Picasso at the Pavilion

Last Friday I ventured down to the site of last year's Expo where a Picasso exhibition has just started it's three month run housed in the impressive Shanghai Expo Chinese Pavillion.There are 48 oil paintings,seven sculptures and numerous photos of the artist according to the pre-publicity I read.The exhibition covers the major periods of his life including his Blue and Rose Periods as well as Cubism and there are works on display as examples of each period.

Curiously there's no mention of Guernica as far as I could tell which I'm sure is one of the works most people associate with Picasso.The exhibition comes via the National Picasso Museum of Paris which is undergoing renovation.

A timeline at the entrance charts his life and development as an artist.Unfortunately most of the information and Picasso quotes dotted round the walls is only in Chinese so come armed with a dictionary if you cant speak the language or even better bring a Chinese friend who can have fun trying to translate and explain what 'synthetic cubism' is.

Due to the length of his life and his output (according to Wikipedia he owned some 50,000 works at the time of his death) there's probably something on display that will appeal to everyone even if triple breasted,bug eyed,geometrically challenged,lurid coloured canvases aren't your thing.
I think my favourite painting was his homage to Manet's 'Le Dejeuner sur L'herbe.You can see a postcard of the painting above complete with two disembodied nude women and a picnic.Of the sculptures,the one that caught my eye was a hefty,bronze head of a bull.Again you can see a postcard of said bull above.

It wasn't too crowded for a late Friday afternoon and very orderly though I suggest you dress warmly as the concrete floors and walls of the Pavilion meant it was cool inside.Monday to Friday the entrance fee is a reasonable 80 rmb while weekends Saturday and Sunday admission is 120 rmb. All in all an interesting couple of hours-even if you don't like the artist it was fun to look at the reactions of the other viewers bearing in mind the last Picasso exhibition was here in the 1980's.

Umm....Since You've Been Gone

Well since my formerly reliable VPN fell foul of the local authorities in March Ive been trying to find another VPN that could leap the firewall.I've found a temporary solution so here goes..more of a test than anything of significance follows-













Not all that much to report as Im trying to remember what has elapsed since my last blog.Summer heat and humidity has erased a lot of my memory.We celebrate Halloween this weekend at work and have lots of tacky decorations sellotaped and pinned round the office.You can see my feeble efforts above and below.














I noticed that Blogger has changed its dashboard as well as some other changes I will get to grips with later.In the meantime I'll probably be back next Thursday or Friday with a fuller update.

Shamrocks and Salt

Been really busy trying to catch up and to contact friends in Japan and back home hence the lack of blog entries.
Apart from a few expat Irish themed bars offering cut price drinks and faux Irish food St Patrick's Day seems to pass largely unnoticed.Given the current state of the world that is not so surprising.Most people seem to be focused on the plight of the Japanese archipelago.
Watching the early videos of the raw power of the tsunami waves as they swept in was unreal.As a colleague remarked it was more like Hollywood than reality.More than one local person has remarked to me about the organisation and orderliness of the Japanese population following these catastrophic events and how things here would be 'less so' or words to that effect.


















The Shanghai Daily newspaper reported shoppers around China were panic buying salt this week.In the wake of possible nuclear radiation leaks from Japanese nuclear reactors, iodized salt is rumored to ward off radiation sickness.The article reports that some supermarkets had run out of salt within minutes of opening and people were resorting to stocking up on soy sauce instead.Rumors that future salt stocks would be contaminated has also led to hoarding.
The article quotes a doctor as saying a person would need to consume 4-5 kilograms of iodized salt a day to avoid radiation-which seems not only impractical but unhealthy.
While supermarket shopping today,I did notice the section where salt is usually sold looking somewhat depleted while a vigilant staff member stood nearby.In the checkout queue I didn't notice anyone buying large amounts of salt.Hopefully common sense will prevail and the small blip in the price and the shortage in supply will pass.

