ShanghaiTravel Tips, Suggestions, Points for Attention, Page8

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Shanghai Travel Tips

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Shopping
By BONITA | 8/4/2004 10:31:49 AM

The price of the SAME cloth is totally different in different shop, so you'd better stroll several stores, and compare the products and their prices.
Generally speaking, the marked price in the stores in Sichuan Bei Lu is comparatively lower, and the stores in Nanjing Lu have spacious shopfront and old brand, with acceptable price, while in Huaihai Lu, the shops all take the white-collar and fashionable youth, so have a higher price.

Take bus of you want to travel to Suburb
By BONITA | 8/4/2004 10:20:04 AM

If you want to have a trip to the circumjacent area around Shanghai, the ten Special Tourism Lines at the Shanghai Stadium (Shanghai Ti Yu Chang) or Hong Kou Football Groud (Hong Kou Zu Qiu Chang) should be taken, which is the most convenient, and the best way to save money.

Yuyuan Garden
By DENNIS | 4/28/2004 4:38:01 PM

Yuyuan is a must see once you're in Shanghai! It's a mixture of both modern and ancient surroundings! There are so many things to see and buy...this is where you have to be on your guard...the prices of the various merchandise are extremely expensive! Should you have some time to do your shopping outside Shanghai, do it! Shop anywhere else except in Shanghai. I discovered this when I got to go to the other cities having the same goods which were much much lower in price!

Your Bag
By DENNIS | 4/27/2004 10:34:16 AM

Ni Hao,

Hey guys, if you happen to get off at Nanjing Road pay close attention to where you put your valuables! I lost my cellphone while I was walking there. Mind you, my cellphone was put in the inner most compartment of my backpack, yet these pickpockets are so sly, you won't know what will hit you. I only got to know about the theft when a biker was saying something in chinese and gesturing that someone stole my cellphone. Put your precious possessions in front of you! Better be safe than sorry!

My rule of tipping in China
By SALLY02 | 4/26/2004 2:27:34 PM

Tips are not required in everyday life here in China, but if you are staying att a 5 star establishment where the staff is used to western habits, many are somewhat expecting the tips...
My rule of thumb is not to tip except : 1) in international class hotels and restaurants where it just "seems" appropriate; 2) when the service is extraordinary (and yes, it does happen despite the complaining you hear about); and 3) when I know it will promote better service for me and my friends now and in the future (ie. places I go regularly) Do as you see fit and you will be fine. So long as you remember that tipping is NOT required.

International License
By DAISY | 4/7/2004 9:25:57 AM

International license is not available in China. You know, only in the countries which signed the CONVENTION ON ROAD TRAFFIC can the international license be used. But unfortunately China is not in these countries. So you cannot drive in China with international license. If you go to other countries which is in these country, you should use the international license with your national license together. Only the Belgium license are acknowledged in China. So I think you'd better go to the concerned department of ministry of communications in your country ask for a certification which can show the license you possess can be used in China. And then go to the one of China with the certification, and they will do some procedure for you.

I have phoned the Shanghai related agency about this matter, they confirmed that a foreigner who only have temporary chinese drive license can drive in china territory. One must take three papers to transfer a temporary drive license at pointed police office which localted in Shanghai Hongqiao airport. The three papers are your passport,your local drive license, and a card signed by the police office of the district you stay in shanghai. The card is to prove you will stay in this city more than 3 months. With the three paper, you go to airport police and take the drive exam and physical examination, which will take 2 hours in total. After u getting the temporary drive license, u can go to rent your car.

Shopping in Shanghai
By THUNDER | 3/30/2004 4:57:34 PM

The other type of shopping is the type responsible for the changing socio-economic make-up of Chinese consumerism; the open market. Think of a flea market gone awry and one can imagine the open market. Also known as the night market found in several smaller Chinese cities or "bazaar", one can find most simple items here as well as food, collectibles, antiques, household goods, clothes, DVDs, CDs, and small appliances. One can also usually find a purveyor for those extra-curricular non-discretions.
It was in the late 1970's that Deng Xiao Peng allowed for economic reform by forming the Special Economic Zones encouraging open market reforms and free enterprise. One prime and common example of this liberation were tourist junk and food hawkers openly selling their wares in Tianamen Square. The open markets of Shanghai are a testament to this continued liberalization and accounts for the rise in consumerism and Chinese wealth. Unfortunately the gap between the 20%of the city dwellers and 80% rural workers (percentage with regard to total population) has jumped from fourfold in 1985 to eighty times that amount in 2001.

Shopping in Shanghai
By THUNDER | 3/30/2004 4:55:15 PM

In Shanghai there are two methods of going about purchasing items (mai dongxi). Both are necessary to forgo because each offers items one cannot find in both places. The first route is to go shopping at a department store which offers price tagged items at a non-negotiable cost to the consumer. There are numerous "shopping malls" around Shanghai and Pudong. Often state-owned, they are filled with many domestic and imported items tastefully displayed amid uniformed store clerks and spotless waxed floors. Almost all electronics and jewelry are housed in a glass display case and even some sale-priced items are indicated by a "red" tag. Grocery stores are also laid out in similar format but unlike department stores, which are much like American counterparts, the grocery store/supermarket's inventory is completely different. I shall discuss my trip to the supermarket in another submission. The overabundance of store clerks and their lackadaisical attitude toward customers is most likely telling of two signs. One is that it is probably a state-owned enterprise and a sure-fire method for obtaining a position albeit mundane and low-paying outlook for the job prospect; the second is the low pay and lack of upward mobility that the job offers. End result?; the service is poor and the prices are comparable to those in the west, but the products are top-notch and the store honors a warranty on most products.

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