Known throughout the world as "Pearl of the Orient" Shanghai is a modern and fast paced city, rich in history, culture and with a wealth of areas and sites just waiting to be explored. One of the nicest aspects of Shanghai is that the crowds here are much more manageable than in a city like Beijing. This is largely because there are no great ancient sites which people flock to. Rather, this is a city to be walked, wandered, explored and discovered in your own time and, in your own style.

One approach however, is to investigate Shanghai's former Concession areas and the wealth of treasures they hold. What makes Shanghai particularly attractive are the many different styles of architecture and design throughout the city. Shanghai was once divided up into different "Concessions" or districts and the boundaries of these areas still remain today. The famous, Bund was home to the "British Public Park" and this boulevard has a plethora of colonial structures to visit, all reminders of Shanghai's days of decadence. The Japanese and the French Concessions too, are fascinating areas to explore. The French quarter is a particularly charming district to wander, and there are many former residences to look at and discover something about old Shanghai and the people who lived here. The area known as the "Chinese City" is also worthy of a visit. Take a break from the tourists around the Yuyuan and do some serious antique shopping or just lose yourself amidst the old alleys and streets.

Shanghai is a spectacularly modern city and the pace of development here is unbelievable. The newest area of the city, Pudong , is almost unrecognizable from the way it was when development began here 10 years ago. Two of the most impressive city structures can be found here, the Jinmao Tower and the Oriental TV Tower.

Places to See

Naijing Road

Nanjing Road was the first commercial road in Shanghai. In the early 20th century, there were only four department stores along this stretch. Today, it has become the number one place for shopping in the city. The rolling-in money along the road has encouraged many companies and business over years to set up bases near here. Nanjing Road is fantastically located, stemming off the Huangpu River and the Bund at a right angle and linking the city's main commercial and residential districts to the mouth of the river. The road to the east of Tibet Road is called Nanjing Dong Road while the road to the west is known as Nanjing Xi Road.

In the past few years, mammoth changes have taken place here. The street was beginning to look a little down at heel and Huaihai road was pulling the wealthier customers away from this street. A huge improvement plan was put into action and completed just in time for Chinese New Year 2000. New shopping centers have been erected and a large section of the street has been pedestrianised. There are also some first class hotels scattered along the road including the Peace Hotel , and the Portman . In the evenings, the street looks at its best, with neon lights and advertising billboards illuminating the glorious buildings along the road.

Forbidden City   

Just opposite Tiananmen is the Imperial Palace, better known by its unofficial title, the Forbidden City. The largest and most complex preserved palace in China, it's a great place to explore. Lose yourself in the history and feel lucky that you can. For the Forbidden City used to be just that, - a name which reflects its history, for five centuries and through the reigns of 24 emperors- ordinary subjects were forbidden from even approaching the palace walls.

French Concession

When the Qing dynasty was defeated in the Opium War, the Chinese empire was compelled to open many of its cities to the outside world. Shanghai was on top of this list. As a result, many countries including Britain, the U.S. and France, demanded concessions in these cities where they could have total autonomy.

In Shanghai, the French Concession is the most famous among these districts. The Concession once covered an area extending from the Bund to Xiangyang Road. Today, the area known in the city as the French Concession has become remarkably fashionable and charming. Long home to the city's radicals and the base of the Chinese Communist Party, the district is still very outward looking and cosmopolitan in nature and style. There are some great shops and boutiques around here as well as two of the city's best art galleries.

Huaihai Road has always been the most famous road in the district and is named after a famous French general, Xaifei. The streets around Huaihai Road contain a wealth of glorious houses, villas and alleys waiting to be discovered. It is nice to just explore the streets, take shade under the parasol trees, discover the old residences around here and take a break in some of the city's most trendy restaurants and bars which have opened up in this district. There are also some great cake and sweet shops for those with (like the French) a taste for the finer things in life! And, when you want to sit down to relax and absorb the whole thing, Fuxing Park, is a lovely little area to take a break and watch the locals practicing Tai Chi or flying kites.

How to get there: The French Concession is the area on both sides of Huaihai Road. Take the subway to a Huaihai Road Station (metro line 1) and walk from there!

People's Square   

People's Square is a spectacular space in the heart of the city. Formerly the city's race-course, a sports arena and a gambler paradise, the area west of Nanjing Road was converted after the war to become the People's Square. Unlike many other Chinese city squares, Renmin Guangchang is not a concrete mass but a vast green area including plants and trees and surrounded by spectacular buildings on all sides.

The Square has been renovated again recently and opened up further and many of the old buildings around here are in the process of being ripped down.

Today, the Square covers 140,000 square meters. In the north lies the Municipal Government Mansion , an impressive and serious building which is not open to the public. In the northwest sits the Shanghai Grand Theatre , a colossal construction made almost entirely from glass which is balanced by the brand new Exhibition Hall for City Planning in the east. The most impressive building in the square however, is the Shanghai Museum . Perfectly smooth and symmetrical, the building was designed to resemble a Chinese cooking pot. The Square is particularly spectacular at night, when steam appears to seep out of the roof of the museum and the light bounces off the glass walls of the Grand Theatre.

Tucked away in the northwest corner of the square is the quirky Bird and Flower Market where locals come to buy trinkets, plants, fish and parade birds in their cages! These few lanes off Huangpi Road are a great contrast to the modern constructions in the main square.

The Square offers unusual and impressive views of the city. Surrounded on all sides by mammoth and overpowering constructions, new buildings attack you from all sides. The panorama of the city from the Square, while not the picture postcard image of Shanghai's Bund, is arguably, the most accurate image which reflects the changing nature of this sophisticated and modern city.

