The Lunch

There was going to be a point when my most hospitable colleague would take me the upscale restaurant and order various local dish. Lunch today was that experience - Several items are order from the menu with 0% knowledge from me as too their potential pending epicurean delights. As I can remember I had the following: 1) Some green 2 pad peas in which you were really not supposes to read the pod. This I only discovered after a few and watch my colleagues eject the hull. 2) Lotus root stuffed with rice
3) Eggplant - a la king 4) A green leafy and mussel-like dish 5) Beef and peppers - safe 6) A sweet and sour soup with out the sweet - many bowls consumed. and 7) The ' the big one' Chairman Mao dish consisting of eel and tripe - I went full into it - with no regrets - The whole meal was great and I feel I could go deeper in the experimental realm of Shanghai delicacies.

Street DVDs

So suppose someone wanted to buy some DVDs, perhaps these DVD would not necessarily be original, maybe it would be possible to, say get the whole StarTrek and Friends 10 Seasons for about 100RMB ($14). Not that I am condoning this type of purchase - I likely could be done and still you would think that you were ripped off. I have heard that the base price for the DVD is 5 RMB ($0.70). Not that it would be so likely that both box sets might be sitting next to each other in the cart on the side of the street, I still think that 100RMB each is still too much, but anyway maybe someone would buy them...

Day 1 Walk to the Bund

After arrival I walked to the Bund - an historic British influenced string on the west side of the river. The river front has some stunning views of Western Pudong modern tech and the riverside. The riverside walkway is littered with mostly local tourists taking dozens of pictures of the riverside.


"No Thanks - I do not want to buy a Rolex" - yet

On the way to the Bund I stopped by the Hyatt Hotel in the heart of the Pudong. I has about 80+ floors of which the lobby starts at 54th and the bar is at 87th. The view from this hotel is the best in Shanghai for the water front view.


A Bund Wedding

Arrival in Shanghai

I arrived in Shanghai with little issue and less entry fuss - fill in the three forms and state that you do not have terrible diseases and your - not a word or question - just a stamp and follow the line out. Getting a taxi I was told to avoid the immediate taxi drivers asking you at the door and proceed to the proper taxi stand. Flashing my hotel 'take me to the ... hotel card' I am off down the new highways of the Pudong District toward my hotel. The Pudong District is a newer part of Shanghai in which large companies and multinationals have setup offices. I looks no different from any NA large commercial area.

China - India

Getting ready to go to China (Shanghai) and India (Chennai) for business. Planning (loose wording) to buy a sitar in India. I have already pegged out a store in Chennai with overpriced musical instruments...