Shanghai Again

Hi Folks (Chaz) From our hotel room we can see the most amazing highrise buildings and the most incredible mix of traffic.  Shanghai is a city of contrast and change as they get ready for the 2010 Expo.  Sadly lots of the original buildings are disappearing and being replaced with new and much less interesting ones.  We used taxis to get about today - incredibly cheap and hassle free as long as we got the people at the hotel to write the names of the places we wanted to go in Chinese characters.  Very few people speak English and the ones who do are difficult to understand.  We did meet one man who was keen to practice his English with us and even knew that Wellington is the capital of NZ.  We visited a market that was full of sewing supplies - stalls with only buttons, or threads - I was in heaven even though I didn't actually buy anything!  We went to the top of the World Financial Centre tower - 100 stories high and with glass floors on the observation deck.  Obviously one of the tourist attractions being prepared for Expo, it was a bit like a Sci-fi movie.  The lift was so quick that we had trouble with the pressure in our ears.  Heights are not my thing, but it was a pretty amazing feeling like we were on top of the world - the third highest building in the world and the highest observation deck.  It was a clear day so we were able to see a reasonable distance in spite of the smoggy air. One of the most incredible things we saw during or taxi rides were the masses of seemingly tangled power lines connected to poles overhead.  It is like the sort of thing people send around via email. The taxi rides were interesting, fast and furious, often without road markings, weaving between buses, bicycles, scooters and the incredible amout of construction going on.  Often it is easier just to shut your eyes and hold your breath. (Great fun hanging out the window as we roared around! -Dave) Unfortunately we had a minor problem and have lost all of the photos from our trip around today after the memory card decided to go on holiday! (posted via email)

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