Day 8, Thursday night
Shanghai, Night cruise at the Bund

Photo by Lucie Field

After dinner on our last night in China, we headed by bus to the Bund and got off by the ticket office and boarding area to go on the night cruise of the Bund/Pudong area on the Huangpu River. It was crowded on the boat, and everyone raced for the top deck to get a good spot for taking pictures. It wasn't long before many headed downstairs to enjoy the view inside a closed-in area which was warm and comfortable.

The view was spectacular, with buildings lit up on both sides of the river in all colors of the rainbow. I can't begin to imagine the power needs for this kind of display.

Photo by Gene Field

On the Bund side of the river are all the old colonial style buildings, lit up mostly in yellow lights, giving all the buildings a golden glow.




Photo by Lucie Field

There were lots of boats on the river, all different kinds and all decorated with brightly colored lights. It was a great end to our trip.

Facing the Pudong, the skyline is dominated by the Orient Pearl TV Tower, supposed to be the tallest TV tower in Asia and the third tallest in the world. At the top is a revolving restaurant.

After freezing on the boat trip (but it was worth it), it was great to get back on the bus which was nice and warm. Our tour guide then had the bus driver drive under the river and through the tunnel to the Pudong. He gave us a quick tour of one of the newest buildings - the Hyatt Hotel. The building has offices and restaurants below and the hotel is on the upper floors.

When we got back to the hotel we spent the next hour packing and repacking our suitcases until everything fit. The next morning we reboarded the buses the final time for the trip to the airport and home.