Shanghai, China

Saturday, 15 November 2014

Setting Off: After breakfast with Peep and Dragon, the three of us joined Jong for a cab ride to the expo center. However, on the way there they dropped me off at the nearest Metro station so I could set off exploring Shanghai on my own again. My first stop of the day was at Jing'an Temple.

Jing'an Temple: Hudu Ching Yuan Temple was originally constructed in 247 AD, during the Three Empires Period. It was moved from its original location during the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), where it grew in popularity, eventually being renamed Jing'an Temple in 1945. The temple was converted to a plastics factory during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) and was totally destroyed by fire in 1972. However, reconstruction of the temple began in 1984 and it was reopened to the public as a place of worship in 1990, containing both Buddhist and Taoist idols.

I spent some time walking the temple grounds, which were not very big in this temple nestled in between the surrounding skyscrapers. Through the main gate lies a courtyard with an enormous copper treasure bowl, into which worshipers attempted to toss coins as donations to the temple. Successful tosses grant the thrower good luck. Making up the left-hand side of the temple is the Mahavira Hall, or Jade Buddha Hall, inside which is located the largest seated Buddha statue made of Jade within China. Across the courtyard, on the right side of the temple, is Guanyin Hall, named after the Buddhist goddess of compassion. Inside is a camphor wood statue of the goddess. Lining the fourth side of the courtyard is the Precious Hall of the Great Hero, containing another statue of Buddha in a different seated position.

Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum: After another Metro ride and a short walk later, I found myself at the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Museum. I purchased my ticket at the ticked office and headed over to the main gate, where the ticket-taker mentioned tours given by volunteer guides. I entered the former Ohel Moshe Synagogue and, not knowing exactly when the tours were to begin, started exploring on my own.

I made my way to the third level of the building to see the "German Nazi Death Camps - Auschwitz" exhibition, a very well laid out display of placards depicting all aspects of the World War II Jewish Concentration Camps, from their formation and operation, to life within their fences. After reading the English versions on all the placards, I made my way back downstairs, where I noticed a tour assembled on the main floor. However, the tour guide was speaking in Chinese.

Private Tour: I was making my way outside the synagogue, taking the protective booties off my shoes, when one of the volunteers approached me asking if I would like a guided tour. I eagerly accepted and, being the only English speaker there at the time, began my private tour outside the synagogue.

The WWII refugees were the third major wave of Jewish immigrants to China, so a community of Jews existed in Shanghai prior to their arrival. Those that could get exit visas from Europe chose Shanghai as their destination because China did not require an entry visa at the time. The second building on the grounds I entered, the Permanent Exhibition Hall, chronicled this migration and included a short film on the subject.

End of the Tour: We then moved on to the Story Exhibition Hall, which contained the stories of some of the many individuals that came to Shanghai in an exhibition titled "Memories of Shanghai". Since its founding, many former Jewish Shanghainese have come to China specifically to visit the museum and have their stories recorded. We ended the tour back on the main floor of the old synagogue which, even though it is no longer an active synagogue, contains the traditional altar and a Torah. Since I had already seen the third floor on my own, the tour ended there and I made my way back to the Metro station for my ride to the next site on my itinerary.

Finding the Next Temple: Following the directions I had found online, I got off at the proper Metro station and began my walk to the Long Hua Temple. After about fifteen minutes of travel, I came upon another Metro station. Thinking I may have missed the temple, I rechecked my directions. Mostly satisfied I was still on the right track, I continued on until, a hundred yards later, I noticed the top of a pagoda across the street. Thinking it might be part of the temple, I made my way over there and was elated to find out that the pagoda sat just outside the main gate to the temple. The directions I was following must have been written before the new Metro line was open.

Long Hua Pagoda: Not the first pagoda to be erected on the site, the current Long Hua Pagoda was constructed in 977 a.d. in the Wuyue Kingdom and is the most well-known of the sixteen historic pagodas located within Shanghai. The octagonal brick base supports the main wooden structure of the building. Despite the many repairs it has undergone since its original construction, all faithful to the original design, it is still considered too fragile to be opened to the public.

Long Hua Temple: Originally constructed in 242 a.d. it was rebuilt, along with the pagoda outside its main gate, in 977 following its destruction in war. Extensive renovations were carried out in the Qing dynasty (1644–1912) and again in 1954, with no alterations to its historic architectural design.

