Day Trip: Starved Rock State Park
I finally got a weekend off of work, which rarely happens. I absolutely wanted, in fact, needed, to go explore somewhere, but my options were limited. I didn’t want to travel too far because my niece is due any day now, so a day trip fit the bill perfectly. I knew Starved Rock was close to Chicago, where I live, but I’d never actually been there. After a quick google image search, I was sold on the idea. We left around 10:00am on Saturday morning and arrived at the Visitor Center parking lot just before noon. We 
entered the Visitor Center only to grab a map and hit the restrooms before we began our hike. Originally, we wanted to hike up to the Lodge first, to get some lunch and figure out which hikes we wanted to do. What actually happened was we wound up on the Wildcat Canyon overlook trail. The paths were muddy due to days of rain prior to our visit, and my Chuck Taylors proved to be a poor hiking footwear choice. Actually, my whole outfit was ill-suited to nature and now I know better. Please note that jean shorts are not a great choice for four hours of humid hiking through the forest. What can I say? I’m a city girl. Luckily, the scenery was so gorgeous that I soon forgot my wardrobe woes and was able to focus on the views. We reached the outlook and noticed there were people hanging out in the canyon below, basking in the sunlight and playing beneath the waterfall, with no indication of how they appeared there. I made it my personal mission 
for the day to be one of those people. The weather was perfect, and everything was so green and gorgeous. It was nice just to be outside. Eventually, we found a sign pointing us towards the Lodge. The area surrounding the lodge was crowded with hikers and overnighters, staying in either the Lodge Hotel or the cute little cabins in the same general area. The lodge itself was a stately and beautiful large, wooden structure. I instantly wanted to stay the night there. We decided to have lunch in the “Dining Room” instead of the small café in the lobby. The dining room was also very large, with an outdoor deck attached. It had a romantic feel with the dark wood, soft lighting, and large fireplace holding court in the back of the room. The lunch menu included comfort food entrees, salads and sandwiches. We both ordered the Illiniwek Chicken Sandwich. The waitress was not the friendliest person we’d met that day, but the
service was prompt and the food was delicious so we overlooked her surly demeanor. After lunch, I stopped at the front desk to inquire about vacancy and room rates. Unfortunately they were completely booked, but the good news is their prices are completely affordable with their standard rooms starting around $100 and their cabins starting at $125 (depending on the season). We vowed to come back and stay in a cabin in the near future. We hiked up to the park’s namesake, the actual Starved Rock, and the stairs up to the overlook were no joke. The view from the top was breathtaking (minus the huge dam that was visible on one side of the Illinois River). The path at the top of Starved Rock wound in a circle, through trees and wildflowers looking lush from the summer rain. We meandered back down the way we came, past other hikers huffing and puffing up the many, many stairs. From there we hiked up to the Lover’s Leap overlook, which offered an amazing view of Starved Rock and the river 
below. It was finally time to complete my mission of the day and find the way into the canyon that we had seen from the trail above. We found the path and made our way along the river to the canyon. We could hear its current visitor’s voices bouncing off the rock face in what could only be described as shouts of glee. When we finally reached Wildcat Canyon, it took some maneuvering to get over to the waterfall, through the water and mud. Once we were finally in the main clearing, I took my shoes off and stuck my feet in the water. It was cloudy with the sand beneath, but cold and refreshing. The waterfall was gorgeous; it flowed into a small pool teaming with happy little hikers. Though the area was crowded, there was a solidarity among the visitors in the canyon; everyone was admiring the view. It was hard to leave such a beautiful place, but it was about that time to head back to the visitors center. Overall, we hiked about five miles through the forest, up and down stairs, and on gorgeous overlook boardwalks. By the time we made it back to the car, I was exhausted, but already planning our next visit. Even with how much we had already explored, there were still so many other paths, overlooks and canyons to see. I’d imagine that not too much time will pass before I’m back for more.
