Enter the Dragon: The Dynamic City of Shanghai

Shanghai!!

City of Oriental mystery.

City with a history of Opium dens, Chinese gangsters, exiled white Russians, sing-song girls and colonials climbing out of rickstraws pulled by pig-tailed Chinamen. That was the old Shanghai, the Shanghai of fifty years ago. The new Shanghai is a roaring dragon - a city with a space age skyline, neon lights and fast consumer lifestyle. Shanghai sets itself apart from the rest of China. The city has its own identity - a buzz and energy that is simply intoxicating. It has one eye on the past but is careening, with one foot on the accelerator towards the future.

Although the original Chinese town (Yu Yuan) is still around, the city is about the same age as Sydney, Melbourne, Singapore or Hong Kong. But it seems to have gone through twenty times the experiences those cities have. From colonial trading outpost to the opium wars, to white Russians fleeing their own revolution to the genesis of China's own in the backstreets of the French concession. And it is now going through another metamorphosis as a curious capitalist/communist hybrid of soaring glittering skyscrapers and communist statues. And beneath it all China goes about its daily business as it has done for 5000 years.

And that business is making money. The old colonial taipans such as the Sassoons and the Mathesons may have gone - the ground taken away from them by the revoloution - but this is still the financial centre of China. Its second window on the West after Hong Kong. Shanghai had alot of catching up to do and it made it up with enthusiastic abandon. At night the entire city twinkles with neon lights, gigantic Chinese characters blink and glow, and the shopping mecca of Nanjing Lu is lit up like Las Vegas.

Shanghai may be the first great city of the 21st century.

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Shanghai is a legendary port on the edge of the most populous country in the world.

The choppy murky Huangpu river cuts through the city and is joined from the west by Suzhou Creek. In the old days the colonial traders built warehouses and offices along the western bank of the Huangpu and it was name Bund (taken from the Hindu word Band which means embankment). Nowadays it is a park and promenade overlooked by the magnificent Edwardian buildings of colonial times. It offers views across the Huangpu to Pu Dong, the eastern side. Here, on what was marshland a few years back, is a new city of glass and chrome topped by the tower and spike of the Pearl TV Tower. This reaches 1500ft into the air and has been dubbed a "Shanghai icon"

Behind "The Bund" is central Shanghai with Suzhou Creek in the north and the old "Chinese city" to the south. In between these are a grid of streets that are a wonderful mass of armies of people and bicycles. The streets running north to south are called "Dhonglu" and those running west to east are called "Lu's". The most famous of these is the best shopping street in China - Nanjing Lu. No visitor to Shanghai can miss out on Nanjing Lu. Even if it is just to see it lit up like a Chinese Piccadilly Circus when night falls. To the south is the original part of Shanghai centred around Yu Yuan gardens. If you have come to China to indulge your watercolour fantasies of winged pagodas, ornamental lakes and rock gardens - then you must come here.

And all around you is Shanghai going about its business. Over 100 billion dollars a year in investments happened in 2005. The city has new attractions, bars, restaurants and gallieries opening all the time. But there are still some age old images of China to observe - seacreatures struggle in buckets outside restaurants, bamboo scaffolding, crowds of rushing Shanghaiese and bicycles stopping in one great mass at traffic junctions.

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Did I tell you I got hit by a car while I was in Shanghai?

No? It was only a little bump on my posterior as I stepped off the cluttered pavement. It didn't hurt, but gives something of an indication of how cramped and busy the streets of this city are.

Traffic junctions are equally as hazardous. If there is a traffic cop and the lights are green you may be OK for crossing the road. If there is no cop then you must force yourself onto the crossings with the crowds and pray no car or bicycle will hit you. For this is the city of the bicycle - 90% of commuters still use them and it is quite a sight to see hundreds of them backed up on the major highways waiting for the lights to change.

