SHOPPING
Shopping in Shanghai is certainly different than Hong Kong or New York. The city is developing its own unique style that already competes with the ultimate shopping experience anywhere in the world (though not in price!). There are already some wonderful high end boutiques, as well as large scale designer shopping. There are plenty of special areas that are fun to wander about and gather less expensive, yet equally cool and interesting items. So keep an eye on this section and find your favorite shopping site.
You will also find a number of smaller convenience stores and large supermarkets in the university vicinity and in everywhere around the city.
◆ Major Shopping Areas
Listed below are five of the busiest shopping areas in town, with each one bearing its own feature. They are the part of Shanghai you don’t want to miss!
Xu Jia Hui 徐家汇
It is the largest shopping and entertainment zone in the city’s southwest. The shopping area is named after Xu Guangqi, a scientist in Ming Dynasty who lived in the area. Covering 1.2 square kilometers, Xujiahui is home to Grand Gateway shopping center, Orient Shopping Center, Pacific Department Store, Huijin Department Store, Metro City and Huilian Department Store. The shopping area also has the biggest number of underground shops in Shanghai.
You can find almost everything here, from clothes to computer gadgets, catering for all budgets. It also offers quality dining, dancing, movies and gaming services. You can take Metro Line No.1 to get there at the Xujiahui Station.
Huaihai Road (M.) 淮海中路
Huaihai Road M. was built in the early 20th century, and was the heart of the French Concession. It is well known for its elegant and flourishing business. The road is Shanghai’s most fashionable one, embodying the prosperity and vigor of the city, with shopping malls standing along it. You won’t feel bored in shopping here as too many brands and stores are set here. A walk on the road, along with plane trees and top-class office buildings, especially at night, will bring you the feeling of romantic. You can take Metro Line No.1 and get off at Huangpi Road S. or Shaanxi Road S. to reach this road.
Nanjing Road 南京路
The street is known as “China’s No.1 Commercial Street.” It began to boom in the 19th century (then known as “Bubbling Well Road”) and was the busiest shopping area in old Shanghai.
The main stretch of shops on Nanjing Road starts at the Bund and ends at the Jing’an Temple. It is divided into two parts: Nanjing Road E. and Nanjing Road W.
The east section is the busiest shopping area in Shanghai, if not the busiest in China. On both sides of the road, there are many department stores with long histories, providing you with a wide choice of goods from food to clothes. It is “pedestrian only”, but if you don’t have enough time, take a tourist tram which enables you to grasp the whole sight of the bustling pedestrian road in a short time. It’s cost: 2RMB (25 US cents).
The west part mainly boasts luxurious brand names and targets big spenders. You can find a wide variety of world-famous brands in these spacious and well-arranged stores, such as Armani, LV, Prada and CD.
Zhong Shan Park 中山公园
This area features clothes shops offering varieties of discounts and a new top-class shopping mall which is attracting more and more customers.
Qipu Road 七浦路
Qipu Road, or Cheap Road, is known as the most popular place in Shanghai for clothes because of low prices and endless choices.
Three buildings form a triangle. Two of them are connected by an elevated walkway. The clothes on the first two floors look decent enough but they are not made of good-quality fabric, and most of them are similar in style.
The higher floors sell good-quality clothes at comparatively higher prices. These shop owners prefer to sell clothes to wholesalers, who can get clothes at much lower prices.
On both weekdays and weekends, this road is always crowded with shoppers. If you want to shop around the three buildings in one day, save your energy. One building is quite enough to exhaust you.
◆ Supermarkets
Wal-Mart 沃尔玛
Address: No. 125 Songhu Rd., Yangpu District (杨浦区淞沪路125号)
Tel: 021-6511-5133; 6511-5099
SITESEEING
Cultural & Historical Sites
Shanghai is a city with a long cultural history. By the end of 2007, there were 19 cultural and historical sites listed under the state protection and 165 under the city protection. A number of ancient sites and gardens dating back to Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties have been well preserved.
Listed below are a few of them that we would like to recommend to you.
