shang-hai'll cya later

We began our last morning in Shanghai by venturing out in search of breakfast. When all the immediate alternatives failed us, we resorted to the Western traveler's perennial haunt: McDonalds. Everything tasted eerily similar to what I remember of Egg McMuffins (it has been many years since I've partaken). 

Returning to the room, we packed everything up, and left our luggage with the font desk. Our train wasn't leaving until 16:18, so we had plenty of time to make a final exploration of the city before jetting off to the train station. Deciding that we should pick up a few extra articles of clothing, we headed of for the No. 1 Shanghai Department Store. The prefix "Number One" is almost comically ubiquitous in Asian countries. If advertising is to be believed, I have already been by the #1 Tea Shop, the #1 One Jade Store, the #1 Great Fast Taxibus, the other #1 Jade Store, and so many #1 Silk & Shall vendors, that you'd think they were a chain.

In contrast, the No. 1 Shanghai Department Store to boast. It is the largest department store in Shanghai - and may be the largest in the country. While American and Europe have moved away from the department store model embraced at the turn of the last century, that model is alive and well in Shanghai. In eight floors and one basement, each arranged by the merchandise available on that floor, the No. 1 Shanghai Department Store presents a cornucopia  of conspicuous consumption. My father purchased a light wool sweater to replace his wool blazer as cold-weather layer of choice. I picked up yet another adventure shirt, after determining that I'm somewhere between a 110 and 115 in Chinese clothing sizes.

Leaving the department store, we made our way back into Renmin Park, where we found the Contemporary Art museum was open. Paying the admission, we were presented by the works of two artists on as many floors. The privately-funded museum may have been small, but the works of art - at least on the first floor - were fairly interesting. While nothing matched my indescribably surreal experience in Denmark (which I none-the-less attempted to describe earlier in the blog) the museum was, if nothing else, a welcome reprieve from the outdoor heat.

Deciding that it was probably time that we head back to our hotel, my father and I descended back to the Metro, though not before walking through a large underground shopping mall. It's astonishing how many things are for sale here in Shanghai, and how the city exploits every nook and cranny for unabashed consumerism. Picking up a few unusual donuts from "Mister Donut," we returned to our hotel, collected our bags, and caught a ride down to the South Train Station. 

Now sitting here admits a great mass of humanity patiently awaiting their trains, I am anxious to get on the train, and watch the countryside whizzing by. With any luck, we'll soon be on our way.