Tour to China's Jiangnan - Shanghai's Skyline

Shanghai had me awed with its impressive skyline during my maiden trip there recently. I understand that the city has undergone major transformation in less than a period of 20 years from an agricultural back-yard to a metropolitan city dotted with high rise buildings, flyovers, interchanges. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Nanjing (part 2)

Just below the Nanjing Bridge, we were ushered to a Jade showroom, a favourite spot among our fellow tour members.



In the evening, we visited the Confucius Temple Night Market area where dazzling shops, restaurants and entertainment spots built around traditional buildings constructed during the Ming and Qing eras along the beautiful Qinhuai River are found. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Nanjing (part 1)

Nanjing Bridge was completed in 1968 which flies over the Yangtze River at the northwest of the Nanjing city. It is the first double-deck bridge featuring highway and railway track which was designed and constructed by the Chinese themselves. It spans 6,772 meters long and took a total of 8 years to complete (1960 - 1968). The bird-eye view of the Nanjing city from the upper level of the bridge is so breathtaking.


The Mausoleum of Dr Sun Yat Sen was built to commemorate Dr Sun Yat Sen, the great pioneer of the Chinese revolution. It occupies an area of more than 80,000 square meters and is shapped like a freedom bell. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Wuxi (part 2)

Before we set off for our next destination, Nanjing City, we took the opportunity to visit Lake Taihu. It is one of China's 5 major freshwater lake which is renowned for its magnificent water, hills and harmonious beauty. We understand that this lake is also famous for freshwater pearl farming and hairy crabs, a delicacy for the mainland Chinese.


Prior to that, we were also showed how pearls are being extracted from the shelf in a showroom where we had the opportunity to purchase products made from pearl.


We also witnessed how Chinese teapots are delicatedly produced by masters. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Wuxi (part 1)

Lingshan Buddha statue which is made entirely of tin and copper weighs more than 700 tonnes is one of the most awe-inspiring sights in Jiangsu. It is even taller than the Statue of Liberty in the US. Located along the shores of Lake Taihu, the Buddha statue is the largest in the world. The site which was opened to the public in 1998 also feature a large lotus flower pedestal.


We also visited the City of the 3 Kingdoms, a replica ancient city fortress where the movie "San Guo Yan Yi" was filmed. The site was built in 1993 by the Taihu Lake Filming Studio as the backdrop for the 84 episodes TV serial and is situated adjacent to the large Taihu Lake. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Suzhou

In Suzhou, the 4th destination of our tour, we had the opportunity to visit Tiger Hill which is famous for its slanting pagoda. King Helu, the founding father of Suzhou who died in the 6th century BC was buried on top of the hill where the pagoda is situated. Tiger Hill derived its name after a white tiger which appeared to guard the temple. The tower is 36 meters high and was built in the year 959 consisting of 7 levels and is a symbol of the ancient Suzhou city.


Next we visited the Lion Grove Garden, an ideal sightseeing site with rich ornamental pavilions and towers. It is a representative garden of the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368) featuring labyrinthine rocks and attractive scenery made mostly of limestone from the Taihu Lake. It is also known as the Lion Forest Garden covering an area of 1,152 square meters built in 1342 by Monk Tianru and a group of Zen Buddhist disciples in memory of their master, Monk Zhongfeng.


We then proceeded to a silk factory where we witnessed the process of silk fabrication which was followed by a fashion show. The popularity of Suzhou's silk products is clearly evident from the overwhelming response by tourists who bought in busload despite the steep prices. Silk blanket (without cover) such the one above is sold for RMB400 per set (single/queen size).

We also visited the Hanshan Temple which is famous for its bells as mentioned in a poem by the Tang Dynasty's poet, Zhangji.

In the evening, we were brought for shopping at the Suzhou's night market. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Hangzhou (part 2)

In Hangzhou, we also visited the Longjin Mei Village where we got to experience the production of and taste the famous Longjin tea.


Leifeng Pagoda was first built in 975-an but was damaged by lightning at a time unknown. It was subsequently rebuilt into an octagonal 5 storey pavilion in the early Southern Song. It is famous for the Legend of Lady White Snake and is a good site to overlook the West Lake. Getting to the pagoda is a piece of cake as it is probably the only one known to be served by escalator. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Hangzhou (part 1)

We had 2 nights in Hangzhou, once desribed by Marco Polo as the noblest city in the world.

Song Dynasty City is the first theme park in Hangzhou city and the largest of its kind dedicated to Song-Dynasty culture. It embraces scenes built in accordance with the traditional Chinese painting "Riverside scenes during the Festival of Pure Brightness", Kowloon Square, Song Square, Celestial Hills and Jade-like Pavilions.


