On Tuesday, I decided to start my day with a trip to snack street. I found it much quicker than I did on Monday, its literally outside my new apartment! I managed to buy some local bread that has spring onions inside - a bit like Indian naan bread, which cost 2RMB (20p) then I got 3 skewered octopus tentacles for 5RMB and then I found myself a sponge cake with almonds and cherries in the top for @RMB. What an amazing big breakfast for less than £1! Street food is the best!
After my feast, I made my way to people square and visited Shanghai museum. Before I got to the museum, I met two young girls from North China, they were visiting friends in Shanghai and told me that I sounded like the BBC English that they listened to in their classes and that I looked like a film star! This made me laugh and also think that they would then probably try to sell me something, but they just asked for my number and a photograph with them! They were really nice!
Outside Shanghai Museum, there are large white statues of mythical animals. The museum itself is divided into eleven galleries and three exhibition halls. The eleven Galleries cover most of the major categories of Chinese art: Ancient Bronze, Ancient Ceramics, Paintings, Calligraphy, Ancient Sculpture, Ancient Jade, Coins, Ming and Qing Furniture, Seals, and Minority Nationalities. Inside the museum lobby, if you look to the ceiling, there is a large round domed window, letting an abundance of light into the museum, this is designed to give the impression of heaven.
There was a sign at the beginning of the pottery section saying ‘Pottery belongs to everyone, but porcelain is China’s invention’. I love the patriotism here that seems to seep through everything and everyone! Inside the galleries, there were some beautiful Chinese calligraphies and paintings; I so wished that I could have read some of the Mandarin poems that were written on them!
After the museum, I read my book for a while in people’s park – because the weather was surprisingly sunny! Then I made my way to Dongtai Lu Antiques Market. This is a small open street market near Xintiandi, with vintage Mao items and posters, small “antique” wares and fares to some genuine old Chinese artifacts. The haggling at these markets is ferocious. You have to walk away at least twice in order to get a remotely acceptable price, and you know you are still being ripped off because you’re a tourist. Even just the experience of walking through the road was lots of fun though!
After Dongtai Lu Antiques Market, I met my German friend Andi at the Bund, we went to a lovely piano lounge called the Compass bar, where there was classical music being played by a small Chinese man. This lounge is in the Peninsula, which is one of the Far East’s oldest hotel brands–the first Peninsula in Shanghai opened back in the ’30s. This shows in the art deco styling of the hotel, with its dark mood lighting, which blends into the Bund’s surviving historic background beautifully. Following this went up to the roof terraces overlooking Pudong and then met with some of the other interns at Windows bar, where we all got some well-appreciated Western food!
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