Another whirlwind weekend...

Topic of the day: A summer weekend in Shanghai

 

If you're an expat in China, summer is a pretty good time to travel around the country.  Winter is just too cold to do anything meaningful (save, of course, for Haerbin) and things are usually pretty busy during the spring and summer months.

 

Taking advantage of the good weather, I went down to Shanghai this weekend.  For myself, there were three main reasons for me to make the trip down there.  First, after a 4 year stint in Shanghai, Kathleen is finally heading home to Deutchland.  The second reason was to go and catch up with my father.  And lastly, to once again, get a break from Beijing and breath some fresh(er) air!

 

I used to hate Shanghai when I use to visit as a child.  But as the years go by, the more I visit, the more I'm starting to really enjoy it.  There's something about the leafy trees that stay green all year round, the beautiful architecture of the French Concession, and the charm of the old "longtangs".

 

This times visit to Shanghai proved to be pretty relaxing – massages, brunches, movies…all very mundane, but so enjoyable at the same time!  I also visited Zhujiajiao, a small and quaint water town 45 minutes away from Shanghai, on Saturday morning with my Father.  It was a pleasant visit, filled with all the southern China charms – water canals, white washed houses, stone bridges, et al.  Saturday night was also Kathleen's farewell party.  From a modest beginning of five people, the party eventually swelled up to become a hot zone for anyone and everyone from all the native Germanic speaking countries in the world.

 

As always, the weekend passed too soon and after our flight back to Beijing was delayed for 2.5 hours Sunday night, myself and the Beijing crew are once again, back in our beloved city (…or at least my beloved city!).

 

I've uploaded some portraits of fellow partners in crime onto my Flickr account.  If interested, the link is: http://www.flickr.com/photos/96434059@N00/sets/72157594170664945/