Shanghai Then and Now

Monday August 24 From the River to Shanghai

We left the Century Voyage with breakfast boxes in hand and headed up the hill to our buses. Most of us waited for the funicular, but Danny from Ensemble decided to walk, and Alyx joined him. My backpack was heavy and it was too hot for me, so I stayed in line. Right after they stepped out of the line, local officials stopped anyone else from doing the same.

At the top, we boarded the bus for the airport in Yichang. Someone pointed out the Three Gorges Dam just as we were driving away. After hearing so much about it on the ship, I wished we had known where to look before getting on the bus.

At the Yichang airport, we came through security and saw the group assigned to the earlier Shanghai flight only just boarding because their flight had been delayed. Our flight brought us to Shanghai, where the guides met us, had us check that our bags had arrived and took the luggage to the hotel.

We learned that our planned visit to the garden that afternoon had been canceled. It had been damaged by a recent typhoon, and Monday was their maintenance day. The team had hoped it would open for us, but that was no longer possible. We could join another group going the next afternoon if we still wanted to see it.

Our buses took us to lunch at the Nanxiang Steamed Bun restaurant, where the people who had flown ahead of us were just finishing. The dumplings were amazing - fresh and full of flavor.

We had chosen the Lunch with Old Shanghai excursion, so we had time afterward to wander through the area. I remembered visiting this part of Shanghai in 1982 - it was where the Friendship Store had been, one of the places foreigners could shop with the currency issued for them. Much of the area has now been rebuilt to look old, but to me it looked new.

Then the bus took us to the Grand Hyatt Shanghai, which is on the modern side of the river. In 1982, I had stayed at the Peace Hotel on the Bund. Across the water from it at that time, the land was industrial and there was little to see. Now that side of the river has the skyline everyone photographs. I was about to spend two nights in the middle of it.

Dinner was at the Conrad Shanghai. We were on the last bus to leave, and our driver apparently got lost, so it took us more than an hour (the other buses were there in about fifteen minutes). We had thought there might be a view at dinner, but our table was in a glass area after dark. I think I only ate some fruit. When we saw that some tables were empty, we found a bus returning to the hotel.

Back in our room, our chapter-three postcard and two small gift boxes were waiting. Each box held a jade bracelet. They were very pretty - and, after all the trouble fitting gifts into our luggage, wonderfully easy to pack! LOL!

Tuesday August 25 Our Last Day with Beyond

We had a slower morning, which was a welcome change. Alyx and I slept late and started a little packing. For the afternoon, our excursion choices included the Yu Garden and Old Town, shopping on Nanjing Road, or the AP Plaza Yinyang Market. We could have gone to the Yu Garden, but I was afraid it would also have been so updated it wouldn't look like the place I remembered.

At lunch, our friend Brigitte gave Alyx a lesson in bargaining for the market. She said to start at about ten percent of the first price they tell you, then move up slowly and be willing to walk away, she said. We had a couple of hours at the market - Alyx was looking for a particular Louis Vuitton bag and Pokemon cards for Nick. I wanted a small rolling carry-on so I would not have to keep carrying my heavy laptop backpack.

Even though we had been told not to buy from the first stall we saw, that is exactly what we did. The woman there was very nice and had a bag Alyx liked for $50, so we bought it. I told her that at that price she could use it as an everyday bag and save a second one for special occasions if she found it.

The market had clothes, jewelry, toys, electronics, tea and souvenirs, along with suits that could be made in an hour and dresses made to order in two hours. There was so much to look at!

At another stall, a woman asked Alyx if she liked Louis Vuitton. Alyx said maybe. The woman left her stall and led us down a hall and around a corner, where she signaled to a man. He moved a black curtain, opened a glass door and invited us inside. Sketchy, right? Then we looked up and saw six other people from our group already in there bargaining over bags and suitcases! LOL!

After some negotiating, Alyx found the bag she had been looking for, with a little wallet, for $65. I bought a pink hard-case rolling suitcase for $100. I had not heard of Rimowa before, but the others said the brand was expensive. By the time everyone returned to the bus, the driver had to open the luggage compartment for all the new suitcases. Very few people had not purchased luggage.

We had a little time to get ready before the Beyond gala at the Grand Halls. We couldn't been able to find the venue on a map, and later were told it was generally used for official events rather than open to the public. We walked through the large dining room and out onto a terrace with an incredible view of Shanghai's new skyline. There were photographs, drinks and appetizers before we went in for dinner.

Michael Johnson, Ensemble's president, spoke briefly, and dinner was served. We had assigned seats again - earlier in the week, we had been excited to learn that we and our friends were all at table two. Of course, there were only five very long tables, with about thirty people at each, so being at the same table did not mean sitting together!

At one point, Kristina Boyce (Ensemble SVP) stood and said that, since we were a family, we should take time to celebrate each other. She wished a couple a happy anniversary and told everyone that my birthday was the next day. That was such a sweet surprise.

After dinner, we headed toward a rooftop lounge on the Bund for one last gathering. On the way, we passed the Peace Hotel, where I had stayed when I arrived in China in June 1982. I stopped for a quick look and a photograph. Here is a comparison:

Earlier that evening, Steve from Century Cruises had shown me a photograph taken from the Bund in 1990. The far bank still looked much as it had when I was here: mostly industrial. Looking across at the skyline now, it was hard to believe it was the same place.

At the rooftop lounge, our group had an area near the view, and we took a few more photographs. It was loud and smoky, so we went around saying our good-byes. Some friends were flying home in the morning; others were continuing to Xi'an or Southeast Asia. A few were heading to Shanghai Disneyland, where we hoped to see them.

We said good-bye to as many people as we could, then took the bus back to the hotel. Tomorrow was my birthday, and Alyx and I were going to Shanghai Disneyland!