As an American, I almost didn’t want to be impressed with Shanghai, but dammit, this is an impressive place. 

I booked a guide for us so we could maximize our time here. Because I don’t want to spend time figuring stuff out. I want to get straight to the stuff.  Our guide, Sunny, took us all over the city, and to some “secret” (said with a big grain salt) shopping spots. 

First impression: the city is beautifully landscaped. These art deco hydrangea planters line all the streets. I kept thinking about who has to water all of this. Somewhere in Shanghai there’s probably a Commission for the Watering of Hydrangeas.

Jade Buddha Temple

Sunny told us that around 15% of the Chinese population are practicing Buddhists. It’s tough to confirm that number for certain, though, because China has a complicated relationship with religion. Many people who engage in Buddhist beliefs and practices simply don’t identify as Buddhist, either because they practice it alongside Taoism or folk religion, or because they see Buddhism as a practice, not an identity.

The Jade Buddha Temple hides in plain sight. Tucked into an ordinary Shanghai neighborhood, completely unassuming from the outside – and then you walk through the gate and the city just sort of . . . stops. In 1882, a monk named Huigen carried two jade statues (as part of a years-long pilgrimage) from Myanmar to Shanghai and founded the temple.

The star of the show is the seated Jade Buddha, nearly two meters tall, carved from one piece of pale green jade. Truly impressive. You are not allowed to take photos in the Jade Buddha Chamber, but the Buddha and I were having a moment, and I felt like it was OK with him, so I snapped this one.

During the Cultural Revolution, the Red Guard purposefully destroyed countless historical artifacts, and Buddhist temples were a favorite target. At Jade Buddha Temple, a few pragmatic monks hung posters of Mao Zedong on the exterior of the temple to prevent revolutionaries from destroying it. Having Mao on the outside probably saved everything inside.

Nearly a century and a half later, more than 70 monks still hold daily services here, which means this is very much a living, working temple and not just a tourist attraction.

The atmosphere isn’t solemn in the way Western religious spaces tend to be – people are quietly praying, making donations, pausing to reflect. It was genuinely peaceful. Except for the incense. I had no idea that incense burning was such a big part of Buddhist culture. I smell like a campfire now.

Prayer Ribbons

There were these little red tags hanging all over everything at the temple. Sunny told us they are prayer ribbons. People make a small donation and then write their personal prayers, wishes, or blessings on the ribbons, and tie them to trees, gates, and railings at the temple. In Chinese culture, the color red symbolizes good fortune, joy, and vitality. By tying these tags near sacred spaces, people believe their intentions are carried to the divine and will be answered.

Tea Time (Again)

I swear I didn’t plan this, but Sunny took us to a traditional Chinese tea house, where we tasted a whole bunch of delicious teas. We never would have found this place on our own. The stairs to the tea room were located in the back corner of a souvenir shop. And it definitely had a members only kind of vibe.

China has a deep appreciation for tea as both a daily ritual and an enduring cultural tradition (more on this when I do my drinks post). If I lived in China, I would definitely be someone who hangs out in tea houses. Ken was a very good sport and tasted all of the teas, but was not converted to Team Tea. I loved everything we tasted with one exception (keep reading). I could have bought a lot more tea, but I exercised restraint and only bought three – jasmine, ginseng oolong, and peach oolong.

Sunny really wanted us to try pu-erh tea, which is fermented and aged after processing – sometimes for decades. Imagine if someone found a box of tea in the attic, forgot about it for twenty years, then declared it a delicacy. That’s essentially the idea. It tastes like someone accidentally raked the forest floor into a teacup. Think damp earth and mushrooms. Not my thing. I think Sunny might hate us.

Aged pu-erh tea (sold in these disc shaped cakes) can sell for thousands of dollars, proving once again that there is a market for absolutely everything.

Sidebar: Here’s another fun(ny) bathroom sign from the tea house. I do wonder what horrific event must have occurred in this bathroom to warrant this sign – in four different languages.