These are tricks that have worked for me, and I’m sure there are many more that work for other people. The most important thing to remember is that you really can do this: save up your money and see the world. It’s a definite possibility. So, Happy Wanderlusting and Good Luck!
kitchen making sandwiches for our lunch on the river, with coffee brewing behind her. She immediately put us to work on getting everything ready to go. We were going to drive up to the Milwaukee River in Kewaskum, WI (just north of Milwaukee) to kayak. My mom and dad invited us to join them on this day trip a couple of weeks earlier and we gladly accepted. We left the house at about 8:00am and arrived in Kewaskum close to 10:00am. It rained the whole way up but by the time we got there, the sun was shining. We dropped off bikes at our end point so Mike and my dad could ride and get the car when we were done, and drove up to the start of our kayak journey. We launched the kayaks right after a dam in the river, with our lunch, water and extra clothes packed into the back compartments. A few fisherman saw us off as we started paddling down 
river. We didn’t see many other people for the rest of the 9 mile excursion. The river was still and shallow, and reflected the green, freshly-leafed trees that hung over it. We were all silent as we glided through the water, taking in the scenery. We passed through a golf course, which we were reminded of frequently as we passed random golf balls nestled into the sandy bottom of the river for the rest of the trip (my dad had about two dozen of them rattling around in his kayak by the time we reached the end). It was a perfect day to be out on the river; the weather was warm and the sun was out. The trees 
offered shade when we needed it, and it was too early in the year for there to be many mosquitos buzzing about. We spotted a multitude of wildlife, including turtles, frogs, fish, assorted waterfowl and other feathered friends, deer, and a snapping turtle the size of a car tire (you’ll have to take my word for it because I was too scared to get close enough to take a picture). We stopped a little less than halfway through to have lunch on the muddy, rock-laden shore, propping our kayaks up on the mud to make them stay put. We had our picnic lunch, sitting on the rocks. After lunch, we got back in out kayaks and took off again, only to come upon a “strainer”. This means that the river was blocked by fallen trees, branches and debris, and in this case it was completely blocked. We had to pull our kayaks out of the water and across a patch of tree branches and old, rusty barbed wire to put them back in, past the blockage. Once we hit our stride again, we hit another strainer, though this one allowed us through a small opening between fallen trees. It required some fancy maneuvering but we all got through without too much effort. Soon after we went through the strainer, we passed the most picturesque farm right on the river.
swiftly backwards on the current towards I didn’t know what. It was an exhilarating task to try and right myself before we reached the upcoming bridge, which I did, clumsily. After the bridge, the river became quite shallow, and we all got stuck on the rocks a few times. Towards the end of our journey, we saw an abandoned factory fit for a horror movie set, which contrasted sharply with the peacefulness of the river. We passed it and imagined the plots that could take place there. We took our kayaks out just before another dam, and Mike and my dad rode off on the bikes to get the car. My mom and I unloaded the kayaks and brought everything over towards the parking lot to load into the car. We sat down to wait and had a good talk, taking in the sunshine and
We walked down 5th Avenue and around in a loop past Rockefeller Center and the fancy shops and wound up in a café named Papillion. The ground floor looked like a typical bar on a Friday night. Once we were seated and viewed the menu (and the prices), we decided to have drinks and appetizers. I ordered white wine and my sweet ordered whiskey and we both split the charcuterie plate. The atmosphere and the cured meats were lovely, and we enjoyed our time at Papillion. We left the restaurant and continued our wandering about midtown. The charcuterie didn’t hold us for long and we decided to enjoy another small plate at another café, this one closer to the hotel. It was called Benoit and it was perfect. We sat in the bar, which looked like the set of a Woody Allen movie, and ordered coffee and dessert. We got a slice of chocolate tart and 
hop on a subway train to the World Trade Center Memorial. We got off the train with a sea of people and followed the tide to the site of the memorial. It was a very emotional experience despite the multitude of selfie sticks. The memorial itself was beautiful; the reflecting pools are quite the sight to take in. We walked from the memorial to Battery Park, stopping at St. Paul’s Cathedral and Trinity Church along the way. The churches were so pretty, we couldn’t help but peak inside and gaze at their beautiful structures and stained glass windows. We finally made it to Battery Park and were amazed at how saturated it was with tourists. We deliberately walked past the line for Liberty and Ellis Islands (the lines were out of control) and made our way to the (completely gratis) Staten Island Ferry at Whitehall Terminal. We had to wait for a ferry, but grabbed a giant pretzel at one of the many vendors in the terminal to pass the time. Once the ferry arrived and we were able to board, it was a mad dash to the window that would be the best vantage point to see the Statue of Liberty. We grabbed some seats on that particular side of the boat and got up to join the crowds once it was close enough to the statue. We stayed on Staten Island only long enough to board the next ferry back to Manhattan. 
