shanghai, china

after viewing the total solar eclipse, and enjoying a brief stop in suzhou, i went to shanghai, china for a couple days.

i made it successfully from the train to the subway only to find this sign...


uh, where am i going?

this has always been the most intimidating thing about visiting countries whose written languages i cannot even make a guess at! luckily, my guide book listed the chinese characters and english language, so i found my way to the correct stop!


a mix of old and new.


simple and smooth jasmine tea.


shanghai is an architecturally interesting city.


parasols everywhere. i love parasols. i wish people in the western world wouldnt look at me like such a weirdo when i use one on a sunny day! there were people walking around campus moments before totality of the solar eclipse still holding their parasols over their heads!


deep fry and enjoy.


i have no idea why the broccoli in the picture is upside down! it made me laugh enough to buy the book!


one of the main tourist attractions in shanghai is the riverfront buildings of the bund. as i was walking thru the city to the bund, i noticed this crazy building off in the distance!


i was more interested in seeing this strange oriental pearl tower than the bund, so i decided to cross the river to the pearl tower side. instead of taking the metro under the river, i used the "bund sightseeing tunnel." the ride was ridiculous! i cannot really recommend taking the overpriced tunnel for anything more than a good laugh and 4 minutes of bright lights! i have to admit that i did enjoy it though, because all the excited chinese tourists rushed to the front of the little car, while i sat in back watching their reactions to all the lights.


the oriental pearl tower up close.


the view of the bund from the pudong side of the river.


(how adorable is her dress?)



i wasnt expecting shanghai to be lit up at night as much as it is! all the buildings with crazy architecture also have lights strewn all over them!


this dish tasted a lot better than it looks or sounds: eel and eggplant.


self-portrait while sitting on the maglev: the world's fastest train and the first commercial high-speed magnetic levitation line in the world. since i rode outside of peak hours, we only reached 301 km/hr (188 mph - as opposed to the normal operation speed of 431 km/h (268 mph)). we attained that speed in under 2 minutes, and were only able to enjoy the smooth ride for another 5 minutes before we arrived at the airport, 20 miles outside of the city. i wish i could take a maglev across the US!


more photos: here.

total solar eclipse of the heart (in china!)

a long laboring title for the post, i know, but i have some great news to share!

first, my sister sent me the literal version of that super cheesy song that i remember belting out in the car with my mom: total eclipse of the heart (view at your own risk, but parts are funny)!

second, in a little over a week i will be going here...


...to see and record one of these!!!!!


i've been invited to china to comment on and help film the total solar eclipse that is occurring on july 22nd, 2009! wwoohhhooooo!!!! i've never seen a total eclipse before, only a partial one, so i'm super excited!

a solar eclipse occurs when the (new) moon passes directly in front of the sun in our sky! the full eclipse is only visible over narrow path along the earth, seen as the blue area on the map below...


i'll be in the eastern city of ningbo and then spending a few days in shanghai afterwards. i've never been to china before and am currently working quickly to get my visa in time! if anyone has recommendations on what to do or see in and around shanghai, let me know! also, if there are any words i should absolutely know (hello, how much?, yes, no) that you can phonetically teach me, please share in the comments! thank you!!!

photo credits: shanghai, china by flickrgao; solar eclipse by stefan seip

suzhou, china

after viewing the total solar eclipse in ningbo, china, i headed to the city of suzhou which is located about an hour west of the massive shanghai. despite the torrential downpours of water from the sky that occurred during the majority of my time in suzhou, i really enjoyed exploring the gardens and the old city, the company of my hosts, and the loud, booming thunder!

one thing that surprised me about suzhou was the density of *electrically-powered* motorbikes!! when the chinese find a fad, it really takes hold because bikes with real motors were so rare that they seemed really loud and out of place. luckily, the people i stayed with had a couple electric bikes, so i got to ride around town on one! it was great and strange to have a whole conversation while riding on the back of a scooter!

suzhou is famous for the ancient gardens that exist throughout the city, and i explored several! the humble administrator's garden is a massive plot (52,000 sq. meters = 12.85 acres!) that was originally created in 1509. there are dozens of buildings, waterways, lotus gardens, bridges, and bonsai plants, etc... it's incredible.


peaceful lotus plants grew in the water.


this lady floating in her boat was selling the fruits of the lotus plant.


you peel away sections and eat the the pods inside. the pods can be as big as grapes, but taste more like edamame beans.


bamboo everywhere.




scenes from walking thru town....


ducks in a row on the side of a road...


ancient canals run throughout the city. they are nice to walk beside and have obviously been used for hundreds of years by the people of the city. there are many stairs leading down into the water and benches and pavilions all along in order to sit peacefully, relax, and take shelter from the regular rainstorms!







for lunch, i stopped in a little tea house and had rose tea and dim sum. yum! apparently, i didnt use all the little plates properly because they kept bringing more little empty plates, pointing to things, and leaving the plates on the table. i was confused, but nodded and smiled and thoroughly enjoyed the meal!


another garden i really enjoyed was the lion grove garden, built in 1342!


the strange rocks that decorate the garden represent lions doing their many activities. the limestone rocks were transformed into their odd shapes while sitting at the bottom of lake taihu, then they were transported to form such classical gardens.


the rocks are strategically placed around the gardens to form labyrinths! the whole place is like a giant playground to explore, and i had so much fun running around thru the tunnels and paths made of these crazy rock structures! they also use zigzag bridges, because evil spirits cant turn sharp corners!


i really enjoyed the final meal in suzhou which was at a vegetarian restaurant. this odd seaweed thing wasnt my favorite dish though!


so many yummy choices....


see the full set of pictures here.

annular eclipse 2012

this is my favourite photo so far of yesterday's annular solar eclipse.   it was taken aboard the international space station. 

(UPDATE: fairly sure the above image is a creation of digital art, similar to this one.   still gorgeous as art though... )

i also love this one.   isn't shanghai a crazy-looking city?!?

Photo Credit: ~mimo~

reverse vending machine

great sign seen in shanghai, china!