Christchurch Earthquake

Quite a depressing and anxious week.A 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck my hometown of Christchurch,New Zealand on Tuesday just before 1pm.Apparently this was an aftershock from the September 2010 earthquake which was bigger but without any loss of life.The one on Tuesday was shallower but also struck at lunchtime with fatal results.
Obviously being in Shanghai I was in no immediate danger.However my mother happened to live near the epicentre and I was unable to get in contact with her or other family members for over 24 hours as power and other essential services were destroyed.
Thankfully my sister emailed me.My mother came to no harm while my sister and two nephews who were in the middle of the central business district were also unscathed.My brother's house is uninhabitable and like many others will probably have to be demolished.Seeing the scale of damage and the rising death toll,(which at the time of blogging stands at 113 confirmed deaths) one can only get an idea of what it must have been like to be there on Tuesday.
I took these shots in this blog when I was last back home in January 2009.The stone building above was the old Provincial Chambers near the centre of town.Like many stone buildings it collapsed.













This statue of Captain Scott that stood near Oxford Terrace has like many other statutes been toppled from its pedestal.Viewing the TV video reports and other websites it seems the older churches and buildings such as the Arts Centre have suffered badly tho newer ones such as the Pyne Gould Guinness and CTV buildings also were flattened.

















The iconic Christchurch Cathedral in the Square was badly destroyed in the quake and lost its spire.There are reportedly 16-20 people buried under the rubble and masonry of the collapsed spire.At the time of writing,rescue crews were beginning to sift through the rubble.However,after four days,there seems little hope of finding anyone alive under the stones and brick.Again this was photo was taken in 2009 -well before the Sept 2010 and last Tuesdays fatal quake.
I know when I return the city scape will have changed and looking at these older shots and seeing the destruction has been very sobering.

WinterSweet and the Shanghai Tower

Wintersweet,(Climonathus) or mei hua is a deciduous or evergreen shrub native to China.It flowers during the Chinese New Year where the small yellow flowering sprigs are used as hair accessories.Cuttings are dried and kept to perfume linen cupboards.The spicily scented yellow flowers stand out on drab,foggy days as today.The shrub is seen as a symbol of resilience and strength blooming as it does in the midst of freezing,damp winters.


















Slowly rising near the Jin Mao Tower and the Shanghai World Finance Centre is the Shanghai Tower.Due to be completed in 2014,the Shanghai Tower will rise 632 metres dwarfing the Jin Mao and Shanghai WFC buildings.


















There's not a lot to see at the moment.There are four cranes strapped to the side of the huge concrete base busily lifting steel beams up to the top of the structure which currently stands at 11 floors.You can see the JIn Mao and Shanghai WF Centre in the background.Below you can see the cranes and building silhouetted against the grey,foggy skies.

Bits and Pieces

Had a couple of days off this week.Too cold to do much plus spent most of one day waiting for my washing machine door handle to be repaired.
Valentines Day in Shanghai doesn't seem to be so popular as it is in Japan from a cursory glance at shops this week.There are of course the usual chocolate and jewellery shop "bigging up" the event .There didn't seem many takers for Godiva confectionery at 500 odd rmb a small box.One also has to remember that it is still the Spring Festival vacation period and the day falls on the traditional Chinese Lantern Festival which was a romantic holiday in feudal China.
The traditional Chinese Valentine's Day is called 'qixi' and is celebrated on the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar commemorating a fabled story about a couple who could meet only once a year.


















A photo of my lunch mid week consisting of shredded pork,bamboo,mushrooms,carrots and various vegetables.This came accompanied with a similarly sized container of rice for the princely sum of 12 rmb.A little on the oily side but quite delicious and spicy.


















The final picture is of Marks and Spencers four storey department store at 863 Nanjing Road.There's the usual men and womens and kids shoes and clothes departments and a small cafe.The men's department had some clothes on sale and larger sized shoes were also being discounted.I was disappointed by the food selection available-no cheeses or anything that really stood out in terms of comfort food like baked beans or even any tempting biscuits.There was a small bakery with fresh cookies and bread but nothing really making it a 'must shop here again' store.On the plus side I did note a number of shelves devoted to foreign wines from New Zealand and California among others if wine is your thing.
Access to the store is very easy- just head out Exit 2 of the Nanjing West Metro Station and you can't miss it.