Shanghai Museum 上海博物馆
Address: 201 People Ave. (人民大道201号)
Tel: 021-6372-3500
Located in the center of Shanghai in People’s Square, Shanghai Museum is a large museum of ancient Chinese art. The museum style and presentation surround visitors with artifacts demonstrating ancient wisdom and philosophy. The exterior design of the round dome and the square base symbolizes the ancient idea of a round heaven and a square land.
The museum 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.
Site of the First National Congress of the Communist Party of China 中共一大会址纪念馆
Address: 76-78 Xingye Rd. (兴业路76-78号)
Tel: 021-5383-2171
This is the birth place of the Communist Party of China and is now under the state protection. The two houses with stone gates are typical Shanghai residences in the 1920s. The first national congress of the Party was convened in one of the sitting room on the ground floor on July 23, 1921. There are wax statues of participants in the congress, precious documents and other exhibits, recording the historic period of the beginning of the Party and its activities in the following years.
Shanghai Confucian Temple 上海文庙
Address: 215 Xueqian Street, Wen Miao Rd. (文庙路学前街215号)
Tel: 021-6377-1815
Shanghai Confucian Temple is the only ancient architectural complex combining temple and school in downtown Shanghai for worship of China’s great thinker and symbol of China’s ethical foundation, Confucius. Established in 1294, the temple has existed for more than 700 years, during which it was moved several times. The current site was chosen in 1855, occupying an area of 1.13 hectares. It is a fine architecture complex elaborately designed with pagodas, small bridges, flowing water and lush greenery that form a unique Jiangnan (“South of the Yangtze River”) garden.
Former Residence of Sun Yat-sen 孙中山故居纪念馆
Address: 7 Xiangshan Rd. (香山路7号)
Tel: 021-6437-2954
The residence was bought by a group of Chinese then living in Canada for Dr. Sun Yat-sen to support his revolutionary activities. Dr. Sun lived in this house in 1920-24. In 1961, it was listed as an important historical site under state protection. During his stay here, Dr. Sun reformed the Kuomintang and entered the first round of cooperation with the Communist Party of China. He also wrote several books in this house. Articles on display include the sword, military maps and writing tools once used by Dr. Sun.
Former Residence of Soong Chingling宋庆龄故居
Address: 1843 Huaihai Road M. (淮海中路1843号)
Tel: 021-6474-7183
The former residence of Soong Chingling, Honorary President of the People’s Republic of China, has a milk-white boat-shaped mansion in Western style as its main building. The display at the residence preserves the original state when Madame Soong Chingling was its owner. There are the presents of Chinese painting “galloping horses” from Xu Beihong and a huge red carpet from Mao Zedong. On the wall are a portrait of Dr. Sun Yatsen and a photo of Soong Chingling with Mao Zedong. In the garage is a limousine that was a gift from Stalin. The former residence of Soong Chingling is under state protection.
Former Residence of Mao Zedong 毛泽东故居
Address: No.7 Lane 583 Weihai Rd. (威海路583弄7号)
Mao’s former residence is an old-style, two-storey building with a stone-framed gate, located at 7 Yulanfang, Weihaiwei Road (today’s No.7, Lane 583, Weihai Road). In mid-February 1924, when Mao was Secretary of the CPC Central Bureau and an official of the Kuomintang Shanghai branch, he lived in this house. Today, the building is listed as a historical site under the city’s protection.
Longhua Temple 龙华寺
Address: 2853 Longhua Rd. (龙华路2853号)
Tel: 021-6456-6085
Longhua Temple is a 1,000 year old monastery, the oldest in Shanghai, occupying an area of 20,000sq.m., It is said that the temple and Longhua Pagoda were built in AD 242 by King Sun Quan of the Wu Kingdom of the Period of the Three Kingdoms. It was rebuilt many times in the later dynasties. Many of the structures were built during Qing Emperor Guangxu’s reign (1875-1909).
