The Bund

We've been waiting for a relatively clear day to go and see The Bund and the view from the World Financial Center which is across the river on the Pudong side of Shanghai. We woke up to blue skies and a minimum of smog so we headed to a restaurant that had been recommended to us that had gorgeous unobstructed views of The Bund and the Shanghai skyline.

The Bund basically refers to a mile long stretch of road that features historic and architecturally significant buildings and also a wide promenade that follows the Huangpu River on the Puxi side of Shanghai (the older side). It offers amazing views of Pudong (the new side) and it's incredible skyline. It's the number one tourist destination in Shanghai and it is pretty spectacular. We had a pretty average meal but an out of this world view. This city is massive already and it is still erupting. As reputed, it is absolutely filled with cranes and new construction sites.

We walked The Bund which was choked with Chinese tourists and then we boarded a cable car/subway train for underground/underwater transport to Pudong. This was a rather surreal experience. The space-agey cars hold about 25 people and travel a tunnel that features a trippy light show and nonsensical commentary in English and Mandarin. An eerie voice randomly says things like "Paradise and Hell" and then later "Massive Magma" and as we left the tunnel "Meteor Showers". Really strange... but at the least efficient at getting us under the river.

As we walked out in Pudong, it was evident we had entered into a different Shanghai. Everything was even taller and newer and slightly more spread out. Pudong has been erected in the past decade (pretty much). 10 years ago it was practically empty land and the government decided to pour billions of dollars into constructing Pudong to create Shanghai, Financial Capital of the World. Which, if it's not already, it will be soon. What has happened in the past 10 years would blow your mind and it's still happening. Construction is everywhere. We walked to theShanghai World Financial Center the tallest building in Shanghai and one of the tallest in the world. It's the building shaped like a bottle opener. The pagoda type building is Jin Mao Tower and was the tallest until SWFC opened. The Pearl Tower is ugly and odd, but distinctive.

This is really the China of the Future, Beijing may rule over the past but Shanghai is the future. And maybe not just of China. We went to the top floor at the SWFC and start to finish the journey was mind blowing. The building is gorgeous, inside and out. I nearly forgot to look at the sprawling views, I was so busy gawking at the building itself. The elevators take you to the 94, 97 and 100th floors so you can be at the bottom of the hole or the top. Once on top, glass floors enable you to see straight down causing extreme vertigo. It was interesting to see old/new Shanghai from that perspective, both are enormous and construction continues in all directions.

Of course, an outing wouldn't be complete without the kids being photographed endlessly. Elle got pretty jealous that Liam was being photographed so she decided to go kneel on the floor, pose cutely and wait. Sure enough, within minutes, she had her own crowd surrounding her, camera's clicking away. It was so calculated and so outrageous that Justin and I were speechless at the sight. The girl sure knows how to drum up attention.