I wonder…after such a break, can I recount the events of day two well enough to write them for you? Let’s see…

Day two of Shanghai
The next morning I was up faster than I expected and physically charged, ready to go explore more of the city. It was early [for me - 8:30'ish] and I wanted to get a good start on seeing the sights of the city. Everyone told me two days was not enough so I settled on knowing if two days was what I got then I’d see four days worth of attractions during those two days.

When you travel to SH I do not recommend doing what I did [walk a lot] unless you are a glutton for punishment, a world-walking athlete, sponsored by Nike, or something of the sort. I left the hotel with the understanding that much of the city was better versed in English than Jiujiang and getting around would not be a problem. Those that told me were right. Enough people there speak enough English that I managed to get around without any worries.

First, I had to eat breakfast, so without a real plan I headed out to see what I could find. I like what I come upon better that way sometimes. Tuesday was no exception – On a street corner I found a man cooking breakfast omelet wraps – well, the Chinese version of this breakfast treat: a fried flour tortilla shaped wrap with fried egg, green onion, and sweet paste inside. It cost 1.5RMB and I had my breakfast freshly cooked and steaming hot in less than 5 minutes.

I wanted my first stop to be Yu Yuan [Yu garden] after breakfast. I looked at a map of the city to find where the garden was in proximity to my hotel room. That only worked so well – of course I got lost, thankfully. I indirectly wandered into the “old city” section of Shanghai [past Yu Yuan] where they were having the morning market.

During the morning market farmers sell produce and livestock from blankets, carts, and some fixed storefronts. Mostly, it looks as though they find a place without someone else’s blanket out and set up display. How much was the produce? I wasn’t fluent enough to ask. Were they local to Shanghai? I can only guess they were since I still cannot ask “Where are you from?” in Chinese and expect I could understand what their response is. What I can say with a certain degree of accuracy – is that during the time I walked the streets and alleys of the “old city” I passed one westerner. After spending my first month in Jiujiang, where there are few westerners, seeing so many the night before was a little jarring. Walking through the market felt much more like the China I was living in in Jiujiang.

I didn’t know I was in “old city” until that evening when I could look over a map and retrace my route. While I was there I kept suspecting I was in the bazaar around Yu Yuan. Nope! Once I toured the area long enough that I was retracing my steps I knew I wasn’t at Yu Yuan because I had not come across the entrance to the garden. I noticed a crossing guard near me and asked – he directed me three blocks closer to my hotel – to the entrance to Yu Yuan.

Once I was there it was clear to me that I had arrived at the tourist stop mentioned in my guide book – China. Eyewitness Travel Guides. The bazaar at Yu Yuan is clearly directed at western money. The shops are highly priced souvenir shops and clothing stores. They have a plethora of western restaurants to choose from – Starbucks, McDonald’s, KFC, and Dairy Queen, to name a few. It is also over crowded to a nearly claustrophobic degree. At the center of the garden is the Huxingting Tea house which is accessible only by crossing the zigzag bridge across the large pond and the line to get in the tea house is the bridge. I did not make my way into the tea house – the crowds were simply too heavy. Since I was more interested in seeing the garden than the stores I made my way across the bridge as quickly as possible, sidestepping the line, to get to the gate of the garden.

Touring Yu Yuan costs 40RMB. You can purchase a ticket at a window next to the gate same as if you were buying a ticket at the box office of a theater in the US. It only took a few minutes to get passed the ticket counter at the gate and once inside [the garden] the crowds were much thinner – though there never was a moment I had a section all to myself. I was able to capture a few secluded photos in the garden when I could choose my angle right and be patient as the scene cleared of people for a moment.

Walking through the garden took a couple of hours and by the time I left I felt content that I had seen everything there – even if it was a brief tour. If you visit the garden I recommend seeing it with a guide that speaks English [if that is your preferred language] and is knowledgeable of the history of the garden. I did not have a guide but was able to follow some other groups with guides from time to time and listen to their explanations of the buildings and sculptures.

I know I walked through the garden like Griswold viewing the Grand Canyon, but I had so many things I wanted to see that I accepted the cliff note view of the city. After the garden I wanted to take a river boat tour on Huangpu River.

On the way from Yu Yuan to the riverfront I walked through a spectacular city park with a small, path woven, bamboo forest. The temperatures outside were getting high and the skies were virtually cloudless – bamboo has a natural ability to cool – so along the path and within the trees the temperatures were considerably lower. It was just after noon and many people were in the park enjoying lunch, friends, and family – and the cool shade of the bamboo.

At the far end of the park I found myself at the southern end of the bund and a short walk from the boat cruises. So I skipped getting lunch and hopped on a tour that began at 2:15pm.

There are two types of tours – short and long, and more than a few different tour companies on the river. I chose the short trip. I wanted to get a skyline view of Pudong unavailable by any other means and the rest of the tour would be a relaxing cruise to view the city and sit down. The ticket cost 50RMB and the tour lasts about an hour. They begin at the Bund and travel upriver to the Yungpu Bridge – one of the world’s longest cable-stay bridges, and then return to the Bund.

On the boat, they serve drinks – non-alcoholic, beer, spirits, and wine – and small snacks – the highest priced concession stand I came across in Shanghai. One bottle of juice was 10RMB, regularly 3RMB.

After the boat ride I took a cab to the center of the city to visit Renmin Square & Park. The park/square is located at the center of the city. It was getting very close to sunset and my energy level was fading a bit. I wanted to head back to the hotel and recharge at dinner before I headed out for the evening so instead of walking through the SH museum in Renmin Park I walked around it and watched the people enjoying themselves along the sidewalks and on the grass lawns.

In the evening I returned to Nanjing Lu to window-shop the malls and stores. I tried their McDonald’s -it tastes just like it does in the US. After a few hours of walking the streets I was tired enough to return to my hotel room. I knew the following morning I would be meeting Huang Xiao Kui again and I wanted to have a good rest before visiting the last stop before leaving SH – Jian’an Temple.

On page four I will conclude the trip and the train ride home. For now, I hope you enjoy the story and I’m sorry ti took this long to post.