11 Things I Love In Shanghai

11 Things I Love In Shanghai

*disclaimer*
If you, dear reader, keep reading you will find a list of things in Shanghai that I -personally and subjectively- love. I’m not saying that Shanghai is the best city ever and some of the things aren’t even from Shanghai originally or exclusive to Shanghai. The downsides of living in Shanghai would make for another long article, but for now I would like to introduce 11 things I love in Shanghai:

The Bund

The Bund, Shanghai’s water front area along the Huangpu River, is not exactly an insider tip, but it is arguably the symbol of Shanghai and the first place you should visit. Nothing makes me feel like I’m in Shanghai than walking along the river on the west side and looking at the Pudong skyline. The Bund is an interesting mix of architecture, having been part of the UK concession and housing lots of famous historical buildings. Interestingly during a visit to Liverpool I found out that part of the Bund is supposedly modelled on the Liverpool waterfront. Especially on clear nights the view of the skyscrapers on the opposite Pudong side is breath-taking. It’s also one the very few places in Shanghai where people might ask you to take a picture with them if you look “foreign”.

Public transport

Shanghai has been named the most expensive Chinese city for expats (whatever that means) but public transport is truly value for money. 13 metro lines and counting and who knows how many hundreds of bus lines can get you pretty much anywhere. Although the underground stops running much too early, night buses operate all night and are often a safer bet than trying to catch a taxi on busy nights. The metro lines run every two to six minutes and buses every 10 to 30 minutes depending on the time of day. Paying is super easy with the metro transport card than can be charged at any station and works for buses and taxis as well. A bus ride usually costs 20p and the subway between 20p and 50p. Although buses can be crowded and slow depending on the traffic, they are pretty reliable and have become my favourite mode of transport in Shanghai. If you use the baidu maps app (Chinese google) to find the right bus and know where to get on and off, exploring the city is a fun and cheap adventure.

Top Pot Bakery

Shanghai is full of bakeries. I have never seen such a bakery density in any other city. Sadly, most of those bakeries are chain stores which basically heat up frozen, pre-baked products and then wrap them in plastic. All the bread is very white, soft, fluffy and mostly sweet. As a German I can’t, in all conscience, call the stuff they sell bread. But there is one Taiwanese bakery chain that made me rethink my definition of good bread. On the basement level of Reel Mall next to Jingan Temple Station there is a Top Pot Bakery shop that sells bread like I’ve never seen it before. The loafs are soft and similarly shaped but they have dozens of different flavours and ingredients. There are savoury types with ham, cheese, garlic, walnut or my favourite, sea weed and cream cheese, but most of them are sweet with flavours like chocolate, coffee, dried fruits, red wine, tea, pineapple, nuts etc. My favourites are anything with cream cheese, and a very Chinese combination of green tea and red beans. The best part, however, is the fact that you can get as many free samples as you want before choosing which slightly expensive loaf to buy. Then you proceed to drooling over the rest of the things the Reel food court has to offer.

Tianzifang 田子坊

I admit that I’m a souvenir junkie and the nicest place to go souvenir shopping in Shanghai is an area called Tianzifang. Located in the former French Concession (Dapuqiao Station, exit 1), Tianzifang is a labyrinth of narrow alleys packed with small shops, cafes, restaurants and galleries. For a relaxed shopping experience the best time to go is around 10 or 11am on a weekday to avoid the tourist crowds. You will find nice and quirky crafts, scarves, jewellery, fans, tea, shoes etc. You can eat at a toilet themed restaurant or buy neon coloured drinks sold in blood bags. And if you’re looking for rocks that look like bacon, Tianzifang is your place. It is a fairly touristy place now but since it escaped demolition and redevelopment in 2006 it has a more authentic and less polished feel than e.g. Xintiandi and you’ll be able to lose yourself in those little alleyways and shops, literally.

Dumplings

Sometimes I get sick of eating rice every day and sometimes I just don’t want any fried food anymore, but never in ten months have I ever gotten sick of eating dumplings. There are so many different kinds: boiled, fried, steamed, filled with meat, seafood or vegetables. My favourite are xiao long bao (小笼包), a Shanghai specialty although you can find them in many parts of China. They are Chinese buns, traditionally filled with pork and steamed in a bamboo basket. The best xiao long bao in Shanghai are from a small, simple restaurant at the north end of People’s Square (exit 8). I forgot the name but if you walk north on Huanghe Road and cross Fengyang Road it’s on the right side. It’s impossible to miss around lunch and dinner time because there will be a queue outside the restaurant. Depending on how busy they are, there might only be one type of filling (usually pork and crab) available but just get those because they are the best. A basket with twelve dumplings costs £2-£3. If you’re feeling adventurous, try the blood tofu soup and don’t forget to order some delicious ginger vinegar for one yuan to dip your xiao long bao into.