of tourism. My lovely boyfriend procured a pair of tickets to see Phantom of the Opera that evening, so we dolled up and went to dinner in the Theater District before the show. As it was an hour before show time on a Saturday night, and we did not have reservations, we sat at the bar at Café Angus Bistro to eat. We ordered their Du Pre option, which was a prix fixe, three course menu designed for pre-show diners. I chose the roasted buttermilk chicken as my entrée, and Mike had the salmon. Along with the entrée came a small portion of house salad and a delightful three bite portion of dessert, their apple-cherry crumble. The meal was delicious and the perfect amount of food. We went to the Majestic Theater feeling satisfied and ready to take in a three hour performance. The musical was magnificent. I loved every minute of it, and the cast was so talented I wanted to cry. Each scene was better than the last; the whole production was perfect. After the show we wandered around 
the Theater District and Time Square taking pictures and being uber tourists. It was a very surreal experience, being in the middle of all the lights and people, where so many iconic events have taken place. We stopped by Junior’s Cheesecake and shared a slice of the cherry, which we devoured while we continued to walk around. We found that as we were walking past some of the other theaters, the cast was coming out to crowds of people wanting to get their programs signed. We observed the whole scene, and realized we were staring at Mr. Ferris Bueller himself, Matthew Broderick. Of course we couldn’t have him sign a program from a play he did not star in, so we just stared in awe as he signed others’. Once he got in his SUV to leave, we were able to tear ourselves away from the scene and start wandering again. Being the Stephen King fan that I am, I convinced Mike to walk to 46th and 2nd Avenue to where the vacant lot that houses The Rose from the Dark Tower Series is supposed to be located. It was quite a long walk from Time Square, and it’s probably the most fangirl thing I’ve ever done, but it was totally worth it. There was no 
vacant lot, only a small park with a bodega across the street. Mike very thoughtfully bought me a rose at the bodega and we placed it behind the locked gate of the park (only to take it back after I took a picture). That rose cost us $18 because we didn’t have any cash and there was a minimum for debit card purchases, so we got The Rose and a 6-pack of Brooklyn Lager. It made me very happy though, to make the small pilgrimage to an iconic spot in my favorite author’s books. After I got my fill of Dark Tower fanfare, we walked back to the hotel the long way, enjoying the weather and each other’s company. We turned on the TV in the room and each drank a lager while discussing the day’s events.
rides and attractions to decide which to spend our money on. Each ride was about $4-$9, so we only went on three. First we tried one of the small roller coasters, called The Tickler, and we went on the swings before we walked over to the main event, The Cyclone. The cyclone is an almost century old, wooden roller coaster, that is as rickety as it sounds. We felt we absolutely had to go on it. There was no line, and we climbed the wooden steps up to the boarding platform to get in one of the leather-lined cars right away. A few other people boarded, and we took off through the sea of wooden slats and planks. It only lasted a couple of minutes, but it was very fun, and provided a great view of the coast. We walked around a little longer, and then got back on the train to head back towards the city. We made a pit stop at Washington Square Park and walked to The Strand Bookstore in the East Village. 
finally made it back to the hotel, we readied ourselves to go meet one of my very good friends for dinner in Hell’s Kitchen. We met him on the corner of 50th and 9th, and decided we were all in the mood for margaritas. We waltzed down the street into Arriba Arriba, and were seated right away, surprisingly. We all ordered frozen margaritas; mine was watermelon. The margs were delicious and the food was even better. We had two rounds and were delightfully tipsy when we left the restaurant to walk back towards the hotel. We met more Chicago colleagues at the hotel bar, Salon De Ning, which was on the roof. 
