Thanks Shanghainese!!!!!
Printing our for reference.

Aloha!

We are looking forward to trying out some of these. Thanks

Great info. Wish you were going to be there to share a meal with in October.

My pleasure, have a great trip, you know you are all welcome to GTG with us in northern California.

I topped my Notes from 2007, HT printed it out last year. Mahalo, HT, we keep missing each other and I won't be able to go to Boston in Oct. Alooha!!

thanks

Good info - thanks!

Sorry about the Yangzhou (a city between Shanghai and Nanking famed for food) Restaurant reference to a hotel, it was cut from an email for a friend staying at the Sofitel Hotel.

Hanuman -- if you need more info on Hangzhou, let me know. Where are you staying?

Shanghainese - Probably the Four Seasons or the Hyatt. Going to rent a car and go to Yiwu for a day and then the rest of the time will spent in Hangzhou. Almost 100 degrees at the moment!

Hanuman -- Good, don't go the lakeside Shangri-la, at one time first class but sadly everything went downhill.

Hangzhou is locked in by mountains, easily goes to 105 or higher. You mean rent car/driver, right? Mrs Hanuman will fill the car after Yiwu, the wholesale capital of China.

That's right we will rent a car + driver for Yiwu. Heard that it's a two hour's drive from Hangzhou so might be exploring the fast train option instead.

You're right the temperature should be like Bangkok in the summer time!

Probably the Four Seasons or the Hyatt. Going to rent a car and go to Yiwu for a day and then info on Hangzhou, let me know. Where are you staying

Hanuman -- fast train and a cab to where you want to go

http://www.chinatrainguide.com/hangzhou-railway-station/yiwu.html

Kitty_M -- what are you trying to say?!

SIGHTS/SITES -- Attractions don't change much, these are my thoughts.

The BIG BUS TOURS is listed above under Transportation.

Watertowns: Ranks high on my list. They are different from gardens, which are of the unique south of Long River aka Yangtze River style. The large major gardens are in Suzhou but you can also see them in Shanghai and the watertowns. Watertowns are criss-crossed by canals lined with narrow walkways linked by stone bridges. The food specialities are pork dishes and the famous canal fish, shrimp and crab. Each town has its local candy, snacks and crafts.

In defense of Zhouzhuang, which many feel is too touristy, it is the largest one first recognized with world-class status. If you are deep into chinese culture, arts and literature, this is the best example, has a longer history than Shanghai. It is about 1.25 hours drive, suggest leaving Shanghai after lunch and spend the night (the night scene by the canals are very attractive).

If Suzhou is on your itinerary, spend the morning there and overnight in Tongli (40 minutes from Suzhou). The smaller and equally as charming Zhujiajiao 50 minutes away can be done in 1/2 day, and it doesn't charge an entrance fee like the larger 6 watertowns.

The garden to see in Shanghai is the Yu Gardens, small with an entrance fee, surrounded by the bustling old town market. Skip it if you are going to Suzhou.

Sadly, old Shanghai has all but disappeared in the past 25 years. 5 minutes walk from Yu Gardens is Fuyou Road aka Old Steet, a few blocks have been preserved. The other area is Dian Zi Fang, aka Art Alley in the old french concession, the old lane residences have been preserved with the ground floor remodeled and rented to art galleries, boutiques, tea/coffee shops and restaurants. The locals live next door or upstairs and go about their daily lives ignoring the tourists peeking into their living quarters especially the kitchen. The wet market is next to the entrances to the lanes. The newest
shiny mega mall SML (sun, moon, lxxxx) is across the street.
This is a very lively area where you see a good slice of local life now punctured with tourists.

The Wangpu River divides Shanghai in 1/2, take the 1-hour cruise if your legs are tired, I suggest take a short walk in daylight on the Pudong (east) side, and another short stroll in the evening on the Bund promenade (Puxi west side).

Walks in the french concession around the Wukang Road area lined with parisian plane trees among old european mansions is relaxing if you need a hour's break away from the hustle/bustle of the city. You also see where the wealthy locals and expat CEOs live.

Spend an hour early morning in any park, it's people watching at its best, taichi, ballroom dancing and even parents match-making for their kid, the matchmaking fair in April drew 40,000 visitors and vendors. The larger ones are People's Square, Fuxi Park and Xiangyang Park.

Xitiandi is not original buildings, they have been totally renovated into a high-end shopping/dining/entertainment area, not on my list of must-sees.
The same for the newly opened #16 Old Docks complex, ghost town becomes alive when the bars, clubs and dance halls open.
The new Suzhou River cruise is no comparison to the Wangpu River one, despite the Amsterdam looking boats, there is nothing much to look at along the river.
Some of the 2010 World Expo pavilions such as the Italian and some others have reopened, word is only locals go visit.

Thanks again Aline for doing this. Nice to have a locals viewpoints and reco's.
Would it be possible to do a day trip to Suzhou and Tongli from Shanghai if we hire a car and driver?

Aloha!

HT: Long day and some walking.

Driver should be familiar with Suzhou, chinese GPS are not always accurate. Prices are somewhat higher since this is out of Shanghai driving, the highway tolls should be included in the quote. No need to pay till you return to the hotel. Leave at 7:30 am, morning traffic is very heavy at 8. Even if you invite him/her, the driver will not join you for lunch. When you return to the hotel and you think the driver offered good service, add a small amount and tell him it's for his lunch, don't mention it's a tip. Oh, get his mobile #.

1st stop Tiger Hill, stone steps up a gentle slope, lovely scenery. Next stop the Humble Administrator Garden, large and the best example of the classical gardens. The Suzhou gardens were built by or for rich officials, merchants and scholars. No need to squeeze in another garden as I'll recommend one in Tongli.

