It’s easy to run through an exhaustive list of all the big things that China has done.  To call out all of the sweeping expanses, the seemingly unending mountain ranges, and raging rivers that run for thousands of miles.

One thing China does really well is big.  There’s no doubt about that.  But over the course of my one year stay, I have come to realize that there’s more to it than that.

I try to notice all of the little things, the minor details that are not immediately obvious.  It must be the engineer, or the obsessive compulsive, in me.  With that in mind, I’ve compiled this photo essay that portrays some of the little details you may not notice but are beautiful nonetheless.

I’ve tried my best to go for a diversity of subjects as well as locations.  It would be easy to fill this essay with close-up pictures of urns and wall carvings from Beijing.  To be honest, some of these pictures are not my favorites.  I really did want to include a lot more pictures from Beijing.  But I think that no matter where you go in China, there is a certain beauty you can find in the little things.  And I wanted to maintain the theme I was going for.

With that in mind, I give you my first ever photo essay.  Enjoy!

Backdrop Buddhist carvings at Leshan, Sichuan.

Little red people stapled to a tree at Fuxi Temple, Tianshui.

My guess is these are "good luck" or "good fortune" prayer squares. They are tied to one of those giant urns at a small temple in Beihai (North Lake) Park, Beijing.

Columns supporting the roof of the High Mosque at the Aba Khoja Mausoleum, Kashgar, Xinjiang. With over 100 columns, each one is topped by a completely unique muqarna.

A large door at the Daxingshan Temple, Xi'an. I've never seen another door with a chain on it like this one.

A dragon (or is it emperor?) run at a temple near Lingyin Temple, Hangzhou. I found the blue accents particularly striking.

Usually the immediate impression you get upon seeing temple buildings is the sheer size. But sometimes you need to stop and appreciate the intricate woodwork that is going on under the eaves of the roofs. This one is from Heavenly Lake, Xinjiang.

The top of a wall inside the Yu gardens, Shanghai

Some kind of prayer charms at a temple (the name escapes me) in Lijiang, Yunnan. The lot of them made a beautiful noise when blowing in the wind.

I imagine that this dragon is breathing fire. Taken at another small temple at Beihai Park, Beijing.

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The subway system in Shanghai is purportedly the one of the fastest growing in the world.  From what I’ve been told, that conjecture is pretty accurate.  The first line opened in 1995; as of this year it became the 11th busiest system in the world; by next year there will be a total of 12 lines in operation.  The subway network is a huge underground sprawl that provides easy access to pretty much anywhere in the city you want to go.

My favorite part of the subway is the cleanliness.  I grew up outside of New York City and therefore, in my early years, I assumed all subways were like those of Manhattan: old, dirty, and smelly.  This is definitely not the case (you only need to go as far as Washington DC to see a great subway system), as I eventually discovered.  Like many of the more affluent places throughout China, there is an army of workers that clean the subways every day.  Late at night the trains stop running and everything is cleaned.  While so many things in China are dirty and smelly, this is not one of them.

Couple the cleanliness and great expanse with new technology (sometimes it seems like Shanghai is light years ahead of the rest of China) and you have a winning combination that’s difficult not to like.

Parks and Gardens

Parks and gardens are a fantastic way to escape the hustle and bustle of a big city while not actually leaving it.  I love visiting parks because I enjoy the greenery so much.  The cities I really enjoy visiting are those that are able to incorporate a sense of nature and natural beauty into the cityscape.

While in Shanghai I visited People’s Square Park a number of times, the Yu Gardens, Century Park, and Zhongshan Park.  They are all great places in their own unique ways.  Each one was a great respite from the crowds and the noise that a place like Shanghai can generate.

There’s a great list of other parks I did not get a chance to visit, such as: Lu Xun Park, Chang Feng Park, Fuxing Park, Jing An Park, Gongqing Forest Park and more.  You can read more about them here.

Museums and the Arts

Shanghai is home to a plethora of museums, like the Shanghai Museum pictured above.  Shanghai was widely considered the cultural and economic center of East Asia for the first half of the 20th century and is therefore considered the birthplace of everything modern in China.  With that in mind, there is a huge range of subjects covered by the many museums scattered about the city.  There is the Art Museum, the Shikumen Museum, the Urban Planning Exhibition Center, the Museum of Contemporary Art, the Bund Museum.  The list goes on and on.  If you enjoy visiting museums and art galleries, you will not lack for places to go in Shanghai.

Walking the Bund

Taking a stroll down the famous Bund is an experience one does not soon forget.  The transition from the rest of Shanghai to the Bund is like stepping into another world.  It is a showcase of early 20^th century architecture from the West that is so distinctly not Chinese.  For me it was a surreal experience.  How could this collection of European-style architecture be found in a Chinese city?  And all in one place?  It just seems so bizarre and fantastical.

