Shanghai: Surprisingly Boring? 🥱 #Shanghai #Travel

[Jeremiah Bednar]

Sure enough, this task is on me! I will make sure to adapt this travelogue of Shanghai so that my foreign friends can understand it well and feel the spirit here.

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As a Shenzhen resident, let me tell you this: Due to the close proximity between Shenzhen and Hong Kong, I usually take the opportunity to go shopping there. Besides, Macau is the last city I've visited – Macau has its own unique charm too. Frankly speaking, Shanghai left me feeling rather ordinary, with nothing very surprising or special.

While touring Shanghai, what I found was:

• In Wukang Road, which is a famous old street filled with picturesque old buildings, I spotted some architecture reminiscent of Hong Kong and Macau's European-style old buildings.
  • However, the cool vibes exuded by the shops along Wukang Road seem to discourage casual browsing; they almost appear to have a “do not disturb” attitude toward unfamiliar visitors.
• I then visited Lujiazui – a financial district filled with skyscrapers such as the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, which felt somewhat similar to Yuhai Street, where I live in Shenzhen – featuring a contemporary feel and plenty of glassy high rises.
• So, for these places, I ended up quickly taking photos as proof of my visit and did not particularly plan to return there again.

Nonetheless, Disneyland Shanghai proved to be extremely enjoyable!

• Beforehand, I had some concerns about the content being too similar to Hong Kong's Disney, possibly leaving me without a sense of novelty during playtime.
• However, the surprising revelation was, they were remarkably different! Undoubtedly, it's worth at least one visit, and I highly recommend it!

Lastly, something I'd like to point out, also as a reminder for friends planning to visit:

• Warning! Potential issues associated with taking photos as tourists:
  • At Shanghai's popular photo spots (known as "Internet-famous sites", or Instagrammable spots), you will encounter numerous "street photographers".
  • What do they do? They are professional-photography-equipped individuals who occupy prime photography locations and ask whether you would like to pay them to take photos for you.
  • Why is this troublesome? They occupy the best spots, thus making quiet solo photoshoots or even having a friend take a picture for you very challenging due to the unavailable good vantage points.
  • How to navigate this? Try waiting patiently if encountering such a situation, or find a spot a bit further away; consider shooting from a slightly altered angle, or simply visit at a less crowded time. Don't count on easily snapping perfect shots without people around at the hottest spots.

[Justin Zieme]

Shenzhen is the truly boring one. Went once and never wanted to go back. It's worlds apart from Shanghai.

[Marcos Goodwin]

Chengdu is crap too.

[Mrs. Beverly Glover-Crist]

I spent half a day in Shenzhen and then just left. I honestly didn't even know where was worth visiting.

[April Corwin]

Hahahaha, that's so true. Even we locals think it's incredibly boring.

[Theresa Sporer]

Shenzhen has plenty of parks, nice greenery, and many new buildings. But it's still relatively boring. Most things Shenzhen offers, other developed Chinese cities have too—the main differences are just scale and newness. Other cities boast unique culture and history, which Shenzhen lacks. Let's just say, if there's one city in China you could easily skip, it's Shenzhen.

[Elsa Wyman]

Shanghai's the same.

[Felix Glover]

Boring people find everything boring.

[Maryann Daniel IV]

That's just how it is for people who rush through places, just wanting to take photos and 'check in'.

[Joseph Thompson]

Shanghai's old architecture has way more history than Hong Kong's or Macau's. If you don't get it, maybe pick up a book.

[Lula Turner]

This is the first I'm hearing that life in Hong Kong is more comfortable than in Shanghai.

[Lorena Runolfsson]

People in Shanghai don't care; seriously, nobody gives a damn.

[Jeremiah Bednar]

Shenzhen is full of dirty country bumpkins from Hunan, Hubei, and Jiangxi. The city's a mess – filthy, disorganized, with e-scooters whizzing around recklessly. The people are low-class, and it has the highest crime rate in the nation.