Chinese New Year

This year's Spring Festival/Chinese New Year started yesterday February 3rd.New Year's Eve(Tuesday night) was punctuated with booming firecrackers reaching a crescendo round midnight.The noisy fireworks are let off to frighten away a scary mythical creature called Nian (year).They rattle the windows and set off car alarms throughout the days leading up to and following the start of the New Year.There were three statutory holidays plus most companies also give a couple of holidays leading to a week of vacation or more for most workers.In total the festive season lasts around fifteen days.

This years animal in the Chinese Lunar Calendar is the rabbit ,the fourth character in a twelve year cycle which also includes a cycle influenced by fire,earth,metal,water and wood.Each of these have a yin(female) form and a yang(male) form.Some people believe the rabbit is the luckiest sign and this year that may be the element symbol is metal-which symbolises great wealth.
The photo above shows a mall frontage displaying the Chinese Zodiac sign of the Rabbit.

















People born in Rabbit years are considered to be financially lucky.Personality-wise rabbits are seen as honest,sophisticated and modest but by others as standoffish,oversensitive and introverted.
Famous rabbits include Johnny Depp,George Orwell and Albert Einstein.
The photo above shows the red envelopes that parents and relatives fill with money as gifts for their children-ya sui qian or New Year gift money which is sealed in a red envelope -red is believed to be a lucky colour in Chinese culture.If you wear red it allegedly brings you good luck,health and happiness particularly during the festive season.

Some Chinese Food Photos

Another cold wintry week has ended.Not that the immediate days look any brighter or warmer.Saturday is forecast to hit a maximum of 4 degrees celsius up from -2 in the morning.Sunday's low is minus 3 up to a sultry 4 degrees again.Not that it's the coldest place in China by any means.Harbin in Northern China which is currently holding its Snow Festival is a balmy -26 to -18 degrees celsius.The shot above of roast duck and the two photos below were taken on a recent outing to a restaurant in the Puxi District of Shanghai.











The big event of the year has been gearing up for the last two weeks or so namely the Chinese New Year which falls on February 2 and 3rd this year.Migrant workers can be seen dragging all manner of boxes and parcels onto trains and buses as they begin their journey back to their hometowns.Laden with goods and presents for their families which they bought from supermarkets and stores bulging with liquor,tea and biscuit gift packs covered in rabbits, which is this years animal according to the traditional Chinese calendar.
Some of those leaving literally had to queue for days to get a ticket which may only be a standing ticket on a fifteen hour trip.In some instances,people were queuing in lines for a number to enable them to queue up in a shorter queue to get a ticket in the next day or so.
The local CCTV TV station reported that more fast trains were being put on to provide a better service for those returning home.Unfortunately the cost of the faster trains is out of the reach of most of those workers returning home.As someone told me during the week putting on faster trains with more expensive fares is only exacerbating delays and problems of ticket touting and overcrowding as it's reducing the number of trains that those wishing to travel can afford.
The shot above shows some steaming spare ribs in a spicy sauce.



















The Chinese New Year includes almost a week of statutory holidays and already the air is rent with the sound of firecrackers exploding.Businesses,not just supermarkets and chain stores,are having sales and special offers as people prepare to celebrate.
One luxury hotel is offering a dinner package for eight people at 388,888 rmb for New Year's Eve.The price includes a dinner of 10 courses featuring shark fin and white truffles as well as one night's stay in a presidential style suite and transportation.
The final shot shows a dish of fried rice liberally mixed with egg,shrimp, bacon and mixed vegetables.

Snowy Shanghai

The last couple of days have been very cold.Snow and sleet and a chilly wind have kept temperatures hovering around the zero celsius mark.According to the local Shanghai Daily newspaper Shanghai is experiencing its coldest winter in thirty years with the average temperature at 1.9 degrees celsius.


















Certainly not the best weather for travelling at the start of the Spring Festival or waiting in line for a bus or train ticket back home.The two shots were taken from my new abode early yesterday morning.You can see the low rise apartment blocks below liberally coated with two or three centimetres of snow.Not enough to build a reasonable snowman but enough to be annoying and a hazard to motorists and pedestrians when it later froze at night.