China’s Obsession with Jade

In China, it feels like every woman wears a jade bangle bracelet(s). And they aren’t just fashion accessories – they are wearable family heirlooms. For more than 5,000 years, jade has symbolized purity, wisdom, protection, good fortune, and longevity. It’s definitely something you want in your life.

Sunny told us it’s traditional for Chinese women to receive three jade bangles during their lifetime: her parents give her the first when she is a little girl, her mother gives her the second when she marries (often passing down a family heirloom from generation to generation), and her husband or fiancé gives her the third as a symbol of lifelong love and protection.

On my must-do list for the day was shopping for a jade bangle bracelet. Shopping for jade in China is risky business. Because every souvenir shop in China has approximately 8 billion “jade” bracelets for sale. I put a lot of trust in Sunny to lead us to a shop that sells real, high-quality jade. Sunny took us somewhere way off the beaten path. Another place we would never have found on our own – we went down alleys and into basements to get there.

And not a single tourist in sight.

Real vs. Fake

Here’s how you tell if you are buying real or fake jade: the price tag. Real jade is expensive. Like really expensive. Shockingly expensive. The vivid emerald green shades are among the most valuable. There’s a whole grading scale I don’t understand (color, transparency, texture, etc.). But a flawless jade bangle can set you back thousands of dollars. I had to rein in the saleswoman – show me something that has a price tag with two zeros, not three.

Fitting a Jade Bangle

Getting fitted for a jade bangle is one of those beauty is pain situations. You don’t want your bangle too big. The saleswoman took one look at my wrist, handed me a bracelet, and said, “this your size”. Really? Are you sure I don’t need something bigger? “No, not bigger.” End of discussion. And all you have to do to get it over your hand is use half a bottle of hand lotion & partially dislocate your thumb.

It’s a good thing I love this bracelet, because it’s never coming off.

Ken’s Jade Purchase

I don’t want anyone to think I was the only one buying jade in Shanghai. Ken got in on the action, too. He bought this jade guardian lion sculpture. They’re often called foo dogs in the west, even though they are lions, not dogs. Chinese people believe the jade guardian lions shield spaces from negative energy, bring good fortune, and guard against evil spirits. And who doesn’t want all that? Sold.

The artist really wanted us to take a picture of him with Ken. Happy to oblige.

Silk: From Worm to Robe

Also on the shopping agenda for the day: silk. Sunny took us to the Shanghai Jiangnan Silk Museum, where we got to see real silkworms, and the process of spinning threads from silkworm cocoons. I have to say this was a pretty slick operation. They move you through the whole process of making silk – from worm to robe. Their big sales push is on silk duvets. We bought a couple of summer duvets, and damn if they aren’t really nice to sleep under in warmer weather. It was a fascinating place, but it was also full of tourists.

Fun fact: each silkworm cocoon produces about a mile of silk thread. 

After removing the larvae from the cocoon, someone saves them for snacking and some kind of medicinal purpose. They looked crunchy. I kept imagining all that silk getting stuck in my teeth. Did not sample.

I bought a couple of beautiful silk robes. Couldn’t resist this one with the bird on it. Pro tip: you are never supposed to wash your silk in the washing machine. Sunny said she hand washes her silk with shampoo. Makes sense when you think about it. And always air dry your silk, never ever put it in the dryer. Unless you want to completely ruin your silk.

Sidebar: 💯 Big Brother is always watching in Shanghai. And on that note, a curiosity. Sunny absolutely did NOT want her picture taken – with us or by herself. That’s the first time one of our guides was ever camera shy. Usually, they want us to post it everywhere along with a glowing review. In a country where facial recognition technology is everywhere and the government monitors social media closely, I didn’t push it.

Our last stop: a walk through the Nanjing Road shopping area. Every luxury brand you can think of has a presence there. You know, for a nominally communist country, there’s an awful lot of capitalism going on here.

We did *not* do our part to close the US-China trade deficit today. I may have overbought Shanghai. 

Tomorrow’s plan: a Shanghai food tour.

Gānbēi 干杯