Shanghai International Film Festival

The Shanghai International Film Festival showcases current films and classics, blockbusters and indie films from all around the world during two weeks in several cinemas around the city. I only managed to catch one excellent German film screened with English and Chinese subtitles but the Film Festival is just one example for the endless variety of cultural events happening in Shanghai. Joe Hisaishi’s Film Music in Concert, The Figure Skating World Championship, the first Shanghai Comic Con, Swan Lake by the Russian State Ballet, the ERA acrobatics show, a big German musical production on tour, Korean pop singer Taeyang’s sold out Shanghai concert… I’ve done so many things I never thought I’d do, because they’re happening right where I am. Tickets range from pretty cheap to extremely expensive but everything is just a subway and bus ride away.

Malls!

If you want to see ancient palaces and old historical sites, Shanghai is the wrong to place to go. But if you like shopping, Shanghai is your mecca. Shopping centres in London or Manchester will look like dwarves compared to some of Shanghai’s malls, but bigger is not always better. Many malls are made for customers with deep pockets and they house luxury brand stores that I feel uncomfortable just looking at, but many also have affordable international brands like Forver21 or H&M. I’ve only been to a fraction of Shanghai malls and since I live in the north west of the city I’m not that familiar with malls in Pudong. On my side of the city the ultimate temple of consumerism is Global Harbour (环球港, Jinshajiang Station). It’s worth a visit just to marvel at the sheer size and Roman and Baroque style opulence of the place. To do some actual shopping I prefer Cloud Nine mall next to Zhongshan Park Station. The best part about Shanghai’s malls is the food courts and the international supermarkets anyway. Metro City next to Xujiahui Station is one of my favourite places to get food. It’s easy to recognise because it looks like a giant glass ball smashed into a red building and got stuck there. Several floors full of restaurants with Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai and Western food make each visit a difficult choice, but I always get a Japanese style crepe wrap filled with fruit, ice cream and cheese cake before I leave. Adjacent to Xuijiahui Station is another mall called Grand Gateway which has a great (but pricey, as they are) international supermarket, Ole, with a good bakery.

Shanghai Ocean Aquarium 上海海洋水族馆

I didn’t know how much I like fish until I visited Shanghai Ocean Aquarium. And I don’t mean eating fish. The aquarium is located right next to the Oriental Pearl Tower (Lujiazui Station) and houses lots and lots of fish. Pink fish, white fish, silver fish, transparent fish, fish that look like birds, fish that look like worms, fish that look like Napoleon, fish that look like Nemo, fish from deep water, cold water, river water, ocean water, from China, South America, Australia, Africa and probably from the moon. There are also amazing jelly fish, some turtles, penguins, sharks, a Chinese water dragon and giant Japanese Spider Crabs that will haunt your nightmares forever. The underwater viewing tunnel is the longest in the world, I’ve heard. I’m definitely going back to the aquarium again to take another thousand pictures of fish.

Karaoke at Haoledi KTV

After being introduced to the magic of KTV in China, Gary Barlow’s “Just Sing” has become my anthem:
“Sing it louder, sing it clearer, knowing everyone will hear you,
Make some noise, find your voice tonight.
Sing it stronger, sing together, make this moment last forever,
Old and young shouting love tonight.”
I just know that he had a Chinese karaoke room in mind when he wrote this. I’ve been to karaoke in Europe but it’s just not the same. Haoledi in Shanghai is one of many KTV chains but they have decent sound equipment and a good choice of English language songs. The music equipment has all kinds of sound effects that I haven’t figured out yet, but it makes any amateur singer sound good and I’m a huge fan of the turn-the-original-singer-on/off button. With a group of four or five friends, three hours of karaoke are over in no time, but the real KTV aficionados stay up and singing all night.

Airports and high speed railway

Another thing I love about Shanghai is how easily you can leave and go to other places. There are two international airports and several major train stations with high speed or regular trains to pretty much everywhere. Suzhou, the “Venice of China” (they wish…), is a smaller city with lovely Chinese gardens and canals just 40 minutes on the high speed train. Beijing can be reached in about five hours by bullet train. Trains are of course the cheaper and environmentally friendlier option but other Asian countries can be reached by airplane within hours. I always joke that I can be in Japan faster than at my friend’s place in the south of Shanghai.

Hot Pot at Haidilao (海底捞火锅)

Hot Pot is one of the most fun ways to eat with friends and a must for anyone visiting China. Everyone sits around a table with a pot of boiling broth and there are plates with very thinly cut meat, tofu, fish, meat balls, uncooked noodles and vegetables like spinach, mushrooms, sweetcorn or potatoes and much more. People dumb whatever they like in the broth, take it out when it’s cooked and dip it in various sauces. My favourite Hot Pot restaurant chain is Haidilao which has restaurants in cities all around China. Haidilao is particularly famous for their exceptional service. The waiters and waitresses are very attentive and friendly, they give you free fruit and snacks and the noodles come with a kind of kung-fu-dance performance. You get aprons and hairbands to protect yourself from the splashing broth. When you wash your hands in the bathroom, the staff might open the tab for you and hand you soap and towels. I especially love the sauce buffet where you can mix your own sauce from dozens of ingredients. Mine always contains lots of sesame sauce, garlic and some vinegar. Once I saw the most amazing Mask Changing dance performance at a Haidilao restaurant.

By Anna-Maria Linhard, teacher in Shanghai