Visions of CHINA
Early mornings on the river are my favourite time. Pulling on a sweater, I creep out into the damp air on the veranda and watch the mist swirl around the lush mountains. There’s no noise but for the low throb of the engine and the occasional call of a fisherman from a passing sampan. Slowly, the sun rises, the mist clears and the Yangtze changes from soupy brown to khaki, and finally to bright, almost acid, green before my eyes. It’s magical.
Our journey had started in stark contrast in bustling Shanghai. Setting out to explore on our first night, we were dazzled by lights and bombarded with noise and sales pitches from the ubiquitous ‘one-dollar men’ (and mopeds, which are dangerously quiet and inexplicably drive on the pavement). Determined to reach the Bund area, where we’d been told there was a great view of Shanghai’s beautiful cityscape, we jumped in a taxi only to be shooed out when we couldn’t make ourselves understood. Defeated, and realising we were unprepared, we wandered the streets, stopping for delicious dumplings and sloped back to find solace in our very luxurious hotel, the Portman Ritz-Carlton.
IN THE BUND, WE SEE THE GLITTERING, MODERN SKYLINE ACROSS THE RIVER JUXTAPOSED WITH ANCIENT BUILDINGS
