Here we are. Wow!

Our hotel is about 0.5km from the world-famous Bund, the riverside road created by the colonial powers. Their palaces and godowns (warehouses) were built along here. Today many are still there, though a large highway seperates them from the raised walkway and the river itself. On the other side is Pudong, where modern Shanghai scrambles upwards in ever more futuristic skyscrapers.

We were exhausted after the long trip. Four hours sleep had made it possible to face the city but wasn’t enough for the full onslaught. We walked from the hotel to the Bund as dusk grew. Not that you could tell for sure: a strikingly important feature of Shanghai is the air pollution. It makes the views hazy and burns your throat. Air conditioning is welcome for the cool (it’s 34 degrees) and relief from 70% humidity) but most of all to escape the smog.

Enough with the grumpiness! The Bund was thronged with tourists (mostly Chinese) and promenaders. We walked as far as the pier where you can get a ferry across, and then turned back. It was getting dark and the extravagant lights were coming on across the river. It’s a bit like the light display of Hong Kong; not (yet) as spectacular but much, much longer. This cruise ship, her masts outlined, came by. In the background you can see the gaudy bauble which is the Oriental Pearl Tower – Shainghai’s own TV and telecoms tower completed in 1994.