The bell tower of Lujia Catholic Church (陆家天主堂钟楼), in the town of Zhelin (柘林) in Shanghai’s Fengxian district. It was built in 1891, and the wing was used for livestock in the late fifties, and destroyed a decade later. The tower was stripped of its bronze bell, but was spared because it had the word […]
Like H is for Hawk, Helen Macdonald’s work is poetic and full of wonder about the world around us. I’m not a huge bird fan or anything, but this book is about more than birds and nature. It’s a way of looking at the world, of finding magic. And like H is for Hawk, Vesper […]
The St. Francis Church of the Eastern Shi Family (东施家圣方济各堂), built in 1896. Historic Pudong wrote about it before, but I never knew where it was. Then Eva cycled past it and sent me the location, but she didn’t dare to enter alone because of stray dogs. I couldn’t see those stray dogs today, but […]
I rarely share anything about my daily working life here. It’s almost like a double life I live. (Although I did share about working in Zhangjiang (张江) before.) But here’s perhaps something cool to share; how Pimax’s electronics are made, and for that matter, many of the world’s stuff. Last Tuesday, with a colleague, I […]
What is the oldest structure in Shanghai? On the bike, I was wondering about that, but back at home googling I discovered it’s a pillar in Songjiang. I wonder if this sea dike (南宋古海塘遗址) — albeit hidden in the water is in the top 10. I’m not sure why I’m drawn to this stuff — […]
We’re climbing a hill today and it’s warm. A fellow hiker is coming downhill, and Eva asks how much longer to the summit: “Twenty minutes”, says the lady. After ten minutes of walking, Eva asks another hiker, and it’s the same answer: “Twenty minutes”. Another ten minutes of walking go by as we pass an […]
We just randomly picked a lake on the map in Changxing (长兴) and somehow we ended up in a sort of Benidorm. Lots of seniors from Shanghai. The place is named 水口茶文化景区 (Shuikou Tea Culture Scenic Area), but locals here even refer to this place as 上海老人村: Shanghai Elderly Village. Lots of tea, herbs, and […]
Yixing (宜兴) is like many lower-tier cities, in that it has an old city center and then a new part. The two halves haven’t yet grown enough to be fully merged, so for now they still feel like two separate cities — despite sharing the name. Obviously, we’re visiting the older part. Shushan Gunan Street […]
Example of China’s hukou — or actually, school district houses (中国学区房) — in China. But it gets a bit complicated. Friend is a single parent, living in a house registered in his parent’s name (his parents live with him). His son goes to a primary school near that house. Let’s call it House A. Then […]
Taped posters in Chuansha (川沙) telling people not to create vegetable plots here. And yet people can’t resist or simply don’t care. In some unsighted areas, there are fresh crops. Eva pulls an ugly carrot out of the ground: “If they can steal the land, well, I think I can steal a carrot.”