We were up bright and early . . . as usual, with our bags packed we had breakfast in the hotel, checked out and took our bus to see the Jade Buddah. It was in a cool little temple with neat architecture, especially the roofs. We walked around and read about the temple and the Buddah. There were some really nice wood carvings on the way to see the Buddah. In the Buddah chamber itself was a roughly life-size Buddah carved out of a single piece of jade. It was a creamy white color, and was incased in a glass case, with no photograph allowed. Inset into the ceiling were little gold-colored buddahs a few inches high. Each represented a different Saint.

Next, our guide dragged us across the street to a pearl shop to buy jewelry at exhorbitant prices, of which the guide would get a cut. We failed to buy anything. Am I too cynical? Our next stop was supposed to be the waterfront bordering the Bund (European section of Shanghai). Instead, we stopped in an intersection after side-swipping a taxi. We were making a right turn from the center lane and caught the left-front bumper of a taxi that was in the right lane . . . probably going straight. Both drivers, and the taxi passengers, got out to argue and a small crowd formed. A short while later a policeman arrived on a motorcycle to mediate. After a short discussion, our driver moved our bus over to the curb and another discussion ensued. Eventually, we got moving again.

We arrived at the waterfront and got out of our cab. The architecture in Shanghai is very interesting. The Bund is composed mainly of Western-style buildings, often with a Roman look to them. But there are a large number of cool designs scattered throughout the city. We walked along the waterfront for awhile and then got back into our bus and picked up our stuff. Anne, Ian, and I walked back toward the hotel and went to an Internet Cafe a few blocks away.

After checking my E-Mail, I left Ian and Anne and took a cab to the Hard Rock Cafe to get a T-shirt. After getting my shirt I successfully navigated Shanghai's Metro (subway). In each city we went to, Ian gave us a map including English and Chinese names for places, and highlighting important places, like our hotel, and the train station. Ian's map listed the Metro stations in English and Chinese, so I matched the Chinese characters to the fare map and determined the fare. Unfortunately, I didn't have any change, so I had to go up to the window and point to the name of the station I wanted on the map. I got my ticket and the proper change and headed to the trains. Next, I matched the station names on the map to the "next station" signs and figured out which train to get on. I used the same procedure to figure out which stop to get off at.

My biggest problem was figuring out which exit to take from the station. I took the first one I came to and after a few wrong turns, got myself oriented. Sadly, I forgot which street I was on and ended up going in the wrong direction. I came up to an entrance with a Bull and a Bear, which I remembered passing on the way from the waterfront to the Internet place. So, I turned around . . . again, and headed off in the right direction.

I stopped at a little grocery store and picked up snacks for the train, and then headed to the Internet place. Just before getting there I ran into Ian, who was out taking a walk. I headed back to the hotel and wrote out my postcards. I went to the front desk to mail them and they sent me to the Gift Shop to get stamps. I got the stamps, but they do not have any adhesive on them, so I had to go to the Business Office to get them to glue the stamps onto the postcards for me.

We got our bus to the train station, but it was a different bus and a different driver. According to Ian, the damage was almost certainly covered by insurance, but the driver was likely to get in trouble for getting into an accident, especially with tourists on board.

The Shanghai train station was quite large, although the soft-sleeper lounge was not as nice as the one in YiChang. They started to board the train just after we got there, so we trudged off to our car, which was inconveniently distant.

The train was similar to the one to Xi'an except that there was less storage space in this one. On the plus side, the bathrooms had Western-style toilets, although no toilet paper. We talked and read for awhile and then played seven-card rummy. I went to bed early, around 10:00 p.m.

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