Spending a whole semester in Beijing, I knew I had to make the trip down south and check out Shanghai, and the city certainly lived up to the expectations. Everyone describes Shanghai as this super futuristic metropolis, and after spending a weekend there I understand why it has this reputation. Many parts look similar to Beijing, with slightly aged buildings and small shops along the street, but there are whole parts of the city unlike anywhere else I have visited. There are massive, tall skyscrapers with lights and screens along the sides that light up the skyline. The buildings have these organic curves different from any tower in the west. It is a truly unique city that I am glad I had the change to visit.
I was initially worried about traveling alone in China, but the whole process was super easy. I bought the train tickets and hotel room online and everything was linked to my ID. All I had to do was scan my passport and I was on the train. The train rides back and forth were super easy and coming from the U.S. where we don’t have an amazing train system, being able to hop on a train and get to Shanghai in six hours was amazing. Traveling in China in very convenient, even for someone who is not fluent in the language.
I arrived in Shanghai around 5:00 so it was already dark, but it was also a perfect opportunity to check out the Bund. The Bund is a strip of grand western-style buildings that runs along the east side of the Huangpu River. They are inspired by European renaissance style architecture and are unlike any other buildings in Shanghai. Going there at night was amazing because they were all lit up with gold spotlights, which gave the strip a very luxurious aesthetic. There were many tourists and foreigners there, all taking pictures. Behind these buildings is the Bund Center, a 50-story tower with this crazy lotus design on the top. I felt it was one of the most amazing and underrated towers I saw while visiting Shanghai, and it added a lot to the Bund’s skyline.
The craziest reveal of the trip was walking up to the Bund, as I did not realize that Lujiazui was just across the river. Lujiazui the area with the quintessential skyline associated with Shanghai, and it has the crazy futuristic towers that gives Shanghai its title as the modern city of China. Walking up to the river at night you can’t help but be shocked by the bright lights and crazy shapes across the river. The Shanghai Tower stands out as the tallest and the sides of the tower wrap around themselves giving it a very special organic shape. The Oriental Pearl TV Tower’s shape is even more remarkable, with the two spheres and geometric base making it unlike anything I’ve seen before. All the buildings had bright colorful LEDs across the sides of them displaying messages like “I heart SH”, similar to Times Square in New York City. It was completely different from the Bund, and it was so cool to be able to see both of them lit up at night at the same time.
The next morning, I started the day with some Baozi and then visited the Jade Temple. It was an old Buddhist temple stuck right in the middle of a fast-moving modern city, so the contrast was very interesting. It was more minimalistic temple than those I have seen in Beijing or out in Western China, as it had large dark wooden walls and stone roofs. The insides were still very maximalist, with giant gold Buddha statues and intricate ceiling and wall designs. It was interesting to see such traditional architecture in such a modern city.
After this I took the subway under the river to Lujiazui and saw the crazy buildings up close. This is when I really felt like I was in the year 2500 because everything was clean, sleek, and new. There were elevated pathways, and the tops of the buildings were covered by the clouds. I explored a bit and then found a bike to ride along the west side of the river. Many people told me this was the best thing to do in Shanghai, and I must say I agree. The bikeway is beautiful and filled with greenery, and you’re able to get views of both the ultramodern part of the city to the east and the more industrial part of the city west across the river- definitely a highlight of the trip. After this I met up with Matt, another Notre Dame student who is studying abroad in Shanghai for the semester, and we explored the Global Harbor and the People’s Square.
On Saturday I went to an event hosted by the Notre Dame Club of. We met in a café and then went across the street to visit the Shanghai Jewish Refugee Museum. I had never learned that over 20,000 Jewish refugees fled to Shanghai during World War II and created a Jewish quarter in Shanghai. This was a crazy revelation, and the museum was displayed their story excellently, with artifacts, recreations, and documents from their experience. This was an unexpected highlight of the trip and something that I had never learned before in school in America.
After there we had a meeting with the Notre Dame students and alumni, which was a nice chance to connect. That night I went back to visit the Bund and Lujiazui, but it had been raining all day, so it was totally different. There were still the same number of tourists, but all the buildings were cut off halfway by the clouds. This created a really cool effect where you could tell the buildings were there by the lights, but they seemed to just disappear into the sky. Having seen them before on a clear day, it was very interesting to see them from this rainy perspective. I am very glad I got the change to visit Shanghai, as it is truly the most futuristic city I have been to and definitely does not compare to any western city.
By Fall 2024 Student Thomas Helm
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