Lingyin Temple is notably renowned as one of the 10 most famous ancient Buddhist temples in China. The temple is situated at the foot of Mount Lingyin and beside it is the West Lake. First built by an Indian monk, Huili in 326 AD during the Eastern Jin Dynasty, the temple was renamed Lingyin Temple or the "Temple of Inspired Seclusion" for its beauty and serenity environment. It is regarded a suitable "hermitage for the immortals". The legendary Monk Jigong was said to originate from this temple.


West Lake or Xihu is a pristine lake surrounded by mountains on its 3 sides and the city of Hangzhou at the 4th. The scenic area stretches for 60 sq km of which 5.6 sq km are waters. It is known as the "Paradise on Earth" with natural setting of strangely shaped peaks, serene forests and springs, dense foliage and a myriad of blossoms especially during the spring. Its beauty is further enhanced by the treasury of sculpture and architectural features. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Xitang

On our way from Shanghai to Hangzhou cities, we stopped by for a short visit to Xitang which is famous for its water village, a canal-like village with lots of traditional buildings where the residents reside by the river. This place was also the filming site of the recent Tom Cruise's movie, Mission Impossible 3. It is located at the north of Jiashan County in Zhejiang Province and boasts a gorgeous natural environment where 9 rivers cross the town dividing it into 8 sections of land connected by bridges. Most of the houses here were constructed during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Shanghai (part 4)

We also opted for an optional package to cruise the Huangpu River to discover Shanghai from a different perspective. The view at both sides of the river, Puxi and Pudong were not that satisfactory though due to thick mist on the particular day. We were surprised to note that our national carrier, Malaysia Airlines had their advertisement signboard erected along the river too.



We took the Maglev Bullet Train to get from Pudong to the Pudong International Airport which requires only 7 minutes to reach its destination as compared to the normal travelling time of 1 hour. The train is capable of reaching top speed of up to 420 km per hour we were told. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Shanghai (part 3)

At the Shanghai's Jade Buddha Temple, we were introduced to the well known white jade statue of Sakyamuni which was brought all the way from Maynmar in 1982 by the monk, Huigen. This temple was built in 1918.


The Mausoleum of Song Qingling covers an area of 12 hectares of which the tomb of Song Qingling lies. Former leader, Deng Xiaoping personally wrote an inscription for the Song Qingling Monument and the Song Qingling biographical deeds pavilion.



We were also brought to the famous Nanjing Road which is Shanghai's shopping street. This is what we meant by 'crowded'! We were told Nanjing Road attracts crowd as many as 3 million per day. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Shanghai (part 2)

Still in Shanghai, we paid a visit to the Bund Tunnel which is about 650 meters long. Using transparent electric wagon, we were driven through the tunnel and entertained by lots of nice decorations of spotlights and laser displays.



At Chenghuang Temple Shopping Area, a busy shopping district, we were treated to a wide arrays of items such as gold, jewellery, handicrafts and all sort of snacks.


We also managed to watch a dazzling performance of the Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe which had attracted a full-house crowd. 

Tour to China's Jiangnan - Shanghai (part 1)

Shanghai, also known as the 'Pearl of Orient' is a renowned metropolitan city and financial hub of China.


We arrived at the Pudong International Airport after a grueling 5-hours flight from Singapore. It was pouring when the plane landed but to our dissapointment, we were only handed raincoats instead of being lead to the skybridge to get to the terminal building. 'Owercrowded' was my instant impression of Shanghai. The feeling was so immense the moment we went through the immigration clearance which took a solid 2 hours before we could eventually retrieve our luggage.

The local food was very much oilier and saltier as compared to our taste back at home. In Shanghai, we had the opportunity to tour these places of interest: -


The Bund or 'Waitan', a famous waterfront and regarded as the symbol of Shanghai for hundreds of years. Located along the western side of the Huangpu River, it is surrounded by majestic buildings dated back to Shanghai's grandest days. We were so thrilled by the sight of colourful lights illuminating the whole bund area which looks so much like magical luminous pearls.


Oriental Pearl Tower was completed on 1st october 1994. At the height of 468 meters, it is the tallest in Asia and the 3rd highest telecommunication tower in the world. The view of Shanghai city of the top was exasperating.
 

Amusing China's Engrish

These signages, which I snapped during my recent trip to China are so amusing.




At the toll booth along the highway leading to the Shanghai City, drivers are required to swipe their cards for settlement of toll charges. Do you know that 'swipe' in direct translation from Chinese is actually 'brush'.












Make sure you are 'decent' enough before trying to gain entrance to the premise.













At the Bund Tunnel in Shanghai, we are required to present the entrance tickets for inspection. So, these tickets actually require no 'check-up' at all.