Shanghai Journey

By Henry G. Q. Zheng

This e-book is designed to be informative, concise, practical and yet easy to read. It provides a comprehensive guide to self-packed tourists/visitors or business travelers who have a need to locate to Shanghai. The book also serves as an interesting read for people who simply want to know more about the city. The many included pictures provide readers with vivid images.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Jul 1, 2013
• ISBN: 9789810769987

Book preview

Reference

Part One: Shanghai Facts

• Location

Located at 31 degrees 14' N latitude and 121 degrees 29' E longitude, Shanghai is situated in the middle of the coast of mainland China. The thriving metropolis is also the gateway to the Yangtze River valley.

Figure 1

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• Area

Shanghai has an area of 6,341 square kilometers

Long Distance Call Area Code: 021

Postal Code：200000

There are 18 districts and one county in Shanghai

• Population

According to statistics from the end of 2012, Shanghai has a population of 23.8 million.

• History

The name Shanghai, also called Hu and Shen, originates from the Song Dynasty (960 - 1279) back when Shanghai was developing into a burgeoning trading port. During the Qing Dynasty (1616 - 1911) the city slowly became China’s major trading port and water transportation hub for grains. After the Opium War (1843) Shanghai was forced by the Western colonialists to become an open port. Over the past two centuries since, the city developed rapidly. At present China is a dynamic center of economy, finance and shipping.

• Climate

Shanghai has a humid subtropical climate with four distinct seasons, featuring in turns ample sunshine, and abundant rainfall. Winters are chilly and damp, and cold northwesterly winds from Siberia causing night-time temperatures to drop below freezing. In recent years, snowfall is becoming less and less frequent in winter. Summers in the city are hot and humid, with an average of 10 days exceeding 35 °C. The best times to visit Shanghai are generally the spring and fall, while summer and winter are far less pleasant by comparison.

• Language

Local people speak Chinese (Mandarin), while elderly residents tend to speak Shanghai dialect which is difficult to understand even by people from other parts of China. Many young people, especially white collars professionals and college students tend to speak English

• Currency

The Chinese currency is Renminbi also known as RMB, or the People’s Money, is denominated in Yuan. One Yuan is divided into 10 jiaos (dimes), and in turn, this is divided into 10 fens (cents). There are paper notes that denominate 100, 50, 20, 10 and 1 Yuan, there are coins for 1 Yuan, 50 fens, 10 fens, 5 fens, 2 fens and 1 fen. The currency symbol is￥.

Figure 4: ￥100.00