Expats discover the city's hidden gems on a city walk with a difference
Participant take a group photo in from of the century-old Tianhou Palace.
A walking tour along Suzhou Creek in Jing'an District marked the launch of "Hidden Gems in Shanghai," a city walk program targeting expats developed by Shanghai Daily.
A total of 16 expats from five countries – Nepal, Argentina, France, Germany and the UK – participated in the tour.
Organized by Shanghai Daily, City News Service, the Jing'an Information Office and the Jing'an Tourist Information & Service Center, the Sunday afternoon outing was much more than the usual city walk.
The first surprise came at the tour's starting point, Tianhou Palace in the Shanghai Suhewan MIXC World, a former temple built in 1884 for Chinese sea goddess Mazu. Apart from touring the palace itself, participants were able to enjoy a traditional Chinese opera experience.
Ashish Maskay and his family pose on the century-old stage of Tianhou Palace in ancient Chinese opera costume.
The Beizhan Subdistrict, which has traditional Chinese opera encoded in its cultural DNA, provided costumes for all the participants. They went up the stairs to the palace's century-old stage and posed with their families.
"I even want to wear it to work to tomorrow," said Ashish Maskay, a surgeon from Nepal, whose costume was especially for characters of ancient Chinese emperors.
Andreas Hornfischer from Germany said it was a brand new experience for him and his family.
"Actually I have always loved Chinese operas and many years ago I bought a customized oil painting and it's a Chinese opera singer and I put my wife's face on it," he said.
Participants enjoy a stroll along Suzhou Creek.
Along the Jing'an part of Suzhou Creek stand many old factories and warehouses built from late 19th to early last century. The half-day tour took walkers to some of the sites that form a cradle of industrial culture in modern China.
Covering 4.2 square kilometers with a bank stretching for 6.3 kilometers, the area features 17 protected blocks which are now home to museums, galleries and other cultural sites.
The tour was guided and narrated by Zhu Yining, a specialist on Shanghai history and culture and an experienced tour guide who co-founded SimpliCity, a city walk service provider.
Zhu Yining, a tour organizer and Shanghai history researcher, gave detailed and vibrant talks throughout the tour.
"Although I have been living in Shanghai in more than 10 years, the tour still gave me brand new knowledge about the city," said Natacha Extier from France. "It feels great that I can learn about the hidden treasures in Shanghai."
Natacha Tarascon, also from France, said she visited the area often but the tour made her feel that she had visited the new place.
"I actually had been to the temple many times, but I'd never seen the ceiling and its (carved) dragon decorations inside," she said. "Also the panda pictures inside made me very happy."
The last top of the tour was a graffiti contest held in Fotografiska, a museum of photography, art and culture. Guided by French artist Paul Dezio, co-founder of Urban Art United, participants sprayed and painted three huge graffiti works on the landscape of Jing'an.
Lucila Carzoglio from Argentina works on graffiti featuring Zhang Yuan, a historical site in Jing'an District.
Each participant also received a xiangnang (fragrant sachet) from the centuries-old traditional Chinese medicine pharmacy Lei Yun Shang West to mark the upcoming Dragon Boat Festival.
Participants said that they expect to see more places in Shanghai in future "Hidden Gems in Shanghai" tours.
"I'd like to see more old houses and hotels in Shanghai," said Tarascon. "People living in the old houses and for example the Peace Hotel, that I've seen many movies featuring it in."
Posing for a photograph in front of one of the huge graffiti paintings.
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