It’s All About the View

Day 28, Grand Asia 2018

Sunday, Oct. 28, 2018, Shanghai, China:

There is no better eye candy from the ship than in Shanghai. I slept later than usual and missed the pre-dawn journey up the Haungpu River. My first sight of the city was the view from my balcony, and boy is it a view!

An advantage of a smaller ship is the ability to go places a bigger ship can’t go. We hear the Westerdam is docked far from the city center.

Today I have another independent tour with a group that came together on CruiseCritic.com. We strolled along the Bund, shopped at the Yuyuan Garden market and drove about an hour to the Zhujiajian watertown, where boats ply canals just as they did long before Shanghai became a global city.

I had time at the first two stops to quickly sketch the scene. I’ll add more detail and watercolor to the sketches later.

The Bund includes a broad promenade along the river, offering stunning views of Pudong skyline. It is hard to believe that just two decades ago that entire area was rice paddies and farms. Major hotels and banks share the view along the Bund, and the premier high-end shopping areas surround it.

We chose instead of the designer stores to go the more traditional Chinese market, where vendors offer jade and pearl jewelry, silk scarves, clothes, toys, souvenirs and (sadly) Starbucks and McDonalds.

I was intrigued by an artist who finger-paints beautiful Chinese scenes using mainly the side of his finger. No surprise that one of his paintings was my only purchase.

The Zhujiajiao watertown was full of Sunday visitors and tourists. We boarded small boats, steered and propelled much like gondolas in Venice, to journey down the canals.

After an unremarkable late lunch, we fought the crowds to shop along the narrow alleys. We saw a variety of goods — some of which I couldn’t identify – including all kinds of dried fruits, pork knuckles (a local dish), candies, rice wines, embroidery, silk quilts, etc.

Back at the ship after sunset, the view drew me to my balcony and almost made me consider skipping dinner. Brightly lit dinner cruise ships passed back and forth while Shanghai’s famous light show outlined buildings with continually changing colors and scenes.

I moved up to the Crow’s Nest to enjoy the scene and to say goodbye to Hazel, one of my favorite bar waitresses. She is returning tomorrow to her home (and her mother’s home cooking) in Manila for a vacation before joining another Holland America ship. Esmeralda, another favorite in the Crow’s nest, left a couple of weeks ago. Of course they are replaced with new people who are just as delightful. You cannot beat the quality of Holland America’s Filipino and Indonesian crewmembers.

The night ended with a show of Chinese dancers. They were entertaining, but for me couldn’t compete with the view from the balcony.