This is a very backdated entry about our trip to Shanghai from 25/Dec '08 to 3/Jan '09.
We had planned for our trip about 2 months in advance, in order to make full use of the Krisflyer miles I had accumulated & the long holiday season break. We wanted to have a break to somewhere far far away, and shanghai it was to be (actually not that far... haha).
Uncle Jerry had graciously invited us to stay at his place during the trip. Ever the hospitable man he is, as was the last time when I had stayed over during a short stint working in Shanghai. I returned to familiar places which brings back memories of me trying to navigate around this huge-ass metro city.
We had set up base camp at Shanghai. We arrived into Pudong International Airport and was greeted by the chilly weather (winter finally!!!) & Uncle Jerry's personal chaffeur, Uncle Quhui. We really appreciate the efforts to make us feel welcomed, much as I don't mind trying out public transport in Shanghai. :)
We have already planned our schedule & this is how it will look like over the next 10 days:
25/Dec: Touchdown Shanghai
26/Dec: Shanghai & dinner with old friends
27/Dec: Depart for Huangshan (Yellow Mountains)
28/Dec: Huangshan
29/Dec: Huangshan/Back to Shanghai & dinner with Uncle Jerry
30/Dec: Suzhou day trip
31/Dec: Depart for Hangzhou
1/Jan: Hangzhou/Back to Shanghai
2/Jan: Shanghai city tour & last min shopping
3/Jan: Back to Singapore midnight flight!
Detailed account of day to day activities...
25/Dec: Touchdown Shanghai
Me and the gf checked in early into Changi airport T3, eagerly anticipating SQ830 scheduled to leave for Shanghai at 10:05am. We had MacDonald's for breakfast, then proceed to do some window shopping in the duty free zone. Soon after, time to board the plane.
After a 5 hr journey, we finally landed at Pudong International airport. It feels great to be able to finally experience winter time, but the sad thing is no snow. But dunno why I just lurrrvee cold weather!!! and wearing those cool looking winter clothing! hahahaha!!! Uncle Quhui fetched us in a swanky new 7 series, and I felt like some VIP really. Hahaha! I caught up with him since 2005 and he would dropped us off at Uncle Jerry's place for OTOT.
We unpacked our stuffs, and went out searching for food cos' apparently we get hungry more easily in winter! Strolling along the streets in the cold is damn shiok, and we finally settled for dinner at a nice restaurant serving steaming boiled soup brewed with the richest of ingredients. Satisfied, we proceed to walk around the surburbs look look see see before tucking in after a long day. So much for X'mas day in Shanghai! Hehe.
26/Dec: Shanghai & dinner with old friends
Spent the day shopping at Qipu lu, the garment & textile market. The gf is damn happy & ecstatic about able to choose any material, in which the tailors can copy into exactly the same piece of clothing which you show them. Sheer pleasure for the lady, unspoken pain for the man.
Afterwards we went back to the office which I worked in before, met up with old friends & do some catching up. The office address hasn't changed, it is still located in the heart of the city, overseeing the entire metropolitan from its 51st floor viewpoint. Truly a remarkable sight to behold. Later in the evening, Uncle Ho invited us for a delectable meal of mushroom hotpot! Oishii!!!
27/Dec: Depart for Huangshan (Yellow Mountains)
We woke up early morning to make ourselves breakfast consisting of instant noodles & dumplings. Then it is off to the Shanghai South Bus Station where we will take a 3 hr journey by coach to Tunxi, the nearest city before the ascent up to the foot of Huangshan. We still have to transfer to another smaller bus, together with some funny looking people... :S
It will be another 1.5hr before we make it to foot of Huangshan. Guess what, another transfer again! Nabeh wtf!!! this time to the place where we either climb up this monster of a mountain, or take the cable car up to the western steppes. No prizes for guessing what we chose :P
FYI, Mt. Huangshan (Yellow Mountains) is a mountain range in southern Anhui province (Eastern China) and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The cable car ride was so damn bloody high that it got the gf really scared. The strong gusts of winds didn't help much either. She was so stiff to the extent that she even held her breath and control as she exhale. Hahahaha! She couldn't be more relieved to have make landfall.
Upon disembarking from the station, we searched for signs to direct us to our hotel, which means navigating the sometimes confusing pathways in the omnipresent mist. And be careful of the path you take! Make sure it is correct cos' I don't think you want to retrace 1km+ of roads! I must say the air up there is damn bloody fresh lor, I feel so energetic and raring to go! Not even the slight drizzle that is falling down on us can dampen my spirits!
