Chap. 1 - Urban Impressions

     I've promised to write about my experience and impressions in China. I decided to do it in English so I can share it with more people, including my colleges that were in China with me! Maybe they have the same impressions, maybe they disagree and can aggregate new points of view.
I have so many things and thoughts that I think I will divide in several texts.
First, the arrival and first overview of the city of Shanghai.

    In my first day in Shanghai I've taken the metro to go downtown to the very known Bund area and Nanjing Road.  

Shanghai Metro (going, not so crowded)

The Bund View

In a very polluted day, at 4 pm, it looks like night, a little bit frightening.

At 4 pm, it looks like night (because of the particles suspended in the air)

Polluted Sky

      Very crowded streets, very crowded metro, very big buildings, very heavy traffic, very big crossroads very low visibility. It reminds me São Paulo (the biggest city in Brazil,  South America and Southern Hemisphere). But Shanghai is bigger than São Paulo in all characteristics and dimensions everything is too something in Shanghai. 

Typical buildings (residential, I imagine)

  Entering a small street that crosses the Nanjing Road in the very center opulent buildings and bright panels, we find a "more human" Shanghai, smaller buildings, street food, people eating and hanging out. But few meters more, we come back to the main street again.

Nanjing Road

Nanjing Road

Small street near Nanjing Road

This is the metro the way back to the hotel

The next day we made a tour in Shanghai, we took a bus arranged by the school. From the hotel in the district area to downtown we passed all the way by elevated roads, kilometric viaducts that cross the entire city. They are ugly, very ugly! It reminds me Metropoly (the first sci-fi movie ever).

Metropoly (the movie)

The next day, we have made a cruise in the Yantse River. This is the richer part of the city, those very big skyscrapers we see from the Bund view. Very impressive buildings, overlighted!