It has always attracted large numbers of worshippers. There are four principal halls in the temple: the Grand Hall, the Hall of the Three Sages, Hall of Maitreya and the Abbot’s Room. On the sides are the Bell Tower, the Drum Tower, Arhats Hall and the Preaching Hall. Longhua temple fair, a folk festival with a history of 400 years, is held every year on the 3rd day of the 3rd lunar month. On New Year’s Eve, thousands of tourists and Buddhists from Japan, southeast Asian countries and local citizens visit the temple.
Jade Buddha Temple 玉佛寺
Address: 170 Anyuan Rd. (安远路170号)
Tel: 021-6266-3668
This temple is known for the two jade Buddha statues enshrined in it. The statues were brought to Shanghai by a high monk named Hui Geng from Putuo Mountain. He had gone on a pilgrimage to Burma, where he received 5 jade statues of Sakyamuni. On his way back to Putuo, he passed Shanghai and left two statues, one in sitting posture and one, reclining. In 1882, a temple was built to enshrine the statues. The temple was later destroyed by fire. A new temple was built in 1918 and completed in 1928 on the present site. The architecture of the temple is of the Song Dynasty palace type, stately and majestic.
Duolun Road多伦路文化名人街
Formerly named Doulean Road transliteration， Duolun Road is a little street in Shanghai, north of the Sichuanbei Road Trade Area, and south of Lu Xun Park and Hongkou Football Field, with its back to the Inner Ring Viaduct and Jewel Light Track. The length of it is only about half a mile. The street is both narrow and short, and is also winding and deep and quiet, edged by little buildings of various styles, row upon row. Through in the maps it can hardly be found, it’s a major scene in the history of literature of modern times.
Yu Garden 豫园
Address: Fuyou Road (福佑路)
Yu Garden, a classical garden in downtown Shanghai, boasts a history over 400 years. Each pavilion, hall, stone and stream in the garden is expressing the quintessence of South China landscape design from Ming and Qing Dynasty. Over forty spots, divided by dragon walls, wound corridors and beautiful flowers, form an unique picture featuring “one step, one beauty; every step, every beauty.” It’s reputed to be the most beautiful garden south of the Yangtze River. Built beside the Temple of the City God and covering only fives acres, it follows the Suzhou garden design of a world in microcosm, with 30 pavilions linked by corridors, artificial hills, bridges over lotus pools, groves of bamboo and walls occupied by stone dragons. The surrounding bazaar is packed with traditional and modern shops, restaurants and temples.
Entertainment
This is a broad topic, and since one person’s entertainment is another’s barbiturate, we’ll just give you a few general hints. Suffice it to say that there is plenty to do in this city. Elsewhere in the HANDBOOK we’ve directed you toward various monthly “what’s going on” type magazines that give one the lowdown on discos, bars, restaurants, sports events, art shows.
Most of these are available free at major hotels, bars and nightclubs. We have also referred you to the city’s excellent museums, worth many days of viewing. On the other end of People’s Park is a place that is often missed, the Shanghai City Planning Hall, which sounds deadly but actually has a fascinating three-dimensional model of Shanghai. It’s huge, and permits the viewer a strong sense of the city’s magnitude and the directions toward which it plans growth. The Planning Hall can’t be missed thanks to its distinctive roof, topped with four massive steel cupolas.
◆Popular Sites
Huangpu River Cruise 浦江游览
Huangpu River Cruise has been regarded as one of the most important and traditional tourist activities at night. It is know to all that the beautiful Huangpu River, also called the mother of this metropolis, embodies the quintessence of Shanghai’s attractive scenes.
During the cruise, visitors can enjoy scenes on both banks. One of the most riveting cruise is the combination of the world-famed bridges and the Oriental Pearl TV Tower. Nanpu Bridge and Yangpu Bridge are like two huge dragons while the Oriental Pearl Tower resembles a suspended pearl. This captivates locals who are familiar with the drama :” Two dragons Tossing a Pearl.”