We got a large table in the corner of the outdoor terrace. It was a chilly night, but the terrace was spotted with heat lamps and the cocktails helped as well. The drinks were a little pricey but delectably worth it. We finished the night off back at Cassidy’s Pub and enjoyed the drinks and company just as we did the first night there.
New York Public Library. It was gorgeous, both inside and out. We toured the inside, independently, and walked through the reading rooms. The Rose Main Reading room, which is what I wanted to see, was unfortunately closed for remodeling, but at least it gives me a good reason to revisit. After we left the library, we walked down 5th Avenue towards Central Park. We decided to have lunch first then take a stroll through the inside of the park. We walked along Madison Avenue, 
amongst the designer stores and boutiques, and could not for the life of us find a place to have lunch that wouldn’t cost us the equivalent of our plane tickets. We finally came upon 3 Guys on Madison Avenue, which fit the bill perfectly. We had sandwiches in a booth at the front of the diner. I later read, on the plane ride home, that Joan Didion and her late husband used to stop in there regularly (from “The Year of Magical Thinking”) , which made the experience that much better. We finally made it to Central Park and walked around for a few hours, stopping by Alice in Wonderland and Hans Christian Anderson to take
pictures, and by the Bethesda Fountain to watch the brides and grooms pose and listen to the small choir singing under the bridge. We walked back to the hotel to collect our luggage and took the subway to JFK. The whole while I complained and dragged my feet, because I did not want to leave. Every time I go to New York, I come home and start planning my next trip back, whether it be in a few months or a year, almost as soon as I get off the plane. We have a great long-distance relationship, New York and I, and every time I go back, it’s as if I never left.
We took the metro train to the Jing’an Temple, which was
Once we were inside (we had to pay to get in again, of course), we walked into the courtyard and were overwhelmed with the smell of incense. The whole area was decorated with red lanterns for Chinese New Year. The first temple was lined with statues of the different Buddhist figures, all in gold. The namesake of the temple, the Jade Buddha, was in the back of the temple area, in its own building. We paid a little extra to go in the building, and walked up to the room where it was kept. We were not allowed to take pictures, but I can assure you that the statue was beautiful. After we left the temple, we found our way back to the metro station all on our own. We did have to walk through some interesting areas to get there, but we were proud of ourselves 
nonetheless. Later that evening, a few of us took a cab to the Han City Fashion Plaza, the legendary fake market. It was definitely an interesting experience. You go in, and you recognize all these popular, high-end brands and see that everything is so cheap so you get really excited. Then, you remember that everything is fake. I bought a fake YSL purse, which looked really good, but after I bought it I realized the inside smelled like tires. Which is cool, if you’re into that sort of thing. It was still very fun to walk around and haggle with the vendors. Some of them get very aggressive, and chase you down the aisle yelling at you to come back. Getting a taxi back to the hotel was also an interesting experience; it took a while to finally get one to stop, and once it did, people ran in front of us and got in and off it went. Finally, we got one to stop and managed to get in before someone else stole it. Paula and I went back to our room and ordered room service and took it easy for the rest of the night.
wanted from which vendors. We received a receipt, and then went to each vendor and got what we ordered from them. We had Shanghainese noodles, wonton soup, dumplings, and a few other items. After dinner, we set out to find an underground shopping market, which was accessible through the subway. It took us a little while to find it, as we had to find the exact Subway entrance (among many) in People’s Square that would lead us to the stores. But once we did find it, we had a great time browsing through the little shops filled with jewelry, make-up, toys, and clothing. After we shopped, we parted ways with Lucia. Paula and I walked home along Nanjing Road and enjoyed the scenery and beautiful weather.
