the middle country, part one

China…many things have come to symbolize this complicated nation and its ancient culture…pagodas, tea, kung fu, buddhism, mao zedong, tian’anmen square, feng shui, bird flu, one-child law, tai chi, red lanterns, peking duck, chopsticks, sweat shops, chinese silk, eggrolls, indecipherable language, cheap knock-offs, dragons, fried rice... The mention of this country conjures up images of a poor communist state with uniform-clad red army soldiers intimidating average citizens, a view reinforced by the strict visa processes and stories like “Chinese dissident writer gets 12 years in prison. Court finds Yang Tianshui guilty of subversion, though evidence kept secret" which was reported by the associated press. it brings to mind an enormous wall which was built in the 14th century to isolate the country from mongol and turkic tribes that is falsely reported to be visible from space. it's a dynamic place where you can experience one of the most incredible things about traveling…the chance to strip the fiction from the fact, separate the clichés from real culture, and the p.r. from the true plight. when you put yourself in a set of new circumstances, you give them the opportunity to defy your expectations. in a culture so radically different from our own, it does take some work to get over the ‘pier one effect’. the west has taken many ideas from the orient and shaped them for commercial viability and produced them for the masses. so when you see actual vibrant pagodas with ornate dragons and delicate gold leaf, it takes a moment to remember this isn’t touristy kitsch, but the inspiration for it…this isn’t a living room decoration sold at a pier one outlet, it’s a relic with deep and rich history. that's not to say i'm anti-internationalization or against the borrowing of ideas from other cultures…without japanese influences [miyabi’s, toyota, suzuki, sushi] in my american life, i doubt my interest in the east would’ve been so strongly piqued and i may not have ended up in the rewarding situation in which i find myself. [sidenote: i first used the term ‘pier one effect’ when i was in thailand where that impression came from walking through streets and temples where gaudiness and beauty are so intertwined and inextricable. it seemed that a pier one bomb had been dropped on bangkok, sprinkling porcelain fragments and mirrored discs over every vibrantly colored surface. you have to check yourself, consciously reminding yourself that the west borrowed these styles...of course, the chicken came before the egg.]

although we did see a group of starched-uniform, stoic military men eerily pedaling old bikes through the beijing streets, china proved to be very different from what i’d expected…in a good way.

shanghai is china’s number one contender for a world class city. it boasts an international feel, which is rare in china, thanks to its colonial history which has left abstract and concrete marks on the society. european architecture lines the Yangtze river, which is an ideal port that was taken advantage of by the british, french, americans and japanese. it’s also the largest industrial city in china so it draws workers from around the globe to its prosperous and growing commercial centers. the push to become modern has given shanghai a shot of international flavor that manifests in a variety of cuisines available in posh restaurants catering to the money-laden transplants and visitors, and infamous shopping streets lined with the biggest, most fashionable designer boutiques. luckily these settings aren’t the polished, sanitized versions of classy living; they are surrounded by the habitats of average citizens. i got the impression that, similar to the infamous discrepancy in wealth found between those in the cities and the countryside in china, there is a huge divide between the privileged and the lower class bracket in shanghai. i was most captivated by the everyday things that seemed so extraordinary from my perspective. roaming the streets, winding through neighborhoods was preferable to spending the day shopping on infamous nanjing road; buying dumplings and beer from a street stall was infinitely more interesting than lining up outside a classy restaurant boasting an english menu. all that being said, we did treat ourselves well on occasion. like the dinner at park 97, where the seared scallops in delicate pumpkin sauce were a perfect start and the big cabernet was a fabulous accompaniment to peppercorn encrusted australian prime rib. we paid, by chinese standards, an exorbitant 400 RMB each which worked out to about 50 bucks. although we were on somewhat of a budget, our currency was strong enough that we could enjoy eating nearly anywhere we pleased. like at this fabulous shanghai hotpot restaurant...

each person chooses a broth [i opted for hot curry that was full of chunky and leafy spices] and then you order heaping plates of meat, seafood and veggies to divy up between your pots. the scent was so intoxicating...

and the food was really, really good even though we had no idea how long to cook anything. and they had this amazing liquid buffet where you could engineer your own vat of dipping sauce.
most often though we snacked throughout the day on every delicious or intriguing fare we passed...
we had a really hard time getting any food in this place.

the staff was busy and not in the mood to deal with us. we thought we could order at the counter by pointing to other tables' food but were quickly brushed aside so they could help decipherable customers. not to be deterred, i gestured towards some interesting food and urged a bystander to write it's name down in chinese. after doing this a couple times, i took that paper to the register where they seemed amused and obliged. unfortunately the dumplings weren't as tasty as they had appeared. great action shot...yeah for gross gushes...

then off to squat in bamboo park for a bit.


this is the view from our hotel.

the $60 rooms were huge and well situated in town and manned by the friendliest, english speaking bell boys ever.

it was a couple minutes walk to loads of markets and bustling strips...






and around the corner from the hotel was old town nanshi, which was the first part of shanghai to be settled and the only part to never be overrun by foreigners. non-chinese rarely ventured into this walled enclave until recent years. there was great architecture here although a lot of it has been undoubtedly restored.



we did hit the posh shopping district...

but did more beer drinking and people watching than gucci and prada purchasing...


we spent a lot of our time in shanghai wandering through neighborhoods and tracing popular local pedestrian routes.





often times we found ourselves literally on strangers' front doorsteps. luckily no one seemed to mistake our curiosity for invasion of privacy.


he skinned these eels with unreal speed and precision honed through years of practice i'm sure.

we stumbled upon the trip's bronze medal winning meal in one of these such neighborhood alleyways. we got ripped off which unfortunately taints the experience. i was quite disheartened to watch every asian-looking customer pay half as much as we did moments later.

they tossed a bowl of rice at you and you got busy serving yourself from dozens of tubs laid out. my bowl of plants, curd and weeds was vegetarian heaven; a great mix of colors, textures and tastes.

i was a bit weary of the meat in china, not due to bird flu but because they aren't really partial to boneless, skinless, tendonless, organless cuts.



we discovered this amazing street that was truly overwhelming to the senses...

the sounds of clattering bikes and vendors hawking their wares...


the feel of bustling commerce...

the smells of sizzling dumplings and steaming buns...

i found myself paralyzed in the middle of the street, looking as toursits do when all that they're taking in lags behind their cerebral processing. i'm sure i turned in circles, mouth agape, for quite sometime. then i stuffed that gaping mouth full of delicious treats...



too bad we were full of dumplings...


a charming temple we happened upon...



during our first stint in shanghai we squeezed in a kung fu theater performance too.
stay tuned...in the next addition, we're off to beijing...