Adieu to Shanghai and China

Home Sweet Home . . . it is so great to sleep in my own bed after 8 weeks. When I came home from Europe, I only slept in my bed for 4 hours before I took off for China, so I am totally loving my bed right now. It is good to be home, to return to some level of normalcy and routine, and not have to worry about living out of a suitcase. I did love traveling this summer - new experiences and meeting new people :-) It has been a total blast, despite the non-stop hustle and bustle! Until next summer?!

Well to finish up my Silk Road study tour, we took a trip to Hangzhou, which is about 2.5 hours south of Shanghai. Hangzhou is also a major city on the maritime Silk Road. The purpose of visiting Hangzhou was to learn how silk and tea are made. Silk and tea were major exports on the Silk Road, silk to a lesser extent and tea to a greater extent. It was really interesting to learn that Hangzhou was the most expensive city in China, largely because of its huge tea industry. The standard of living is higher, which is highly evident when you see where and how people live in the city. Are there still people that are living below the poverty level? Yes, but they are fewer and far between compared to the other major cities in China. Just as silk and tea brought great wealth to China along the Silk Road centuries ago, it continues to bring the same success, if not more, to China today. Hangzhou is a beautiful city with picturesque views of the mountains and water. It is considered to have the best feng shui in all of China, which is why many people believe Hangzhou has been so prosperous throughout China's history.

The Beauty of Hangzhou













The machine used to turn the cocoon into silk thread.



A woman breaking down the cocoon to prep for the silk process.



A Tea Farm in Hangzhou



The Beauty of Lingying Temple in Hangzhou











Stalking the Monks



I have been to Shanghai three times, including this trip, and it never ceases to amaze me! I love Shanghai! Now, the previous times I have been in Shanghai, I have never seen the Bund at night. The lights are spectacular, but it is a bit tricky to see because of the pollution and the temperature. China doesn't have a strong enough power grid to support the nation's electrical supply, especially during the summer, so the government is extremely conservative about the use of electricity during the summer. So the government has a specific rule for the Bund lights during the summer. If the temperature is above 38 degrees celsius (roughly the high 90s), the Bund lights are not turned on. The temperature has to be below 38 degrees celsius for the Bund lights to be turned on. The previous times, I wasn't so lucky to catch the lights because it was so hot. I remember going up to the rooftop of the Peace Hotel for drinks and the Bund was pitch black - it was so disappointing. This time the Peace Hotel was closed for renovations, but I got to see the Bund lights - even if it was crowded with masses of people. It was so beautiful! The perfect end to an awesome summer, and the perfect way to say goodbye to Shanghai!

Shanghai Nights on the Bund









Thank you all for reading my blog and following me along the Silk Road! Hugs and Kisses!

Shanghai Days & Nights

Hi, everyone! I had quite an interesting day today. We were supposed to take a tour of Hangzhou this morning, but didn’t bring our passports to the tour center, so they wouldn’t let us go. We bought tickets for tomorrow and will bring our passports, so the Chinese police don’t arrest us. Hangzhou is considered the “Venice of the East” and plays an integral part of the maritime Silk Road, like the port city of Shanghai. I am hoping that when we stop by the silk factory in Hangzhou, I can buy some cocoons and raw silk to explain the silk-making process to the kids.

After our little mishap in the morning, we headed over to the Shanghai Museum. It is one of my favorite museums in all of China. My favorite exhibits are the Ancient Buddhist Sculptures, Chinese Calligraphy and Chinese Paintings – so beautiful. In addition to their already plentiful artifacts from the Silk Road, the museum also had a special exhibit on coins found along the Silk Road in central Asia. It was interesting to see Greek and Hellenistic influences along the Silk Road amongst the coinage used for trade.

A view of the Shanghai Grand Theatre (the weird looking building on the left) with Shanghai skyscrapers in the background from the Shanghai Museum.



The Shanghai Museum was built in the shape of an ancient Chinese pot.



A beautiful wood-carved sculpture of a Buddha from the Shanghai Museum



From the Shanghai Museum we headed over to Yu Gardens and the Old City. It was a great glimpse of the Old Shanghai from a bygone era. Yu Gardens has basically kept the old style architecture and converted the buildings into a glorified shopping center. It is quite the tourist location and a draw with all its shops and food stalls.


