am – 9.30pm every day

Price : adult/student/child : RMB 120/90/60

Free entry to the 88th floor observation deck with your BBT (Big Bus Tour) ticket

Shanghai World Financial Centre (SWFC)

Overview

The Financial Centre includes a shopping centre (IFC Mall), restaurants, a hotel (Park Hyatt Hotel) and offices. On the 100th floor, view across city from one of the world’s highest observation deck can be enjoyed (in 2009, SFWC observatory was awarded by Guinnes Book of Record as the highest observation deck). For those with a head for geights, the observation deck’s glass floor gives a unique perspective as you gaze 1,555ft (474m) down to streets below.

Interesting Facts

• ·     It was intended to be tallest building in the world when designed in 1997 (492m), but by the time construction started in 2003, the 508m Taipei 101 in Taiwan had already surpassed it. Plans were revisited but the tower couldn’t be build any higher as the foundations had already been laid.
• ·    To protect building from fierce winds, the building holds two tuned mass dampers below its observation floors, which move to counteract the building’s sway during windstorms and earthquake (8 on the Richter scale).
• ·     The building is informally referred to as The Bottle Opener.

Contact

Phone (021) 3867-2008

100 Century Avenue, Pudong, Shanghai

DongChang Rd Metro Station exit 4 or Lujiazui Metro Station exit 6

Visitor Info

Opening times: 8am – 11pm

Price:

·         floors 100, 97 & 94: 180 RMB, senior/student: 120 RMB, child: 90 RMB

·         floor 94: 120, senior/student: 80 RMB, Child: 60 RMB

·         Exclusive tour: 300 RMB

Shanghai Ocean Aquarium

Overview

The Shanghai Ocean Aquarium is the largest and most varied in China and home to some 10,000 varieties of sea creatures, with a collection of more than 450 species of aquatic animals from 5 continents and 4 oceans.

Interesting Facts

It has the world’s longest underwater viewing tunnel at 155m.

Contact

Phone (021) 5877-9988

188 Lujiazui Ring Rd, Pudong Shanghai, China

Lujiazui Metro Station exit 1

Visitor Info

Opening times: 9am-6pm every day (extended to 9 pm during holidays)

Price: above 1.4m: 160RMB, between 1m & 4m: 110 RMB, senior: 90RMB