July 15, 2011: China Day 5 - Trip to Shanghai

July 15, 2011: Xie and I took a final walk through Black Bamboo Park. Below are two pictures of the garden taken in the evening from the night before and in the morning:

Black Bamboo Park in the evening

Black Bamboo Park

After that it was time to check out of the hotel and go for lunch with Xie, his wife, and his friend who drove us to the airport. We had lunch on the way at a great restaurant that served food as Xie ate it in his hometown Xiao Xin on east coast China. As we entered the restaurant, the waitresses and waiters were lined up in attention intently listening to their boss in a pep rally before the lunch crowd came to eat there. The waitresses all had their hands folded in front of them (just like all the department store clerks did on Wang Fu Jing Street), and the waiters had their hands clasped behind their backs. At the conclusion of this pep talk, they clapped their hands in a unison type rhythm and ended that with a cheer, much like a cheer football players make just after leaving a huddle. Lunch was delicious:

After lunch we went to the airport and I was on my way to Shanghai. Unfortunately, the plane was delayed an hour so I arrived late in Shanghai. The ladies who were to meet me in Shanghai were there to greet me and I was on my way to one of the most sophisticated cities I've seen in a long time.

Statues decorating Shanghai Airport

The guesthouse where I stayed was quite a distance from the airport, taking around an hour to reach.

Memory Guesthouse in Shanghai

I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening resting in preparation for a busy schedule sightseeing in Shanghai the next day. The two ladies promised to pick me up at 9:30 and had quite a detailed agenda for me. Wait until you see my pictures of Shanghai!