Shanghai before 1st Oct

A glimpse below of just some of the tall towers from Grand Hyatt's hotel lobby on 54/F. It is a 180 degree plane of buildings that continue until the horizon. Beyond these completed ones, there are many more sites under construction and land being pounded. It does give you a sense of vibrancy and momentum in the air, which is something my colleague says he does not feel in Hong Kong.

I feel this result is an incredibly fast transformation of what used to be grubby and polluted Shanghai. New coats of paint, more lightings installed and a new fleet 3500+ new Volkswagen taxis ply the city routes. I feel safer and more comfortable travelling in these new cars because of better interior (seemingly) leather fittings instead of the cloth covering, and heavier doors. They have spent a fortune preparing for the Expo (which I did not attend for fear of getting crushed by the crazy crowd).

On Pudong is the glitzy skyscrapers and its continual quest to be the tallest.


On the other side of the harbour sits the charming old guard, Puxi, with its beautifully romantic colonial style buildings, boasts of history and culture.
They have recently restored the Peace Hotel and it reminds me of the Fullerton.
Overall, I am very impressed with how the local government has put this together.

We picked up a dining magazine during coffee, and came across an article which was an interview with a Shanghai gourmet. He likes this restaurant called 福1088, so, not knowing better where to dine, my colleague and I decided to try it out.

When we arrived at the restaurant, we were led through a long alleyway littered with old Shanghai furniture, and a pianist was playing on the first floor. I liked the setting, which had authentic metal levers as window locks, glass window panes, wooden handles and worn-out stairs creaked of nostalgia when I walked up, and old colourful, big square Chinese tiles. It is an old four storey home that was refurbished and now used as a restaurant.

One of the most memorable dish that night was the absolutely delicious 红烧肉. The fatty layer of skin is so tender that it melts in your mouth. We were dining with a Shanghainese client and he says, this dish is very much true to Shanghai style, as it is cooked with a rich, sweet gravy. Being more greedy than hungry, after dinner, I still ordered lamb and pork skewers from a roadside stall just near the resturant. Yummy I love eating meat. Friend later tells me that Beijing skewers are way better...

Roast meats at Nanjing Lu

Shi Yu is supposedly a rare and expensive fish that goes for at least 1000HKD a fish in HK. It's scales contain oil and so it should not be removed and it is edible. When steamed, the oil from the fish trickles down the meal, making it very sweet and flavourful. I liked it, the texture was not so fine, but still nice.

Hairy Carb or 大闸蟹 to be eaten with Vinegar. We had one male and female crab each.