First Full Day in China

We're back in our room after an exhausting day touring Shanghai. We had an very early start. Ward woke up at 2:00 am and couldn't go back to sleep so he played poker online and watch the rest of Mission Impossible 3. Terri woke up at 3:00 and tried to go back to sleep but got up at 6:00 to get ready for breakfast. Hopefully that the last of the jet lag. Breakfast was a feast of mostly western food, omelets, rolls, bacon, ham etc. Little did Terri know that this would be the best meal all day! Our bus picked us up at 8:30. First stop was a children's kindergarten where children ages 3-6 performed on various musical instruments for us: the piano, hammer dulcimer, violin and an oriental violin. They were unbelievable. China pays for their education through the ninth grade. They have to pay tuition after that. The kindergarten we saw was for gifted children. In recent time during China's history parents were permitted to have only one child. Since every child was their one and only parents wanted all their "gifted" children to go to these schools. The school is located in the French Quarter. During the cultural revolution, no one wanted the beautiful buildings due to them not being occupied by Chinese. In an effort to spare the buildings they were given as schools since the children wouldn't "know" that foreigners once occupied them. By the way the decision to mandate only one child has come back to haunt China. There are not enough young workers to support the population as they begin to age.

All throughout Shanghai you see laundry everywhere. Our guide Richard mentioned that while the washing machine has caught on and many people have them, the dryer has not. Shanghai's laundry is sometimes referred to as China's national flag.

Next stop was the Yu Yuan garden. The garden is five acres and originally housed one very wealthy family. Our guide explained that there are always four elements to the gardens in China: water, rock, plants and architecture. Many paths are in zig zags to ward off evil sprits. The structures have very ornate carvings and huge dragons carved atop walls and buildings. Terri had her first interesting experience going to the rest room in the park. Toilet paper is hung outside the stalls, You take what you are going to need then open the stall only to find that you stand to go to the bathroom. Men are used to this, American women are not! Much coordination is needed to pull this off, when you are not used to it. The gardens were lovely. Many of the plants you would recognize from home: boxwood, azalea bushes, flower clover and a type of maple tree to name a few.

Before lunch we stopped at a Buddhist temple. Incense was flowing freely and folks were coming to the temple to pray. Mr. Woo our local guide said that if you have seen one Buddhist temple they are all similar. The unique part of this one was the huge Jade Buddha. I am assuming most temples have smaller Buddha's or copies of original Buddha's. Many of the Buddhist treasures were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution from 1966 - 1976. Unfortunately you are not permitted to take pictures of the Buddha but it is very impressive. A footnote about the Cultural revolution. Mr. Woo said it was a terrible time for the Chinese people. The youth went crazy and torn down and/or burned many of the artifacts from centuries past. He himself was affected and was not allowed to attend school for a year. Most of the teachers were driven out to the countryside to be put to work in the fields. When school did resume he said they didn't learn anything since the text books were replaced by the "Mao bible". With no substantial education for 10 years he is considered a lost generation.

Lunch was at the Seagull hotel down by the river. Many dishes were served and put on a lazy susan to be passed among the folks at the table. It was okay, even our guide mentioned that dinner would be better.

During the afternoon we went to the new Shanghai museum. It was very nice. The have the best bronze collection in the world. Also housed there was a jade collection, furniture from the Ming and Qing? dynasties. There is a striking resemblance between Ming and Arts & Crafts furniture. By this time folks were beginning to get tired.

Dinner was a true Chinese meal, fish heads and all. Neither Terri nor Ward found much to eat although there was lots to choose from. John - you would have been in heaven trying all the different foods. Drinks do not seem to be a priority with the Chinese. With a meal you get two small glasses of soft drink or beer and that's it! Terri almost created a international incident when she asked for a second glass of Coke. Apparently the non-English speaking waitress' thought she already had 2. We had met our quota and that was that. Richard offered to pay for another Coke but they didn't seem to understand that. In the end Mr Woo intervened and Terri got some more to drink.

The evening ended with an acrobatic show at the Grand Theatre. It was very good - what parts Ward saw of it! Terri went to say something to him and he had eyes closed and head down. Still can't beat Bob Holders ability to sleep during a performance of Blue Man group with screaming eighth graders and beating drums. This performance was a little bit more subdued.

On our way back to the hotel we went through the Bund district which was lit up for the night. It was breathtaking. People say it is one of the most beautiful cities in the world at night.