Normally a walk down the Bund also provides a fantastic view of the Pudong district.  Unfortunately there is a lot of construction going on along the waterfront for the 2010 World Expo, so the view was decidedly not good.  I can only imagine that it is quite a sight to behold.

Nightlife

Of course a city as metropolitan and international as Shanghai will have a burgeoning nightlife.  Any kind of scene you can imagine, you will find it somewhere here.  Like the club pictured above; a blues and jazz club.  A really nice blues and jazz club that has live music every night.  In the middle of China!  I visited this place more than once during my stay and I loved it.  There was even a DVD of a live Muddy Waters concert playing on the flat screen TV behind the bar.  Awesome!

There are a seemingly endless number of bars and clubs throughout Shanghai.  There is also a growing music scene that rivals Beijing (commonly considered the musical epicenter of China).  No matter what your style or taste or preference is, I guarantee you can find something you will enjoy.

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Construction began in 1997 but was halted by the Asian Financial crisis. Work did not restart until 2003 and was finally completed in 2008. The skyscraper is home to a variety of areas including offices, hotels, conference rooms, observation decks, and shopping malls. The SWFC is also home to Park Hyatt Shanghai, the highest hotel in the world with 174 rooms and suites.

There are 3 observation decks in the SWFC. The lowest deck is at 1,388 ft on the 94th floor, the second is at 1,440 ft on the 97th floor, and the highest is at 1,555 ft on the 100th floor. The highest bathroom in the tower is located on the 97th floor. Yes, I did use the bathroom. Yes, I did go number two. Just think of the potential energy of my excrement! If we assume the mass was 0.5 kilograms (a rough guess-timate), the energy is 9.8 * 0.5 * 439 = 2,151.1 Joules. That’s like … a lot of energy.

Anyway, each observation deck has it’s own price tag. I don’t remember the price for just the first two decks, but to reach the very top cost 150 RMB. A pretty steep price tag just to go to the top of a building if you ask me, but I live a relatively frugal lifestyle so that I can afford such things when I’m traveling so I wasn’t about to let that stop me. And really, if you were going to visit the SWFC, why would you not want to go to the very top anyway?

Each incremental ticket gains you admission to the decks below (buying the 100th floor ticket allows you to visit the other two decks, the 97th floor ticket allows you to visit the lowest deck as well), which briefly extends the life of your visit. The tour takes you through all three decks in order, so it provides a kind of build up to the very top of the tower.

At the start of the tour you have to sit through some kind of weird introductory movie that talks about the design of the tower and the elevators and whatnot. I found it uninformative, boring, and a little disturbing (there were these weird anthropomorphic animals talking, it was strange). After the few minutes I was forced into spending watching the movie, I was ushered into an elevator and whisked up to the lowest observation deck. I went there to get to the very top so I didn’t waste much time on the first two decks.

OK, so here’s the moment you’ve all been waiting for. Here are a few pictures I took from the highest deck on the 100th floor.

The highest observation deck

The neighboring Jinmao Tower is clearly dwarfed by the SWFC

A beautiful view of Shanghai. Also, candor while performing one of the scariest jobs ever.

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3. The Jade Buddha Temple

One interesting fact about the temple is that during the Cultural Revolution, the monks protected the temple by plastering large pictures of Mao Zedong on the wall. The guards could not destroy the temple without also destroying the image of Mao, and thus the temple was spared from destruction.

The layout of the temple is pretty standard. Honestly, I’ve seen so many temples in China by now that they all seem the same. However there is usually some kind of unique aspect or twist to each individual one that makes it worth seeing. This is definitely true of the Jade Buddha Temple. Throughout the place you can find plenty of small statues and carvings that I found really cool. Most weren’t spectacular works of art, but I think the sum of the entire collection was pretty neat. Especially considering I haven’t seen the likes of these in most other temples.

The temple is pretty small so there are really only two worship halls: the Chamber of Four Heavenly Kings and the Grand Hall. The Chamber is much like any other you might have seen in a Buddhist Temple. The Grand Hall is definitely worth a look as it is filled with plenty of different statues, most of which are very interesting. It’s true that once again you get your standard fare found in most temples, but you also get some unique stuff as well.

To view the Jade Buddha is an extra 10 RMB (a very common and very annoying occurrence in China) and is found at the back of the temple on the second floor. Honestly, I wasn’t too impressed. I’ve seen Jade Buddhas before. I’ve seen Giant Buddhas before. If you’ve never seen one I suppose it’s a good idea to check it out, but the fact that they jab you for an extra 10 RMB after you’re already in the temple to see a statue that’s not all that overwhelming is a bit of a let down. But like I wrote, that’s a common occurrence in China.

If you’ve never seen a Jade Buddha before, go check it out. But if you’re like me and have seen plenty of them, you can skip this one. But the temple on it’s own is nice and I enjoyed myself. The plethora of small sculptures and statues really stood out for me as a great reason to visit this small temple nestled in the middle of Shanghai.

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