Category: in china

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in china in shanghai

lupu bridge – sunday field trip

this has been on our to-do list for far too long. after yesterday’s rain, today the day seemed quite clear, we could see well into pudong from our balcony, so we decided to take the chance and venture to climb the lupu bridge. besides, the bus number 36 starts right outside our house and stops exactly on the base of the bridge. how’s that for convenience?

final destination!

the entrance to the bridge will set you back 68 rmb, and you’ll be guided around by the young people who serve as staff here. they send you to an elevator to the bridge platform, and after that… stairs. lots of them, since this is the longest arch bridge in the world, according to wikipedia.

lupu bridge

along the way, you’ll notice the construction frenzy on both sides of the river. expo 2010 is coming, and you can already see the china pavilion taking shape!

expo 2010 construction

the expo 2010 site

once you’re up on top… wow! you get a 360 degree view of the city that is just breathtaking. all the buildings in the distance, the sand carrier ships, the cranes, the cars speeding under your feet, and the crazy wind… it’s all worth it.

little green riding hood

north side


a cool field trip for a lazy sunday! will definitely climb it again in 2010, when (if) we return to shanghai for the expo, to see how the city has changed in the meantime.

Categories
in china in shanghai traveling

wednesday night at the races

here they come!

Happy Valley Racecourse: It was first built in 1845 to provide horse racing for the British people in Hong Kong. Before it was built, the area was a swampland, but also the only flat ground suitable for horse racing on Hong Kong Island. To make way for the racecourse, Hong Kong Government prohibited rice growing by villages in the surrounding area. The first race ran in December 1846. Over the years, horse racing became more and more popular among the Chinese residents. (from wikipedia)

one of the highlights of hong kong was the happy valley horse races (how come lonely planet doesn’t mention them?!). tons of dressed up expats in the ground near the track, cheerfully socializing with beers in hand, discussing horses and jockey performances, while the stadium balconies were brimming with chinese people, carefully watching the screens and checking their notebooks and newspapers for guidance. despite the contrast in attitude, everyone seemed really into it – her majesty would be really proud!

all the expats socializing

the racecourse

paying attention

for us newbies to the sport, it was great! the atmosphere was really enthusiastic, exploding into cheers during the race itself, and then relaxing again during the betting time, with lots of drinking and smaller events going on. we didn’t place any bets (the system is a bit tricky) but still had fun just immersing ourselves in this environment. in don’t miss it if you get the chance to go there!

betting slips and newspaper

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in china in hong kong traveling

what do all the filipino girls in hong kong do on their day off?

well, as we found out in our recent stay there, they camp under the hsbc building and on parks and empty streets in central for the purpose of socializing. they’re literally everywhere you can look at!

we had a bit of a hard time “understanding” why so many people were there (especially hsbc’s plaza?), but as we discovered, they stay there all day, doing each others nails, having picnics, chatting, dancing and singing, exercising, knitting, doing business, playing cards… it’s really quite something and a big surprise to see that the government actually cuts some roads for them to “occupy” on that day!

we didn’t get any good pictures of the phenomena, but here are a few from flickr (by furiousgeorge and ljubisa):





impressive, isn’t it?

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in china in portugal traveling

澳門 = àomén = macau

alto! sentido!

The name Macau is thought to be derived from the temple. It is said that when the Portuguese sailors landed at the coast just outside the temple and asked the name of the place, the natives replied “A-Ma-Gao” (Bay of A-Ma). The Portuguese then named the peninsula Macau.

from wikipedia

macau, the most densely populated territory in the world, is a little city that used to be portuguese – until the portuguese gave it to china in 1999 or so. it’s a short boat ride from hong kong, so we decided to hop on the ferry and spend a day there last week… and well, what a difference a boat ride makes.

macau is a million years from hong kong. it thrives on casinos (and pawn houses) – i believe it is the only place in “china” where gambling is legal (1 country, 2 systems policy). our companions on the ferry? loads of old chinese people, eager to hop on the first bus that drove them to a casino. which is a bit sad… but then again, the overwhelming feeling i got in macau was precisely sadness. macau looked old and depressed, with the same chaotic urban planning reminiscent of a neglected mid-sized portuguese city.

macau

the fun part though, was checking all the double translations in portuguese/chinese that give macau a very peculiar feeling (even though only 0.6% of the population speaks portuguese), counting our patacas, and walking in a portuguese “calçada” again, surrounded by semi-familiar facades.
closing our eyes and pretending, just for a second, that we were in portugal.

pataquinha!

MAR I SQUEIRA

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in china traveling

summer recap

snacks

summer has been good, despite the silence.
the olympics have come and gone and i guess now we’ll see how much life changes (or not), when it all fades away.
my company changed offices to a shiny new place, which unfortunately is located on the other side of town. the commute is now much lengthier, but watching shanghai in the morning through the bus window can be eye opening.

a couple of couchsurfers have surfed our couch too, true citizens of the world hopping between countries and cities. their stories and energy is what makes new this hobby so much interesting. i hope we can make use of this good karma on an upcoming trip to kuala lumpur and singapore. the weather there looks lousy right now, but we need a break from this city. a lot of exploring and sightseeing are in order, some gastronomical adventures and tons of pictures. if you have some tips, leave them in the comments!