Shang HIGH

The Bund: Old colonial architecture from the 1930's on the river (photo by Equalizer)

A view of early morning in Shanghai from my 73rd floor room of the Grand Hyatt in Pudong (photo by equalizer)

Shanghai is probably the most dynamic and fastest growing city in the world with buildings being demolished and built everyday. It is the showcase of Chinese economic might. The commercial capital of China has undergone dramatic changes since the 1990's. Today it is a world class city with cutting edge high rises, gourmet restaurants, bars and cafe's, museums, art galleries and everything above and beyond. The city's old historic French concession of Xintiandi has been restored by American architectural firm Warren Zapata to create an environment that is suitable for 21st century living. The area is now filled with restaurants tucked away in alley ways, bars and cafes on main walking streets and boutique shops. Nanjing road on the other hand has also been transformed into a major bustling commercial and shopping district stretching for kilometers, with almost 80% being a wide pedestrain only street, lined with manicured trees and ornate street lamps. At first one would expect run down cheap stores selling "Chinese" products, only to be shocked at the quality and brand names of the products on offer. The Chinese have been absent from the principles of capitalism, which neccessitate the need for marketing and brand building. In a sense, a country is a brand recognizable by different aspects whether it be cultural, historical, topographic, by the products sold, and so forth. "Made in Taiwan" has always been identified with bad quality to the extent people use it to describe anything that is bad quality. Today, Taiwan is considered the best manufacturer of laptop computers, but does anyone know that? China had also its fair share of similar negative branding. Many people still dont know how China has drastically changed, and it is up to the governement to boost China's image through different media channels and through world expos etc.Shanghai is a dynamic city filled with surprises, the pace of change is so fast that keeping up with the image is very hard.

These are my recommended restaurants in Shanghai :-

• T8 - Modern European and oriental cuisine is a beautiful modern chinese decor setting tucked in an alley way in the hip Xintiandi district. Try the lamb shank pie with peanut sauce. www.ghm.com
  
• Ye-Shanghai - A recreated 1930's style Chinese restauarant in Xintiandi. Try the Shanghai dim sum. www.elite-concepts.com
  
• Bund 18 - A collection of fine dining restaurants in an old building on the Bund featuring an Armani flagship store. www.bund18.com