table by the diners to be cooked. Once we started eating, we heard music and clapping in the main dining room, so we poked our heads out to see what was going on. A group of people, servers and diners alike, were dancing in the aisle to a popular Chinese song, called “Little Apple” (by Chopsticks). We all clapped when they were done and went back to our table. Before we knew what had hit us, the energetic host was in our dining room pressing play on the same song and beckoning us to do the dance with him too. We did our very best to keep up; it was a lot of choreography. We all collapsed into our chairs when it was over, breathing heavy from the dance and from laughing so hard. We went on eating and chatting, until another entertainer joined us: The Noodle Maker. He greeted us, then took a round of dough and began doing a lovely little ribbon dance with it, stretching it out into long strands. He then cut the strands into normal noodle-size and threw them in our hot pot. The noodles were delicious, so much so that we called for an encore performance. When we thought we were done with dinner, one of the lovely HR ladies pulled out a plate of pig brains, that I suspect they ordered just to gross us out. She put them in the hot pot, and we discussed who was brave enough to eat them. I am not the bravest person I know, but I did manage to try 
the brains, and… even now, I can’t think about the texture of them without gagging a little. We left the restaurant soon after, and made our way to a fancy karaoke joint, where we once again had a private room (which is the only way they do karaoke in China). I sang a few Taylor Swift and Beyonce songs, and tried not to subject the group to too much of my singing. One of the HR ladies, Janet, had a beautiful singing voice, and sang a few songs for us in Mandarin. After we sang, we went back to the hotel, and some of us walked down the Bund to the Latin Bar, Unico. We had a round of mojitos and danced to the live band, then called it a night.
table to light incense and pray. We were all able to participate in the ceremony, and took our turn praying for good fortune in the New Year. After the ceremony, we walked over to a Starbucks near the hotel and had their New Year’s special, a Peach Blossom Latte (which tasted like hot, frothy strawberry milk, yum!). We went back to the hotel to watch the Lion Dance, which started outside, in the driveway with a group of drummers and a single lion. We watched them play and then ran up to the balcony that overlooks the lobby to have the best view of the main Lion Dance. I have honestly never seen anything like it. The lions danced and jumped onto stilted platforms, jumping from one to the other and balancing (there are two men in each lion suit, mind you). The drums and symbols were deafeningly loud but everyone was completely focused on the dance. I loved seeing everyone, guests and employees both, in the spirit of this traditional holiday. We did our best to be absorbed in the culture of it, and all wore red to show solidarity with the holiday (red is a lucky color in China). Overall, the dance is supposed to bring good fortune (of course) to the hotel and the people in it.
and hopped on the subway to get what we needed from Yu Garden. We found a vendor that would make each of our people a framed papercutting, but he said it would take him an hour to complete them all. In the meantime, Carlos and I went to go get some food. We had to fight through a crowd again to get to a restaurant, but we found one and jumped in. It was another cafeteria style place, but this time you grabbed the dishes that you want, put them on your tray and then paid for what you took before you sat down to eat. We each got a few items each and then went to check out. It was pretty expensive compared to the other meals that we’d had, and it was so not worth it. Everything was cold, and Chinese food is not good cold. We gave up and went up to the next floor in the building, where there was a bar. The Tsing Tao disinfected my stomach, and Carlos and I bonded over our horrible dining experience. Soon enough, it was time to pick up our paper cuttings. We went back to the hotel after and I promptly fell asleep, I guess the crowds exhausted me. Everything was mostly closed due to the holiday, so a couple of us enjoyed a lovely dinner in the Lobby Restaurant.
finished it just in time to get ready to go to dinner. It turned out that he wanted to take us to Din Tai Fung again; it was a different location than the one we went to in our first week. Again, we let our hosts order for us, and again they made the best choices. We had our beer of choice (Tsing Tao), assorted vegetables, jellyfish, chicken, and so many dumplings. Everything was amazing, and the company was good too. We were treated to dinner, which continued the trend of how hospitable and kind everyone had been to us during our trip. We decided to take them out to drinks to thank them, so we went back to Muse since it was right by the hotel. It turned out to be a pretty solid last hoorah in Shanghai.
