Burgeoning Shanghai

Ask anyone who's been to China more than once in the last twenty years about their impressions of China, and invariably one of the first things they'll talk about is the unbelievable pace of growth and change. Although China does face significant problems that it must deal with over the next few decades, its "economic miracle" is undeniable to anyone who has witnessed it firsthand. One of the places where this growth is most conspicuous is Shanghai. My wife and I have visited Shanghai five times in the last seven years, and every time we go back the changes are enormous - so enormous that they can be overwhelming, even to a Shanghai native like her. In just the last two decades, Shanghai has become a forest of gleaming high-rise buildings and shining neon lights, with a lively, even febrile nightlife, hordes of shoppers buying the latest fashions and electronics, and unimaginable sums of money changing hands on a daily basis. Here are some photos that testify to the rapid pace of life and expansion in the largest city in China (click on the photos below for larger image files):

An area in downtown Shanghai
(photo by Aapo Haapanen)



Neon lights on Shanghai's
famous Nanjing Road
(photo by Thierry)



Pudong, the area east of the Huangpu
River that used to be farmland
(photo by Emile B)



Pudong at night
(photo by Hario Seto Supranggono)