Chandeliers and Bats

There are numerous reasons why I have been unable to blog recently.I don't think there's anything as desolate as an abandoned blog.Cut off in mid flow .Often no reason given for the sudden exit.Empty,unused bytes hanging in hyperspace.
My excuses stem from the fact I've had to move apartments.Not only was the old apartment cold,it has a family of bats living in the roof cavity.

I first became aware of these nocturnal squatters when one flew in the kitchen window and started doing laps round the living room one balmy summer night.I thought turning off the light might calm it.Quite forgetting of course they can see readily enough in the dark.Anyway it stunned itself against a door and I gingerly picked it up and put it on the window sill.Like Lazarus it came round and flew off.Returning several minutes later to scramble around,above my head in the roof cavity.

I couldn't remember anything in the lease about bats- not that it mentioned the fact the hot water could equally scald or chill you in seconds nor any word of a leaky rusty washing machine when I signed up.
Things came to a head when on several occasions a bat fell into the shower stall while I was showering.The picture shows the rather bedraggled bat on the shower floor.I don't know who was more shocked.
Anyway with the coming freezing temperatures together with the increasingly annoying nightlife an opportunity to move presented itself.














So Christmas Day which was a day off I started shifting my stuff across to the new apartment.The new place is in an apartment building about twenty years more modern than my former low rise building.The apartment faces south so catches the early morning sun and being higher up is less noisy and warmer than my previous abode.I can still hear the ambulance sirens from the local hospital at all hours and the road traffic is audible but bearable.

There's still the problem of poor water flow from the taps and the shower temperature is at best lukewarm and tepid.And the dust and air quality remains a problem even up in the nosebleeder apartments.The dust seems to gather in coats and it's not your ordinary household stuff.It smears and leaves marks.It has a gritty,oily,greasy industrial element to it.

One of the odd decorating touches is this chandelier in the photo above that dominates the living room.It was dusty and grimy but a few hours effort cleaning each individual plastic part restored it to its former shiny glory.

The other reason for the lack of blog is China Telecom.They cut off my internet connection in the former apartment a week before I was leaving it then took three weeks to reconnect it at the new place-which involved them coming around twice when I was at work despite having given them instructions when I was available.

I also forgot to mention that my faithful Apple G4's screen died on New Years Eve.Being eight years old parts for it are unavailable so I had to decide if i needed a new computer and which one to buy.But that's another story...

Yuyuan Gardens

Yu Gardens is one of Shanghai's top tourist attractions.Situated next to a huge bazaar area heaving with specialty and souvenir shops and restaurants together with crowds of locals and hordes of tourist groups,it can get overpowering and claustrophobic by mid morning.Best to follow the guidebooks recommendations and get there early.Avoid holidays and weekends if you want to keep your cool and have the chance to linger.This shot shows a wall and door within the gardens.Different shaped doors are used throughout the gardens.


















The gardens date from the Ming dynasty and according to the pamphlet I read took 18 years to be constructed(1559-1577).The gardens have been restored and consist of numerous small alcoves or garden rooms containing rockeries,pools full of carp and various small buildings and pavilions for summer use.














There are some large trees within the confines of the gardens which provide shade and some greenery in contrast to the concrete grey rockeries and the rather murky pools.I spotted some gingkos and pine trees as well as the common willows draping themselves in the pools.Some small cherry trees and magnolias that must brighten up the area in spring were also dotted about the various gardens.As you can see from the above photo there are many photo opportunities if one is patient enough.











A close up of one of the 'windows' in the walls that break up the gardens.The vertical bars have been decorated as bamboo canes.Other bars have been similarly decorated with small insects and dragonflies adorning them.


















This shot shows one of the small buildings within the gardens.This particular building overlooks a waterfall and rock pool.
The Gardens are open from 8:30am.From memory the nearest metro station is Nanjing Dong Lu.After that follow the signs or the masses.Adult entrance to the Gardens was 40rmb.