Needless to say, it was not our cutest picture of the trip. It was early evening when we arrived, and after they hustled us into the van that would take us to the hotel, they passed around sliced fruit and water. We played getting to know you games with the HR team and had a quick Mandarin lesson as we made our way to our home for the next two weeks. We were greeted by a slew of Peninsula Shanghai employees when we arrived, and were whisked up to one of the hotel suites for a tour and given our room keys. We all decided to eat in the Lobby Restaurant as a group for dinner and parted ways to get ready in our separate rooms. Paula, a lovely server from our Shanghai Terrace restaurant back in Chicago, was to be my roommate, and it was a match made in shared living space heaven. Our gorgeous room on the seventh floor overlooked the front drive and the 100+ red lanterns that hung above it to celebrate the upcoming 
Chinese New Year. Once we had both showered and unpacked a little, we made our way down to the Lobby and sat down to enjoy a beautiful dinner set to the sounds of a live jazz band playing in the back of the restaurant. The prices on the menu brought by the dapper wait staff caused quite the commotion until we remembered to make the conversion from Chinese RMB to US dollars (6RMB = $1, roughly). We marveled at the high ceilings and the fabulous floral arrangements in the restaurant as we ate our meals. I ordered the Spicy Laksa Noodles, and it, like the décor around me, did not disappoint. The spicy broth was filled with vermicelli, clams, fried tofu balls, fish cakes and prawns, with the heads on of course. I refused to use the fork I was given, opting for the chopsticks instead; because, when in Shanghai…right? This resulted in a very slow
dinner for me, but every bite was worth the struggle to get it into my mouth. After we had all enjoyed our meals, we made our way up to Claudia and Lisa’s room to celebrate Lisa’s birthday. The wonderful hotel staff had sent up a pink birthday cake with strawberry filling, complete with candles. We sang “Happy Birthday” and gobbled up our separate pieces and parted ways to put our jet-lagged selves to bed. Paula and I both passed out quickly, only to wake up again at 3:00 am with no hopes of falling back to sleep. Paula and I had a late night snack, then each pretended to sleep for the next few hours until it was late enough to get up and get ready for our first full day at the Peninsula Shanghai.
between them all was light and entertaining while still maintaining a business-like demeanor, which was quite refreshing compared to our meetings back home. Our group was introduced and we were welcomed warmly. After the meeting, we followed Charmaine through the maze-like hallways and staircases to the uniform room, where we received our chef coats for our Dim Sum class. The Yi Long Court (the Shanghainese restaurant on property) kitchen was immaculate. The chefs talked us through what we were making, which was two kinds of steamed shrimp dumplings. He showed us how to make them, and we clumsily tried to copy his movements. Needless to say, ours did not look as pretty. We each made our own basket full and the chef steamed them for us while we sat down at the Chef’s Table in the back of the kitchen. There, we enjoyed our homemade dumplings and listened to the itinerary for the rest of the day. 
We changed back into our normal clothes, and received a full tour of the hotel, the Peninsula residences (which were beautiful and cost more than my life), and the country club property next door that the Peninsula manages. The highlights include the magnificent view from the roof of the skyline, touring the huge Peninsula Suite, 
and Salon De Ning. Salon De Ning is a Speakeasy style lounge in the basement level of the hotel. It is guarded by King Kong and requires a password for entry. Inside, there are four themed private dining rooms and unique décor that make it a beautiful place to have a cocktail. We had lunch in one of the private dining rooms in Yi Long Court. It was a multi-course affair, including julienne veggie salad with raw salmon (a New Year’s specialty), dim sum combination plate, sweet and sour soup, pan-fried bass, sautéed greens, beef fried rice, and mango pudding. It was so good and SO FILLING. After lunch, we changed into our street clothes and went out into the city for a “Cultural Experience”. It was kept a secret until we arrived at a tea house in the French Concession area. There we had paper cutting and Chinese Opera mask painting classes with the masters. The mask 
painting master had an adorable habit of dipping his paint brush into different people’s tea glasses instead of the designated water. It made the class much more entertaining because he never seemed to notice what he was doing. Most of us took the subway to Tianzifang after the class to enjoy the hip market there. It is a labyrinth of shops, food vendors and bars that was amazing to explore. We took a cab back to the hotel, which was very hard to do as the cabs do not like to stop for foreigners after a certain time of night. We stopped at the Bund (basically a river walk, with a marvelous view of the Pu Dong skyline) to do some sightseeing. The view during the daytime is beautiful, but at night it is breath-taking. We ended our first day at a bar across the street from the hotel, and then crashed into our separate beds.
