This article is written by Veer Singh

The reclining Buddha at the Jade Buddha temple, Shanghai

Going to China, the third largest country in the world with a population more than that of India, one would not expect much to enjoy in Shanghai but to my surprise the city has a lot to offer. Right from Yu Garden to Jade Buddha Monastery, the city gave us a feel of being close to culture. The visit to the silk factory and pearl factory made our pocket lighter but it made my wife happy. While waiting for the acrobatic show in the theatre we remembered our young days in India watching the city circus. It was sheer display of absolute synchronisation with a perfect use of light and sound.

Lookout Point at Victoria Peak, Hong Kong

From Shanghai’s traditional Chinese flavour everywhere, we got a taste of Hong Kong’s dynamism from the vantage point of Victoria Peak, overlooking the world’s busiest deep water port. Here you see a city geared not only to making money but feeling good about it too. At night it was like looking down into a volcano. Despite its British colonial past, Hong Kong has always stuck to its root and the culture beneath the glitz is pure Chinese. Visitors like us often takes a few days in Hong Kong to get accustomed to the whirlwind pace. Our respite came at the dinner at Bombay Dreams, an Indian restaurant, where ghazals were being played.

A day trip to Disneyland got the children in us enjoying to the hilt. The apprehension before reaching out to these cities was gone in just four-five days but we guess that’s a lot to do with the company you are with.

Veer Singh

21 Aug 2011

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