My friend Haley, who I rowed crew with at Hamilton College, came to Shanghai this week! She is here with her law school - how awesome! She got to tour Beijing and Qingdao first, and now she is living it up in Shanghai. I met up with Haley and three of her classmates on Thursday for a fun night in the city. i brought them to this adorable area called Tianzefang for dinner. Tianzefang is in the heart of the French Concession and is one of my favorite spots to go for dinner. It is made up of small cobblestone alleys lined with restaurants, pubs and small Chinese shops selling scarves and other souvenirs. It has a very European-Chinese feel to it! While Tianzefang certainly attracts many foreigners, it is also a favorite spot for locals.
After we finished dinner at a lovely Thai restaurant, we made our way to the Bund. What is a trip to Shanghai without seeing the pearl Tower lit up at night! We walked along the Bund and saw all the neon lights across the river - the Pearl Tower changing colors and the Bottle Opener Building (aka The World Financial Center) sparkling and reflecting on the water.
Last, I took them on the subway so they could really embrace China. They were hoping to get the authentic subway experience (overly crowded / shoving and pushing / spitting / babies wearing butt-flap pants), but the subway was actually pretty tame and uncrowded. It was quite unimpressive on Thursday. Usually, China subways provide the best people-watching. We took the subway to Lujiazui to see all the modern sky scrapers lit up at night. I took them to the 85th floor of the Jin Mao building (where I celebrated my 25th birthday) to get a perfect view of the Shanghai skyline. They were definitely impressed!
We had a fabulous night, and I very much enjoyed being a tour guide!
I have another good friend (from Branford High School) visiting in two weeks! He works for General Electric and will be coming to Shanghai for work. I love having visitors!
After we finished dinner at a lovely Thai restaurant, we made our way to the Bund. What is a trip to Shanghai without seeing the pearl Tower lit up at night! We walked along the Bund and saw all the neon lights across the river - the Pearl Tower changing colors and the Bottle Opener Building (aka The World Financial Center) sparkling and reflecting on the water.
Last, I took them on the subway so they could really embrace China. They were hoping to get the authentic subway experience (overly crowded / shoving and pushing / spitting / babies wearing butt-flap pants), but the subway was actually pretty tame and uncrowded. It was quite unimpressive on Thursday. Usually, China subways provide the best people-watching. We took the subway to Lujiazui to see all the modern sky scrapers lit up at night. I took them to the 85th floor of the Jin Mao building (where I celebrated my 25th birthday) to get a perfect view of the Shanghai skyline. They were definitely impressed!
We had a fabulous night, and I very much enjoyed being a tour guide!
I have another good friend (from Branford High School) visiting in two weeks! He works for General Electric and will be coming to Shanghai for work. I love having visitors!
