Shanghai

From Beijing, we took the train to Shanghai. While I imagined an old box with rotten, stinky seats, we were greeted by a state-of-the-art train that couldn't be better found in Germany. I was extremely excited and looking forward to the 5-hour train ride. Once we arrived, countless Chinese people rushed out of the train at the platform, jostling their way to the two measly escalators and storming towards the subway ticket machines and security checks like a horde of wild ants. Since we almost got lost in the chaos, we decided to grab something to eat at the train station and watch the spectacle from the outside.

In Shanghai, we only spent one day and two nights, which we thought was sufficient. We explored the city in the rain and visited the famous skyline with the bottle opener and the TV tower. We then went to the Yu Garden, a small Chinese old town with many small shops, food stalls, and tea houses. Since we really wanted to visit a traditional old tea house, we truly enjoyed our time here. Quite literally... the small pot of tea cost a whopping 10€. But you have to treat yourself once in a while=) They also served some disgusting Chinese delicacies and quail eggs... not even Jonas dared to touch them!!

In the evening, we strolled along the waterfront promenade for a while and waited for it to get dark and for the skyline to light up in colorful lights.

The next day, we flew to Xi'an. We switched back to flying because it is clearly faster and even cheaper than taking the train. This time, we got to the airport in a very special way, using a maglev train. It's a magnetic levitation train that took us from the city center to the airport in just 7 minutes. During this short time, the train reached an incredible top speed of 430 km/h. When the train leaned into the curve at 350 km/h, I started to feel a bit queasy... guess we booked a slightly different roller coaster ride=)

All in all, Shanghai is much more modern and trendy than Beijing, but still worth a visit!=)