Trish and I haven't had consistent access to the internet the last few days, due to a faulty router at the last apartment we stayed at. Good news though - we're back online!
First off, a special "Hello!" to Ms. Wilson's class - thank you for following along with our trip!
On the morning of Day Seven, we headed out to explore a different neighbourhood in Shanghai, near where we had our dumpling lesson. We're big fans of the parks here, and found another one to visit - Taipingqiao Park, which has a small man-made lake. The city invests a lot in their parks, including keeping them clean and well maintained. There are always workers pruning, raking, sweeping, or clearing leaves from the water. All of the parks we've seen have had lots of well shaded benches and accessible paths, which are well used.
While we were in the park, we attempted some bird watching, as we heard Ms. Wilson's class is learning about birds. We wanted to see what kinds we could find here, and try to take some pictures. Unfortunately not many birds seemed to want their photo taken... We had learned previously that at one time, China didn't allow cats or dogs as pets – only birds. So people would often bring their birds to the park in their cages. Some of the parks even have stands for people to hang their birdcages on.
After some more wandering around, we sought out some ice cream and headed back to our apartment for a dumpling lunch. We packed up, and began our journey to Nanjing, where we'll spend the next two days. Northwest of Shanghai, Nanjing is the capital of China's eastern Jiangsu province, and was previously the national capital during the rule of the Ming Dynasty.
We hopped in the subway heading to Shanghai Railway South, realized we actually wanted Shanghai Railway in the opposite direction and discreetly switched trains. Once at the subway stop for the station, we had to find the actual station. After some twists and turns we found our way outside to the Shanghai Railway Square. We attempted to buy our tickets at an automated machine, similar to what we use on the subway. Unable to figure it out, and having noticed you need to scan your ID card, we opted to ask for help, and were directed across the street to buy our tickets from an attendant. It turns out train travel is more serious here, and we were required to show our passports to book tickets. We then made or way back across the street and finally into the railway station. We did have to put or bags through a security scanner to get in, but it is the same for the subway so we were expecting that. Luckily we made it to our gate easily, and since seats are assigned, we didn't have to fight the crowd when it was time to board.
Trish had a window seat, so we were able to watch the scenery role be as we went. What stick me the most were the clusters of identical apartment towers we kept passing, emphasizing the population density here. While Trish and I joked we were "going rural" now that we're out of Shanghai, we know that was far from the case.
Two hours later we arrived in Nanjing, thanks to the high speed train. Otherwise it would have been an 4-5 hour trip. After a bit of confusion between Exit 1 to leave the station, and Line 1, the subway line we wanted, we were on the move again. While in Shanghai we bought subway cards, which you scan when you enter the subway, and deposit at the turnstile when leaving (you pay by the distance you're going, regardless of transfers). Here we were thrown off when we got blue chips instead of cards. It turned out that they did work exactly the same - the chips are programmed for the correct distance, and we're getting better at waiting to see what the locals do before we attempt new things.
As usual, Captain Direction got us to our new apartment. We were feeling pretty tied from an early morning, lugging our luggage, and the heat. Apparently China did not get the memo that Trish and I are not fans of 30+ degrees. We weren't impressed when we had to climb up to the third floor, as the elevator required a key card, but we were thrilled to drop our bags and collapse onto a soft couch. Our day wasn't over though, and after a short rest, we headed into the city. Destination: The Confucius Temple and Market. Spoiler: We never did find the temple. What we did find though was a busy market area with lots of little shops, and lots of tourists (we were the only Caucasians though). I temporarily lost Trish to a cat themed store (shocking, I know), where I truly believe she would have bought one of everything if she wasn't supervised and had unlimited travel funds.
While the temple remained elusive despite our walking in circles to find it, there was still a lot to look at.
We wandered along the river, which was a welcome and peaceful break from the crowds, and of course made our way to yet another park. We were impressed with how it up the park was (which resolved or concerns that the park may actually be closed). Trish did see a cat, but it was too quick to photograph. Because of this sighting, she has declared we may remain in Nanjing another day (which is great, because we already paid for two nights at the apartment...).
As it was getting late and I was beyond tired, we decided to head home and grab some snacks on the way. When we attempted to pop into a 24h convenience store, we realized that it was a self checkout with no staff. More popular here than back home is paying via your phone. In this particular store that was the only method accepted, and there was a fancy door lock system to prevent theft. We momentarily contemplated what our lives would be like now that this store was our home, but it turned out that if you went into the interlock doors and had no goods on you, you were kindly released. Good to know.
We ended our day with noodles, dubbing a mildly confusing TV show, and then sweet sweet sleep.
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