Then and now

Long and wide: Huangpu River makes for a spectacular sight. The globe with the Western Hemisphere houses the convention center.

 

I was shocked to see how much Shanghai has expanded since my first visit there 20 years ago. We you think the Chicago skyline changes with a few new skyscrapers -- nothing comes close to Shanghai. 

Good luck symbols: A man and son almost hand-feeding the 
fish at a Shanghai park.

In 1991, I walked on the Bund, the street along the waterfront, looked across the Huangpu River at acres and acres of farmland. The only way to get to the other side was by ferry. Then, the population of Shanghai was 11 million people. There were no subways and only a few hundred cars. People took buses or rode their bikes. With its Western-style of architecture, Shanghai’s Puxi (pronounced: pooh-shee) district looked like a European city. The Park Hotel was the tallest structure at 24 stories, built by the British during what the Chinese call their “Concession,” between 1920 and 1930. The French were also here after World War One and built smaller structures, occupied by retail shops and residence. There is no indoor plumbing nor heat in these homes, which were to be razed within a few years to make way for more park and arbor space.

The Shanghai World Financial Center is the building on the right that looks like a bottle opener. It's set to become China's second-tallest structure after the building in the middle is finished in 2014.

 

 

 

 

Fast forward to 2013. Shanghai’s population is now 23 million. The financial district, on the east side, is called Pudong, has replaced the farmland where the Chinese built 8,000 high rises, taller than 20 stories, in 12 years, two of which are taller than Chicago’s Hancock Building and one that will be the second-tallest in the world after Dubai's Burj Khalifa, when it is completed at the end of 2014. There are seven suspension bridges over the Huang Pu, nine tunnels and 13 subway lines. There are thousands of cars, some of them Mercedes and BMWs, paying no attention to pedestrians or red lights. You can spend as much as $10,000 to get a Shanghai license plate so you can drive within city limits.

In contrast to the Japanese, Chinese are louder and aggressive, trying to sell you imitation watches, postcards, dolls or trinkets; they are more animated and seem less courteous. Younger ones speak English, a requirement starting in first grade. Unlike Japan, we could purchase items from street vendors with our dollars and use our credit cards in shops and restaurants.

Mandarin is the official language in China, but each region has its own dialect, and they can be very different than Mandarin. There are 55 different ethnic groups within China. Shanghai is dominated by Han Chinese, who carry an identity card, which gives them certain privileges not available to “floating”  residents, i.e. those who were not born in Shanghai. As in many other countries, there is a huge influx of people from rural areas to urban centers. The one-child-per-family rule is still practiced and even makes economic sense because life is expensive in China. People delay getting married because they cannot afford housing and do not want to live with their parents, as was the custom a generation ago. A small apartment (say, 700-1100 square feet) in a four-story walk-up in an old neighborhood can cost $400,000. Rentals are available only for businessmen and short-term visitors. Our guide Shu Chin bought her small apartment for $100,000 less than 10 years ago. It has quadrupled in value but selling it is out of question since the government will assess a 20 percent capital gains tax.

 

Having seen Beijing, Xian and Guillin during my last visit, I decided to concentrate on Shanghai this time.

Six centuries ago, Shanghai was a fishing village ruled by the Ming Dynasty centered in Beijing (1368-1644). In the 17th Century, during the rule of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1917), Shanghai became a shipping and textile port and was the starting point of the Silk Road. 

Today, the Chinese have improved the quality of their mulberry trees, which grow in mild climates such as Shanghai. These trees are home to silk worms, harvested after 60 days of gestation. Each cocoon produces one mile of silk, thin but strong. I have visited similar production facilities in Turkey but found the Chinese have surpassed the Turks in getting the most out of this crop. Once the silk is stripped from the cocoon, the worm inside is used for cosmetic items, such as makeup, according to our guide Shu Chin. “It’s all protein and keeps the wrinkles away,” she chuckled. 

  

After World War One and the civil war in China (1945-1949), Chang Ka-shek and his followers retreated to the island of Taiwan and established a democratic republic while Mao Tse-tung established the Communist state, isolating itself from the Western world and trading only with the Soviet Union. After U.S. President Richard Nixon’s visit to China and the fall of the Soviet Union, China became a manufacturing giant and now calls itself a socialist/capitalist society.

When I was here 20 years ago, everyone worked for the government and he or she did not have a choice of a profession. Careers were determined by university admissions tests; if you did well you became a doctor, a lawyer or an engineer. Or you got a liberal arts degree and became a bureaucrat. If you spoke a foreign language, you might become a tour guide, again working for the government. However, now you can choose your profession, still within the limits of your degree.

One of the most enjoyable experiences of this stay was attending a 90-minute acrobatic performance, one of the best traveling shows out of China. ERA Acrobats includes gymnasts who began training from the age of 7. They practice at least three hours a day to improve their skills. The ERA troupe is among the most famous. A busload of us were wowed by the show that included ballet moves, gymnastics, motorcycle and bicycle tricks, handstands, high jumps and magic tricks. The audience literally gasped at times. They performed to live music that was specially composed for the show, and the computerized lighting was superb.