Should I Drive in Shanghai?

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Ken asked:

Just starting to gather info for a trip 4 of us are taking to Shanghai in August. Should we plan on getting a car and driving around the countryside during our 1 week stay?

My short answer:

Ken, I don’t know where you come from. My suggestion is, never think of driving a car in Shanghai, even in countryside if you are not from China. That can be exciting, and challenge, also dangerous. 1 week is too short for you to get used to the road system in Shanghai. You know what, even people from nearby cities like Hangzhou or Suzhou need to help a guide to sit in their car to find the destination.

For people from left driving countries, it is challenging. I tried to drive in Australia, it was not too hard, considering the relatively lower traffic, and better traffic rules. If you drive in Shanghai, it is not that easy.

Even if you come from a right-hand driving places, you need some time to get used to the traffic rules. Here are some tips for you if you really insist:

1. Slow down or prepare to stop when you see green lights. Green lights do not garentee a clear path to go through.

2. Always be considerate to pedstrains no matter what kind of rules they break. Watch out for people on the street. Their understanding is, if they are in the street, and cars should slow down. Don’t take it for granded that they will yeild.

3. Be focused and always read be ready to stop.

For more about driving in Shanghai, I hope my section about car and road helps:

https://home.wangjianshuo.com/archives/car.htm

https://home.wangjianshuo.com/archives/roads.htm

Good luck!

Best Shanghai Eatery Streets?

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10:09

stephen posted some streets named and asked me to translate them into Chinese. It is said they have the best eateries in Shanghai.

Dong Jia Du Lu 董家渡路

Renmin Lu 人民路

Yong Jia Lu 永嘉路

Xiangyang Nan Lu 襄阳南路

Hefei Lu 合肥路

Jinan Lu 济南路

Zhaozhou Lu 肇周路d to the list

Si Nan Lu 思南路

Huai Hai Zhong Lu 淮海中路

Tai Kang Lu 泰康路

Personally, I didn’t remember any special eatery on any of the street. What I do know is:

Dong Jia Du Lu was a nice place for silk, and clothes. They were recently shutdown also.

Ren Min Lu is the circle road that runs around the old Shanghai – “old” means very old, like one thousand years.

Yong Jia Road, and Si Nan Road are my best place for a walk in the afternoon. They are simply two of the most beautiful streets in Shanghai.

Tai Kang Lu is the art street with a lot of art companies, and workshops.

Huai Hai Zhong Lu is the shopping street.

Can anyone provide more information about eateries on the street? I am just not a eater, and don’t know much about where to go eating…

Eric is in New York

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From Eric’s blog, he is flying to New York. He posted two pictures, which does not seem to be true – it is more like a 3D model.

Photograph by Eric Zheng

Photograph by Eric Zheng

Few days ago, when Eric chatted with me on MSN, he said he was going to New York. I asked why. He simply said the cheap flight ticket is good. He cares more about the cheap flight ticket, and the trip is even like a side-result of the flight. :-) So he is there!

It reminds me of the cold winter in New York in 2004.

Look at what I have here for that winter:

  1. Taxi in New York City
  2. Life in New York is Tough for Me
  3. Subways in New York
  4. Skyscrapers in New York
  5. I am in Shanghai
  6. Cold New York
  7. New York Pictures
  8. Christmas Eve in New York City
  9. New York – Day 2

P.S. Recently found new blogs

  1. Xiang Li
  2. Estelle Yang

We had lunch at Hengge’s home last Sunday.

Near Blogbus’s Office

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Blue sky – although it is not that blue, but the sunny and clear Sunday is rare.

The new buliding near Blogbus’ office seems to be a big one.

The area at Long Hua Road seems to be a place with good potential – maybe like 798 in Beijing. The difference is, it is a morden art and design district, instead of just a place of art.

Dukou Bookstore on Julu Road

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I was in Dukou Bookstore today with Hengge and two other friends. After lunch at Hengge’s home, and wandered near Blogbus’s office, we finally decided to visit the newly opened bookstore. It is at the Julu Road, and the Fumin Road, in Jinan District.

Pictures of the Dukou Bookstore

The door of the store:

© Jian Shuo Wang

The major bookshelves.

Photograph by Jian Shuo Wang. Bookstores

Chairs and tables. They serve coffee and tea, but don’t expect it as professional as a cafe. However, it is good to stay there for sometime for exchange of some hours of free reading time.

© Jian Shuo Wang

The counter

© Jian Shuo Wang

The owner of the bookstore – xia5

© Jian Shuo Wang

The garden outside the big window.