Shanghai Grand Theatre 上海大剧院
Address: 300 People’s Ave. (人民大道300号)
Tel: 021-6318-4478
Business Hours: 9:00~11:00; 13:00~15:30
Located to the west of Shanghai Municipal Government Building and with a total investment of 60 million USD and a total floor space of 70,000 sq.m, Shanghai Grand Theatre was designed by a world-famous French architect known for having designed Paris’s Bastille Opera House. Built in 1994, the theatre is a place for performance of first-grade international and domestic music, opera, ballet, orchestra, symphony and drama.
With the largest stage in the world equipped with convertible facilities, the building of the theatre is 40 meters high, with 2 stories underground, 6 stories above ground and another 2 stories on top, 10 stories in all. It contains a few separate performance venues: the huge main audience hall, the Lyric Theatre able to seat 1,800 people, the 600-seat Drama Theatre and the 200-seat Studio Theatre. Shanghai Grand Theatre has become one of the centers f cultural lives in Shanghai. A lot of world-grade dances, operas, music and films, such as British <cats> and Broadway’s <The Miserable World> have been performed or shown there.
Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center 上海城市规划馆
Address: 100 People’s Ave. (人民大道100号)
Tel: 021-6318-4477
Business Hours: 9:00~16:00
Entrance Fee: around 30 RMB
Transportation: Bus No. 18, 20, 23, 37. 46, 49, 71, 109, 127, 145, etc.
Lying in the northeastern part of people’s Square, Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center, as one of the new landmarks of metropolis and the largest urban planning exhibition center in the world, provides the services of exhibitions, meetings, business, F&B and advertisement.
On the fourth floor is a huge three dimensional model of the cityscape that permits the viewer a strong sense of the city’s magnitude and the directions toward which it plans growth. The Planning Hall can’t be missed thanks to its distinctive roof, topped with four massive steel cupolas.
A great deal of high technology in the fields of sound, optics and dynamics is used in the Section of Urban Rapid Transit. Visitors will be led into a simulated carriage and get a first-hand experience of the great changes of Shanghai.
The center also takes pride in its longest optical illusion system in China. The system shows today and yesterday’s Nanjing Road and portrays the characteristic human and cultural images of both 1930s and 1990s.
Shanghai Xintiandi 新天地
Address: Taicang Rd. (to the south of Huaihai Rd.) (太仓路，淮海路以南)
Transportation: Bus No. 24, 12, 109, 926, Subway No. 1, Tourist Bus No. 10
Web site: www.xintiandi.com
Xintiandi, situated in the center of Shanghai, near both Huaihai Road (M.) and People’s Square, is famous for its successful combination of Shikumen (a traditional Shanghai architectural style) and modern western architectural style. It is seen as a typical manifestation of “Hai Pai” (Shanghai Style) culture as well as a reflection of Shanghai’s historic culture in architecture.
The structures of Shi Ku Men in Xintiandi give one the sense of going into the past, as if he entering the 1920s again! In the mid-1990s, Hong Kong’s Shui On Group announced a 50 million USD scheme to construct a hub of culture, art, entertainment, shopping ,dining and leisure by renovating the original Shikumen at the south of Huaihai Road (M.), with a view to creating something akin to London’s Piccadilly Circus or Paris’ Arc de Triomphe in Shanghai. However, the interior of each building is completely modern and all kinds of relaxing facilities can be found, such as cafes, restaurants, galleries, boutiques and bars. It is often thought of by both local people and visitors as one of the most attractive places for nightlife. A favorite of Shanghai citizens and expats alike.
Hengshan Rd. Leisure Street 衡山路休闲街
Transportation: Bus No. 02, 15, 42, 44, 49, 93, 824, 830, Subway No. 1etc.
Lying in the Xuhui District, the busiest part of southwest Shanghai, Hengshan Road is famous for its typical European atmosphere.
Hengshan Road is located in Shanghai’s former French Concession area. Though only 2 kilometers long, it is crowded with cafes and bars intermixed with hotels, beauty parlors, health clubs and bakeries. On both sidewalks, there are many luxuriant French plane trees and dozens of European-style buildings of 1920s’ and 1930s’ vintage. It is a night street, one of the city’s hot spots.
