Shanghai Sojourn

Shanghai Skyline 2015

We are traveling again, this time in China. Irv and I were invited by a colleague at East China Normal University in Shanghai to visit and give some lectures. For me, it’s been almost thirty years since I was last in Shanghai. Things were quite different in 1988, just a year before the Tiananmen Square massacre. For one thing, we saw few cars on the roads; instead, everyone rode bicycles. Also, most people dressed in the traditional Mao outfit, although once in a while we would see someone in Western-style clothing. There were more restrictions on Western visitors in 1988. For example, we had to have a “guide” with us on all our excursions. Many Chinese had never seen a Westerner in person, and we often drew a crowd of 50 to 100 people whenever we stepped out of the car. Few people spoke or understood English. We were rarely allowed to dine with our Chinese colleagues and were often served in a special dining room set aside for Western visitors. Dining was a dodgy affair, as hygiene standards were somewhat lacking.

Shanghai Street View 2015

Things are quite different here in 2015. China has transformed from an agrarian to a mixed agrarian-commercial society. The roads in Shanghai are now jammed with Audis, BMWs, and Mercedes. There are still a few people on bicycles, but most commuters ride motor scooters or drive cars. The skyline has changed dramatically as well. Skyscrapers with amazing modern architecture and light shows abound throughout the city. Everyone wears Western-style clothing, and few people take any notice of Westerners (at least, not in Shanghai). People are too busy staring at or talking on their iPhones. The shopping centers and malls are not only modern but boast many well-known American, British, Italian, and German brands. One high-end shopping district in the city center features stores by Prada, Gucci, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Versace, and many more.

Shanghai Global Harbour Mall

Near the university is one of the largest malls in Shanghai–the Global Harbour Mall, which covers 480,000 square meters (about 118 acres) of floor space arranged on six levels and two office towers; construction cost $588 million. The two towers (of offices) display cascading blue lights at night. The architecture and interior design feature Romanesque murals, massive columns, and a glass-topped dome above the main atrium. We were blown away by the gigantic structure and maze of stores. However, the most interesting aspect is that it is a great place to observe people and how China has been transformed into a consumer society. There are also dozens of restaurants: Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Italian; there’s even an Outback.

Hygiene has improved, although there are still problems with food safety (in 2007, the former head of the State Food and Drug Administration was executed by lethal injection for taking bribes in exchange for licenses related to food safety). However, I’ve been here for two weeks and so far, no problems. We’ve had some great meals, especially with our Chinese colleagues and their students. One outing was to Lu Bo Lang near Yuyuan Garden and the City of God Temple, where famous heads of state (President Clinton, Queen Elizabeth) have dined. The food was really good, and there were some interesting dishes (see the photo of the “Gimmicky Fashion Bag-Shape Pastry”).

Lu Bo Lang Restaurant

Ordering Lunch at Lu Bo Lang

Gimmicky Fashion Bag-Shape Pastry

Another outing was with a group from the university during a field trip to some of the wetlands in the Shanghai area. We stopped at a roadside restaurant, run by a local family where we tried a number of different local fish and shellfish dishes–all very fresh and quite good.