It was lined in neon lights and storefronts, most of which we have in the states. We wandered around and tried to find a place to eat while fighting through the crowds. We wound up at a restaurant on a random corner, where no one spoke English and the chili sauce was served in teapots. We ordered noodle soups and dumplings and Suntory (a Japanese Beer). We took our time eating, savoring the new cuisine and discussing our separate days. It seemed most of us were doing a lot of observing, but liked what we saw. We meandered back to the hotel, enjoying the sights and the people watching. A few of us decided to get another drink, and asked a few of the hotel staff for suggestions. They pointed us south along the Bund to a bar called Unico. The buildings along the Bund are very unique from the rest in the city, stemming more from European architecture than Asian; it was a beautiful, yet chilly, walk. The bar was on the second floor and live music poured through the door to welcome us. It was Latin night, which meant Salsa dancing and mojitos (muy delicioso). We danced and drank and enjoyed the crowd for a while, before we headed back home. I fell asleep as soon as I tucked myself in.
successful! The area is very new and reminded me of Southern California, with its twinkly lights and dining al fresco. We were ordered to try a dumpling restaurant called Din Tai Fung, which was located upstairs in a mall, as most great restaurants in Shanghai are. Technically, it was a Taiwanese restaurant, but they served Shanghainese-style cuisine. Most of us ordered a Tsing Tao to start with, as became our tradition for the duration of the trip. We also ordered many different dishes to try, mostly consisting of a variety of dumplings. The food was amazing; my personal favorite was the pork & crab XiaoLongBao (soup dumpling). After we collectively gobbled ever last bit down we needed to sit still for a while to calm our full stomachs. We paid our check, then wandered along the cobblestone paths that went through the beautiful neighborhood. We popped in and out of stores, then decided to sit outside and have a cocktail. The bar was called Kabb, which is where I had my first Singapore Sling and enjoyed it very much. After a fruitless search for taxis, we hopped back onto the subway towards the hotel. Walking back to the hotel that evening and taking in the city at night made me feel so incredibly grateful to be there.
dumpling shop close to the hotel to eat. One of the wonderful concierge team called ahead and ordered for us, so we got all the most delicious items off the menu. It was a short walk to Yang’s Dumplings, and there was a line out the door, so we knew it was good. We had to fight to get a table, but it was completely worth it. The pan-fried soup dumplings were so, so good. I have never heard my normally mild-mannered colleague be so forceful as to ask for the last one of the plate we shared. It was the first words that were spoken since we began eating. We also had the mung bean noodle and curry beef soup, garnished with cilantro; I’m salivating just thinking of it. We were in heaven, and we went back a few times after that to relive the experience. We made our way back to the hotel food drunk and in respectful silence to meet our tour guide for the day (and the next day), Grace. We took a private van first to Yu Garden, which is a very well-known tourist destination in Shanghai. The garden is surrounded by a promenade of vendors selling all kinds of souvenirs. Grace briskly led us to the zigzag bridge that brings visitors to the entry of the garden.
It hangs above a pond filled with ducks, turtles and coy fish. The bridge is zigzag shaped to better keep out spirits who would be confused by the twists and turns. This is also the reason the doorways are raised up, to keep out the said to be knee-less and sinister spirits. All gardens in China must have four elements: plants, rocks, water and buildings, per the rules of Feng Shui. It would not be an understatement to say that the Chinese are superstitious. The buildings within the garden were built in the traditional style (as were the buildings in the surrounding promenade), and were preserved very well. Grace led us through the garden and described the importance of each area. Even during this time of year, with no blooms, the grounds 
were gorgeous. There were many ponds throughout, laced with white and gold coy fish and sparkling underneath small manmade bridges. Grace was patient with us as we took far too many pictures, and soon led us to a teahouse within the garden. There, we had a traditional Chinese tea ceremony. After the tea, we piled back into the van and were driven to the Confucius Temple, which is a popular spot for students to pray for wisdom. And to volunteer it turns out, as our tour guide there was a college student. She referred to Confucius as a “God of Culture”. The temple within the grounds was small, and lined with stone walls etched with his teachings. The trees surrounding the temple were covered in small, yellow paper squares tied with red ribbon, which were explained to us as people’s wishes. You had to donate to make a wish, but of course we did it. I won’t give away my wish, but I
can tell you that was a wish for wisdom, as is customary in this temple. The temple grounds contained original buildings, though most had to be rebuilt and replicated after the Cultural Revolution in the 1960’s.
