Day Eleven: Back to Shanghai

We started the day heading back to the historic Qinghefang Street from last night, in search of some breakfast. We had seen several cute cafes, and were looking forward to trying one out. Apparently we were to early though, as the only places open aside from the shops were McDonald's and Starbucks. So Starbucks it was, and I ordered the most complicated mint lemon drink that exists. The poor barista much have had to add ten different ingredients and go in the back door half of them. Tourists are the worst. 

After our very Western breakfast, it was time to hit the rails again and head back to Shanghai for the last leg of or trip. This time, we did our homework, double checked, and then triple checked for good measure. We were not going ​to relive the Nanjing to Hangzhou fiasco. And you know what? We did alright. We went to the correct station. We found the correct attendants. We bought tickets for a train leaving in the very near future. It wasn't the fastest train, but only a half an hour longer than what we had hoped for. We were pretty proud (well, maybe grateful is a better word) of our accomplishment. 

Trish and I didn't get to sit together this time, but I did get a window and a chance to enjoy the scenery. I mean, looking at Trish is nice too, don't get me wrong. I assume she feels similarly. 

The trip into Shanghai was uneventful until we arrived at the station and exited the train. Multiple people stopped Trish to point at her, point at their phones, then point at the train. Trish caught on quick and hopped back on board to pick up her forgotten phone. The main caution I had heard about traveling in Shanghai was too watch out for pick-pocketing, and this was as close as we’ve come to anything vaguely along the lines of losing something. We have felt safe the entire time we've been here (not that we’re ever inclined to head to the seedier parts of any city). We know for the looks and occasional stares we get that we must definitely stand out a good deal of the time (partially due to our preference to walk or take public transit over taxis and to buses). Almost everyone has been gracious about our inability to speak the language, and several amused at our attempts to communicate as best we can. Smiles, head nods, and knowing how to say “Thank you” goes a long way. 

All items accounted for, we made or way to our last, and dare I say classiest, apartment. The staircase going up to the second floor was a bit stepper than we had expected, but the view once we were inside was worth it: 

Not too shabby, eh? We were also pretty happy to have a bathroom with a shower. I say this because at or last apartment, the bathroom was the shower. It's not uncommon here, but making sure nothing gets wet that shouldn't in the entire bathroom is a bit unnerving at first. And having to squeegee the room afterwards feels excessive. Or previous bathroom shower: 

After refreshing and resting, we headed out to look for sustenance, and an electronic store that our dumpling friend John had been adamant we needed to check out. We found both these things at Joy City Mall. We perused a few stores as we wandered through the mall, and enjoyed the giant inflated planets and balloons on display.

We settled on a restaurant for dinner, partially because multiple staff members sang at us in unison when we walked by. When we stopped to look at the menu and they realized we spoke English, very quickly a waiter who spoke some English appeared to flip the pages of the menu while we were trying to look at it, to show us his favourites. Often it seemed he was just reading out the English descriptors that we were already reading. He was so enthusiastic though, we had to go in. He sat us down, poured us tea, and pointed out more items on the menu. Once we'd ordered, he came back twice to tell us something wasn’t available. The amount he apologized, you would have thought he was Canadian. We tried to be as reassuring as possible. As we waited, and once we started eating, the staff were very attentive. Attentive to the point of causing mild feelings of being stalked. Our cups of tea were rarely near empty. Despite the carafe being on the table, different waiters kept topping us up. Trish did it herself one time, and a manager showed up shortly afterwards (I told Trish or waiter had probably been fired for neglecting us for 30 whole seconds). At times, our waiter was just hovering nearby, waiting to top up our drinks or clear our plates. Just waiting. And watching. Totally didn't make me uncomfortable at all while Trish ate her egg with shrimp and clams, and I ate my steamed pork chops and rice. Trish also ordered a brown sugar mochi dish, which I took one bite of and was too weirded out by the texture to take another. 

After saying goodbye several times to our attentive waiter, we tracked down the electronics store, bought nothing there, then headed home. Along the way, some LED lights in the sky caught our attention… 

If the video doesn't load, it's of the lights in the sky with my narration that we have no clue what the majestic and creepy lights are – perhaps some kind of LED kite? Although I could have sworn there were no strings attached to it, that is exactly what it turned out to be, as we eventually came across the man flying it, an impressive distance away. 

Our evening ended with ice-cream and beer at the apartment while we spent way too much time trying to turn on the TV, and were then unable to find either of our favourite shows to dub.