There are two lines of metro connecting up the city costing yuan 2-5 for a ride. A high speed rail link now connects the city with Pu Dong airport which is a spectacular multi-million dollar creation 30km from the centre of Shanghai. A taxi ride from the centre to Pu Dong should cost only 200 yuan. I unfortunately got in an unlicensed cab and they charged me 450 yuan. Pu Dong airport, despite its high tech appearance and cutting edge technology, really needs a good prepaid taxi desk.

Shanghai may be going through a renaissance, but it has gone through a "golden age" before.

I refer to the nineteen thirties - the era of "decadent" nightlife, fleets of coolies, opium dens, turf wars, and gangsters called 'Big Eared Lu'. An era when a handful of families, such as the Hardoons and Sassoons, ran the city. And to cater to the high society lifestyle of these "imperialist running dogs" art deco treasures such as the "Peace" and "Cathay" hotels were built - each one the byword for style and luxury. The guidebooks called them "The Claridges of the East".

And so it is with the Metropole Hotel, one of the most famous hotels in Shanghai. Built by Sir Victor Sassoon in 1932 this art deco monolith is redolent of the colonial age. Nowadays it has been renovated and its art deco interior has been restored to its pre-war splendour. Its the last word in art deco - reminding me of Fritz Langs "Metropolis" and this was the place where high society used to gather in the thirties, whiling away their "pink gins" in the ballroom or mirrored bar. Those days have gone although it does give off a faintly colonial air even in the 21st century. And best of all it is affordable to most travellers - a suite at the "Metropole" didn't cost me more then £30 a night.

First of all the location is superb, only two blocks west from 'The Bund' and three blocks south of Nanjing Lu. It is situated on a crossroads where it takes up one corner. 19 Art Deco stories tower over a mass of moving bicycles in the morning and exceptionally helpful conceirges and bellboys help you with you luggage (a tip - get them to get you a taxi to the airport, it will be cheaper). The place oozes class with wood panelling, chandaliers, chrome and a stylish bar. Reception is courteous and efficient though it cannot change up foreign currency apart from American dollars.

The rooms themselves are big and generally have impressive views of the pulsating skyscrapers at night. The furniture is French, white and softwood - there is a TV, AC, wardrobe, trouser press, drinks machine, kettle and complimentary custard tart. The bathroom was marble and pristinely clean - although the bath was designed for petite Chinese bodies not hulking great English ones.

At the Metropole I got the sense of the luxury of the art deco thirties. To me, the place was exquisite and good value. And may get the title of the best hotel I have ever stayed in.

For all its high-tech, Western-looking image Shanghai is Chinese from its head to its toes.

Walking the streets of the old Chinese town is such an evocative experience. Its the smells which hit you first - the hot humid smell of dumpling early in the morning. Young men park their bicycles and collect them in wicker pots to eat later. The commuter traffic of bicycles is quite a sight. They congregate at zebra crossings and ring their bells furiously if anyone gets in their way.When they go into their offices their bicycles are chained together like a herd of animals. And in this country of barely any crime they seem content with simple security. And of course there are the grimy bicycle repairmen waiting by the side of the road. Quick to mend that snapped chain or failed break for a couple of yuan.

But my most Chinese experience had be on my first morning changing up money.

I was directed to 'The Bank of Communication' a few steps from my hotel on Sichuan Zhonglu. Once through the ten inch security doors..Wow! What a bank! The interior was on two levels and connected by a grand sweeping staircase and chandaliers. The entire room was made of pink streaked marble and busy with Chinese clerks starting the day. I found a counter which would change sterling into Chinese yuan. They took my travellers cheques and photocopied my passport and told me to go to counter 14 to collect it.

I looked around in a panic! All the counters had Chinese characters! Where was counter 14!

Eventually someone showed me and I handed over a note, and was told to wait. I waited an hour.

My stomach was grumbling. I needed the money for breakfast. I asked if there was any progress on my money. The young clerk smiled whilst putting work in the 'in-tray' of another.

