 (Photo Dec. `06) ORIENTAL PEARL RADIO AND TV TOWER THE THIRD TALLEST TOWER IN THE WORLD |
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The first morning in Shanghai, actually near the outskirts of a district called Pu Dong, we caught a bus towards the center of Pu Dong and went grocery shopping.
Pu Dong would be, in relation to Shanghai, as Richmond is to Vancouver, except it is not a separate municipality.
 LOTUS SUPERCENTER |
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From the outskirts of Pu Dong to the Lotus Supercenter is a twenty minute bus ride which costs 1 Yuan. A forty minute bus ride would take you to a large shopping area, 1 Yuan, but still not to the main downtown area of Shanghai, which would cost 3 Yuan.
In the heart of Pu Dong they have build a large park and government area with a huge new City Hall and surrounding support buildings. Just about finished these buildings will sit empty as Shanghai has said that Pu Dong is not a separate city and may not have its own city hall.
The outlying districts, such as Pu Dong, like the suburb of Richmond, gobble up fertile land. Crops are replaced by residential complexes, driving prices up. Potatoes that once cost Y1 are now Y5 for a 5 Kg. bag.
Link to Pictures of Century park.
 `03 THIS MOTORCYCLE TRAINING CENTER WAS BUILT BEHIND THE WALL. |
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I walked to the market one morning, `00, and climbed a pile of rubbish to look over a brick wall. I watched a crane lift long concrete beams onto a tractor trailer. When I returned home that night the beams were gone, as were the truck and crane.
The next morning when I went to the market the wall was gone as well.
When I returned home that evening, workers were removing the foundation of the wall. As I passed, each in his turn, greeted me with his meagre repertoire of English, "Hello".
With my equally limited knowledge of Mandarin, I replied, "Nee how". Smiles lit their dust encrusted faces.
I found this wherever I went. People would go out of their way to say, "Hello", to me, then smile and laugh when I replied.
 THE PEARL TOWER WHICH USED TO DWARF THE CUSTOMS AND MARINE BUILDINGS IS NOW DWARFED BY TWO NEW STRUCTURES |
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It is hard to keep up with modern technology and construction. Older brochures and pictures show the Pearl Tower flanked by the Customs Building and the Marine Building. If one goes to the East of the Pearl Tower, to Green Land Park you can see the Pearl Tower, if you position yourself correctly, framed between two huge towers. These towers, though nearly finished are still under construction and are not in most pictures nor are they on the signs around the lake in Green Land. They are very new and much larger than the Marine and Customs buildings which, now, hide in their shadows.
This area is so spectacular that one wants to circumnavigate each building and stare in awe, but like Las Vegas the buildings are so immense that it would be impractical to take a taxi and have him stop several times so that you can get out and take pictures. Unlike New York or Vancouver where the buildings have a small footprint and are close together the buildings in Las Vegas and Pu Dong are much too large and far apart for enjoyable walking.
East of Green Land Park is the new Century Square. Here, spread over many acres, is a huge complex of municipal buildings with acres and acres of flowers and walkways. In the center, separated by a wide walkway are two entrances to the underground transit system.
| SUNDIAL |  An enormous sundial occupies the island in the center of a new intersection |
 FIRST SIGN OF SPRING? |
The walkway divides the entire area and runs from a mammoth sundial in the middle of an enormous intersection that has very few vehicles using it, over a large pedestrian overpass, above an equally impressive, and empty, freeway to a large floral clock at the entrance to a large park (Pu Dong Century Park) with an impressive sized lake.
The park was also almost deserted. Maybe it was the fact that it was midweek and everyone was at work. Except for the massive buildings I had the feeling I was standing in the middle of a Saskatchewan wheat field. Miles and miles of miles and miles with only crows and the odd farmer for company.
Pu Dong is probably the fastest growing area in the world. A new network of freeways connects the equally new airport to the metropolis of Shanghai while a new subway and new bridges connect Pu Dong to the center of the city.
| TRUCK GARDENS | LANE FROM GARDENS TO MARKET. |
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| Jing Fu leads the way through a farm which is rapidly being taken over by residential housing. | There are approx. twice as many vendors and twice as many buyers, at this market, in `03 as compared to `02. |
Everywhere one looks is demolition and construction creating contrasts between old and new and farm and city.
Three bus lines terminate behind Bin's residential complex. In `02 these busses were nearly empty when they completed their runs. In `03 they usually had several passengers aboard.
 THIS BUS WILL TAKE YOU TO THE HEART OF SHANGHAI FOR Y3. |
 THIS BUS WILL TAKE YOU |
 TRANSPORTATION, OLD VS NEW. |
| THIS STREET, IN AN OLDER PART OF PU DONG, KNOWN AS ZHOU PU, LEADS TO A MAZE OF SMALL SHOPS. |  Link to pictures of Zhou Pu. |
 Winter `03, dressed to go to shopping in Zhou Pu. Though the sun was bright the breeze was bitter. |
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