Around The World Without Flying: Shanghai Part 2

Back again, this time a little less sleepy than I was at 4 am this morning, when I wrote the last post. I was so tired after yesterday’s tour I went to bed at 8 pm last night, so it is not surprising I woke up at 4 am, though clearly not as ‘bright-eyed and bushy-tailed’ as I thought because I had forgotten to turn the clock an hour forward. (We keep changing time zones.) I suddenly realised my mistake at 6 am, which meant it was really 7 am in the region. It is so easy to forget what day and even what time it is on board a ship. So I had to rush around at the last minute to get to our formal breakfast in the dining room by 8 am.

After our tour of the Watertown of Zhujiajiao, we were driven to a very good local restaurant about 30 minutes drive away towards the city. Our guide was very proud of her city and wanted us to experience the best of what they have to offer. It was a large and lovely restaurant, often used for weddings and other events. Best of all, it had a western-style toilet. I was somewhat dismayed by having to use a traditional Chinese-style one when we arrived at the Watertown. This is where men are at so much of an advantage over women. But I digress . . .

At the restaurant we sat at circular tables of ten and were given a smorgasbord of local dishes by very polite waiters. The food was quite sweet, and very attractively presented. We were told that sweetness is the hallmark of food in Shanghai, though some young people now prefer more spicy food. Interestingly, of the approximately 24 million living in Shanghai, about 2 million are ‘foreigners’, and since they and the many visitors there on business and tourists need to have access to more familiar foods, shops such as Starbucks can be seen here and there, even inside the Watertown. I also saw a specialty western-style chocolate shop there too. (I still cannot get over the fact that there are as many people in this city as in the whole of Australia!)

On our way to the silk factory which is close to the ‘downtown’ area, we were told about all that the government is doing to cut down on air pollution and to make the city greener. If someone buys a car, they have to wait until they can purchase a number plate before they can drive it. A plate lasts as long as they own the car, but it has to be obtained by auction. Only a certain limited number are released each month. On average this plate costs about $14 000 USD and it cannot be passed on to your offspring. The plate for a motor bike is even more expensive - around $40 000 USD! But if you buy an electric car or electric scooter, the plate comes with your vehicle. The only problem is the difficulty of finding recharging stations and buying batteries. In this way people are strongly encouraged to use public transport - subway trains and buses. It seems to be working: I noticed that there were not vast numbers of cars on the roads, and there were very few motor scooters. As well there were a few bicycles, though not many. Most are hired.

Talking about greening the city, I noticed some wind turbines near the port. Few buildings had solar panels, from what I could see from the bus, but as was the case in Hong Kong, older buildings were covered with external air conditioning units, so presumably did not have central heating or cooling. As well, there were very few trees and green spaces and gardens, in relation to the area taken up by buildings. So while action is being taken, there is a way to go yet.

Our tour of the silk factory was most enjoyable. One of the young representatives gave us a hilarious account of the the life cycle of a silkworm, complete with specimens from each stage of their short life. We were then shown how a silk thread is drawn from 7 cocoons simultaneously. These are twisted together to give the thread sufficient strength. Each silkworm produces about 1 km of thread, becoming smaller and smaller as it does so.

But what was exceptionally interesting was how doonas and pillows are made. Two silk worms are placed in the same cocoon. Because their threads tangle together, when the silk is removed it is a great tangle of thread that stretches out like an elastic sheet, which then forms one of many layers of, say, the filling of a doona. The doonas are almost weightless but very warm, and they apparently last far longer than wool doonas and those made from other fibres. Many of our group purchased them, needless to say. We also saw a huge array of beautiful garments and other items made from silk.

What a great day! And what friendly people!