After 2km+ of walking up and down undulating terrain, we finally reached our hotel - Shilin hotel. Machiam oasis in the desert, cos' we were walking for quite a while with nothing in sight. Starting to get worried as the dark starts to creep in at 4 plus. We put down our backpacks and took a hot shower. Then, it was time to feed our hungry stomach at the hotel restaurant, cos' thats the only place that serves food. No choice, eat whatever lah!
28/Dec: Huangshan
Day 2 began with us waking up at 5am trying to catch hold of the famed sunrise at Huangshan. That morning was raining, damp, dark & with nothing to guide us, we gave up. Anyways nobody could catch hold of any sunrise as the mist is shielding that fabled sight from us all. So we checked out of the hotel after breakfast to embark on day 2 of Huangshan tour! Armed with a map in hand, we tried to cover the various peaks noted for their distinct names & naturally formed unique rock formations.
The walking really damn siong for this day. I think we have covered about 8km of paths, be it winding roads or steep steps, we overcame it. I was particularly impressed with the gf. All along I thought she would be complaining about this & that. + 1 point :P Guess I have to compensate her with more shopping when we get back to Shanghai city. :( We finally reached Tian Hai Shan Zhuang about 4pm. Just nice also. Hehe
29/Dec: Huangshan/Back to Shanghai & dinner with Uncle Jerry
We got up early again, to catch the sunrise of cos. Where got people come all the way to Huangshan to miss it one? Fortunately the heavens is smiling on us. The weather is good today, but not good enough to see the fully glory of the majestic sunrise. This was where we took tonnes of pictures, along with many crazy chinese people who risked their lives by hanging precariously near the ledge of the barriers. Yes, I do have a serious case of height phobia.
Satisfied with our catch of the day, we proceed back to hotel, washed up, had breakfast, then hurriedly made our way to the cable car station located at the eastern steppes, which will bring us down to the foot of the mountain. There, we would need to get on a bus to catch which would need to bring us to Tunxi bus interchange to catch our coach back to Shanghai. Had we missed it, that's it man.
It was then I made the decision to pay extra money to get a local taxi that would sped us up to our destination. It was really money well spent I tell you. I shudder to think how we would spend our day at Tunxi had we really missed the return coach. Upon arriving in Shanghai, there was uncle Quhui waiting patiently to fetch us to have dinner with Uncle Jerry who would be flying back to Singapore that same night.
30/Dec: Suzhou day trip
We had went on this impromptu trip at the suggestion of Uncle Jerry, who thought we might as well made full use of our trip here. He recommended that we visit the state silk museum & store that sells authentic silk products. We didn't mind at all since Uncle Quhui was driving us there... Not too far actually, it was roughly an hour and a half's journey by the comfy 7 series. :P
We visited some touristy spot - The Tiger Hill upon reaching Suzhou city, and then off to the state silk museum before calling it a day. We asked uncle Quhui to drop us off near the office as we wanted to take a stroll at Nanjing Road - a long stretch of pedestrian shopping district filled with bright lights & hordes of people. Dinner was settled over MacDonald's - Shanghai flavour. Eh must try fast food all over the world mah...
31/Dec: Depart for Hangzhou
We got up early morning as usual to catch a train to Hangzhou. Damn, never had chance to sleep late one! We had earlier booked the tickets for the best seats of a newly set up train service that runs between the 2 cities. It was one of the fastest & well maintained trains you can ever find, we had clean seats, with city dwellers as fellow passengers. Nothing of the sort where you have to squeeze with total strangers, stand throughout the journey and contend with livestock shoved in your face. Hahahaha!
The journey took no longer than 2 hours and we were in Hangzhou. Then we hailed a cab, and checked into the Merchant Marco hotel which we had booked online via CTRIP. The view was fantastic cos' we asked for a lakeview room but the West Lake ("Xihu") wasn't that close as we thought. It was still about a good 10min's walk away, but in those cool weather, we aren't complaining much.
The rest of the day was spent walking around Xihu and admiring the various attractions around it. As night falls, we went for a stroll at the local night market where we bought some tea leaves for the folks back home, and then proceed to have our dinner at a local restaurant. We continued the slow walk back to the hotel, guided by the tourist map, having already covered half of Xihu. Along the lake front, there were celebrations in place for the countdown happening in a few hour's time and we took the opportunity to soak in the rather muted activities.
We walked past a nice cafe, had some hot drinks to warm ourselves, along with some cakes to satisfy our sweet tooth. Seeing there was nothing much to do, we went back to our hotel room for a good night's rest. And so new year's eve was spent watching channel newsasia (yes they have that) on cable tv, and admiring the city lights & some small scale fireworks from our 21st floor suite.