Shanghai Wildlife Zoo 上海野生动物园
Address: Sanzhao Town, Nanhui District (南汇区三灶镇南六口路178号)
Tel: 021-5803-6000
Business Hours: 8:00-17:00
Transportation: Tourist Line No. 2, Line Yuanye, Line Zhangnan etc.
Web site: http://www.shwzoo.com/-z.htm
Entry fee: 80 RMB (adults); 40 RMB (children)
Close to Pudong International Airport, Shanghai Wildlife Zoo, the first of its kind in China, covers a vast tract of land, established in a combined style of modern zoos and wildlife parks. Although the animals are free to roam or relax in wide, open spaces, they are separated from the viewing public by deep moats and heavy fencing. There are over 200 rare species of animals housed in two separate areas-the walking zone and the bus-only zone.
In the walking zone, visitors can walk around randomly. A wide range of species; divided into several groups can be seen, e.g. a herbivore zone, an aquatic bird lake, an enclosed aviary, a butterfly aviary and a monkey zone. In the bus-only zone, people have to stay in a fully-closed bus; through the bus windows they view zebra, camels, antelope, elephants, giraffes and rhinoceri. In a few larger zones, dangerous carnivores including bears, tigers, lions and cheetahs are kept.
The zoo boasts about 100 animal stars that are able to give more than 50 types of performances that are scheduled throughout the day. As an example, between 9:00 to 10:00 in the morning, different animals gather on the square facing the main gate to welcome visitors. Starting from 11:00 and 14:30 respectively, groups of lions and tigers do stunts at the Animal Area. It is a real spectacle, sure to turn off PETA enthusiasts. Visitors are permitted to drive their own vehicles inside the zoo.
Oriental Green Land 东方绿洲
Address: 6888 HuQingping Rd. (沪青平公路6888号)
Tel： 021-5923-3000
Located by the Dianshan Lake in Qingpu District, it is one of the top sites in the country for young peoples extracurricular education and entertainment. Covering more than 3,700 hectares, the center is divided into eight areas, including the Bravery and Wisdom District, the Knowledge Boulevard, the National Defense Education, the Wildness Surviving, the Creation Activities, the Aquatic Sports, the Daily Life Practice, and the Sport Training zones. It has a lawn extending 170,000 square meters, 110,000 trees and more than 400 types of flowers. A long ride outside the city, but recommended (mildly).
Shanghai Circus World 上海马戏团
Address: 2266 Gonghexin Rd. (共和新路2266号)
Tel: 021-6652-2395
Transportation: Bus No. 46, 95, 114
Located on Gonghexin Road, Shanghai Circus World is a well-equipped modern circus. It includes an amusement city, an animal house, a performers’
reception center and a rehearsal hall, with a total area of 22,500 sq.m. Acrobatic and circus performances are the central attractions!
Able to seat 1,672 people, the Acrobatic Ground is equipped with all necessary up-to-date facilities for large-scale acrobatic shows. Shanghai Circus Troupe and other famous troupes perform here.
The Animal House, which has an area of 1,540 sq.m, contains an elephant’s room, panda room, seal room, stables and an animal rehearsal room. Another feature is the Culture and Business City, which occupies an area of12,000 sq.m. It has cultural displays, a shopping center and a restaurant.
Bridge 8 八号桥
Addres: Jianguo Road Central Near South Chongqing Rd.
Bridge 8 in the Luwan district is the best-known creative industry compound in Shanghai. Its predecessor as tenant was the Shanghai Car Brakes Factory, with a floor area of over 10,000 sqm. Today, in addition to creative studios, there are also coffee shops, French and Japanese restaurants, beauty salons, art galleries and household stores situated in the compound. The compound is made up of seven inter-linked buildings, with common space, decorated under four different themes linked through different themes for each building. New elements have been injected into these old buildings to create an innovative architectural style that embraces both the industrial era and modern developments.