When we arrived in Shanghai Pudong Airport, the time was about 4-5 p.m.. After waiting for quite a while for the bus, it was already about 5.30 p.m. Due to the lack of time, we did not manage to visit the French Concession on that day but we went to the Bund and Huang Pu Jiang as planned. At the Bund, I saw many modern and traditional architectures. I found it very interesting and unique that 2 different types of architecture from 2 different eras can exist at the same time. Furthermore, from what I had observed, the traditional European architecture not only had a French style, it also had a bit of English architecture elements. Only when I had returned to Singapore and did more research, I found out that the western architectures at the Bund was actually made of many different styles such as Baroque, Renaissance, Classical and many more.
On the bus rides, our tour guide had also kindly explained and taught us more things about Shanghai. He told us that Shanghai's economy is the strongest in the China even though it is not the capital city. The large population in Shanghai also helped to contribute to the Chinese economy and development. The day's adventures were finished with a 40-min boat ride along Huang Pu Jiang. We got to see how the skyline of Shanghai looked at night. The modern skyscrapers were lit up with lights and it looked even more beautiful than it had compared to how it looked in the afternoon.
At night, as I wrote down my reflection for the day in the booklet, I thought back to how these iconic buildings represented to Shanghai and about the iconic buildings in Singapore. The culture of a country/city is often shown in the iconic buildings, and these buildings are often the attractions that tourists would visit the most. In Shanghai, there is the Bund, Huang Pu Jiang, and French Concession and more. While in Singapore, there is the Merlion, Esplanade, Singapore Flyer etc.
Day 2
On the 2nd day of OELP we visited the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall, Tian Zi Fang and even went to Hai Di Lao for lunch before taking the 4-hour bus ride to Yangzhou. We also managed to make a quick visit to ethe French Concession which we were not able to visit on the first day.
I really liked the French Concession as it was really peaceful and quiet there. Moreover, the buildings were build in a western style and it felt like I was not in Shanghai but in some small European country. I think out of all the places we visited in Shanghai, I probably liked the French Concession the best as the environment really appealed to me. Soon after the Concession, we walked to the Tian Zi Fang. It was really small and the walkways were quite narrow. If you did not know the road well enough, it would be best to not wander to far away as the layout of the place can make it very hard for you to re-trace your steps. The Tian Zi Fang represents the old Shanghai and we got a chance to see how it looked like. The alleys are small and narrow and the roads are not very smooth. After Tian Zi Fang we went to the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall. It was very interesting as it showed how Shanghai had developed and at the same time tried to preserve its cultural heritage. One of the dilemma of cultural heritage conservation and economic development in Shanghai and China is that it takes up a lot of land and space. When Shanghai was developing, they did not think further enough and neglected the possibility that Shanghai might have a larger population in the future. Hence when we were there, we actually saw a tall building that was in construction. The tour guide then told us that it was because they are adding more levels to the housing state so there would be enough housing to support the entire Shanghai population.
Day 3
On the morning when we arrived in Yangzhou, we went to 冶春茶社 for breakfast. Over there, we learned that most of the locals only have 2 meals per day: Breakfast and Dinner. That's why the portions served during these 2 meals are much bigger. That probably explained the many types of buns served when we were having our breakfast there. I had the chance to tried the 灌汤包 and it was delicious! I had to sip the soup through a straw slowly and carefully in order to not get burned. But it was still really nice. However, the breakfast was too filling for me.
In the afternoon we went to the Block Printing Museum. There was live demonstration of the process of block printing in the olden times and watching the demonstration made me understood that block printing requires a lot of patience and passion for the art. If one word was printed wrongly on the block, you would have to start over the entire thing. One must really persevere and be passionate for the art in order to continue for a long time.
After the museum we went to Dongguang Street for some shopping before watching the 千秋粉黛 performance. I really liked the performance as it there were many singing and dancing. Also, I had the chance to see the traditional costumes of women in the different dynasties. I thought they were really beautiful and if I had a chance, I would definitely want to try them on.
Day 4&5
The 4th and 5th day was probably my favourite part of the entire trip because we were finally able to visit 扬大附中. It was really interesting and fun because we got an insight of how the education system in China was like. My buddy was extremely friendly and we constantly exchanged about the uniqueness and difference between China and Singapore with each other. We also attended a few lessons with them and found out more difference between schools in Singapore and China. The teachers in China teach in Chinese, and there is normally a 5-10 mins break for the students between classes. Also, they have a 2 hour lunch break where some of the students are allowed to go home for lunch if they live nearby. For those who stayed in school, they are required to rest and have a nap before school starts again at 2p.m. The students over there were very attentive in class and very proactive. When a teacher asks a question, there would always be a few hands in the air immediately. I think this is something that we Singaporean students could learn from them. On the 2nd and last day at the school, we even had a cultural performance. To me it was super fun because we finally had the chance to put up the dance which we practiced as a dance to our new-found friends. Sadly, it was time for goodbye after the performance.
Day 6
Day 6 was another interesting and wonderful day. We had the chance to get a industrial visit to Volkswagen! Over there, I actually got the chance to witness the process of car-making and found out how important their customers are to them. The philosophy of Volkswagen is 'quality first'. When I was in the assemble area, I saw this banner saying that "用户就是我们的衣食父母". This really showed how important the customers are to them. Also, the procedure of the car-making showed to me that the workers were very focused with their work. They hardly talk among themselves and concentrated solely on their work. Furthermore, there were also many motivational sayings on the banners to encourage the workers.
Day 7
Day 7! The last day! To return to Shanghai, we took the bullet train from Zhenjiang. Food and drinks were allowed on the train, which at first made me think that the train would be quite dirty. However, it proved me wrong. The trains were squeaky clean and really quiet. 1+ hour of the train ride passed by really quickly as I listened to music and got some rest after finishing my reflection. The passengers on the bullet train hardly talked and were either quietly doing their own things or getting some sleep. This behaviour amazed me and it made me want to observe more of Singaporean's actions and behaviours on public transportation so that I can compare and learn from them. The train moved at a really high speed. Due to how comfortable the ride was, I actually wanted the train ride to last longer. But I still felt glad when I reached Shanghai and took the plane back to Singapore.
Clarissa
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