Decked out in a pair of jeans and a random T, with a sibling in tow, I spent a memorable 10 days in Shanghai, China. As it would be impossible and incessantly boring to reiterate my day-to-day experiences, this would be a condensed version of what I have on Facebook, which I have uploaded hundreds of pictures that I have sieved out from 4 GB of photos taken there.
Shanghai at night is like a darn romantic man who'll do everything to charm you off your socks, I'd have to say. Puxi on the left bank Huangpu River provided a scenic backdrop for typical 1970s love stories, while Pudong on the opposite side contributes to the relevance of a 21st century white-collar affair with its iconic infrastructure and bustling streets. All these suck you into romantic stupor you can't escape until you shut your eyes and wake up the next morning thinking it's all a dream. And you should see the way Shanghainese women sashay down the streets in killer stiletto heels, branded totes and fashionable garb; it's impossible not to stare. Yes, I would return to the lovely Shanghai shores with my love if the opportunity allows, because the best way to show how much you love someone is to share beautiful things with them. :)
Did I mention about my new-found enemy? It's called the UMBRELLA. While the Chinese art of sewing intricate patterns on their umbrellas is highly lauded, the damn metal bits that stab you in the scalp or poke in the eye are NOT. And it doesn't help when the weather's a scorching 37 degrees C; everyone just whipped out their umbrellas! They just need to catch you unguarded and distracted, and no one's ever said "sorry" on their umbrellas' behalf! I don't care if you're a sweet pink or a cutesy Hello Kitty, but you really pissed me off.
Cars, cars, cars. The love doesn't stop in Shanghai. I have my Dad's apartment location to thank for the excellent entourage of beautifully engineered vehicles in the vicinity. To walk on the very roads thousands of Benzes, TTs, Cadilacs, Ferraris, Lambis, Bentleys and Hummers drive on everyday is a dream come true. And this is even more so when you stroll by cars you'll never get to have on the roads of Singapore; sometimes it gives me goosebumps. But along with its big name, Shanghai probably has a greater share of errant drivers and crazy traffic rules as well. The rule of thumb is: never stop walking when you cross at the pedestrian crossing. It's simple. The cars would never stop for the green man, so the other alternative is to walk real fast, even when the car makes a turn just inches from you.
The Shanghai Expo was... well, a disappointment. There is hearsay that "不去世博會失望，去了世博更失望", and I guess you can set that in stone. It's daunting enough to tour the Expo under the summer heat, and those pushing crowds, 6-hour queues for entry to some pavilions, those killer umbrellas (as mentioned above), lack of watering points, poor etiquette of some visitors... Many things could have been done better. Like implementing smoking rooms. Like discouraging spitting. Like advocating "thank you" and "don't mention". Like being vegetarian-friendly. Like sticking to the pledge to make the event a low-carbon one. But the pavilions some countries put up were beyond impressive. Just Google those of India, the UK, Latvia, USA, Korea, Japan and UAE and you'll see why. Little wonder why people are willing to brave the hot sun for the insane queues for these pavilions.
Like I told Jack, Shanghai is a great place for sightseeing and walleting-draining activities, but to stay in Shanghai would be a chore for people like me, who are not used to living the high society life, which includes behaving and dressing the part. I was suffering from inferiority complex when I stepped into a restaurant for dinner in jeans, when everyone else was dressed up to the nines. How can a T-shirt and a pair of jeans survive in the powdered-faced Shanghai, where the sales assistants judge your spending power by the way you dress and serve you only when they feel that you're worthy of their time?
Goodbye, Shanghai. You're that insanely beautiful porcelain crush, I'd love to see you again, but I don't think we're meant to be. Besides, being 10 days away from the one who goes by the handsome name of Jack was pure torture so, no, nothing else can ever replace that.
