After my brief trip to Ningbo, I really enjoyed spending last weekend in Shanghai. It's vibrant, history-filled, laid-back, design-conscious, foody-friendly, walkable -- what more can you ask for?

There's a slight caveat re the walkability, and that is that you have to be super-alert to the damn motorbikes. Ghostly quiet, on account of their electric motors, and utterly undeterred by the cold, on account of their built-in padded sleeves and duvet arrangement, they ruthlessly violate pedestrians' crossing rights.

That hazard aside, however, Shanghai is an excellent city to walk in, providing tree-lined roads (at this time of year the branches cast pretty networks of shadows, but in the hot, hot summer they no doubt offer welcome relief), pavements, crossing places, and lots of roadside attractions like statuary, topiary, and lively shopfronts.







I would also caution against arranging to leave on a night flight. The metro to the airport stops running surprisingly early; taxis slap on a hefty surcharge after 11 pm; and very few businesses are open at the airport in the wee small hours.

But these quibbles aside, it was a great trip.

I must put in a special plug for the Narada Boutique Hotel. For not too much money (off-season at least), you get an excellent location, a decent-sized room (with sitting area), a great view (above), an elegant decor, fluffy bathrobes and slippers, genuine flowers and plants, and a real coffee machine. An impressive combo, I'm sure you'll agree.

Sightseeing highlights:

On Day 1, we walked along the Bund (old colonial to the left, new financial to the right, on the other side of the river); along Nanjing Road East, where the 1920s/30s department stores are gathered; and through a corner of People's Park to Xintiandi, an area of restored shikumen (historic houses).









Xintiandi has become a trendy zone of shopping and dining establishments, but still, it's nice to see these buildings being tarted up rather than torn down. We visited one that's open to the public. Very atmospheric, and redolent of that imagination-grabbing 1920s/30s era. There was even a little between-floors room such as figures in one of the Inspector Chen novels.





On Day 2 we walked via Xintiandi to Tianzifang. This is another old area that has become an enclave of food and design (although some real life still lingers in the alleyways). It's a fun place to wander round, and the Liuli China Museum offers not only extraordinary glass artworks but also a damn fine lunch (see below). Featured at the moment is Toots Zynsky, who does vibrantly coloured dancing shapes made out of glass fibres. On permanent display are Chang Yi, who reflects Zen ideas, and Loretta H. Yang, who offers up glass odes to the Buddha.





From Tianzifang you can walk to Nanshi (the old town). This is another Shanghai altogether: narrow streets; vendors popping corn in ancient contraptions, or hawking baked potatoes, or frying up what looked like dosas by the side of the crowded roads; knots of men standing round watching mahjong or card games; washing strung out along the electricity lines, or indeed along any vacant support. A little further on, you can catch the ferry across the river to Pudong. Which, I guess, is the third Shanghai. Here is the financial district and its commercial life-support system. It's a thicket of towering, thrusting steel and glass.





In the evening, we visited the Shanghai History Museum, which is part of the Oriental Pearl complex. It's heavier on visuals than on actual information, but its recreations of old Shanghai's streets, shops and entertainment places are detailed, attractive, and atmospheric.



On Day 3, we hoofed to Yuyuan Gardens. Get there early, because by 10.30 on a Sunday they're utterly manic... But definitely don't miss this true delight for the senses. Every way you turn there are lovely compositions of rocks, water, walls, doorways, pavilions, blossom, branches, and rooftiles. Gorgeous.











A couple of refreshment stops later, we were trugging out on Shanghai's blisteringly efficient metro to Longyang Road station, with the object of catching the super-fast Maglev train out to the airport. This sounds rather strange, since we were not catching our plane till very early the following morning. But a little research had revealed that the Maglev stops running well before we needed to be there. Furthermore, it does its super-fast bit only at certain times of the day. So we bought return tickets to the airport...

We caught a "normal" Maglev out -- one of the ones that "only" reaches 300 kph. On the way back, we got a 430-kph service. Quite something... It tilts to do corners, so outside the window, the apartment blocks gently lean. You recognize you're going fast, but it feels effortless. As the train left again for another fast run to the airport -- with Nigel videoing -- the platform attendant saluted. Nice.





Food and drinks highlights:

I had a bit of a chocolate thing going on in Shanghai. It started with a wonderful chocolate and cointreau "hot cocktail" in Chalet Plus, the bar two-down from the hotel. Imagine a grownup version of those Terry's chocolate oranges we used to have at Christmas when I was a teenager, and you've pretty much got the idea. Then there was an artistic (and expensive) mocha coffee in a trendy cafe on the road behind the Bund. And a very satisfying hot chocolate at Cafe Mojo in the Tianzifang area, with the rumble of the traffic backgrounding the mournful 70s songs on the sound system.



Generally, I like my coffee to taste of coffee, and tend to spurn flavoured lattes, but having seen "rose latte" on the menu of the exuberantly decorated Maancat Coffee, I decided to drop my coffee purism for a while, and was rewarded with Turkish Delight in a cup. Not at all bad if you want a little sweetness in your morning.

With it came a complimentary sweet porridge ("for ladies"). I think this was a version of eight treasures porridge. In with the slightly sweetened rice were white fungus, red dates, and various other health-giving nuts and berries. As I continue to cough like a seal in the circus, I can only hope the health-giving promise holds true.

The dim sum at Crystal Jade in Xintiandi is highly recommendable. We sampled steamed dumplings in a lively sauce; steamed buns filled with crisp, fresh veges; fluffy turnip mash encased in a wonderfully light, crispy, deep-fried pastry shell; and airy, puffed up egg-white wrappers enclosing a red bean and banana mixture.

For breakfast, we liked to frequent a cheap, busy, point-and-pay Chinese diner. We enjoyed various tasty noodle soups, and a nice take on rice porridge. The stars of the show, however, were some delectable crispy-bottomed dumplings, with a meat ball and gravy inside and a tangy vinegar to dip them in.



And, because Shanghai is nothing if not cosmopolitan, I should mention the very creditable crispy crust pizza, accompanied by a couple of glasses of Chilean Cab Sav, at T&J's next door to the hotel; a fabulously executed cold beef sandwich at the Liuli Museum Cafe; and a luscious piece of mango cake (with super-spongy sponge) at Musk Cat Coffee on the Pudong side of the river (best enjoyed while watching the sun set over the colonial buildings of the Bund).

Looking forward to next time already...