Taikang Lu

Taikang Lu also known as Tian Zi Fang is a rabbit warren of small,narrow alleys and lanes or longtang consisting of traditional shikumen houses.These typically two or three story houses (shikumen) were a cross between English style terrace housing (think Coronation Street type homes) and traditional Chinese interior courtyard buildings.To the front of the building was usually found a stone gate frame supporting two wooden doors.
Due to redevelopment and demolition many of these buildings and lanes have been replaced by high rise apartment blocks and more modern,bland buildings.














Within the alleys many of the shikumen have been converted in shops,art galleries,bars,cafes and restaurants.There are still families and people living in some of the houses.You can see laundry strung out along some lanes which gives the place a lived in,community feel.It seems a more friendly and humane environment than the huge towering buildings that loom outside the area.


















Its best to visit the area like most tourist spots in Shanghai early in the day.Before the rush and crush of unruly tourist groups make it difficult to negotiate the lanes with your good humor intact.Before the touts try your patience and ask for the umpteenth time whether you want a watch.Before you get badgered by an insistent waiter who clutches your arm and tries to frog march you into their restaurant.


















The final two shots show more of the lanes that crisscross the area.Its an area worth a morning or afternoon visit with lots of cafes and restaurants to provide refreshments or morning tea and lunch.There are also some interesting shops selling postcards, jewellery and other arty boutiques to browse through.
The nearest subway stop is Dapuqiao on Line 9 of the subway.

Xinghua Lou

Located at 343 Fuzhou Rd is Xinghua Lou,a venerable Shanghai eatery dating back to the 1850's.At street level there is a bakery serving steamed buns and other local treats.If you enter the entrance to the left of the bakery and avoid the milling queues you can take the elevator up to the third floor restaurant.















The upper floor restaurant comes complete with English menu,white linen tablecloths and some splendid if slightly dusty chandeliers.The shot above and those below are examples chosen at random off the menu.













There are a variety of teas available including jasmine in the teapot above.The longer you let it sit or steep the darker and stronger it became.Very refreshing on a hot,humid morning and a perfect foil for the Cantonese food on the menu.















The steamed buns and Cantonese dim sums were tasty and well worth a second helping.The restaurant was filling up by the time we got there at 10:30am.We got seated immediately but noticed a queue for tables on leaving.The restaurant and bakery open from 7:30am.The prices were reasonable-dim sums from 10 rmb and other dishes from 20rmb.Worth a visit for brunch or an early lunch,I'd recommend visiting early before the dinner rush.

Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Centre

The Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Centre is located in Peoples Square on Renmin Avenue.The photo shows the building from the rear overlooking the gardens of Renmin Park.The roof apparently is capped with four 'florets' meant to symbolise magnolia buds-Shanghai's flower.The Hall has exhibits and models that both look to the past and the future of Shanghai.












The Hall has five floors with photos of 1930's Shanghai and a video presentation titled 'The History of the Bund' and a model of Yu Garden on one floor contrasting with the upper floors displays of Integrated Transportation and Urban Planning with scale model ports,airports and subway stations.This photo shows a section of the Pudong New Area with the Pearl Tower towards the lower right hand side of the shot.












For me getting a grip on the size of this teeming city hasn't been easy.One way to get an idea of the immense size is to check out the model of Shanghai on the third floor.The model of the Downtown Area of Central Shanghai covers 600 square metres.At a scale of 1:500 it purports to show the 110 square kilometres of Shanghai that is squeezed within the Inner Ring Road.It is impressive even at a scale of 1:500.
The Expo site has been faithfully modeled as has the yet to be completed Shanghai Centre skyscraper or 'The Dragon' that will dwarf the SWFC and Jin Mao buildings which will be its neighbours once complete in 2014.Apparently the model has faithfully reproduced the buildings in Shanghai-I spotted my lowrise building having perched on the stairs overlooking the city model to get a better view.









Another set of model houses that shows the evolution and variety of housing that have made up a lot of Shanghai's residential buildings.

















This rather garish golden revolving model entitled 'Morning in Shanghai' can be seen on the ground floor.Again the still under construction 128 story glass encased Shanghai Centre features alongside the Jin Mao and SWFC buildings.
The Exhibition Hall is well worth a visit even if just for the views from the fifth floor across Peoples Square to the Museum or over the gardens.From memory,entry was 40rmb and the place while not exactly doing a brisk trade had a fair sprinkling of both locals and tourists.I didn't make it in time for the 3D screening showcasing Shanghai's attractions but did walk around a temporary art exhibition on one of the floors.The Hall is open Mon-Thurs 9-5pm and Fri-Sun 9-6pm.

