Shanghai General Information:
Shanghai is the largest Chinese city by population and the largest city proper by population in the world. It is one of the four direct-controlled municipalities of China, with a population of more than 24 million as of 2014. It is a global financial center, and a transport hub with the world's busiest container port. Located in the Yangtze River Delta in East China, Shanghai sits on the south edge of the mouth of the Yangtze in the middle portion of the Chinese coast.
Location: East China
Population: 24,152,700
Languages: Shanghainese
Area Code: 21
Time Zone: (UTC+8)
Significance of city: It has been described as the "showpiece" of the booming economy of mainland Cina. The city also has various nicknames in English, including "Pearl of the Orient" and "Paris of the East".
Nearby cities: Suzhou, Hangzhou, and Nanjing
Famous Attractions:
The bund, which extends from Jinling Road in the south to the Waibaidu Bridge in the north, is a 1.5-kilometer-long boulevard on the western bank of the Huangpu River. Walking along Zhongshan Road, not only can visitors enjoy the scenery of Huangpu River but have a glimpse of the development of Lujiazui district on the other side. The architecture along the bund is unanimously honored as a "world architectural fair".
Yuyuan Garden was first established in Ming Dynasty by Pan yunduan who used to be the governor of Sichuan and later expanded greatly. Yuyuan Garden was considered the best garden in southeast China. It enjoys a history of over 400 years since its first establishment by Pan yunduan who had intended to bring happiness and pleasure to his parents and relatives.
The 468 meters high tower, which is the highest in Asia and the third highest in the world, was put into construction on July 30th, 1991 and completed on october 1st, 1994. it faces the bund across the Huangpu River. With eleven steel spheres in various sizes Hanging from the blue sky to the green grassland, the body of the tower creates and admirable image, which is described in an ancient chinese verse as: large and small pearls dropping on a plate of jade.
Jade Buddha Monastery is one of the most famous Buddha religious temples in Shanghai. There are a lot of religious events hosted by the temple. The main and popular structures of the temple are the great Devajara Hall, Mahavira Hall, the Jade Buddha Tower, the Kwan-yin Hall, Amitabh Hall, Tang Hall, Recumbent Buddha Hall.
The Shanghai World Financial Center is a super tall skyscraper. It is a mixed use skyscraper, which will consist of offices, hotels, conference rooms, observation decks, and shopping malls on the lower floors. The hotel component has 175 rooms and suites and goes by the name: The Park Hyatt, Shanghai. On September 14, 2007, the skyscraper reached 492.3 meters (1,615.2 ft) and became the tallest structure on mainland China.
Xintiandi is located downtown nestled between the towering skyscrapers. Tt is one of the busiest urban tourist attractions and imbued with the city's historical and cultural legacies. Shanghai Xintiandi's Shikumen building was created by converting residential blocks into a multifunctional dining, retail and entertainment center flowing with restaurants, boutiques, cafes and bars of an international standard.
Nanjing Road is one of the most important commercial and tourist streets in Shanghai, which stretches from The Bund to The People’s Park.There is an ambitious project underway to make century old Nanjing Road into a world class commercial pedestrian street, like the Champs-Elysees in Paris and Fifth Avenue in New York. About 18 billion yuan or 2.65 billion US dollars of Shanghai investment was estimated to be required over the projects duration from 2000 to 2010.
The French Concession is an area of Shanghai once designated for the French colonialists and consists of today's Luwan and Xuhui Districts. It is said that the charm of Shanghai lies in the old street and neighborhoods that make up the former French Concession. It is a great area to explore, from the old European buildings in shady avenues to the cafes and restaurants and upmarket shopping area in Huaihu Road. You will find fashionable boutiques selling everything from designer handbags to pricey silks.
Zhujiajiao is the best-preserved ancient water town among the four ancient towns in Shanghai with a history of 1700 years. In the period of the Three Kingdoms there were already country fairs in Zhujiajiao and the business prospered in the Ming Dynasty. Now Zhujiajiao is a graceful and quiet town. walking on the zigzag stone pathway and the winding long lanes, you would feel like walking in an elegant and fresh painting.
The Chenghuang temple is a Taoist temple, also called Yi temple, which is composed of many halls such as the Grand Hall, Bedroom Palace, Star Gods Hall, Yama Palace, Xuzhen God hall and so on. The Chenghuang temple had an area of more than 10,000 square meters including two gardens: west garden (Yuyuan garden) and east garden abd has a great influence on the residents of Shanghai.