Head to Tongli, get a map with english on it, and have lunch at a canal-side eatery that has outdoor seating, crowded places = good food. Take a boat ride. Afterwards go to the small but beautiful Tuisi Garden. Aah, the Sex Museum is very popular and "educational", it was so crowded when it opened in Shanghai that it was moved to Tongli. Last but not least, end the visit with some shopping, the fresh water lake pearls are of good quality and cheaper than in Shanghai, they will string them while you drink tea. I also like the locally-produced cotton cloth with white flowers & bamboo made into clothes, tablecloths, etc. The snacks with sesame seeds are very tasty.

You'll hit rush-hour traffic on your way back to the hotel, snooze in the car.

Thanks again Aline for all the added info.....gives us a lot to think about our plan for Tongli. Probably would be better if we would spend the night in Tongli.....maybe not. Linda loves the idea of having a pearl necklace strung for her while we have lunch, lol.

Aloha!

i'm great with pearls-- pop-it beads

HT: The lodging in old town Tongli are rustic inns like the extension of the locals' homes, downtown Tongli has some hotels mainly for chinese business people.

rhkkmk: you mean you swallow them whole? I have only heard swallowing pearl powder, which is ground up pearls, allegedly known for softening and whitening your skin ...

pop-it beads were a craze in the usa in the 50's.. i was joking..

I see, I was still in Shanghai in the 50's, only craze was chanting long live chairman Mao!

Last Section:

SHOPPING -- It hasn't changed much so check my 2007 Notes for references. I'll just point out two easy areas to get to.

The area surrounding the Yu Gardens could be called a market or bazaar, full of gifts where there are loads of knickknacks for under a $1 up to gold and jade in the thousands. A nice souvenir or gift I like for to get is a chop carved with the english name translated into chinese, people-pleasing and inexpensive.

The other area is the Art Alley mentioned above, it has boutiques and art galleries that the first area doesn't have. Gifts are more tasteful and wide-ranged, some of the handicrafts and artwork are quite attractive such as hand-printed and hand-painted tops. If you ejoy mega malls, go across the street to the big shiny completx.

For fabrics, check out the multi-floor South Bund Fabric Market at 399 Lujiabang Road, Lots of tailors too, some say reminds them of a vertical Hoi An. I don't go there so cannot recommend anyone.

thanks, we have taken note..

TTT for tansmets

Thanks for posting this. What in your opinion is the best water town? We will probably overnight in the watertowns one night, you mention Tongli above, but what about Nanxun and Xitang? Zhujiajiao? We will have a Thursday and Friday to explore, probably overnighting in Suzhou. Remote is ok as I speak/read enough Mandarin to be comfortable anywhere.

Except for size, there is not a big difference between the watertowns so no opinion of which is the best. Even the largest one Zhouzhuang will not take 2 days to explore, Zhujiajiao is a 1/2 day trip, Nanxun and Xitang are daytrip places, Tongli too unless you are visiting Suzhou.

Remembering the wonderful dinner of duck at Old Beijing...yum

Thank you, Shanghainese, for the great information. For those who may be interested, we (Aussie couple, no Mandarin) caught an early morning public bus from near Peoples' Square to Zhujiajiao, and really enjoyed the whole experience. With another couple we met on the bus, who did speak Mandarin, we hired a guide and a boat. The boat ride was fun, and great for photos, but I don't think the guide is necessary, really, and we could have done it on our own, once we found the entrance, which is not visible from the bus station. A shop in
Zhujiajiao was selling silk filled doonas, which I thought would be a lovely souvenir if you needed one.

Just to add, in Shanghai, we caught the public ferry across the river - it's quite a walk from the opposite wharf to the Pearl Tower, and we found a loo in a modern building on the way. Have never seen one like it - the seat was covered in spotless plastic wrap, which rotated to replace itself with every flush! Amazing!

TTT for rhkkmk

got it

shanghainese,
I couldn't find your 2007 notes on the French Concession. Could you provide a link to it?
Thanks much!

barefootbeach: I will top the 2007 Notes for you, I didn't write about the french concession. In this 2012 Notes, the Sights/Sites talks about Dian Zi Fang/Art Alley, Wukang Road Fuxing Park and Xiangyang Park are all in that area.

Are you looking for something specific?

Thanks for topping Shanghainese,
I mainly wanted to see your restaurant descriptions from that trip...and your shopping notes...so I've copied that. Thanks much!

Aline,
I have a separate HSBC atm account which I usually use to get money while in Asia. I am assuming it is easy to find an atm machine that will accept this card in Shanghai and its environs? How did you exchange money in Shanghai? Mahalo

Aloha!

HT:

HSBC is well known in China, I don't think you'll have problems at ATM machines, they are everyone. For back-up you might want to bring another ATM card just in case. Bring a regular credit card to pay for your hotels and other larger expenses.

Notify all the banks of your travel schedule so your cards don't get "blocked".

Oops, I meant everywhere ...

just bring a roll of hundreds

Aren't you supposed to be narrating a bus tour about now?
I will have the boys running them the week before we leave.......bring more stale bread with you

Mahalo Shanghainese!

With regard to ATM machines, I just read on trip advisor that some of the machines in china require a 6 digit pin number. If your card does not work with your 4 digit pin, add two zeros at the end.

Thanks, dgunbug, I don't use ATMs in China (use them in other countries tho), good to know to add 00.

TTT for lynrak

TTT fr DMB Traveler

Please translate. What's GTG mean? Tks.