Chinese Buddhist Temple Layout: Long Hua Temple follows the typical Chinese Buddhist Temple layout. After stepping though the Mountain Gate, the main front gate leading onto the temple grounds, lies a courtyard with incense burners and, sometimes, candle burners as well.

Hall of Heavenly Kings: Beyond the courtyard is the Hall of Heavenly Kings. In the center of the hall is a statue of Maitreya, a seated big-belly Buddha. On each side of the hall stands two of the Four Heavenly Kings, each representing a cardinal direction.

Grand Hall & Bodhisattva Hall: Behind the Hall of Heavenly Kings, separated by a small courtyard, is the Grand Hall. Inside is a statue of Sakyamuni, Buddha in a seated position. The next hall behind the Grand Hall is the Bodhisattva Hall, with a statue of the main Buddha worshiped at that particular temple.

Remaining Buildings: Still further into the temple, and along the side walls and scattered about the temple grounds, are buildings for teaching Buddhist doctrine, storing Buddhist texts, altars for further worship, monk's quarters and monk's offices. A Bell Tower and a Drum Tower flank the Mountain Gate.

Qibao Ancient Town: From the temple, I went to the nearby Metro station and rode to Qibao, an ancient town located with the greater Shanghai metropolitan area. Dating from the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1126), it was much smaller than Zhujiajiao and less geared toward tourists. Mixed among the ancient architecture are newer constructions that, although built in the traditional style, seem to take away from the ambiance of the ancient town. I chose not to enter the nearby Qibao Temple, the namesake of the town which was completely rebuilt in 2002. There were many locals shopping the few narrow streets of the town, with the one selling food by far the most crowded. Just as I was finishing up my time in Qibao, Peep called asking about a place to meet, her day at the expo being done.

Nanjing Road East: Nanjing Road East is the busiest shopping street in Shanghai and is completely pedestrianized for a couple of blocks, although a tram does run the length for those opting not to walk. This being the selected destination for the evening, I met Peep and the others working the Lao trade fair booth at People's Square, at the far western end of the the street.

Dinner & Shopping: We first headed off to find a place to eat, settling on Hong Feng Restaurant, serving Chinese fare. Then we headed out as a group, walking eastward amongst the eager shoppers and sightseers. We soon split up as some headed into the stores to do some shopping and I set up my tripod to take some pictures. As I made my way down the street, I eventually came across Peep standing in front of one of the shops and we continued on our journey together until we reached the Bund, located at the far eastern end of the road.

The Bund: The Bund is an area along the banks of the Huangpu River, which runs through the heart of Shanghai, and the home of many historical buildings from its time as part of the Shanghai International Settlement.

Numerous countries doing business within China during the early twentieth century up through the 1940's had trading houses and financial institutions headquartered at the Bund. Many hotels and clubs also operated in the area.

However, after the communist takeover of China the buildings were converted to governmental or other uses as the foreign institutions left in the 1950's. This shift was reversed in the late 1970's and 1980's as China once again opened its doors to foreign companies.

Nighttime Sightseeing: We crossed Zhongshan Road, which runs between the historical buildings of the Bund and the levee embankment constructed to control the floodwaters of the Huangpu River, and into Chenyi Square. We climbed up the steps on the side of the embankment and onto the walkway located at the top to get views of Lujiazui, the new financial district of Shanghai located across the river, all lit up at night.

We started to feel a few sprinkles of rain as Dragon, whom we had met up with shortly after arriving at the Bund, tried to track down the remainder of our group, who had been busy shopping this whole time. They arrived several minutes later, just in time to see the show of lights before they were turned off at 10 p.m. Since the group was large, we decided to spit into two to make our way back to the hotel.

Returning to our Hotel: Dragon tried to hail a cab along the riverside road, but none would stop to pick us up. The rain was coming down quite steadily by this time and, not having any luck catching a cab where we were, we started walking down a side street to see if our luck would improve. Dragon hurried over to a cab making a drop, only finding out that he wasn't taking new fares because he was going on lunch break. We continued walking, all the time trying in vain to get a cab, until we decided to switch tactics and darted into the nearest Metro station to catch a train instead.

Returning to our Hotel Plan B: Now safely underground and out of the rain, we rode the Metro to the station nearest our hotel, but still had a twenty minute walk ahead of us. We were relieved to find the rain had stopped as we emerged from the underground station, enabling us to complete our trek along the deserted streets in relative dryness.