"One moment."

And on she carried. I looked through the cashier glass and it was obvious that the transaction computer was broke and she was waiting for it to work again. My stomach was now thinking that my throat had been cut and I appealed pathetically to the girl. She, feeling very sorry for this silly gwailo (especially when I mimed hunger) went and got me a coffee and a sandwich (no fillng, just bread). I really was too embarassed to eat this but at the same time rather touched by the friendliness and kindness shown while I was waiting.

So I tried a different tack and knowing no Chinese tried miming again - this time signing a 'chit'. Yes, I could see the brain whirr behind the eyes - this would be a better way of doing this.

"Please wait there."

So I eventually got my money but it had taken two hours, and I swear I could see the clerk hit the computer with an ashtray before I left the vicinity. I loved Shanghai, and it has made me want to see even more of China. But, ye gods - that was hard work.

My advice, if you can't change money at your hotel, is to use a cashpoint machine. The rates are good and you won't have to traverse the long miles of bureaucracy. After all, you are in a capitalist mecca - you will need as much yuan as possible.

"There are people riding or gyrating daily on the race course. Those who prefer gossip to exercise frequent the Bund, a broad quay which extends the whole length of the Settlement, and which is crowded with Chinese porters all the morning and sprinkled with European ladies and gentlemen in the afternoon. The harmony and hospitality of Shanghai make it infinitely the most agreeable place of residence in China."

Mr. Laurrence Oliphant, 1856

I would agree with that. In fact Shanghai has become my favourite place to visit in Asia. I loved my time in Thailand and India, two unique cultures to be sure, but Shanghai was so user-friendly. The weather wasn't crippling, the infrastructure modern, the sights were evocative and the whole city had bags of atmosphere.

Nowhere is this better evidence then at the famous 'Bund'. The riverside promenade which stretches for miles along the western side of the Huangpu. The Bund was the most famous and spectacular street in Asia in the days of Old Shanghai, a symbol of its central role as a financial centre and the headquarters of all the major firms involved in the China trade. The buildings overlooking the river date from colonial days when the taipansruled the roost. They overlook a marble promenade complete with parks and communist statues. Tourist Shanghai comes and goes with boats down the murky Huangpu and magnificent views of the Pearl TV Tower across the water in Pu Dong.

All roads in Shanghai lead to 'The Bund'. The Huangpu river cuts the city in two east and west. The Bund covers the entire western bank. The streets from Renmin (Peoples) Square to the river create a grid, the most famous of these is Nanjing Lu which emerges at the Bund between the 'Palace' and 'Peace' hotels. The nearest subway station is Henan Lu which is 400ft way from 'The Bund' along the busy shopping street of Nanjing Lu. Boats doing trips along the Huangpu tie up at docks on the promenade and the bridge crossing Suzhou Creek enters 'The Bund' from the north.

Before crossing the eight lanes of traffic which separate the colonial buildings from the promenade it is worth taking a look at these buildings themselves. When I first saw them, lit up at night, one word jumped out at me.

Liverpool

I spent my student days in the Manchester/Liverpool area and these huge buildings irresistably brought back memories. Here was huge Victorian bombast in the middle of the most decadent port in the Orient. There were made out of brown granite with a sort of sturdy West European functionality that featured domes, collonnades and statues almost as afterthoughts. One after the other was an art deco treasure housing such esteemed companies as 'The China Merchants Seaship Company", "The Agricultural Bank of China" and the "Shanghai Gold Exchange". Of course they were the headquarters of the great British jewish trading dynasties of Victor Sassoon and Silas Hardoon. Men who controlled trade as far away as Ceylon and Polynesia. The image of the great taipans of the 1920s in their immaculate white suits being ferried around by pig-tailed Chinaman on the way to 'the club' for their gin and tonics is so redolent of Old Shanghai. Of course it couldn't last and when the communists took over the city in1949 these great capitalists were ruined. What saved the 'Bund' from demolition was the fact that many of the buildings were taken over by communist city authorities.

