Happy Anniversary!

Seven years ago today Tim and I took the plunge and got married on a cruise ship in Jamaica.  We couldn't have imagined then that seven years later we would spend our anniversary in Shanghai.

This morning we decided to catch the Big Bus Tour since it drives by the Jade Buddha Temple which isn't too far from our hotel.  First we had breakfast at the hotel restaurant and although Tim enjoyed his food, I was a little disappointed.  The choices were okay but I practically had to beg one of the cooks to make me some noodles and the rest of the staff wasn't any better.  That, combined with the price, meant that I didn't plan on returning.

On our way out of the hotel I stopped at the concierge desk to ask about a good place to get some Beijing Kao Ya (Peking Duck).  I was told that there was a restaurant nearby, called Beijing Duck, and it happened to be on the route we were about to walk to get to the Jade Buddha.  The concierge marked it on our map and off we went.  About fifteen minutes later we were walking by the area marked on the map but saw no restaurant named Beijing Duck.  We didn't look too hard since we were eager to begin our tour.  Ten minutes later we were at the Jade Buddha Temple.

Nice walkways over the streets to keep people from being hit by cars. 

As we approached the entrance to the temple we were met by a number of elderly people sitting on the street begging.  It was a little overwhelming as they were all yelling "Hello, hello.  Money, money" at us and tapping us with their cups.  I was trying to get our tickets and could hardly hear over the noise.  Slightly flustered, we completely forgot that we had vouchers to get into the temple and instead paid for two tickets. They weren't expensive though and we just wanted to get inside.  Or so we thought.  The scene inside was a little unexpected too.  The courtyard was packed with people and most of them were holding several sticks of burning incense while praying, bowing or chanting.  There were barrels filled with fire and the smoke coming off them burnt our eyes.

We quickly made our way through the crowd and purchased another set of tickets to actually see the Jade Buddha (we had free tickets for this as well but forgot about them).  We made our way up a set of stairs and entered a large room with a railing to keep people back from the Jade Buddha.  There was a large crowd here and many people were purchasing plastic bottles of oil and star-gazer lilies from some ladies on the good side of the railing.  Those buying the oil would hold it and bow and pray then hand it back to the ladies who would then pour the oil into a dish in front of the Buddha.  I suppose they were offerings to the god but to me it seemed like a waste.  I can't imagine Buddha would appreciate all that plastic waste being created in his name.  I wasn't allowed to take pictures in that room but I did get some shots of the reclining Buddha, a koi pond and some of the people around the temple.

Trying to get the coins to stand on their edges.

My Chinesey Pose

The lady wearing these shoes was sitting by the pond.  I was wondering if she was going to try and spear a fish with them.

The Reclining Buddha

We made our way out of the temple and crossed the street to try and find the stop for our Big Bus Tour.  We couldn't see it so we began to walk around the block.  Along the way, since we weren't going to use them, I offered our free tickets to some people standing in line.  At least they wouldn't go to waste.  We roamed all the way around the block trying to find our stop but there was no sign that we could see.  Eventually we ended up back where we started and happened to catch a glimpse of the bus headed our way.  I flagged it down and the driver stopped in the street so we could get in.  I had worn my newer sandals and realized quickly that this was a mistake.  My toes were already blistered and it wasn't even lunch time yet.

We took the tour bus back to People's Square where we had been last night and switched to a different line.  The red line took us to the Bund where we decided we would find a place for lunch.  Last night we had a difficult time finding a place that didn't look like a five star restaurant and today was no different.  I expected that there would be a lot of places to eat on the Bund but aside from Subway and a few coffee shops, there was nothing.  We strolled across a bridge and down a street toward a hotel.  Along the way we saw several couples who were being married.  On our anniversary.  Cool!

The restaurant near the hotel seemed to be a good choice since it was on the waterfront.  The food was pretty tasty but surprisingly the view wasn't so great.  In order to keep out of the sun (it was over 30 degrees) we had to sit in a spot that only allowed us to watch an excavator dredging up mud from the bottom of the river.

The best picture I could get of the bull statue from the bus:)

After lunch we walked back to the bus tour and got on the third line that would take us across the water to the Oriental Pearl and Shanghai Financial Towers.  We didn't realize when we got on the bus how interesting  the drive to get to the opposite would be.  To get there it the bus goes up a ramp then around and around in circles just to reach the bridge.  In a car this wouldn't be that exciting but sitting on the second floor of a double decker bus with no roof, and the outside seat to boot, was quite thrilling.  I was looking down over the side and as we went up the ramp, the road got further and further away.  I could just picture the bus tipping over and me falling several stories to the cold, hard concrete below.  Yay!  Luckily we didn't tip over but made it safely to the other side.

