2024 Spring Festival: 5-Day Cycling Adventure in Shanghai

Published on February 17, 2024, at 18:18. During the Spring Festival, I preferred to stay quietly in Shanghai for the […]

Published on February 17, 2024, at 18:18.
During the Spring Festival, I preferred to stay quietly in Shanghai for the New Year. It was the only time when the city was relatively quiet. The weather was bright and warm, making it comfortable and delightful to go out for a bike ride every day.
On February 10, 2024, the first day of the lunar year, I started from Zhongshan Park, passed through Dingxi Road, Fahuazhen Road, Xingfuli, and ended up in Xujiahui. The rebuilt Fahua Zen Temple in Changning Zhongxin Jing Park has its origins on Fahuazhen Road. Once as famous as Longhua Temple and Jing’an Temple, the thousand-year-old Fahua Zen Temple (dating back to the Northern Song Dynasty) has been destroyed and rebuilt multiple times. At the intersection of Fahuazhen Road and Xingfuli, there used to be a bookstore, which is now closed and for sale.
The Summary of the day: On the first day of the lunar year, there were few pedestrians on the road. However, once I arrived at Zhongshan Company’s Raffles City, there were more people. Then I cycled from Dingxi Road to Xujiahui, stopped by Xingfuli to take a look, passed by Fahuazhen Road where there was only a sign explaining the original site of Fahua Zen Temple, checked in at the Double Dragon Play Pearls in Henglong Plaza, had a bowl of handmade rice noodles at Mei Luo City, and on the subway back, I saw ‘Zootopia’ and watched the movie at home. Seeing how lazy the sloths were, I planned the next day’s trip to the zoo.
On February 11, 2024, the second day of the lunar year, I visited the Shanghai Zoo.The Summary of the Day: On February 12, 2024, the third day of the lunar year, I ventured to Pudong Qiantan Taikoo Li. At noon, I enjoyed Spanish seafood rice with a former colleague. In the afternoon, I strolled through the park with friends, basking in the sun’s warm embrace. Hahaha—how about a sloth leisurely crossing its legs? The sloth was indeed very lazy, too comfortable, not too comfortable.

The enchanting back of the big tiger, and the emperor penguins my friend saw in Antarctica, I could only see the斑嘴环企鹅 at the zoo. The斑嘴环企鹅 could only see the enchanting back of the tiger, and I wished to be a giant panda in the next life, eating, drinking, playing, and being loved by everyone.

I often see pandas like Huahua and Fubao online, so I wanted to see them in person. It has been more than ten years since I last visited the Sichuan Panda Base. In the evening, I went to a late-night diner and had Japanese cuisine—tea-soaked rice, tofu, mixed vegetables, and grilled rice cakes—a day of contentment and satisfaction.

On February 13, 2024, the fourth day of the lunar year, I visited the Song Qingling Mausoleum Pigeon House Bonsai Garden and the third-floor library of the Gubei Civic Center, which has a stylish and atmospheric garden restaurant. Preparing for a Gubei bike ride, I took Song Qingling Mausoleum as my destination. I had been to the former residence before, where there is a bonsai garden and a pigeon house. Later, the third-floor library of the Gubei Civic Center was spacious, and the garden restaurant on Zhanghong Road had a beautiful environment.On February 14, 2024, the fifth day of the lunar year. Today is Valentine’s Day. In 2004, I spent the longest 30 hours of Valentine’s Day on a plane. This year, I commemorated it in a special way by going to my first landing place in Shanghai, Linqing Road, to experience the old Shanghai Shikumen living scene.

Feeling a bit hungry on the subway, I decided to get off early and unexpectedly found myself at the North Bund’s Raffles City Market. There, I savored the pork ribs and rice cakes from ‘Blooming Flowers’, a taste I last enjoyed at the Xian De Lai on YanDang Road, under the vintage urban street kiosk.

The Xia Hai Yi Wang Temple: A folk temple dedicated to the sea god by local fishermen and residents for blessings of safety, located at the mouth of the Hai Pu where the Yangtze River meets the sea. The road directly opposite the temple’s gate is called Hai Men Road. It was common for residents and boat people to pass over the bridge with baskets of offerings, hence the name ‘Basket Bridge’. The temple’s backyard: A serene place to observe koi fish and lotus flowers while making wishes.

The White Horse Café: An important daily gathering spot for Jewish refugees at the time, now the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Memorial Hall. I had seen Sara’s short video before, and this time, I happened to read her introduction and poetry.

Shanghai Waterworks: When I first arrived in Shanghai in 1997, I lived on Linqing Road, in the narrow alleyways that are vivid in my memory.Back then, I worked in a foreign enterprise on the 35th floor of the Xujiahui Industrial Building (the tallest building at the time, with rent paid in US dollars). Every day, I took the bus and transferred at the Bund. It was a one-hour journey one way. It was simple, exciting, and joyful.

Over twenty years have passed, and Shanghai has changed. There are skyscrapers, but the air is not as fresh as before.

The Yangshupu Power Plant Ruins Park: A zero-carbon themed store between one foot.

Riverside night view under the moonlight at the Shanghai Oriental Fisherman’s Wharf.

Summary: Today was filled with unexpected discoveries. Visiting the city market brought me back to the scenes of when I first arrived in Shanghai. Tasting pork ribs and rice cakes. Visiting the Xia Hai Yi Wang Temple and the Shanghai Jewish Refugees Memorial Hall. The shikumen where I lived when I first came to Shanghai. Cycling along the river. In the evening, dining at the Fisherman’s Wharf with Ma’s Yong and Lanzhou beef noodles. It changed my impression of Lanzhou pulled noodles. Very delicious. One must still be willing to try new things and not judge based on past experiences.

The New Year holiday is coming to an end, and the streets of Shanghai will start to get busy again.