On April 14th, the Young Explorers Program set off for an in-depth exploration of Shanghai’s urban culture with the theme of “North Bund Tour”.
The first step was visiting the Citizens’ Station on Jiaxing Road in Hongkou District. The Young Explorers were given a deep explanation of the comprehensive service functions of the station by the staff, before getting to join in the fun themselves by playing table tennis with the elders in the community.
This was followed by a series of explorations of China’s intangible cultural heritage. The Young Explorers had the chance to learn Chinese martial arts culture at the Shanghai Carbon Secret Museum and created a traditional Chinese round fan. Nick, a young man from Berlin painted a bluegrass pattern in ink and wrote his Chinese name as a souvenir. The traditional mugwort hammer-making course allowed young people from all over the world to experience the wisdom of integrating traditional Chinese medicine culture with traditional handicrafts. Hannah from Canada said that she liked the silk pattern on the mugwort hammer very much. Finally, in the “Chinese Boxing” venue, foreign young people changed into green Tai Chi clothes and practised Tai Chi.
In the afternoon, the group climbed to the 263-meter observation hall of the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, where they could see the entire Shanghai landscape. There, the local guide shared some unique facts about Shanghai’s skyline. Including the 632-meter spiral shape of the Shanghai Tower, the engineering wisdom of the wind tunnel opening of the World Financial Center, and the cultural metaphor of the stacked towers of the Jinmao Tower, forming a three-dimensional textbook for interpreting the ambitions of contemporary Chinese cities.
As the skyline was lit up by the night’s lights, the group boarded the Huangpu River cruise ship. They gazed at the symphony of light and shadow on both sides of the river and discussed the differences between the historical buildings of the Bund and the modern buildings of Lujiazui. Thomas from the UK said with emotion: “I have only been to Beijing and Shandong before. This is my first time in Shanghai. Shanghai is indeed an economic center. I think the night view of Shanghai is very spectacular.”
Day 3’s exploration was designed with five observation points in different dimensions: the Citizens’ Station reflects the innovation of grassroots governance, the Intangible Cultural Heritage Workshop showcases cultural heritage, the Lujiazui Building Complex demonstrates the ambition for development, and the Huangpu River Night View highlights the charm of the city. The whole process runs through the dialogue between Chinese and foreign civilisations, giving the chance to see China as it really is.
Written by Xun Zhu, edited by Liangyi Yu. If you liked this article why not read: Spot China Young Explorer Program Sets Off to Shanghai and Hangzhou