The red flag of the peoples republic still flutters above each of the buildings. But things are becoming full circle again. Buildings that have been ignored during the fifty plus years of communist management are now being rented out to international companies. Restaurants are springing up along the 'Bund' catering for tourists and business travellers alike, and "old companies" like Jardine-Mathieson are asking for their property back.

But for now its a nice place to wander and enjoy the crowds of domestic tourists before heading across the zebra crossings to the promenade. I looked back while I was doing this and the clocktower of the Foreign Trade Building reminded me of Merseysides Liver Building.

The marble promenade on the edge of the Hungpu is pure tourist Shanghai. Its an important Chinese domestic destination and couples lined up along the balaustrade with the great Pearl TV tower as a backdrop. The riverwalk runs for two miles from Suzhou Creek to Shilipu. Its a very pleasant place with parkland, statues, viewpoints, riverboats and excited crowds. The hawkers were the politest I have ever encountered, a firm "no" dissuades them from selling you postcards and watches. In the evening as darkness falls they arrive like an army clutching cheap plastic imitations of the Pearl TV Tower which light up and play tinkling music.

One sight caught my attention - the statue of Communist Marshall Chen Yi. He stands glaring in full Mao uniform looking towards the 'Bund' almost daring those one-time capitalist buildings to jump back to life. Unfortunately, the Marshall has been sleeping, and the "imperialist running dogs" have sneaked in the back way. Shanghai is back to being the port of opportunity it always was...

One of the best things to do in Shanghai is come to the Bund promenade at night and watch the skyline of Pu Dong across the river.

This is the eastern bank of the Huangpu river. Twenty years ago it was just misty marshes but nowadays is a proud example of the new China with colossal skyscrapers and cutting-edge architecture. The king of them all is the Pearl Oriental TV Tower. A number of globes dot its base but its ramrod straight stem soars 1500ft into the air. The final globe is just under its sword-like point and red strobes run down its sides.It is very striking at night as it seems to flash with red movement. A few hundred metres away is the Aurora skyscraper, a skyscraper so huge that half its 1000ft height is taken up by a plasma screen easily visible hundreds of metres across the river from the Bund boardwalk. The plasma screen is alive and moving. It showed film adverts, 'WELCOME TO SHANGHAI' imagery and even wildlife films on its gigantic screen.

While spectacular at night Pu Dong is worth a trip over in the daytime. There are no boats or bridges to take you over from 'The Bund'. Instead there is the Bund Tourist Tunnel without doubt the funniest bit of Chinese kitsch I have ever encountered and a talking point for anyone who has visited Shanghai anywhere in the world. Its just north of the enormous statue of Marshall Chen Yi and surrounded by cafes, shops and restaurants. I've seen tourist tunnels in other cities and these whisk you from A to B quickly and spartanly. Forget that in Shanghai - a hallucigenic drug trip would be the best way to describe it.

For 40 yuan you wait on an underground platform for glass capsules with seats to arrive. Once seated, these globes slowly glide under the Huangpu river in a subway tunnel of strobe lighting, SFX and rather disturbing images on cinema screens. Patterns whirl and spin, lasers light up the darkness and all this accompanied by a trippy LSD inspired commentary with a voice so incredibly deep and husky you feel yourself disorientated. The thought entered my mind that this was probably how they brainwashed people in the Korean War. After five minutes, you emerge on the Pu Dong side of the Huangpu either seriously confused or doubled up with laughter.

On this side of the river is a marble riverwalk with good views of the Bund. You can stand immediately under the tripod legs of the Pearl TV tower which looks like something from "War of the Worlds". You can pay to take the elevator up to the first globe but the view across the river is just as good from the riverwalk. From there, the whole 'Bund' is in front of you - rows upon rows of late Edwardian buildings that once housed the offices of the great European trading empires.