Propaganda Poster Art Centre

The Propaganda Poster Art Centre is well worth the effort to find.Tucked away as it is not only in a housing complex oddly named President Apartment but also in the basement of Building B of the aforementioned residential block.The guard at the front gate will give you a small business card with directions once you reach the main entrance.Follow your nose and descend down the elevator where the gallery awaits.


















There are according to the pamphlet at the gallery some 3000 odd posters from the 50's through to the 70's. There is also some Maoist memorabilia on display such as the collection of busts above .I liked the earlier posters that reminded me almost of Japanese woodblocks with their simplicity and spare use of colour rather than the later lurid almost psychedelic 60's anti US Vietnam era productions.I've included a couple that I liked-the one above and the last one in this entry below.

Not all the posters are political in nature.This being the year of the Expo some posters and photos of life in Shanghai in earlier
times are also on display.There was a lovely almost 2 metre long black and white photo of the Bund in the 1920' or 30's on sale for a not inconsiderable but reasonable sum given its size.Just how to get back home.Not exactly carry on luggage.
The poster below depicts 1930's Shanghai for some people at that time.


















The Art Centre is divided into the gallery/showroom where the posters,prints and varied collections of Mao busts are displayed.The posters are grouped historically and there are English language captions explaining each sections significance.
The other section is the shop where you can buy the posters and prints either as originals or copies.There are also a number of related items for sale such as arm bands and caps and other Mao era memorabilia.














The posters represent an important time in the development of China and hopefully they can be preserved as primary historical items that bear witness to those times and be seen by many more people.As I said above the later Korean/Vietnam posters didn't really inspire me as much as the earlier poster and the one below.
The Shanghai Propaganda Poster Art Centre has a website www.shanghaipropagandaart.com.The entrance fee was 20rmb and it can be found at 868 Huashan Road near the intersection with Changle Road.It was a little hike from Changshu Road Metro Station but walking the leafy French Concession streets was an unexpected bonus.

Shanghai Sculpture Park

The Shanghai Sculpture Park is located in Shenshan about 45 km out of central Shanghai.I took the subway to get there.It's 18 stops from Century Avenue on Line 9.About an hour and half ride to Shenshan Station.You then can either catch a taxi,walk or catch a bus from the station to the Park.The figures above are in the Moon Lake and are part of a series of beach sculptures featuring figures at the beach.












On entering the Park I was impressed with the large open green expanses.And the fresh air.The Park covers around ninety hectares and includes rolling green lawn.A large man-made lake Yuehu or Moon Lake takes centre stage and the whole area is surrounded by the Shenshan Mountains.There are around thirty sculptures of varying size and interest within the Park.One of the features of the Park is a large paddling pool where you can go get your feet wet.A larger deeper pool for wading is located adjacent to this one obviously intended for toddlers.Both pools have been decorated in a faux Gaudi style with small,colourful ceramic tiles being used to cover what would otherwise be a dull expanse of concrete.


















One of the permanent,more traditional sculptures on display.Being such a large area the sculptures are well spaced out and you can appreciate each one in it's own right.Some of the sculptures can be climbed or sat on.In fact there is an odd but fun jumping area like a cross between one of those deflated fun kids castles and a rubber mattress.















These sculptures are on the beach shore of the man-made Moon Lake.While you can't swim in the lake there appear to be boats for the nautically inclined to hire.There's also a large concrete tree structure complete with treehouse that provides views of the whole area and a restaurant and cafe that provide refreshments.









The Park has its own website that provides information on prices and opening times.I think because it is a bit of a haul out there and the adult admission price is 120rmb there were few people present.Not that I'm complaining.It was nice to walk around unimpeded by the masses and being able to breath without hearing the continual hacking and spitting that usually fills the city air.As the Park closes around 5pm its worth getting there early.Definitely a place I'll return to sometime midweek in the future.