{"id":239,"date":"2009-08-18T17:54:04","date_gmt":"2009-08-18T21:54:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/web1prod.sunflowerit.ca\/wordpress\/?p=239"},"modified":"2025-07-03T15:11:11","modified_gmt":"2025-07-03T19:11:11","slug":"shanghai-one-last-update","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sunflowerit.ca\/travel\/china-2009\/trips-asia\/other-trips\/shanghai-one-last-update\/","title":{"rendered":"Shanghai: One last update"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Thursday, Aug. 13 \u2013 This morning, Jenny’s brother and sister-in-law joined us to pick up the new curtain for our bedroom. It took a while to leave the curtain store as last minute alterations were required. After lunch, we again all left home for Nanjing Road in order to buy snacks for Canada and pick up a birthday cake for someone celebrating his 47th years. We had some ice cream at McDonald’s. We got travel information regarding a day trip to Zhouzhuang, a water city near Shanghai. In the evening, all of Jenny’s relatives meet us at a very fancy restaurant to celebrate my birthday. It was truly a nice gesture on everyone’s part, especially Jenny’s younger brother who treated us to this nice restaurant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Friday, Aug. 14 \u2013 Jenny and I went for a long walk along Nanjing Road and browsed into many stores. Later, we took a one hour cruise on the Huangpu River. While walking back under the rain, we stopped for some ice cream at McDonald’s and later some coffee and iced cappuccino at a trendy coffee shop. It seems we timed our return home with rush hour in Shanghai. Seeing the crowds rushing in to the subway trains was quite an experience \u2013 this is not the time to be courteous!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saturday, Aug. 15 \u2013 We booked, a few days ago, a day excursion to Zhouzhuang with Jenny’s younger brother’s family. The young sister in law works 12 hours day every other day. Our excursion coincide with her day off rest. We meet to tour bus at People’s Square at 7:50am. The 30-seat bus was full. After a bit more than on the road, we arrived at Zhouzhuang. Considered the first water town in China, Zhouzhuang was a nice surprise \u2013 on the touristy side but much more enjoyable than Lijiang (Yunan) or for that matter even more pleasant than Suzhou. Unfortunately, shortly after our arrival it started to rain for more than one hour. After purchasing some umbrellas and raincoats, it naturally stopped raining. Nonetheless, the weather improved greatly for the rest of the day. Again the water city was quite enjoyable, especially including the boat ride along its narrow canals. As part of the excursion, we also visited a silk museum and another Buddhist temple. We finished the day by treating everyone to some Pizza Hut. It was a great opportunity for Jenny’s brother’s family to try-out their hands with a knife and fork eating experience. We finally finished the evening by walking along the famous and highly popular Nanjing Road. We made a small detour into Jenny’s old neighborhood. It was like going through memory lane.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunday, Aug. 16 \u2013 Today we bused to Jenny’s old neighborhood for a quick visit of an old lady still living in a longtang (hutong) at age 76. In preparation for our flight back, we bought some nylons bags at a flea market to help us carry all of our souvenirs and snacks we’ve purchased over the pass week. Jenny managed to find and purchase some DVD for Victoria and some karaoke for herself. For supper, we treated Jenny’s younger brother and son to some KFC. In the evening, we visited an old friend of Jenny’s mom, now aged 86 and living with her son’s family. She was quite happy to see us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monday, Aug. 17 \u2013 This morning we joined Jenny’s younger brother and his wife for a visit of the the local open-air food market. Although, they usually bike to do these errands, this morning we all walked together. Along the way, we stopped for breakfast for some fried xiaolongbao. On the return trip, we opted for a taxi ride. I managed to get a second hair cut \u2013 shorter than the first one. We spent much of the afternoon trying to pack all our belongings and souvenirs. In the evening, we took some tricycles to Jenny’s older nephew’s place for supper. We took us a bit of time to locate his building among all the other similar buildings in that neighborhood. Another meal with tons of food plates.<\/p>\n\n\n