Hi Everybody,
Only 2 weeks left in Shanghai, so I have been trying to do everything in the city before I leave. What I have found with Shanghai is that many of the main tourist sites are very so-so. If you google top things to do in Shanghai I am sure things that will pop up will include going to the Bund, Jing’an Temple and Yu Garden. I would strongly disagree that these sites are the best things to do in Shanghai, all are crowded, boring and overhyped. That is why I will be making my own list of top 3 things to do in Shanghai (no specific order).
- M50- M50 is an art district in Shanghai. It has enough exhibits for a full day. Best of all it is free and not crowded. You can appreciate the art with no one else in the exhibit while talking to the artist who is eager to share the reasons behind his work. On top of that the day I went was an artisan craft show so people were selling small art pieces and there was a band there playing music. Great way to spend a rainy day.
- Taco Laoban on West Nanjing Road – West Nanjing Road is an upscale area not far from the Bund, filled with really good restaurants. One of my favorites is a small taco place tucked away above a Vietnamese restaurant. It serves really quality tacos with a ton of different ingredients you can add. The atmosphere is what really sells it for me. You really feel like you have left China and arrived in a small taco place in California. On top of all of that 3 tacos are 48RMB ($7).
- Bike Ride in Shanghai – One of my favorite memories in Shanghai came as a sort of an accident. After class one day my friend and I decided to just bike around Shanghai. You can use your iPhone to scan a ride sharing bike like Ofo or Mobike which are located everywhere (literally everywhere). The best place to bike around is by the Bund, there are great paths and you can even take a boat across the river on your bikes for only 2RMB ($.30). The path is fantastic as you can get views of old shanghai and new shanghai all at once.
Shanghai is a great city to explore and try new things. In such a global city you can find almost anything if you know where to look. With only a few weeks left in my program, I will try to explore all of Shanghai before my time runs up.
I’ll be sure to blog again next week.
Michael