China 2007

Finally, the relaxation we thought the cruise would afford us. Back to the usual, 9 AM departure and done with the early morning get-your-butt-to-breakfast repetition. Shanghai was bright, busy, and hazy. Our first stop was the Children's Palace, and I expected some sort of Summer Palace spin-off. But no - we walked down a wide alley into a seemingly modern building, up a set of spiral stairs, and into a dance studio. There, four children of no more than eight fought with swords, danced around, and apparently sung. One child gave his "tourist performance" as the others restlessly made noise in the background. Our guide urged us to respond with talent, so my roommate sang a simple song to the children. It was hot and we felt as though we were intruding, so we went to another building. In fact, these children were being trained for the Beijing Opera. Starting at such a young age, attending the school once a week, they could become extremely talented through discipline and practice. But they were still kids.

The second part of our tour was geared toward the instrumental. We nearly laughed out loud as Chinese traditional instruments played "Jingle Bells" for us a second time - we had been serenaded by one of the wind instrument vendors in Xian with the same song weeks earlier. That evening, at the acrobatics show, saxaphones would blare "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer". As if tourists came to Shanghai, sick of Chinese music, ready to settle into a Western-style Christmas. Exactly our intentions.

The instrumental performances were startlingly good, at times. We were quickly led into a government-owned shop of "mostly children's art", however. Most items were in the hundreds of US dollars.

Our chaperones insisted on a glimpse of the Shanghai waterfront during the day, so we attempted to escape the humidity, relentless vendors and crowds in the Bund area for a quick photo stop. Shanghai traffic was not the worst yet, but it was difficult to get anywhere in the city with such a big vehicle. The waterfront was full of uniquely shaped buildings, far more dramatic and varied than Hong Kong. Take, for instance, the Marriott with a gigantic dome on top, a building with a hole to let a dragon slip through, or a giant ballpoint pen. The tallest building in China was about to be replaced by an even taller building, standing right next to it. Still, Hong Kong has that harbor splendor that can't be beat.

Just before lunch we disembarked the bus and walked along a long park, consistently hounded by attachable-skates vendors and beggars. It seems that every city we visit has its unique, tourist-trap item that any old Joe Lee will sell you. We managed to escape them by turning into a crowded market street and finally into massive gardens.

Entryways were shaped like vases and other ornamental objects, so that the scenery behind them would appear as a painting. What an idealistic, yet amusing, perspective. Well-fed coi floated lazily along the system of lakes as we passed over bridges by which the fish swarmed.

Ponds were everywhere, fish were everywhere, and the crowds of local tourists shattered any serenity we might have experienced. We were given some free time, which I cleverly used to visit Dairy Queen and send of some quick emails. Diary Queen was my highlight of the day, God bless 'er.

Lunch was not very stylish - we watched our food disappear from tanks and appear on our plates. Kozden feasted on his fishy friends, but most of us stuck to the traditional Chinese. The girls couldn't get enough of the "cute little crabs", and us guys were amused by their struggle to persevere, clawing at each other to be the last one out of the tank. Our final stop after lunch was the Jade Buddha temple, famous for its two jade statues purchased from Burma. Personally, they weren't anything spectacular, but it felt good to smell the incense and feel people's passion for the religion and doing-good in the air.

We were granted a few hours at the hotel to rest, during which I watched some movie on HBO about a chimpanze, and Napolean Dynamite on Cinemax. Looking out the window at all the tall buildings, with room and laundry service a call away, and English television, made me feel quite priveleged. I slept for about thirty minutes, and my roommate was as usual God-knows-where.

The evening would prove to be spectacular, in fact worthy of a fifteen dollar DVD. Dinner was close and quick, nearby to the Ritz-Carlton. We entered the theatre, immediately awestruck by an awesome display of acrobatics. The lights, music and bodies all seemed to flow in a constant stream of applause. Ten minutes would have left my jaw hanging, but an hour and a half of a huge variety of unbelievable talent was what they gave us. In the middle, a man demonstrated throwing knives, then called for a volunteer. My roommate, Will, was chosen and blindfolded, after some controversy. The man pretended to throw the knives while his assistent slammed them in on cue - Will completely clueless. Nobody has told him yet, and I'm sure they can't hold out for long. Several people came out afterwards to remark on "how close those knives really were - you have NO idea." Will's nervous courage and bravery set the audience roaring with laughter at the irony and cunning miming of the actors, but my roommate never caught on. The whole combination of a member of our group being spotlighted - Will, of course, always the drama king - and an absolutely unbelievable acrobatic performances, smeared by only a few small timing flaws that made it seem only more human and realistic, made the evening unforgettable.

When I got back to the hotel, I realized what a bad idea Starbucks by the Ritz-Carlton had been. I couldn't sleep until much too late, and we had a long train transfer the following day. Harry Potter on HBO kept me entranced, though, and my roommate arrived back early in the morning. It was nice to have some privacy to relax, and although it has taken time for my roommate and I to get close, it is comforting to have a TV, room, and great view all to oneself once in a while.

On a side note, I was absolutely convinced that Peter, Willie, Mollie and Juli had to share a single room. They had mistakenly gotten four keys for the same room the night before, and when I came in upon them all spontaneously acting like they shared the room, I fell for it. It was an embarrasing moment for me, but I could tell the group was on a trend towards happiness after some familiar food and a spectacular show.