Shanghai

Nanjing was a backwater of 5.4 million people. Shanghai has 13.2 million people. Real estate is world class, with world class prices. The skyline is truly phenomenal, but the infrastructure still needs some work. And the air, the air is like Victorian England, virtually black with soot.

I’ve heard of people flying to Hong Kong to shop, and you could do the same in Shanghai, if you are not a large person or if you like you suits “bespoke” (tailor made). There is more stuff to buy here, from fine silks to cheap souvenirs, than I have ever seen before.

The city is going continuously. Last night we could see someone arc welding in a building under construction at 10 pm. The traffic is snarled all the time. Fashionably dressed people walk down the streets as quickly as New Yorkers, marching past impoverished street vendors trying to sell watches to passers-by.

I was surprised to find so many beggars in a Communist country. I mean, considering the significant downside of Communism/Socialism, the upside should be that there is care and feeding of the underclass. I had to physically remove an old woman from my person the day before yesterday; she was that aggressive about separating me from some money. It is not like India, where you can be swarmed if you hand out a rupee, but it can be intimidating. Fortunately, they do not seem to target children, although today I saw a man demand that a little boy waiting in line for the aquarium finish his water, so the man could collect the bottle to sell for recycling.

Sarah loves it here, she loves the fabulous architecture of the skyscrapers, she loves the fashionable clothes, and she loves the momentum of the city. She loves New York, too. James mostly loves the hotel we are staying in, which we could never ordinarily afford, but we got a discounted rate, and the travel agent paid for half of that, because of a problem with our airline tickets. I must confess that I am quite taken with the city, for all of its glaring faults, as it is wildly dynamic.