The Move …we are taking up residence! ….

Today was an absolutely wonderful day!!! We got up and had a quick breakfast in the hotel. After packing up everything in the room except what we needed for Monday morning… we were off in two taxis to our apartment. … and… I knew exactly how to get there! Up to this point, I was always unsure of the route… but after walking back to the hotel yesterday… my confidence was running high.

We got our bags into our apartment and set about to unpack and put away. It was so satisfying to actually unpack everything and find a home for it. The one thing that really stands out is the lack of storage. No dressers in the bedrooms or real cabinets in the bath. These are the little things I have taken for granted in our home in Texas. We made sure we had more than enough storage when we were designing it. But we will make do with what we have here.

For now everything is put away… but when the household shipment arrives it will be chaos again. I am even looking forward to that… as it is yet another sign we are settling in. We even got to sit back and relax a bit before heading back to the hotel. We are walking everywhere we can….

Yesterday we had done some exploring of our apartment compound. We met the neighbor that lives right above us. His name is Andrew and he is from Germany. Across from his apartment are some folks from England. We can see the fitness center and indoor pool from our back patio. The grounds are really nicely landscape. There are streams and fountains… and by spring, the plantings will be lush with foliage.

Time to start back, so we decided our walk back to the St Regis would be by way of the Pappa John’s. We had gone that way yesterday but when we got to Originality Street, we headed to the left and today we will head to the right… Originality Street…isn’t that a cool name! It is a great area…on the river. And there is a Starbuck’s right on the river with outdoor seating overlooking the water. I will have to figure out what the name of the river is and let you know later. There are so many restaurants and bakeries and shops… it is such a bustling street.

Across a foot bridge is the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum (SSTM). Another museum is just across Century Avenue on the other side of the SSTM which I think is the Museum of Art. As it turns out, we live, quite by accident, in a very interesting area. We have lots of things to do and see right in our neighborhood.

We stopped for a late lunch at the Pappa John’s. Oh my goodness… it tasted like we were in the states. They must import everything they use to make it. I am here to tell you it was wonderful!!! I absolutely was ecstatic… and my first thought was how great it was to have a piece of home right down the street within 5 mins of our new home!! We found 3 places on this street that we are anxious to try… all looked really good.

After we finished our delicious pizza, we headed over the foot bridge towards Century Ave and the hotel. The bridge crosses over the river which has beautiful landscaping and stone gathering spaces. Yesterday we actually saw 2 men in speedos going for a swim in the frigid waters… they had to be nuts! It was so cold… I cannot imagine even thinking about getting into that water. Maybe it was one of those polar bear swims… I think that is what they are called. I call it crazy… but to each their own!

The sidewalks were full of people strolling along enjoying the beautiful sunny Sunday afternoon. This is a walking city. The sidewalks are ample and you are only one of the many strolling… or jogging... out for a walk alone or in groups. You will see families out for an afternoon of fun or food or both.

There is a triangular park area where 3 streets intersect, one of which is Century Avenue. An older Chinese man on a 3 wheel bicycle with a cart was selling fun for the afternoon. It was full of a wide variety of giant colorful kites. High above us were lots of kites flying proudly in the crisp breezes. Some were just much bigger versions of the types of kites we see back home, but many were very elaborate. There were two fashioned like birds… and in the air they looked almost real. The grandkids would have loved this. Maybe when they come for their visit we will have nice winds to be able to fly kites one of the days they are here.

We live right off of Century Avenue. I have included a discussion on what you will find on Century Avenue to give you a sense of what is close to where we were lucky enough to find an apartment... all just a happy accident.

The Century Avenue winds from the Oriental Pearl TV Tower to the Pudong Century Park with the length of five kilometers and the width of 100 meters. It is a symbolic landscape avenue as a part of Shanghai 's West-East Development Axis connecting the Hongqiao International Airport and Pudong International Airport.

The landscape design of the Century Avenue was worked out by the French Charpentier- La Defense Company. Its unique layout of asymmetric lanes and the integration of lanes with 8 botanical gardens embody the planning trend of cities in the 21st century which aims at sustained development. On the north side of the Century Avenue, there are eight China Botanical Gardens shinning like eight emeralds. Each with the length of 180 meters and the width of 17.6 meters, they are named after eight well-known trees in China, which are Willow, Metasequoia, Cherry, Crape Myrtle, Magnolia, Camellia, Chinese Redbud and Goldenrain Tree. The total number of bushes and talls planted in the botanical gardens amounts to over eighty thousand. Along the Century Avenue, sculptures on the subject of Time are on display to emphasize on the meaning of trans-century. The huge sculpture named "Oriental Light" at the crossing of the Yanggao Rd. and the sculptures of the ancient timing instruments such as "Time of the Day" and "Wu Xing" make the Century Avenue the only urban sculptures exhibition on the subject of Time all over the world.

Century Park

Century Park is the largest park of the city of Shanghai. It is situated in Pudong New Area. The Shanghai Science and Technology Museum is located nearby. The park includes a concert stage, and visitors can hire tandem bicycles or cycling-cars to travel through it. The park's landscaping combines British, Japanese, and Chinese gardening styles.