Hi guys and gals,
I’m going to have one full Shanghai day. Any suggestions on where and what I should see? Does it snow in Jan? I’m a bit worried on how cold it is there.
Mr. Guest
I was there for two days last week… daytime temp was about 1 degree… no snow, but chilly…
as for what to do, depends on your preferences, The Bund, Maoming Rd, the “space tower”, XinTianDi, the old town, the shopping streets… all fairly cool… just walk into the lobby of any 5 star hotel and check out their must see in ShangHai list and then use their doormen to get you a taxi… 
P’tron has got some good ideas. Your call as to whether or not Xintiandi is worth it though. I think it’s the kind of place that is pleasant to go to if you live there (modern, upscale, trendy resaurants and shops) – but it does not strike me as having much that you can’t find in other cities. shrug
I think a walk around some of the old tree-lined streets in the French Concession might be nice too. Not too far from the Maoming Rd. that plasma mentioned, there are some nice parks and places for coffee/drinks, and the homes of some famous gangsters and political figures from Shanghai’s fascinating past.
Hope you have a nice trip!
No, it’s not even that interesting when you live there. In the 8 months I lived in Shanghai, we only went there ONCE and would have fun somewhere else on the weekends. But for some strange reason, somebody managed to hype the whole thing up, and now, everybody tells you the first thing you have to see in Shanghai is artificial and overpriced Xintiandi. And all Chinese business partners feel obligated to take their foreign visitors there :loco:
My and my best friends favorite past time used to be walking around the French Concession, just as Hobbes wrote. The Bund is a must-see if you haven’t been. It was one of the four places that truly impressed me when I spent my first year in China.
If you want to do some clothes and present shopping and are there on a weekday (or can put up with the weekend crowds), go to Xiangyang Market on Huaihai Lu. That’s also a good starting (or ending) point for walks around the area. Just dip off into one of the streets leading off Huaihai Lu and make a circle… Maoming Lu isn’t far from that, either.
Shanghai is a great place to spend some time, enjoy 
Iris
couldn’t agree more… i included XinTianDi since it’s just the first place everyone mentions when you say the words ShangHai… Whilst largly overpriced and non-descript the place does have some interesting resturaunts, like that one with all the colored glass thingys and mirrors everywhere that than Taiwanese actress women and her husband opened… that said like the rest of XinTianDi it’s overpriced and the food is merely okay…
oh, you could go to the slick new race track in HongQiao… might be a bit dull if there’s no racing going on though…
Can US citizens and foreigners in Taiwan make reservations to travel on the new cross-strait airline services??
I heard that those services are starting at the end of January 2005.
That would make it much easier for us to visit various PRC cities for short vacations.