© Jian Shuo Wang

Sunny afternoon is the best time to visit, when the sun pours down and hit the wall. This is the small garden facing the Julu Road…

© Jian Shuo Wang

© Jian Shuo Wang

© Jian Shuo Wang

© Jian Shuo Wang

Books

They have some nice books. I like the taste of the books, although I doubt how many people will like it. For example, I didn’t learn to appreciate the value of these books years ago.

© Jian Shuo Wang

© Jian Shuo Wang

© Jian Shuo Wang

© Jian Shuo Wang

© Jian Shuo Wang

They have good magazines, pretty rare magazines.

© Jian Shuo Wang

© Jian Shuo Wang

Details

I love the small post box at the entrance of the gate:

© Jian Shuo Wang

Location and Time

© Jian Shuo Wang

Their location is

828 Julu Road, Shanghai (巨鹿路830号)

between Fumin Road, and Changshu road (富民路和常熟路间)

Time: 10:30am to 8:30pm

Tel: +86-21-62496339

Drawing Lessons

Recently, I tried to draw what I saw, and sometimes get frustrated about how to arrange the lines to make sure I can replicate what I see on my paper. Here is my drawing lesson today:

Look at all the parallel lines. The extension line must meet at the same point, and this helps people to draw.

© Jian Shuo Wang

P.S. Thanks Xia5

Thanks Xia5 for allowing me to take photos inside her bookstore.

I’d recommend my readers to go there and pay a visit. It worth a sunny afternoon.

Back from 5G Review

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I was hesitating whether to attend the 5G Review today when the clock shows 2:00 PM. Finally, I decided not to be too lazy. It seems I should go out of home in this sunny Saturday.

5G Review is a meetup about Internet, media and other emerging industry.

Location: UBB Coffee, 4th Floor, Lansheng Massion, 8 Middle Huaihai Road.

Time: 2:00 – 5:00 PM every Saturday

Participatoin: free of entrance, but need to notify organizer at http://groups.google.com/group/5gshanghai, or ask an exsisting member to bring you there.

The topic for today is: The Blue Ocean or Red Ocean for Blogbus…

I enjoy to have my friends talk about insight of the business, and start to think about my own questions, and answers.

Long Metro Trains on Line #1

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The traditional Metro Train is 6 cart train (from 1995 to 2007).

From this year, there are longer trains, so they put the sticker on the glasses of the door to indicate the location for the first 6 cart, and the following two – cart #7 and cart 8.

When train is approaching, there are broadcast to notify people about the number of train carts in the coming train, so people don’t need to wait before the rest of the gates, where there will be no train carts.

Look at these pictures:

DMG changed screen

The DMG (Digital Media Group) changed the LCD display to some new, and bigger one. Look at these nice display:

Best Buy Opens Store in Xujiahui

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Best Buy opens a store in Xujiahui, many weeks ago. After had three long meetings in three different locations for the whole day, I finally get back to Xujiahui, and visited the store – since there is no taxi in rush hour, why not take a look. I am very curious about how much market share Best Buy can take in the $100 billion market (according to Best Buy)

It seems to me it is the electronic appliance version of IKEA. I mean the color and environment.

Will Best Buy Fail, or Succeed

IKEA is an example of huge success in China. Wal-Mart is not yet, and many other U.S. players, especially in Internet segment are not.

In price-sensitive market like China, whether the service advantage over-comes price disadvantage (if it is its disadvantage) is the key question.

Four Seasons Hotel

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I visited Four Seasons Hotels to meet someone I have known by name for long time. It is the second time I actually visit the hotel. As a local residence, who can I complain for not saying in any of the good hotels in Shanghai?

Till now, I still connect relate the Four Season Hotel with the luxury hotel chain I read in newspaper and investment newsletter. To be more direct, I don’t think it looks to be a good hotel. (BTW, the other hotel that gave me the same feeling is the Le Meridien in People’s Square)

Pictures of the Four Seasons Hotel

Here are some pictures I took today outside the hotel, then I tell you why I don’t think it does not match the luxurious hotel standard.

Image in courtesy of Four Seasons Hotels

Location? Not good

The hotel is not in a good location. As you can see from Google Map, it is not in business district, and not in commercial center. It is just in the middle of a residential area. Maybe it is the modest tradition after the first Four Seasons opened in Toronto in 1961.

Too Many People Smoking

The lobby of the Four Seasons Hotel is the first five star hotel with so many people smoking. There are one table (4 persons) who all smoke right of my table, and one person smoke on the left. There were no table free of smoke…. I don’t like smoke. The waitress apologized for the unavailability of a non-smoking area.