1/Jan: Hangzhou/Back to Shanghai
In Hangzhou, locals say a visit to "Lingyin temple" is a must on the first day of the new year. We also went there to jostle with the crowd, and to pray for a good start to 2009. After that, we came back to Xihu lake area, where we took a boat ride that takes us to some of the little islets on Xihu. The sun was shining brightly, but it was anything but hot. The breeze didn't help things much, as soon as you take out your gloves to take some pictures (or dig your nose), you will be dying to put them back on because it is soooo cold lor! Before we left for Hangzhou, we still have so many other places yet to cover, maybe should do another trip again next time.
2/Jan: Shanghai city tour & last min shopping
This is exclusive shopping day reserved for the gf, after her commendable performance at Mt.Huangshan. Hehehe. We started off with breakfast at this really nice roadside stall that sells traditional Shanghainese style "la-mian". Fuckin' cheap & delicious also, nevermind the rundown conditions. One of the best I've ever tasted. We went to hunt down brand name shops like H&M, and Uniqlo around Shanghai city downtown. We also went to the "must-go" bund area, which the trademark oriental pearl tower can be seen & have a photo taken with you. Hahaha. Actually that place is really damn blardy boring can?
Afterwards, we went back to Qipu lu to get our tailored clothings. I had made for myself some business shirts which is quite value for money, I must say. The gf was also quite satisfied with how they managed to replicate her dresses. We then bought some gifts for friends back home before proceed to take a cab back home.
By this time, we more or less had our stuffs packed nicely, save for the shopping we just finished earlier in the day. Uncle Quhui was ready to pick us up at 9:30pm to send us to the airport. With a heavy heart, we bade farewell to Shanghai (and the "pubic" carpark sign I saw prior to entering the airport area) Damn funnnyyyy can????
3/Jan: Back to Singapore midnight flight!
Time to board the plane SQ825 back to Singapore. I'll miss the nice cold weather, but unfortunately I still didn't get to see snow this time round cos' Shanghai rarely snows...
Many thanks to Uncle Jerry & Uncle Quhui for taking good care of us during this trip, we'll be back! hopefully soon! :)
Leaving you with a nice pic from Huangshan...
We had planned for our trip about 2 months in advance, in order to make full use of the Krisflyer miles I had accumulated & the long holiday season break. We wanted to have a break to somewhere far far away, and shanghai it was to be (actually not that far... haha).
Uncle Jerry had graciously invited us to stay at his place during the trip. Ever the hospitable man he is, as was the last time when I had stayed over during a short stint working in Shanghai. I returned to familiar places which brings back memories of me trying to navigate around this huge-ass metro city.
We had set up base camp at Shanghai. We arrived into Pudong International Airport and was greeted by the chilly weather (winter finally!!!) & Uncle Jerry's personal chaffeur, Uncle Quhui. We really appreciate the efforts to make us feel welcomed, much as I don't mind trying out public transport in Shanghai. :)
We have already planned our schedule & this is how it will look like over the next 10 days:
25/Dec: Touchdown Shanghai
26/Dec: Shanghai & dinner with old friends
27/Dec: Depart for Huangshan (Yellow Mountains)
28/Dec: Huangshan
29/Dec: Huangshan/Back to Shanghai & dinner with Uncle Jerry
30/Dec: Suzhou day trip
31/Dec: Depart for Hangzhou
1/Jan: Hangzhou/Back to Shanghai
2/Jan: Shanghai city tour & last min shopping
3/Jan: Back to Singapore midnight flight!
Detailed account of day to day activities...
25/Dec: Touchdown Shanghai
Me and the gf checked in early into Changi airport T3, eagerly anticipating SQ830 scheduled to leave for Shanghai at 10:05am. We had MacDonald's for breakfast, then proceed to do some window shopping in the duty free zone. Soon after, time to board the plane.
After a 5 hr journey, we finally landed at Pudong International airport. It feels great to be able to finally experience winter time, but the sad thing is no snow. But dunno why I just lurrrvee cold weather!!! and wearing those cool looking winter clothing! hahahaha!!! Uncle Quhui fetched us in a swanky new 7 series, and I felt like some VIP really. Hahaha! I caught up with him since 2005 and he would dropped us off at Uncle Jerry's place for OTOT.
