More Shanghai Days

On Monday I went to wait for Gary to finish his classes at 12pm. Everyone at the school has the same morning schedule, which I really think is great because it makes it so much easier to meet people. Even as I just sat there waiting for Gary I met a few people...I haven't really had the same experience in Beijing. 

The classroom and dorm buildings are all different from when I was there and are in a more remote part of the campus. Here's the classroom building:

It's right next to a sports field. You can see the old dorm building in the distance. It's the second-tallest one in the picture.
And here's the new dormitory. The rooms are a lot nicer than when I stayed here, but I didn't take any photos inside.
We first went to recharge Gary's phone card, which can sometimes be a confusing process what with all the numbers you have to call and enter.
I went with him and his mom to a fabric market where she was having a bunch of different things tailored. Then Gary and I went off for a walk through the old town of Shanghai.
I'm actually not sure what is being made in this picture. If anyone knows, feel free to tell me. It looked like some kind of dough.
Some rather creepy-looking kid's rides:
Some dried fruits and me in the window reflection.

A dog with an underbite. I am continually amazed at how many dogs in Beijing and Shanghai have funny little underbites like this guy.
After a relatively tiring day of walking we had pizza and tried to get some work done, without too much success.
The next day I met Gary again to go for a walk around the French Concession. First we stopped for lunch in a place called 'Metrotown,' just like the mall in Burnaby. We spotted this sign from the restaurant:
On the way we stopped at the train station to get tickets to Nanjing and my return ticket to Beijing. We both thought the little girl with the thermos and the cute skirt was adorable.
After the ticket-buying (which is often rather stressful in a busy train station), we went to Xintiandi, a very developed, upscale area. Lots of foreign brands and foreign people in this area of town.
The French Concession:

A little doggy, all dressed up for the day:
I thought his little outfit looked even funnier from the back.

An old Russian orthodox church. It was closed so we couldn't look inside, and I have no idea whether it is still in use or not.
A strange sculpture of a boy and a girl with the caption "Civilized." That is a real buzzword here and you see it all over the city: "Civilly cross the street." "Strive for a civilized society."
We went and had dinner at the ECNU back gate in a Sichuan restaurant. It was delicious.

The next day I went out on my own to get some shopping out of the way. I went to the French Concession again and stumbled across a beautiful old mansion which seems to be under construction or something. The men doing the construction are migrant workers who have come to Shanghai to work and save money.
I met these nice two women in a clothing store. I didn't buy the jacket, they just wanted me to wear some of their clothing in the picture together. They're both Shanghai people. Once I had picked out what i wanted i realized I was a bit short on cash, so I had to run to the bank. When I got back they had packaged everything up for me and invited me to rest and eat some sunflower seeds with them and chat. It was so sweet and fun.
On my way home I snapped a picture of the small back gate area of ECNU. I am on a bridge over Suzhou Creek. The right side is all old buildings and shops. ECNU is to the right of the old buildings. On the left are some new condominiums.

That was my last night at Gretty's because I planned to go to Nanjing with Gary for a night. She was so incredibly sweet to allow me to stay with her for several days. It was really nice to be able to get back in touch with so many old friends on this trip!
Next up: the trip to Nanjing!