Our first stop was the Oriental Pearl tower and we got off the bus to try and find a bathroom.  First we tried the Tourist Center and not only did they not have a bathroom, the man working there didn't even want to speak to us.  We tried Subway but they directed us across the street.  Deciding that we could wait for the next stop, we jumped back on the bus and headed for the Shanghai Financial Tower.  By this point my feet were really hurting and swollen so I had my shoes off and didn't feel like getting off the bus again.  Tim convinced me that we should get off and go up into the tower in case we didn't get back the next day.  Our tickets were included in the price of our bus tour but were only good for 48 hours.  I relented but by the time I got my shoes on and stood up, the bus was taking off again.  We had missed the stop!  I didn't mind.  I just took my sandals off again and enjoyed the ride back across the bridge.

We made our way back to the hotel for a rest before supper and on the way in I decided I would treat myself to a foot massage at the spa.  We walked in and there was no one at the reception desk.  I tried to get the attention of someone but there didn't appear to be anyone working.  After waiting a few minutes, Tim walked behind the desk to the back where he found a door.  He knocked loudly and said, "Ni hao!" and finally someone answered.  He came back to the desk and waited with me and after a minute or so a woman came out.  I told her I wanted a foot massage and she got a panicked look on her face.  "You want foot massage?".  It was listed on their menu.  She then informed me that there was no one there to do a foot massage at that time (2pm on a Saturday) and said I should come back at six o'clock.  Who wants a massage on a Saturday evening?  Well, I suppose there are some people.  But I wasn't looking for that kind of rubdown.  Instead we went back to our room and I put my feet up for a while and had a rest.

At suppertime I put on my comfortable sandals and we decided we would walk back to the alleged Beijing Duck Restaurant for our anniversary dinner.  We searched and searched but could only find a couple restaurants that weren't fast food - UBC Coffee and My Shanghai Restaurant.  We gave up on the duck idea and decided to try the Shanghai place.  We walked in and the hostess, who was playing on her phone, told us "Mei you" or "You can't eat here".  What??  You've got to be kidding me.  It turned out they were hosting a wedding party and weren't accepting walk-ins.  Fabulous.  I was ready to give up and just eat KFC at the train station but Tim convinced me we should try the hotel restaurant again.  We walked back and as we went in I asked the concierge about the duck restaurant again.

Me:  We searched for this place twice and couldn't find it.  It is called Beijing Duck?


Concierge: Yes


Me: And it says that on the sign?


Concierge: Yes.


Me:  In English?  

Concierge:  No.  In Chinese.


Okay, I get that we are in China and most things are obviously going to be written in Chinese, but perhaps he could have mentioned that this particular place didn't also have the name in English, like many, many places do.  I was frustrated and ready to tear him a new one but I kept my composure and asked him to please write it down so that perhaps we could try it another time.  We have been having so much trouble finding good places to eat that I just wanted to scream.

We made our way to the Chinese restaurant in the hotel but as we approached we realized that it too was closed for a wedding.  Begrudgingly we went into the western restaurant and asked the hostess if we could possibly order food from the Chinese menu but eat it in this dining room.  After much consultation we were told that we would be allowed to order Chinese food and they seated us.  I began looking at the menu and asked for a couple of items.  "Mei you" (Don't have) was the reply.  Great.  Just great.  I asked if they had the lobster.  Yes, they did!  Could I have a price please?  For that and the crab curry?  We tried crab curry in Thailand and loved it.  It cost us about $5 there.  The waitress came back with some prices.  Over $100 for the lobster (just one!) and about $80 for the crab.  I almost fell out of my chair!  I looked at Tim and said, "We're leaving".

Before we left for Shanghai I had done some research and read about a couple restaurants that I thought we might like to visit.  We hadn't bothered since we were trying to keep our spending reasonable (I am going to Beijing for four days once this trip is done) and the top rated restaurants were expensive.  At this point, I didn't care.  I remembered the name of one of the restaurants so I marched out to the concierge and asked him to look up the phone number of the restaurant.  I had him call to make sure we could get a table - no problem at all - then he came outside the hotel to get us a taxi and tell the driver where we were going.  In twenty minutes we were sitting at Shook!, a gorgeous restaurant on the fifth floor of The Swatch Peace Art Hotel.  The service was impeccable, the atmosphere perfect and the food delicious.  This place saved our anniversary!  I relaxed with a nice glass of wine and we had a little laugh over our ridiculous evening.

So, that was day two of our Shanghai anniversary trip.  Who knows what tomorrow will bring???