This is also a place where domestic Chinese tourists approach you to practice their English. The "new China" is interested in you. If you have ever wanted to be a tourist attraction yourself then this is a good place to come

What is it with cities and neon lights?

Are they candles drawing people in from the surrounding countryside? Is it a competition to see who can dazzle the greater number of people? Is there something about city living that has to be bigger, brighter and more exciting then anything else?

These were all thoughts that crowded my dazzled brain when I viewed "Nanking Road" at night. The sheer exuberance and nightly light show were my favourite thing to do in Shanghai. And a nightly wander from 'The Bund' to Renmin Square was like traversing an oriental Las Vegas. Each building was covered in 10ft high Chinese characters moving and pulsating in a myriad of colours. Crowds rush too and thro and lasers light up one end of the street to the other. And all this in Communist China? The China of "the great helmsman" and "the little red book". You have to pinch yourself that it is real.

And the Nanking Road is certainly real. Called "Bubbling Well Road" during colonial times this was where the taipanssent their wives to shop in pre-revoloutionary Shanghai. Shop after shop selled silks, satins, silver, jewels, jades, furs, linens and lingerie. At the end of the road was the Shanghai Race Club where they used to import Mongolian ponies to race. But it was the streets off Nanjing Lu which had the fiercest reputation. My street, Sichuan Dhonglu, was known as "Blood Alley" where there was easy pickings to be had from the drunks, sailors, soldiers and debauchees who lurched there in search of the joys of Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and White Russian women. This was all cleaned up by Mao and his "Red Guards. But capitalism has returned to Shanghai in a strange chimera-like hybrid. And nowadays, especially if you are a foreigner, you will be approached at night by ladies offering the "same experience". The entrepeneurial spirit is back with a vengeance in Shanghai.

Nanjing Lu is abit more calm during the daylight hours. It begins along 'The Bund' waterfront between 'The Peace' and 'Cathay' hotels. These are two quite beautiful art deco treasures with windows overlooking the street. Numerous restaurants and bars dot this part of Nanjing Lu but as you move west the pavements become quite narrow and you may be forced off into the traffic or through a gauntlet of flyer-givers who hang out around the electronic shops. . Forming their own little area are the cut-price electronic shops where "China-made" cameras wink back at you for ridiculous prices. There are also a number of tailors vying for custom - most of them specialising in copies. I personally liked Silk King which despite being state-owned is literally covered in boles of silk. According to the pamphlet I borrowed prices start at 1,000 yuan and up.

A few blocks west and Xiaming Lu bisects Nanjing Lu. After that the street becomes pedestrianised and either side buildings begin to soar. Money has been spent on this part and skyscrapers of chrome and glass become apparent. They are matched with marble and steel face-lifts given to early 20th century buildings. This is also the part of the mega-stores ie McDonalds, HMV, Starbucks and a massive mall called Plaza 66 where I observed Prada, Fendi and Louis Vuitton arranged around a vast atrium. This is where the crowds get very heavy and there is even a small toy train trundles up and down watched by pensioners on benches.Westerners are also spied by hawkers who rush up trying to sell watches or bags. Don't be fooled after a while they will try and sell you girls not to mention drugs. A polite "no thank you" usually does the trick. I was told that losing your temper with them means you have lost "face".

After that even more money has been spent in a profusion of shiny buildings leading up to the subway station at Renmin Park. Before that is an open area covered in marble and a huge plasma screen. Here surrealistic statues abound and the crowds continue up to Renmin "Peoples" Park. This was where the Maoist parades used to take place in Shanghai. Nowadays it is surrounded by skyscrapers, modern art and plasma advertisements.

I found a little Mao memorabilia off Nanjing Lu. I passed on the Mao alarm clocks and went for a keyring with the great dictators face on it. I have it with me now to remind me of Shanghai.

Ah, Mem-Mao-ries are made of this...

