SHANGHAI
On our first day here in Shanghai we visited one of the local theme parks, Happy Valley. It was full of exhilarating rides and attractions to do. There were many rollercoasters, thrilling carnival rides such as the Viking ship, 4D Cinemas as well as Hunted Houses! We even got to sit on a wooden roller coaster called the Fireball which was a real masterpiece! Fortunately for us, we went on a weekday where the crowds were not as heavy and we managed to ride almost all of the attractions. But the day would have been even better if the weather wasn’t so bad, throughout the day intermittent rain kept showering down which caused most of the outdoor rides to pause for a while. At times we were next in line and would have to wait an extra hour just to wait for the weather to clear.
Another theme park in Shanghai is the world renown Disneyland. Although Happy Valley does not have our favorite Disney characters walking around to take pictures with and performances, paying only half the price of the Disneyland ticket with more exciting rides and lesser queue, I would say Happy Valley is a real Hidden Gem. To anyone who may be heading to Shanghai and is looking for some cheap thrill, do visit Happy Valley, you will not regret it.
We then headed into the town of this great global financial hub to spend our next few days. During the day, we’d spend our time walking along Nanjing road chasing sales after sales in this long 5.5km of shopping malls. Right smack in the middle of Shanghai is the Bund, also known as the Shanghai’s waterfront which is the symbol of Shanghai. After the long day of shopping, to end our day, a peaceful walk along the bund to view the museum of buildings help us to forget our miserable wallets. Many different kinds of buildings are built along the bund, including giant skyscrapers (such as the famous pearl tower and the 2nd tallest building in the world the Shanghai tower), mega malls and French colonial buildings. In the evening we took a river cruise along the bund to see the gradual change of this cityscape as it turned dark.