A Late Player?

Maybe because it is a late player in the hotel industry in Shanghai. I still remember when Ritz Carlton was just a so-so brand, before people realize its service quality (or before its service quality really reach its standard). It takes time.

Also, the hotel areas like where the Hilton/Regal, Ritz Carlton, and the Hyatt are, were relatively remote and after 10 years, they became the commercial or business center. I guess it is also so for late hotels like Four Seasons.

Google Satellite Map

So Many Red Lights!

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I took this picture today at the intersection of Yan-An Road, and the Huashan Road.

Photography by Jian Shuo Wang

Photography by Jian Shuo Wang

If you count carefully enough, you will see 14 red lights in the picture. There are 7 lanes for single direction. Isn’t look funny?

Here are the Google Map of the area.

A Stolen Bicycle

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Look at this stolen bicycle!

© Jian Shuo Wang

I took this picture at Xiang Yang North Road (襄阳北路) this afternoon. When I was parking there, I noticed this bicycle wheel.

It is seems the person have locked his bicycle on the pole, hoping that no one can take his bike, but some one may have taken away the rest of the bike. It is so funny.

Stolen Bike

This scene is funny, but losing bike is not. Stolen bike is a big problem in Shanghai and all around China.

I even cannot imagine anyone who hadn’t lost a bike. I lost many. Jia lost his bike few days ago.

Anyone who lived in Shanghai but never lost a bike (If you had one)? Please let me know.

PVG: From PVG to Ningbo

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We get in to PVG at 3:25 pm and need to get to Ningbo. Can we take the bus directly from Pudong Airport to Ningbo? I have seen answers on the blog that say yes and others that say go to town and get bus or train. The train schedule does not look good if I am reading it right. (No train until 19:15) If there is a direct bus, does one leave around 4:30 or 5:00pm?

Is a bus from PVG to the bus station in Shanghai to get a bus to Ningbo a better idea, i.e. faster or cheaper?

There is direct bus from Pudong Airport to Ningbo. You have transit to train or long distance bus.

The best way is like this:

Pudong Airport to Ning Bo via Shanghai Railway Station

1. Take Airport Bus #5 to Shanghai Railway Station.

2. Buy train ticket from Shanghai to Ningbo.

Here is the train schedule:

Train #

Shanghai ->

Ningbo

Duration

Distance (km)

N537/N540   0517

1050<

5:50

372

T741 >0630

1000<

4:00

372

5081   0848

1419<

6:19

372

T739   1104

1508<

4:08

372

T745 >1440

1831<

4:31

372

N507 >2218

0321<

5:21

372

There are also lots of bus at the Train station to Ningbo.

Hope this helps.

My Drawings in Hong Kong

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Alan de Botton suggested people to draw picture when they travel. Drawing picture helps people to focus on beauty and learn why it is so, and discover the unique beauty in the scene, then, try to explain it with drawing.

In the character named “Procession of Beauty”, he quoted Ruskin’s saying:

“I believe that the sight is a more important thing than the drawing ; and I would rather teach drawing that my pupils may learn to love nature, than teach the looking at nature that they may learn to draw.”

So, encouraged by Ruskin, and Alan, I started to draw with a hard-to-use ball pen on the back of the hotel notice. Here are two.

The United Center

Above is the view I see when I was waiting for check-out. I sat there, and spent about 10 minutes or more to draw this one.

Here is the photo from the same view:

Gate 15 of Hong Kong Airport

When I was waiting at Gate 15 of the Hong Kong Airport for my China Eastern Airlines flight, I took another hotel notice, and draw what I saw on the back. Due to time limitation, I didn’t draw the roof well, and the relative size of the ticket counter on the left is also wrong. Anyway, this is what I got:

Here is photo from the same view:

The Difference between Drawing and Camera

There is no way anyone can draw a picture as complete as a photo, or even more impossible to be exactly the same as the nature of itself. But as suggested in the Art of Travel, nothing (either camera or simply be there) can substitute the process of observing. Only after observing the nature for long enough, careful enough, and pro-active enough can someone really keeps the nature in his/her own mind.

Personally, the difference between draw a picture of a place and taking a photo is that, if I draw a picture, I can draw pretty much the same one later without looking at the picture or the scene itself (it is in my memory); while if I take a photo, there is no way that I can draw it out. It is just in the photo, not my heart.

I also encourage people to draw. Well. I don’t feel too embarrassed when people see how bad my drawing is. It is just a way to reach better observation of the scene.

P.S. Below are the bigger versions of the same two drawings.