June 8, 2008

Other than the travel from Hangzhou to Shanghai, today was slow. Compared to the rest of the trip, that is. The drive, via bus, took between two and three hours. Along the way we stopped at a truck stop. It shared many similarities with what we are used to in the U.S.

Upon arriving in Shanghai, we changed to a new bus and met up with the local tour guide Susie Shen. She took us on a quick tour of the Shanghai City Planning Museum. It was interesting. Located in the downtown area off of People’s Park, there were historic photos and maps. Also interesting were the models of the city, including the full model of what Shanghai is expected to look like in the next decade. From a community development standpoint, I found this to be an interesting museum. Unfortunately, we had to move through it quickly (I was never clear on why this was the case, because our afternoon was open).

Lunch was held at LvBolang Restaurant, which according to Wendy and Susie is famous for its dim sum style of Chinese food. I really liked the look and feel of the place. It was crowded, busy and reminded me of a diner-style restaurant in the U.S.

We then checked into the hotel where will be staying throughout our visit to Shanghai – Garden Hotel. Interestingly, I am writing this blog entry from the 21st floor of the building and overlooking downtown Shanghai, including several apartment buildings.

On Susie’s recommendation, several of us went to visit a demonstration silk factory. We learned about the separation and conversion of cocoons into silk thread and how the threads are then used to weave rugs, clothing and, for the double and triple larvae cocoons, quilting material.

After getting back to the hotel, I went walking for a while in downtown Shanghai. Shoppers were on the street, visiting the numerous Western stores along with local shops. I visited a grocery store and department store. It was interesting that most of the billboards and other advertisements featured Caucasian men and women, not Chinese (Brent Shea, another sociologist on this trip, pointed this out on the bus). After surveying shopping life and being surrounded by McDonald’s, Dairy Queen, Starbucks and Haagen Das, I realized that globalization has created a situation where I could fall asleep in Chicago and wake up in Shanghai and probably not know that I had gone anywhere.