How to get there : People's Square has it's own subway station
Alternatively walk west of the Bund up Nanjing Road and you will eventually reach the Square.

Pudong  

The area that has changed most dramatically in the city in recent years is the eastern bank of the Huangpu River, and the district known as Pudong. Only ten years old this year, Pudong symbolizes everything that is new and exciting about Shanghai. The Oriental Pearl TV Tower , is a recent construction, which heralded the beginning of the Special Economic Region over the river. Development here is occurring at an incredible rate. The International Conference Center was completed last year, just in time for the Fortune 500 conference which attracted literally thousands of investors to the city. Shanghai's Wall Street is also over here and hundreds of commuters make the trip under the river every day to work. The Jinmao Tower , the tallest building in China and the third tallest in the world, now soars above even the TV Tower, skyscrapers are shooting up all over the place, and what were empty fields only one year ago, are now homes to offices and luxury hotels. Work on what is planned to be the tallest building in the world, the Shanghai World Financial Center is due to begin any day.

The area also however, epitomizes all that is dangerous about this chameleon of a city. Over seventy percent of the brand new office space constructed lies empty and the cost of living here is shooting up. The gap between the rich and poor is huge, unemployment is high and pollution in the city is choking Shanghai residents.

And yet, after spending a little time in the city, the overall feeling is clearly optimistic. Shanghai residents have a very strong minded and almost arrogant approach to their city. They know it is advanced, economically rich and an exciting place to be. This city has achieved so much already and looks like continuing to do so well into the 21st century.

The Bund  

The symbol of old and new Shanghai, the Bund (officially known as Zhongshan Road) is Shanghai's most famous landmark. The 'Bund' is from an Anglo Indian term meaning the muddy embankment on the waterfront, and it is the Huangpu River which helps create the uniquely colonial feel here and provides a feeling of space and openness which is lacking elsewhere in the city. Four kilometers long, the Bund has long been one of the most important areas in Shanghai. In the 1930s, the row of buildings was host to the city's financial and commercial centers and the world's greatest banks and trading empires established a base here.

At the North end of the Bund and just over the Garden Bridge and Suzhou Creek is what was formerly the British embassy. Also here is a large and atmospheric blue painted building which is the Russian Embassy, sitting precariously on the bank of the river. In colonial times, the Bridge was guarded by Japanese and British sentries marking the boundaries of territory.

On the 'British side' of the bridge is the entrance to Huangpu Park. More of a pedestrian walkway than a conventional park, this area was also under the control of the Brits. The British Public Park (as it was once known) was forbidden territory to Chinese people for years, unless they were accompanying employers. Today, the park is free and open to all and is a well- maintained walkway providing excellent views over the river to Pudong and down river to the old Custom House and other colonial relics.

On the west side of the Bund tower various buildings of different architectural styles including Gothic, baroque, and Romanesque. The combination of these creates a unique boulevard, which resembles the Liverpool Docks and 1920s New York.

Today, the Bund is still home to many of the city's hotels, bars and banks. The nature of the area has not changed so dramatically either. Huge western banks and office buildings dominate the horizon of the Bund, emphasizing the role the city plays as a commercial and financial base.

The pleasure of the Bund, is that it is not simply a tourist strip but a place that everyone enjoys. At sunrise, the boulevard fills up with people of all ages practicing Tai Chi or dancing. In the day, while visitors file up and down the long strip, it's business as usual in many of these magnificent buildings. And, in the evenings, couples wander along the river front, holding hands and enjoying the spectacular city lights, buildings and atmosphere of the area which provide a continual reminder that Shanghai was, and in may ways still is, a foreign invention.

Xujiahui

Xujiahui, which lies in the southwestern section of central Shanghai, is one of the most successful and modern commercial centers. Whereas Nanjing Road has a long history, Xujiahui is focusing on the future with two major computer markets and a number of large department stores and shopping centers. Xujiahui has a wide range of prices.

Each of the giant department stores is positioned for certain markets. Examples include: the Pacific Shopping Mall , the Oriental Department Store , and Huijin Department Store all offer up-scale and relatively expensive shopping with many international brands and No. 6 Department Store (near the Pacific ) is a medium range choice in the area.

How to get there : Xujiahui subway station can be found on metro line 1.

Yuyuan

Yuyuan Garden is situated not far from the Bund in the southwestern side of the city. It is certainly tacky-a kind of China meets Disney with an added twist-but nevertheless well worth a visit.

The Garden itself is completed in 1577 by the Pan family in Shanghai. The original garden was destroyed twice in the 1800s and has now been restored. It is usually pretty busy but, worth looking at if you can either come during the week or are prepared to face the mass. It covers a significant space and include a few halls, springs and other buildings of interest.

The area surrounding the Garden makes up the Old City God's Temple Area and was known in colonial times as the 'Chinese City'.Today, the area directly around Yuyuan has been renovated somewhat tastelessly and is a mass of tourist shops and naff decorations. The Queen of England visited here recently and took tea in the famous Huxinting Tea House. The tea house is something of an institution around these parts and while quaint and interesting, is extortionately over-priced.

What is nice about this area are the numerous antique markets and the small side streets which have yet to be renovated by the authorities. There is a great antique market just off Shanghai 'Old street' and another on a small alley called Dongtai Road. Be prepared to bargain hard in these places though. Some of the stuff is genuine but other 'antiques' are less authentic and its slightly worrying that the most popular English word in these places seems to be 'very old, very cheap'!
Address: This area is a fair size and includes the streets around Fuyou Road, Dongtai Road and Henan Road.
How to get there: Walk south along the Bund then swing a right at Jinling Dong Road. The Old City is the area to the south.