First Day

Ben and I spent the day wandering around Shanghai. After a morning stop at Starbucks (you wouldn't believe how many of them there are around the city), we headed to the Bund, the famous strip of land along the river, where most foreign companies were based in the early 1900s.

We strolled up and down for a little bit, checking out some of the old buildings still left, as well as the view of Pudong, the recent business development area across the river. Then we took a trip through the Pudong Sightseeing Tunnel, which is this tram-like thing that crosses under the river to the other side.

Lonely Planet describes the tunnel as Psychedelic, and it was, with this really bizarre light show, strange narration (in English and Chinese) and these freaky inflated dolls that smacked into the car at one point. Got some funky pictures that I'll post to Flickr as soon as I can.

Pudong was pretty impressive, from a futuristic buildings point-of-view, but Ben and I both agreed that it's way too sterile, and we're glad our hotel is on the other side. Unfortunately, the bar on the 88th floor of the Grand Hyatt was closed, so we had a little refreshment break on the 54th floor instead (although, in reality, it probably wouldn't have made that much of a difference, because the weather is really overcast).

We then headed back to the Bund, and after ambling about a bit more, headed back to the hotel, so I could grab my jacket and Ben could change. Now we're about to head out again, for a little more exploration, some dinner, and maybe a brief taste of Shanghai's nightlife.