restaurant off of Nanjing Road called, Memory. As soon as we sat at our table, food and drinks came at us in a constant stream. There was no respite from the plates of chicken feet, whole prawns, stinky tofu, jellyfish, frog, dumplings, spring rolls…and so many other things. And of course there was beer and wine and baijiu, a Chinese liquor that looks and tastes like lighter fluid. We enjoyed the food and the company and finally meandered back home, half drunk and sleepy but with full and happy bellies.
gazebo in the center, where they still performed plays every Saturday. There was a small shop within the garden that sold overpriced, hand-stitched art work and small trinkets. Standing in the doorway to this shop was a little girl. Lisa and I tried to greet her with our broken Chinese (“NEE HOW!”) and she just stared us down. After our second attempt, she angrily screamed at us and stomped inside. Then, out she came with a hammer and nails and various other tools and plunked down to start hammering nails into the outside of the shop. Cute kid. From there, we made our way out of the garden and into a gondola on the river. The gondola was propelled by a man and a wooden oar on the back. We cruised down the river and gawked at the beautiful scenery. It was a slightly warm but hazy day, and the river was still as we glided towards the other side of town. Once there, we were given some “free time” to take pictures and shop through the market. There wasn’t anything unique in this market, all trinkets and souvenirs that we’d seen before, but we still enjoyed browsing all the same. We met Grace at our planned meeting spot and walked to the van. 
They showed us how they layer the spun silk into said bedding and then allowed us to look around. After part of our group made some purchases, they opened another door to a silk clothing store, where I found a very cute little dress for my niece. It was a pretty exhausting day of tourism, so when we returned to the hotel, I plunked into the tub and watched “Pretty Woman”. After I pampered myself, I met up with the group to go out to dinner. We walked to a restaurant called Yuxin Chuan Cai, which was recommended by our tour guide. This restaurant specialized in spicy dishes, and it did not disappoint. We ordered many different dishes to share, the highlights of which were the crispy, smoked duck with plum sauce and the Szechuan green beans. We brought some food and wine home for Paula (she wasn’t able to join us due to her work schedule) and called it an early night after a few glasses of wine.
beautiful Shanghai. We moved down to the glass-floor observation deck, which was equal parts amazing and terrifying. The level below this was an arcade, complete with a small roller coaster. We didn’t partake in the festivities here, but marveled at it all as we moved through towards the elevator back to ground level. Of course there were shops there, so we browsed and picked up a few souvenirs along the way. After exiting, we walked up to the elevated, circular walkway above the street, which provided another excellent, and more intimate, view of the city. The walkway led us to the subway, which we took to Tianzifang, the area we visited on our first night. Finding the market there on our own proved to be a small challenge, but we pushed through. There was more shopping to be had, plus dinner at the Modern Toilet Café. It was a novelty to be there, and it was an interesting concept, but the food (mostly American-style) was nothing to write home about. However, I did enjoy that our drinks were served in toilet mugs and our French fries were piled into a small claw-footed tub. We enjoyed getting lost in the zig-zagging paths that wound through the food vendors and stores. Paula and I were happy to find the home of the giant, swirly ice cream cones we kept seeing, and each got a strawberry mango twist. After tiring of the endless circles we were walking in, we took a cab 
back to the hotel to drop off our shopping bags and headed back out to the bright lights of Nanjing Road. We did some more shopping, specifically in Innisfree and Etude House, which we can only buy online in the States. We stopped by a random restaurant after being bullied inside by locals to get some snacks before heading back towards the hotel to find the rest of our group. We found them at the club close to our home base, called Muse. We were bored there on a weekday, but it turned out that it was the place to be on a Saturday. We danced and drank wasabi flavored cocktails, took in the crowd with their over-sized blue glow sticks and watched the go-go dancers standing on their pedestals. It was a fun night.
rebeccawanderlusting 