Shanghai has been as advertised.. it is a big city. Other than that there is not too many sites to see so we have been taking it pretty easy over the last two days. Yesterday we went down to the Bund to check it out and to look for a place to mail our stuff. It was hot as hell.. probably 100 degrees plus 1000% humidity. I have honestly never felt anything comparable in the U.S. We walked down the main pedestrian walking area getting hassled to buy DVD's, watches, and a whole bunch of other stuff we did not want. After about a 20 minute walk we got to the river that divides the one area from the newer Pudong District. Lucky for us we found our first tourist trap at the river. It was a light tunnel ride right out of space mountain. The best I can say for it is that it was air conditioned and prevented us from having to walk back to the subway to get across the river.
Once we arrived on the other side we tried in earnest to find a Fedex or a UPS. Unable to find anything we ducked into a western style mall to look around and get lunch. Not feeling adventurous and being hot as crap we elected to eat Burger King. After lunch we headed back out into the heat to continue looking for a place to mail our stuff. Probably not the best idea since all we knew is that there was a Fedex somewhere in the Pudong District, which is huge, and we had no success at all. We had all but given up and were headed back to the train when we spotted a Fedex truck (sorry dad). I ran up to the window and got an address from the driver who suggested getting a cab. Since we were at least smart enough not to be carrying the 15 pounds of crap we had to ship we decided to head back to the hostel and get the stuff before going to the Fedex store.
Back at the hostel we collected all our stuff and headed back out to the subway. I was loaded down with about 5 pounds in my pack and a 10 pound box with the large terracotta warrior in it. The box has been really awkward and heavy and I was looking forward to getting rid of it. We took the subway all the way to Pudong this time and got out to look for a cab. Not an easy task at 5pm in Shanghai, but we eventually got one and made it to the Fedex Kinkos. It probably took we about an hour to fill everything out and get the box packed. They had no packing material so all we had was what the store had wrapped everything in and some stuffed animals. After going through two different boxes we got everything to fit pretty tight, paid our 200 bucks and sent the souvenirs on their way. I imagine something will end up broken, but at this point I don't really care. Just getting rid of the 15 pounds of extra weight was worth it. Lesson learned however.... don't buy anything big, breakable or heavy when you are traveling for 4 months.
Finally free from my box of burden we headed back to our favorite western mall to get dinner. On the menu last night was Pizza Hut. I know I know we are falling off, but we are both pretty tired of trying to figure out what to eat and the "American Special" on the menu looked really good. It was back to the hostel after that to relax and watch a movie.
Today has been pretty slow... after a very long night. Up until last night the hostel has been pretty nice with decent food and a nightly movie. Other than a good amount of noise in the hall way there was nothing to complain about.. and then the AC broke. I am not sure what the deal is, but the first night we were freezing and last night the thing did not work at all. I spent the entire night playing with the remote trying to get cold air to come out, but never got it to work. The room was probably at a balmy 80 degrees and it is so humid hear that everything you touch is wet or sticks to you. Needless to say I got about 4 hrs of sleep and that was about it. I have complained to the front desk, but it is still not working. Looks like we are in for another long night of sticking to the sheets.
Other than that we have been using the day to figure out the logistics for Europe and to finalize how we are going to get to Hong Kong since the train only has 6 more beds left in the soft sleeper, no idea if they are even together. Not sure what we will do, but 18hrs packed on a train is not sounding all that great.
That's about it for now. Off to Guilin tomorrow afternoon. Hopefully the AC will work there