Old City



A pond in Yu Garden



Old City Architecture at Yu Garden



Mom at Yu Garden




I did a little research today on the “Shanghailanders.” My NEH readers know what I am talking about. I visited the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum today. The part of the museum is housed in a former synagogue known as the Ohel Moshe Synagogue. The synagogue is no longer active, but was restored to its original form in 1928. We arrived after closing time and they were generous enough to give as a private tour in English (yeah!) of the museum. The museum was restored last year by the Chinese government and cost over a million dollars to renovate. The renovations were beautiful and the exhibit was really quite enlightening and interesting. I found that the Chinese Ambassador to Austria, Dr. Fengshan Ho, along with Sugihara, gave out visas to Jews in Austria. He was responsible for saving over 30,000 Jews from dieing in Dachau. He was also recognized by the Israeli government in 2007, and was honored and memorialized at Yad Vashem. Dr. Ho was considered “the Chinese Oskar Schindler.” I also learned that when the Jews arrived in Shanghai, they were placed in a ghetto in the Hongkou District. If they wanted to leave the ghetto, they had to obtain permission from the Japanese governor because Shanghai was under Japanese control at the time. The German Nazis tried to encourage the Japanese to carry out the “Final Solution” in Shanghai as well, but, thankfully, it never came to fruition. The museum also has some beautiful sculptures from Canadian artists to promote peace and to honor the Jews in the Holocaust – so beautifully done. If you have any other questions on the Shanghailanders, let me know.


Dr. Fengshan Ho - the "Chinese Oskar Schindler"



The Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum in the former Ohel Moshe Synagogue



Then we ended the day at Xin Tian Di, one of Shanghai's trendiest and hottest night spots. I love Xin Tian Di! It is one of my must sees when I visit Shanghai. It has great, but expensive by Chinese standards, restaurants, clubs and live music after dark. If I was with my friends, I would totally be there right now as opposed to blogging, but my mom is totally not feeling the night scene at Xin Tian Di. She likes the atmosphere, but isn't into the partying, so sad for me :-( There is always a next time!

Sites in Xian Tian Di







I updated the post below with pictures. I finally got the pictures to upload on photobucket.

The Home Stretch . . .

Shanghai High! Yeah! We arrived in Shanghai today! While I love Xian, Shanghai is my absolute favorite city in China! I love Shanghai! It actually reminds me of NYC in some ways – so cosmopolitan and hustle and bustle, yet it is uniquely Shanghai! We arrived in Shanghai this afternoon, and decided to head to Nanjing Road. Nanjing Road is the most famous street to shop at in Shanghai. There are some many stores and people from all walks of life walking up and down the street. We stopped at some food markets and the Beijing 2008 Olympics store. I picked up some Olympic key chains and cell phone charms because I am completely obsessed with the Olympic mascots. They are so cute! Of course, we stopped at the Bund to see the view beyond the Huang Pu River - the beautiful Pearl Oriental TV Tower!

Nanjing Road





Huan Huan and I at Nanjing Road



The Bund - the Pearl Oriental TV Tower is the building with the pink spheres as part of the body.







The famous Peace Hotel, which is currently closed for renovations. Bummer! It is one of my favorite night spots to watch the night lights on the Bund.



The Customs House shows the original architecture of the French Concession in 1920s Shanghai. The same can be said of the Peace Hotel as well.



The view from our hotel room at night!



The last few days in Xian were kind of a whirlwind! We made a trip to Huashan Mountain. The view was supposed to be amazing, but it was kind of disappointing because it was a hazy day, so you really couldn’t see much. It was a nice view in some ways, but having been to Tianshan Mountain, it was really lacking. At the peak of Huashan Mountain were thousands of padlocks that were engraved with family blessings. The theory behind the padlock was that your family would always be safe, happy and together. So I, being the sucker that I am for this kind of stuff, bought a padlock for about $1.50 and had it engraved with my family members’ names, and locked it on one of the chains on top of the mountain. I took a picture of its location, and kept the key. If I go back one day, I hope I can find it again!

Me at the North Peak on Huashan Mountain



My lock on Huashan Mountain. Will I be able to find it in a few years?



The last day in Xian, I had to squeeze in a visit to the site marked as the beginning of the Silk Road. A gate and a caravan monument mark the beginning of the Silk Road in Xian. Xian was integral to the Silk Road given its position as the capital city and also its relative location to the Yellow River.

The gate marks the beginning of the Silk Road in Xian.



A caravan monument built to commemorate the beginning of the Silk Road in Xian.



