In a Shikumen style alleyway in Jing-An there is a new string of bars and restaurants that is worth a visit. On Kangding Lu, near the junction of Wuding Lu, the first of these bars is Exit. A cheap (25 RMB beer, 30-40 mixed drinks) neighbourhood bar, Exit is powered by the personality of owner Sergio who occasionally takes a break from dancing around to MP3s to tell customers about the years he spent making... [continue]

This sounds like a joke, but it's absolutely true. Luxury goods manufacturer Louis Vuitton have produced a series of three audio guides to China. Voiced by some of the top actresses in the business, the guides are produced like high-budget radio plays with sound effects, a plinky-plonky piano soundtrack and a plot. The Beijing and Hong Kong guides are voiced by Gong Li and Shu Qi respectively whilst Shanghai gets Joan Chen ("Lust, Caution", "The... [continue]

Standing a foot taller and six inches broader than anyone else on HuaiHai Lu, the young man who calls himself Red Laowai (George to his Mother) is easy to spot. Although this is his first trip to mainland China, George has already gathered a large following by recording video clips singing (mostly Communist) Chinese songs and releasing them on the internet. "I love the passion of those songs. They're just so much fun." Clips of... [continue]

Set back from the junction of XinLe Lu and XiangYang Lu, opposite a blue-domed Russian Orthodox Church stands the Mansion Hotel. A limestone building in manicured grounds, this place gives off the same whiff of 1920’s luxury that you see in the grand old financial institutions of the Bund; if you like Hamilton House you’ll love this place. On the fifth and highest floor, the Mansion Veranda restaurant is one of the nicest terraces in... [continue]

After figuring out where we like to eat we thought it would be fun to ask Shanghaiist contributors about their favourite places to drink. The discussion sparked arguments that are still echoing through the corridors of Shanghaiist HQ, but one thing is clear: we like dive bars and cocktails. Time Passage No 183, Lane 1038 Huashan Lu (nr Fuxing Xi Lu) 华山路 1038弄183号，近复兴西路 tel: 6240-2588 Cheap drinks, good food, and an incredible house cover band... [continue]

The Park Tavern (840 Hengshan Rd, near Tianping Rd) had its secretive soft opening almost 3 weeks ago. Opened by Gerard and Kinsey (ex Blarney Stone) and managed by Stephen Sands (ex O'Malleys, Fosters), this place was brought to our attention by some local, loose-lipped leprechauns. The place is beautiful: it's a 4-level extensively renovated old house very close to Xujiahui Park. There's a basement sports bar with pool table, darts and large TV screen.... [continue]

Last night, Shanghaiist traipsed out to The Wall. Getting there was a little tricky and required our cab driver to get out and ask directions twice. The address of the club might be Riverside Avenue (Binjiang Dadao), but you can access the place only via Fenghe Lu. It took us a little while to figure that out. If it helps, the venue is directly across the street from the Shanghai International Convention Center. Anyway, it's... [continue]

A weekend trip had us stopping off at the Lama Temple, the center of Gelug Buddhism (the particular branch of Buddhism practiced by the Dalai Lama) in Beijing. In light of the recent developments, it probably shouldn't have come as a surprise that they would step up their security but there wasn't any real change that could be detected on the surface. But then we took a closer look. Scattered throughout the temple complex were... [continue]

Few animals get tabloid coverage of their sex lives splashed across international media like our furry friends the pandas. Their being few is what the fuss is about. And now their enclosures have become Big-Brother-animal-sex episodes where their lack of procreativity is monitored as scientists continue to ply panda eyes and orifices with strategic tactics. Chuang Chuang watches the filth-movie from metro.co.uk Panda sex labs are coming up with yet more odd behavior—not on the... [continue]

DPRK 0-0 ROK; China 0-0 Australia; 26th March, 2008 A large crowd created a fantastic atmosphere at Hongkou Stadium last night but neither team were able to reward the great support with a goal, as North Korea battled to a 0-0 draw with South Korea. A game of few clear cut chances was largely controlled by South Korea, particularly in the first half, as DPRK fielded a defensive side with striker Jong Tae-se playing... [continue]

There was a time when we took visitors requesting to eat traditional Peking duck to one of the many Duck King (鸭王) restaurants scattered about town, knowing that they'd be getting a decent and passable version of the dish that so famously belongs to our capitol in the north. We always tempered our expectations when it came to finding the crispy fowl fat here in Shanghai. Those days are now gone. After trying Xindalu, we... [continue]

NOTE: The opinions expressed in "Opinionist" columns are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Shanghaiist. After logging on to various networking sites and instant messengers this week I started to see a similar sentence attached to a number of handles and headers. They were all some variation on the following idea: China is my adopted country, I love it here but recent events in Tibet are giving me a... [continue]

Giving money to the poor in Shanghai is not as straightforward as you'd think. Donating a few coins to the street kids on places like Tongren Lu and DongPing Lu is just going to make sure they spend more nights outside, and rumors abound about the beggars on the subway (controlled by the Mafia, secret millionaires etc.). Here's a good way we heard about to put something into the pockets of the people who obviously... [continue]

This latest courtesy campaign video starring top hosts from media conglomerate SMG reminds us of the courtesy campaigns that we grew up with in Singapore. Don't get us wrong, we do like the idea of a kinder, gentler Shanghai, but there is something about the unrealistic and surreal touch of the whole video that actually made it feel a bit, erm, creepy. A series of shorter clips might have done the trick, whereas a 6... [continue]

What do you do when your well-inebriated friends ring at 1am asking you to join them for an impromptu snow fight? Life's decisions have never been tougher - toasty comfort of your living room sofa or sub-zero temperatures with the promise of snow angels thrown in for good measure? You hop into a cab, of course. [P.S.: Our camera's on the brink of gadgetdeath so that explains the "TV effect", but we liked the... [continue]

A new airport will be built in Beijing and scheduled to open by 2015. Even with a third terminal opening at Capital International Airport opening next month, Beijing will need a new airport to meet the rising demand for air travel as no further large-scale developments are being planned for Capital.Meanwhile, across China, a grand total of 97 new airports will be built by 2020.About 3,250 flights in all have been cancelled due to the... [continue]

Every now and again, time and space just seem to line up in an incredible display of fate/coincidence (delete as appropriate). For months now, we have been trying to get to grips with the strange brand of Uncle Tom-ism on display in the Shanghai ex-pativerse. It has so many unique facets that it appears to defy summary or clear explanation. Then along came Matthew Polly who wrote American Shaolin, a book that sets it all... [continue]