I went to Shanghai over Thanksgiving weekend for a little break and to see my friends. Thursday night we headed for The Bund, the famous strip of Shanghai architecture. The weather sucked, pouring rain and winds, and as we got closer to the waterfront, the wind only picked up more and more to a point where umbrellas were more of a bother than help, and your hand would move so much in the wind you couldn’t even hold the camera still long enough to focus.
(We tried to take a self portrait about 7 times but the wind was knocking us, and the camera around so badly we took pictures of the ground, the sky, everything but us.)
In addition, due to the clouds, the Shanghai skyline was changed quite a bit. This is a picture I took a few months ago:
And this was the same skyline on Thanksgiving night.
The buildings that aren’t directly on the waterfront totally disappeared including the bottle opener and the still-in-construction building which will be the tallest building in China once completed. Even during the day most of the unique Shanghai architecture was hidden by the rain clouds.
While walking on The Bund, fighting the wind and rain was fun, my wet feet weren’t so happy. My shoes and socks were so soaked water squished out from them in every step. Luckily, I was able to take advantage of another Shanghai tradition…wellington boots! While not exactly super comfy, they got the job done and kept my feet dry for the next two days.
So instead of sitting with my friends and family eating turkey I was fighting the rain and wind in Shanghai this Thanksgiving. I definitely am missing the big turkey meals (and general holiday season) more and more, but as long as I keep having unique opportunities and experiences I’m happy.
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