Despite Shanghais dogged march into the future and its obcession with chrome, glass and making buildings even taller - there is still enough Old China left in Shanghai to excite visitors.

For tucked away is the Yu Yuan gardens which is a touch of classical China. The China of the Ming vases and winged pagodas. The Yu Yuan gardens and bazaar take you to an era of humpbacked bridges, goldfish filled ponds and drooping willows. The China of Marco Polo and Kublai Khan. Old Cathay is still here, although wrapped in tourist silk for Shanghais many visitors. Foreign suits are shown Yu Yuan on their business trips to Shanghai - and in response it is a little like a Chinese Disneyland. But considering it is the only thing like it amongst the modernity of this go-getting city - I think we can forgive Yu Yuan a little gaudiness. It sometimes comes across as a "Chinatown" in the middle of a very Western looking Chinese city.

Yu Yuan has survived nearly five hundred years. It was originally created for the governor of Sichuan province in the 16th Century. It lies in the Old City, which is to the south of the "foreign concessions" and once was the village of Nanshi which has been around for about 2,000 years. The Old City was surrounded by a three mile section of walls which were torn down in the sixties to become the very busy road Renmin Lu. The area within the walls was nearly totally Chinese as well as being squalid and overcrowded and the gardens themselves became neglected and careworn before being rescued in the 18th century.

To reach the gardens head south from Nanjing Lu or the Bund until you hit the curves of Renmin Lu. Just keep going south, until you see the beginning of the bazaar stalls and under the 'dragon arch'. Then you know you are entering Yu Yuan bazaar.

To get to the gardens you have to traverse the bazaar. This area has been completely rebuilt in mock Qing and Ming dynasty styles. Tourists lose themselves in a warren of narrow shoplined lanes stuffed to the hilt with antique crafts and art, foodstuffs and jewellry. Shop after shop sells jade chess sets, ornate fans, silk kimonos, lanterns and ivory screens. I must admit I loved it. In a world of glass skyscrapers the sheer strength of Chinese culture was a tonic for a man like me. The only problem was where was the entrance to the fabled gardens?

You blunder into the entrance at the heart of the bazaar. In front of walls crenallated with dragons was a lake overlooked by a magnificent mohoghany Chinese teahouse. The teahouse, called Huxtingting, stands above fishfilled waters on stilts. It is an impressive sight with curving dragon wings, slatted windows, streaked red paint and has been serving cups of cha for 400 years. To reach it you must cross a zig-zag bridge, made because supposedly 'evil spirits' cannot turn 90 degree corners. I had a look in the teahouse and it does have an 18th century ambience with tea being served in clay cups and gnarled old men smoking in alcoves. Back in 1985 I remember the Queen paying a visit to Shanghai and she came here, it may be twenty years ago, but I can still hear a Shanghaiese playing "English country garden" to her on the pan-pipes.

It costs 30 yuan to enter the gardens. First of all, these are not gardens laid out in a big open space but a set of white walled compounds with one leading into another. Sprinkled amongst the compounds are about thirty pavilions, lakes, pagodas, bridges etc. Everything is laid out like a work of art. The first few compounds had rockeries of white limestone and were made interesting by water trickling down to a set of ponds. Bamboo groves dotted each rockerie as did firs and chrysanthemums, statues of ancient Chinese gods reared up from the flower beds, dragons snaked sinuously around the compound walls and stone snarling lions guarded each exit.

Rock was the overwhelming feature of the gardens, with some pieces so big they incoorporated passages that led you Narnia-like to hidden pavilions where watercolour artists were at work. But the overwhelming feeling was of peace and tranquility, everytime you stepped into another compound you were embraced by a scene showing willow brushed ponds crossed by arced bridges full of koi carp. Or a pagoda soaring into the air from a clump of bamboo..

I was sorry to eventually leave Yu Yuan. It is the China of the watercolour paintings and has made me want to see more of the country. Easily the highlight of my two-night stay in Shanghai.