We unpacked our stuffs, and went out searching for food cos' apparently we get hungry more easily in winter! Strolling along the streets in the cold is damn shiok, and we finally settled for dinner at a nice restaurant serving steaming boiled soup brewed with the richest of ingredients. Satisfied, we proceed to walk around the surburbs look look see see before tucking in after a long day. So much for X'mas day in Shanghai! Hehe.
26/Dec: Shanghai & dinner with old friends
Spent the day shopping at Qipu lu, the garment & textile market. The gf is damn happy & ecstatic about able to choose any material, in which the tailors can copy into exactly the same piece of clothing which you show them. Sheer pleasure for the lady, unspoken pain for the man.
Afterwards we went back to the office which I worked in before, met up with old friends & do some catching up. The office address hasn't changed, it is still located in the heart of the city, overseeing the entire metropolitan from its 51st floor viewpoint. Truly a remarkable sight to behold. Later in the evening, Uncle Ho invited us for a delectable meal of mushroom hotpot! Oishii!!!
27/Dec: Depart for Huangshan (Yellow Mountains)
We woke up early morning to make ourselves breakfast consisting of instant noodles & dumplings. Then it is off to the Shanghai South Bus Station where we will take a 3 hr journey by coach to Tunxi, the nearest city before the ascent up to the foot of Huangshan. We still have to transfer to another smaller bus, together with some funny looking people... :S
It will be another 1.5hr before we make it to foot of Huangshan. Guess what, another transfer again! Nabeh wtf!!! this time to the place where we either climb up this monster of a mountain, or take the cable car up to the western steppes. No prizes for guessing what we chose :P
FYI, Mt. Huangshan (Yellow Mountains) is a mountain range in southern Anhui province (Eastern China) and listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The cable car ride was so damn bloody high that it got the gf really scared. The strong gusts of winds didn't help much either. She was so stiff to the extent that she even held her breath and control as she exhale. Hahahaha! She couldn't be more relieved to have make landfall.
Upon disembarking from the station, we searched for signs to direct us to our hotel, which means navigating the sometimes confusing pathways in the omnipresent mist. And be careful of the path you take! Make sure it is correct cos' I don't think you want to retrace 1km+ of roads! I must say the air up there is damn bloody fresh lor, I feel so energetic and raring to go! Not even the slight drizzle that is falling down on us can dampen my spirits!
After 2km+ of walking up and down undulating terrain, we finally reached our hotel - Shilin hotel. Machiam oasis in the desert, cos' we were walking for quite a while with nothing in sight. Starting to get worried as the dark starts to creep in at 4 plus. We put down our backpacks and took a hot shower. Then, it was time to feed our hungry stomach at the hotel restaurant, cos' thats the only place that serves food. No choice, eat whatever lah!
28/Dec: Huangshan
Day 2 began with us waking up at 5am trying to catch hold of the famed sunrise at Huangshan. That morning was raining, damp, dark & with nothing to guide us, we gave up. Anyways nobody could catch hold of any sunrise as the mist is shielding that fabled sight from us all. So we checked out of the hotel after breakfast to embark on day 2 of Huangshan tour! Armed with a map in hand, we tried to cover the various peaks noted for their distinct names & naturally formed unique rock formations.
The walking really damn siong for this day. I think we have covered about 8km of paths, be it winding roads or steep steps, we overcame it. I was particularly impressed with the gf. All along I thought she would be complaining about this & that. + 1 point :P Guess I have to compensate her with more shopping when we get back to Shanghai city. :( We finally reached Tian Hai Shan Zhuang about 4pm. Just nice also. Hehe
29/Dec: Huangshan/Back to Shanghai & dinner with Uncle Jerry
We got up early again, to catch the sunrise of cos. Where got people come all the way to Huangshan to miss it one? Fortunately the heavens is smiling on us. The weather is good today, but not good enough to see the fully glory of the majestic sunrise. This was where we took tonnes of pictures, along with many crazy chinese people who risked their lives by hanging precariously near the ledge of the barriers. Yes, I do have a serious case of height phobia.
Satisfied with our catch of the day, we proceed back to hotel, washed up, had breakfast, then hurriedly made our way to the cable car station located at the eastern steppes, which will bring us down to the foot of the mountain. There, we would need to get on a bus to catch which would need to bring us to Tunxi bus interchange to catch our coach back to Shanghai. Had we missed it, that's it man.
It was then I made the decision to pay extra money to get a local taxi that would sped us up to our destination. It was really money well spent I tell you. I shudder to think how we would spend our day at Tunxi had we really missed the return coach. Upon arriving in Shanghai, there was uncle Quhui waiting patiently to fetch us to have dinner with Uncle Jerry who would be flying back to Singapore that same night.
