Shanghai Brief Introduction
Facts:Shanghai, Hu for short, also known as Shen, is a multi-cultural metropolis with both modern and traditional chinese features. the city has a status equivalent to a province, and reports directly to the central government. serving as the largest base of Chinese industrial technology, one of the most important seaports and China's largest commercial and financial center, Shanghai draws the attention of the whole world.
Location:Shanghai is situated at 31°41' north latitude and 121°29' east longitude. the city, whose name literally means "on the sea", is located on the east China coast just to the south of the mouth of the Yangtze river. bordering on Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces on the west, Shanghai is washed by the east China sea on the east and Hangzhou Bay on the south. it also occupies a central location along China's coastline. thanks to its advantageous geographic location, Shanghai is an excellent sea and river port, boasting easy access to the vast hinterland
Geographical Features:Except for a few hills lying in the southwest corner, most parts of the Shanghai area are flat and belong to the alluvial plain of the Yangtze river delta. the average sea level elevation is about 4 meters.
Population:Shanghai is one of the most populated cities in China. it has a permanent resident population of over 14.57 million, of which 12.21 million live in the urban areas. Shanghai population accounts for 1.1% of the Chinese population, with the average density of 2059 inhabitants per square kilometers (3854 in the urban areas). there is a huge floating population of itinerant workers, probably numbering two million.
Shanghai Time:Time used in Shanghai and all over china is called Beijing standard time. It is 8 hours ahead of Greenwich mean time (gmt + 8), and 12 hours ahead of New York time.
Shanghai Weather:Shanghai starts the year shivering in midwinter, when temperatures can drop below freezing and the vistas are gray and misty. spring brings warmth; April to Mid-May is probably one of the best times to visit there, along with Autumn (late September to Mid-November). in summer the hot and humid weather makes conditions outside uncomfortable, with temperatures sometimes as high as 40°c (104°f) in July and August. In short, silk long johns and down jackets are needed in winter, an ice block for each armpit in summer and an umbrella wouldn't go astray in either of these seasons.With a pleasant northern subtropical maritime monsoon climate, Shanghai enjoys four distinct seasons, generous sunshine and abundant rainfall. its spring and autumn are relatively short compared with summer and winter. the average annual temperature is 16 degrees celsius. the city has a frost-free period lasting up to 230 days a year, and receives an average annual rainfall of 1,200 millimeters.
Shanghai Bund
The bund, which extends from Jinling Road in the south to the waibaidu bridge in the north, is a 1.5-kilometer-long boulevard on the western bank of the Huangpu river. walking along Zhongshan Road, not only can visitors enjoy the scenery of Huangpu River but have a glimpse of the development of Lujiazui district on the other side of Huangpu River. The architecture along the bund is unanimously honored as a "world architectural fair", including all kinds of tall buildings like the gothic style, the baroque style, the roman style, the classical style, the renaissance style and the combination of Chinese and western style.
a. lover's wall
Oriental Pearl TV Tower.jpg)
The 468 meters high tower, which is the highest in Asia and the third highest in the world, was put into construction on July 30th, 1991 and completed on october 1st, 1994. it faces the bund across the Huangpu River. With eleven steel spheres in various sizes Hanging from the blue sky to the green grassland, the body of the tower creates and admirable image, which is described in an ancient chinese verse as: large and small pearls dropping on a plate of jade.
a. The Oriental Pearl Science Fantasy World
The oriental pearl science fantasy world has many wonderful and exciting entertainment items for both the young and the old. the entertainment list includes journey through the forest, trip on the south pole, travel in the fancies, disney theatre, laser theatre, bliss square, three-dimensional movie and hot balloon.
b. Shanghai Municipal History Museum
The Shanghai municipal history museum is located in the tower's pedestal, which is a museum on the development of Shanghai over the past century. tourists can learn Shanghai municipal history in a vivid way through the display of valuable relics, documents, pictures and advanced audio-visual devices. The show is made up of six parts: leased territory, old municipal construction and street scenes, urban economy in modern shanghai, modern culture, city life and political changes, which fully displays a profound change happened in every aspects of Shanghai.
Shanghai Huangpu River
Nowadays the Huangpu River becomes a world famous tour bay. This River is a golden gateway of foreign trade as well as an important waterway to the pacific ocean from the Pudong new district. cruising on the Huangpu River is an important traditional travel program in Shanghai. riding a cruise boat along the Huangpu River, you will take a glimpse of yangpu bridge, Nanpu bridge and Shanghai oriental pearl tv tower on both sides. various exotic architectural buildings on the west bank of Huangpu river stand opposite to various modern skyscrapers on the east bank.Wusongkou port, a convergent point where the Huangpu river joins the Yangtze river, is adjacent to the eastern sea. therefore, it is a place where three streams combine.
Shanghai Chenghuang Temple 
The Chenghuang temple is a Taoist temple, also called real China town, which is composed of many a halls such as the grand hall, middle hall, bedroom palace, star gods hall, Yama palace, Xuzhen god hall and so on. the Chenghuang temple had an area of more than 10,000 square meters including two gardens: west garden (Yu garden) and east garden. the Chenghuang temple has a great influence on the residents of Shanghai. the religious festivals of the temple are considered to be the festivals of all Shanghai people. especially when the Sanxun festival (a day when the chenghuang god start to inspect his people) comes, nearly all people will come to the chenghuang temple to burn incense and worship the Chenghuang god, while all shops inside or near the chenghuang temple would hang red lanterns to celebrate the festival. in addition, some folk arts, like cockfight, penmanship performance and acrobatics, are fairly attractive.
Tianzifang
Tian-zi-fang is located at Taikang Road. This street is an old street dotted with local style Shikumen Houses, which is onesymbol of Shanghai folk culture. On this street, you can find many private art studios. Artists crowd here, creating a modern art atmosphere. Also, you can find some characteristic shops selling clothes, ornaments and handcrafts.Compare with new modern buildings jungle, in Tianzifang you can find the special architecture of old shanghai city. There are bars, cafes, craft shops, studio, galleries, and boutiques.
Yuyuan Garden
It was first established in Ming dynasty by a mandarin named Pan yunduan who used to be the governor of Sichuan and later expanded greatly; the Yu garden was considered the best garden in southeast China. the Yu garden enjoyed a history over 400 years since its first establishment by Pan yunduan who had intended to bring happiness and pleasure to his parents and relatives. it became the headquarters of the dagger association or small-sword group uprising (an uprising in 1853 led by the dagger association, a secret organization, against the foreign imperialists in Shanghai and Xiamen of Fujian province). now a great number of weapons, home-made coins and announcements used by the dagger association are on display in the spring hall of the garden. a large-scale restoration of the Yu garden was conducted after the establishment of prc and it was opened to the public formally in 1961.
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