We also visited the Bell Tower, the Drum Tower, the Shaanxi Provincial Museum and the Wild Goose Pagoda. By my favorite place in the old city is the Muslim Quarter. I love the Muslim Quarter because it has so many cool things to see – the street markets, food stalls, the people and the Great Mosque! The Great Mosque, in Xian, is the largest mosque in China, and is still in use today. There is a large population of Uygars in Xian, though not as large as the cities in western China, like Urumqi and Turpan. We did quite a bit of shopping, but as luck would have it, I couldn’t find a prayer wheel anywhere. I did quite a bit of people watching and saw some interesting happenings in the Muslim Quarter. I passed by a few mosques and wanted to take pictures, but I couldn’t go in and it was during prayer services, so I didn’t want to intrude with my picture – taking.

The Bell Tower in the center of Xian, Old City



The Muslim Quarter









Countdown to home – 3 days!

At the Beginning in Xian . . .

Okay, so I am not as much of a pro at taking the train as I thought I was. We missed the train because I didn’t check the time on the ticket like I should have. We ended up taking a later train, and thank the lord there was space, otherwise I would have had to pay for another night at the hotel. Thankfully, we made it to Xian in one piece!

It is so great to be back in Xian and in a big city, not by New York standards, but by China standards. Xian has always held a special place in my heart, since my first visit back in 2004. I find the Old City so enchanting with so much to see and experience. I just love walking the streets and markets, and finding interesting things to buy and just see. It represents Chinese culture at its best!

Just a little history on Xian . . . it used to be the capital of China before Beijing, but the city was known as Chang’an. It was the starting point of the great trade caravans of the Silk Road. Xian was at its most glorious under the Tang Dynasty when it opened its doors to the widely cultural and economic influences of Byzantium, Persia, Arabia, the Kingdoms of Central Asia, Tibet, Burma, India, Korea and Japan. The Silk Road was at its golden Age under the Tang Dynasty. The Silk Road brought Islam, Buddhism and Christianity to the Shaanxi province, where it has flourished throughout the centuries. Xian is a melting pot of Silk Road culture.

Our first stop was Huaqing Hot Springs, which is located in the foothills of Lishan Mountain. Huaqing Hot Springs served as the luxurious bathhouses for the imperial dynasties. Its most famous inhabitants were Yang Guifei and Chiang Kai-shek. Yang Guifei was the concubine of Emperor Xuanzong, and considered one of the most beautiful women in all of China. Huaqing Hot Springs was a gift to her from the emperor. Ah, what men will do for a pretty face. Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of the Nationalist Army, used Huaqing Hot Springs as his headquarters. It was the site of the “Xian Incident.” In 1936, one of Chiang Kai-shek’s own men collaborated with the Communists to kidnap him. Chiang was later freed when Stalin put pressure on the Communists to free him, and was exiled to Taiwan after his release.

Huaqing Springs





The Statue is Yang Guifei, the most beautiful woman in all of China.




Xian’s most famous calling card is the Qin Terracotta Army. This was the third time I have visited what the Chinese call the “Eighth Wonder of the World,” and I am still in awe of these statues. All of them were handmade and there are thousands of them, most have still not been exhumed because it is better to have them buried for preservation. Emperor Shihuangdi had them built for his burial mound, so that he would have an army to protect him in the after life. It sounds weird, I know, but it is true. He started planning his burial mound before he was even close to death because he knew his plans would take years to complete. Incidentally, my family and I are descendants of the Qin Dynasty, so I keep telling people that I am technically a princess, and they laugh, but it is true. My mother says it explains why I am so mean to the kids in class because Shihuangdi was a really cruel emperor and ruled the people quite harshly.

Qin Terracotta Army Museum

Chefs making noodles for lunch - yummy!





The Eighth Wonder of the World









What makes these people so special that they get to go into the pit and I don't?




Today, we visited the Forest of Steles Museum. It is one of my favorite museums in Xian. It basically consists of over one thousand inscribed stone tablets. Most tablets are basically famous Chinese writings, such as Confucius’ Analects, but some are beautiful works of art. I can’t believe the artistic ability these people possessed to carve Chinese calligraphy and works of art into stone – so beautiful. I even learned from one of the stone tablets that Christianity came to China a thousand years before the official date recorded. The tablets have also recorded the happenings of the Silk Road, and the museum itself also houses many Silk Road relics.

Forest of Steles Museum

A header from one of the stone tablets.



A man making a scroll from of the stone tablets.



A garden of carved stone figures.



There is so much more to show you of Xian, so check back soon!