30/Dec: Suzhou day trip
We had went on this impromptu trip at the suggestion of Uncle Jerry, who thought we might as well made full use of our trip here. He recommended that we visit the state silk museum & store that sells authentic silk products. We didn't mind at all since Uncle Quhui was driving us there... Not too far actually, it was roughly an hour and a half's journey by the comfy 7 series. :P
We visited some touristy spot - The Tiger Hill upon reaching Suzhou city, and then off to the state silk museum before calling it a day. We asked uncle Quhui to drop us off near the office as we wanted to take a stroll at Nanjing Road - a long stretch of pedestrian shopping district filled with bright lights & hordes of people. Dinner was settled over MacDonald's - Shanghai flavour. Eh must try fast food all over the world mah...
31/Dec: Depart for Hangzhou
We got up early morning as usual to catch a train to Hangzhou. Damn, never had chance to sleep late one! We had earlier booked the tickets for the best seats of a newly set up train service that runs between the 2 cities. It was one of the fastest & well maintained trains you can ever find, we had clean seats, with city dwellers as fellow passengers. Nothing of the sort where you have to squeeze with total strangers, stand throughout the journey and contend with livestock shoved in your face. Hahahaha!
The journey took no longer than 2 hours and we were in Hangzhou. Then we hailed a cab, and checked into the Merchant Marco hotel which we had booked online via CTRIP. The view was fantastic cos' we asked for a lakeview room but the West Lake ("Xihu") wasn't that close as we thought. It was still about a good 10min's walk away, but in those cool weather, we aren't complaining much.
The rest of the day was spent walking around Xihu and admiring the various attractions around it. As night falls, we went for a stroll at the local night market where we bought some tea leaves for the folks back home, and then proceed to have our dinner at a local restaurant. We continued the slow walk back to the hotel, guided by the tourist map, having already covered half of Xihu. Along the lake front, there were celebrations in place for the countdown happening in a few hour's time and we took the opportunity to soak in the rather muted activities.
We walked past a nice cafe, had some hot drinks to warm ourselves, along with some cakes to satisfy our sweet tooth. Seeing there was nothing much to do, we went back to our hotel room for a good night's rest. And so new year's eve was spent watching channel newsasia (yes they have that) on cable tv, and admiring the city lights & some small scale fireworks from our 21st floor suite.
1/Jan: Hangzhou/Back to Shanghai
In Hangzhou, locals say a visit to "Lingyin temple" is a must on the first day of the new year. We also went there to jostle with the crowd, and to pray for a good start to 2009. After that, we came back to Xihu lake area, where we took a boat ride that takes us to some of the little islets on Xihu. The sun was shining brightly, but it was anything but hot. The breeze didn't help things much, as soon as you take out your gloves to take some pictures (or dig your nose), you will be dying to put them back on because it is soooo cold lor! Before we left for Hangzhou, we still have so many other places yet to cover, maybe should do another trip again next time.
2/Jan: Shanghai city tour & last min shopping
This is exclusive shopping day reserved for the gf, after her commendable performance at Mt.Huangshan. Hehehe. We started off with breakfast at this really nice roadside stall that sells traditional Shanghainese style "la-mian". Fuckin' cheap & delicious also, nevermind the rundown conditions. One of the best I've ever tasted. We went to hunt down brand name shops like H&M, and Uniqlo around Shanghai city downtown. We also went to the "must-go" bund area, which the trademark oriental pearl tower can be seen & have a photo taken with you. Hahaha. Actually that place is really damn blardy boring can?
Afterwards, we went back to Qipu lu to get our tailored clothings. I had made for myself some business shirts which is quite value for money, I must say. The gf was also quite satisfied with how they managed to replicate her dresses. We then bought some gifts for friends back home before proceed to take a cab back home.
By this time, we more or less had our stuffs packed nicely, save for the shopping we just finished earlier in the day. Uncle Quhui was ready to pick us up at 9:30pm to send us to the airport. With a heavy heart, we bade farewell to Shanghai (and the "pubic" carpark sign I saw prior to entering the airport area) Damn funnnyyyy can????
3/Jan: Back to Singapore midnight flight!
Time to board the plane SQ825 back to Singapore. I'll miss the nice cold weather, but unfortunately I still didn't get to see snow this time round cos' Shanghai rarely snows...
Many thanks to Uncle Jerry & Uncle Quhui for taking good care of us during this trip, we'll be back! hopefully soon! :)
Leaving you with a nice pic from Huangshan...
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