The Huangpu River separates the old and new Shanghai, with the historic Bund promenade on one side and the futuristic Pudong New Area on the other. The Old Town contains some cultural delights, such as the Yuyuan Gardens and Bazaar, while Renmin Square is the focus of the cities Communist tradition, the site of many a protest and home to the Shanghai Government.

Originally, Shanghai was a seaside fishing village and in time its gradual development led to it being granted County status in 1291. Todays Shanghai is a multi cultural metropolis with both modern and traditional Chinese features. Bubbling Shanghai shows off every aspect of her unique glamour. Widely regarded as the citadel of Chinas modern economy, the city also serves as one of the nations most important cultural, commercial, financial, industrial and communications centres.

A city government that has not been too narrowly focused on commerce to neglect wider urban planning issues and the result is one of Chinas most elegant cities and certainly its most sophisticated and cosmopolitan. The annual Shanghai Tourist Festival offers a huge amount of traditional and not so traditional entertainment at venues across the city, and also incorporates the Shanghai shopping festival. Theres much hype around town at the time and plenty of opportunity to pick up details of all the events.

Shanghai is a large and rapidly developing city, but also has a long and majestic history. You shouldn’t miss visiting the exhilarating skyscrapers and modern parks of Pudong, taking a walk along the historical Bund or shopping for bargains on Nanjing road or in the many markets such as Huaihai road market. Yuyuan gardens is also considered as a cultural heart of Shanghai, with wonderful architecture and the entire snack food and bar atmosphere you could want.

Shanghai has an extremely wide range of accommodation available to visitors. Shanghais people have a sweet tooth and more sugar is used than in any other part of China. The winters can be very cold and temperatures often drop well below zero. In contrast, the summers tend to be hot and humid. The best time to visit is autumn or spring. Whether youre in Shanghai for business or pleasure, make sure you visit a few of the charming places the Pearl of the East has to offer.

Towards the northern plains of China is the City of Shanghai, literally meaning “up the sea”, there is a quaint river town called Zhujiajiao translated as “family bridge”. Zhujiajiao, sometimes dubbed as the Venice of Shanghai is is an ancient water town well-known throughout the China, with a history of more than 1700 years. Spanning an area of about 47 sq km, lay snuggled in a landscape of beautiful lakes and majestic mountains. Zhujiajiao is abound with quaint ancient bridges across bubbling streams and small rivers shaded by weeping willow trees. Houses with traditional Chinese cultural courtyards fringes along these waterways with the atmosphere of antiquity, leisure and tranquillity. Bridges in Zhujiajiao are distinctive and ancient, mostly built during Ming and Qing dynasty era. The old town sector of Zhujiajiao is well connected by 36 bridges in different shapes, sizes and styles. Fangsheng Bridge (Set animals free bridge) is the longest, largest and the tallest stone bridge with five openings both in Zhujiajiao and in the Shanghai region. Fangsheng Bridge is almost 500 years old. There is a stone tablet on the bridge called The Dragon Gate Stone, which is engraved with 8 beautiful Chinese dragons encircling a shining pearl. Perched at top of the bridge are 4 lifelike stone lions purportedly to be guarding the bridge against any evil intruders. Lang Bridge (Veranda Bridge) or the Huimin Bridge, is the only wooden bridge and the most famous bridge of Zhujiajiao. It has wooden bars on the two sides and upturned eaves, just like a narrow corridor.