Old Town: This is the center of the old Chinese city, the first part of Shanghai to be settled and where foreigners rarely went during the Concession days.
It was pretty funny seeing a KFC in the middle of all the traditional Chinese shops.
Gotta love Starbucks!!!
Yuyuan Garden:Yuyuan is a 400 year old classical Chinese garden in the Old Town of Shanghai. A local official named Pan Yunduan spent twenty years and all his savings building it to please his parents in their old age. It's full of elaborate rockeries, goldfish ponds, arched bridges, and Chinese pavilions. This was one of our favorite places we visited!
Group shot: Frank, Melissa, Josephine, Ben, Marissa, Sally, Tarryn, and Eliza
Melissa, Eliza, Tarryn, Josephine, and Sally
Everyone was having a lot of fun taking different "effect" pictures...This one is known as "rock effect."
Window effect
Door effect
Frank, Eliza, Josephine, Sally, and Tarryn
As soon as I was getting ready to take this pic of Eliza and Sally, some Chinese worker came and put her bucket down right in the middle of them! haha
Eliza apparently doesn't know how to read- the sign says "Danger! The slope is slippery." ^_^ (just a joke)
Fuxing Park and the French Concession: The French Concession is an area of Shanghai that was once designated for the French. It's an area filled with small boutiques, cafes, old houses, and wide, tree-lined streets. Within the French Concession is Fuxing Park, which was formerly a private estate until 1909. This park is one of the city's most popular parks. Unfortunately we visited Shanghai in the winter when most of the flowers and trees were dead...it was still really nice and relaxing to walk around, though.
Fuxing Park and the French Concession: The French Concession is an area of Shanghai that was once designated for the French. It's an area filled with small boutiques, cafes, old houses, and wide, tree-lined streets. Within the French Concession is Fuxing Park, which was formerly a private estate until 1909. This park is one of the city's most popular parks. Unfortunately we visited Shanghai in the winter when most of the flowers and trees were dead...it was still really nice and relaxing to walk around, though.
We split up from our group of 10 for part of the day...so it was us with Josephine, Christine, and Laura
A man painting Chinese characters on the sidewalk.
These were huge water tubes that kids could play in...think of a hamster running on a wheel and that's what the kids looked like!
Kids could also rent paddle boats.
Families fishing in a pond.
Groups of men were gathered around tables playing cards and chess.
A group of men playing cards in the park.
Laura and Christine in front of the rose garden.
Frank, Josephine, and Christine strolling the French Concession.
One of the beautiful European houses in the French Concession.
Papa John's written in Chinese really amused us!
Our view of China:
Our experiences in Beijing and Shanghai were so wonderful that it's made China one of our top 3 Asian countries we've visited, along with Japan and Thailand. We love how China's maintained it's culture and individuality despite communism. We feel so lucky to have had the opportunity to visit Shanghai, especially with such a fun group of friends. Now we're planning a trip to Cambodia in February for just the two of us.
Having lived in Asia for almost 3 years total, we have had the chance to visit so many countries...here's where we've been so far:
Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, and soon to be Cambodia
Our dream is to backpack through Europe. We have only been to Italy, and would love to see more!
Another great adventure!
ReplyDeleteWe are so proud of you for wanting to learn about other cultures and countries. There is much beauty in our world to see. We see God's hand in all of nature, and we are amazed at all that people are able to do to make life more enjoyable. Stay healthy as you are working so hard in South Korea this year! Be sure to come see us when you get back to America!
ReplyDeleteGrandma and Grandpa