It's really interesting to witness and see at first hand how fast Shanghai has developed over a span of 10 years. She's so cosmopolitan she reminds me of HK.
1. Oriental Pearl Tower
The famous Oriental Pearl Tower that looks so odd in pictures turned out to be unique and outstanding among all the other skyscrapers. It was really awesome to be up there.
A slide for the children to enjoy before going up.
My boys had a jolly good time up at 263m high.
They couldn't take their feet off the glass walkway. A panoramic view they had while lying on the glass.
They were both awed by the altitude. Check out the view below.
2. Museums
There's a museum at the first level at the Oriental Pearl Tower. It was surprisingly very interesting as it walked you through the old and modern Shanghai. Was afraid the kids may be bored. But they enjoyed most of it.
The museum tour started right with the boys posing with their choice of vintage cars.
A part of old Shanghai Zech has never before experienced in his life. This kind of Chinese culture was totally alien to him before the trip.
This cheeky boy couldn't take his hands off the telephone.
Another place for kids to go is the Science and Technology Museum. Personally, I feel our Singapore Science Centre is much better. The museum reminded me of the Adelaide Museum and LKC museum so I've at least seen similar exhibits a few times. I was disappointed with the robot gallery as some of the exhibits were under maintenance. However, my boys still enjoyed this museum, especially Zech.
The rainbow land was interesting for Nathanael but we didn't have much time and had to rush through the play area. Besides slides in different settings, making bubbles using big wands seemed to be one of the more popular hands on activity.
3. The old and new
Shanghai is interesting as it's a juxtapose with the old and new. We took a cruise around the Bund at night. On one side, you could see the skyscrapers and on the other side, you could see the buildings that have existed for 90 to 100 years. The Huang Pu River separates the old and modern Shanghai.
Bought these furry animal hats for $2 sgd each. Came in handy for the cold night when we took a night cruise around the Bund.
4. Yummilicious food!
Shanghai is also famous for its Chinese food. I certainly didn't expect much but I must say the food is really yummy! Not just the Xiao Long Bao my boys love so much, but also the steamboat and Peking duck!
The number 1 steamboat in Shanghai - Lao Wang Hotpot
The best steamboat I've enjoyed so far. It wins Hai Di Lao hands down.
The best Peking duck I've ever tasted! We went back to the same restaurant another night and this dish was sold out!
Almost every dish we ordered tasted great!
Another unforgettable dish was this sweet and sour fish at Suzhou. We ordered a similar dish somewhere else and it wasn't as good.
5. Junkies
My boys ate quite a lot of junk food this time. I couldn't help introducing to them 冰糖葫芦. It's a shame not to know and taste this Chinese traditional snack. We didn't finish all of course. It was simply too sweet. There are other flavours such as strawberries and kiwis which are more appealing to the younger ones.
Grandpa bought the boys some candy. How they love it! Their very first lollipop!
6. 乌镇
Shanghai is near to a few water towns. We visited 乌镇 which is about 1.5 to 2 hours away. Time seemed to have come to a standstill. It's touristy but I'm in love with the old town.
Feeding the fishes is my boys' favourite thing to do everywhere they go.
Walking through the streets...
The female quarters in the olden days.
I thought a picture of me is more appropriate than the boys sitting in the sedan.
The academy.
On sunny days, the men toiled under the sun. On rainy days, they buried themselves in books.
Trying to be scholarly here.
The elder one wrote his Chinese name. The younger one tried writing his name then decided to simply wet the table.
A family photo is a must here!
Again, we tried some of the street food. Nothing much to shout about though.
It was so cold at night we returned to the hotel after dinner. Wanted to take a boat ride but changed our mind. I heard from my cousin who braved the cold that the boat ride at night was simply beautiful as the town was all prettily lighted up.
7. Unleash your potential!
I came unprepared to climb a mountain. But we managed to climb to the peak! What an achievement! Standing at 200m high, 天平山 is not that high. Bukit Timah Hill stands at 163m high. But the
difference lies in the roads and pavement leading up. 天平山 is not as well laid out and it's considered mountainous terrain. We climbed at least 100 steps. Almost wanted to give up. Thank God we were rewarded with a great view at the peak!
This boy was the first to climb up but the last to get down.
Praise the Lord for His beautiful creation! And for climbing to the peak with family! Wonderful experience!
In case you are wondering, not everyone made it to the top. Nathanael was cranky that afternoon and insisted his papa carry him to the peak. So of course, we smart adults found a way to pacify him while staying near the valley of the mountain.
8. An adventure in Chinese gardens
My boys have never experienced walking in an ancient Chinese garden.
Nathanael was thrilled to find a cave he could play in and insisted that I took a photo of him.
There's a maze in the garden which was really interesting. It provided many good views of the garden and surprised you with its many nooks and corners. No wonder the emperor found it so interesting too.
Peek-a-boo!
This group photo was taken while walking through the maze. It took us almost 30 min to get out of the maze.
We saw Qianlong and Kangxi's writing on stone tablets too. Zech was amazed at how beautiful their handwriting was. I hope it inspired him to write neatly.
9. Stories of 西湖
As we toured 西湖 in Hangzhou, it was pretty fascinating to listen to the legends of Mdm White Snake and Yue Fei. This was Zech's first exposure to Chinese literature. Thanks to his very knowledgeable grandma, we now know a bit more. He seemed intrigued by the stories. It was a rainy day when we took a boat out to 西湖. But we could still see the pagoda that trapped Mdm White Snake years ago.
I think the lake would be more beautiful in summer when it would be surrounded by lotus flowers, in spring and autumn with cherry blossoms everywhere. In winter, 西湖 seemed rather dead. But the legends made the lake more alive than ever.
10. Boat rides big and small. My boys like them all.
Cruising around the harbour with a panoramic night view of the Bund was breathtaking.
Taking a small boat in Suzhou in the dark canals looking at the residents' backyard was an adventure for Zech. Some of us hated it because the engine seemed unreliable and the boat kept getting hit by other boats when nearing the end of the ride. Nathanael was so bored he fell asleep on the boat.
A short ferry ride in Wuzheng had the boys begging for more.
An hour long boat ride in the famous Xihu laden with tales and legends of long ago was fascinating to Zech. Even though there was a light shower, it didn't dampen the boys' spirits.
Beijing will be the next destination to go in China. But I'll wait a while, for Nathanael to grow up more so that he can appreciate the Chinese history more. For now, we will just ride on the learning gained during the trip, expand it a bit more and hopefully, in time to come, cultivate an interest in Chinese literature and history.
