Day 5 was our last day in Shanghai. By then, we (at least my mother and I) felt that we should have left for Beijing as 5 days in Shanghai seemed to be a little too much for us. We were running out of things to do especially when it kept raining - 3 out of 5 days were rainy days.
We went into a shop, Xiao Jin Ling 小金陵, with an obvious number of locals lining up outside the shop, waiting for their takeaways.
Good choice it was!
Very delicious although I suspect it was on the salty side, but it got thumbs up from all of us. The pieces of add-ons were duck blood and duck intestines. I rarely eat intestines, but the duck blood was soft and jelly-like.
One bowl was big enough for two persons. The Shanghainese seem to have huge appetite. Their bowls are huge.
The interesting curly texture of their vermicelli
Jin Ling Dumplings 金陵汤包 RMB 5
Equally good as, if not better than, Jia Jia Tang Bao!
Salted water duck (big portion) 盐水鸭 （大盆）RMB 20
I had a tough time trying to decide how much to order as the dish came with a few options. I'd asked the cashier how much she'd suggest, and she said,"RMB 120." I am glad I abided by the 'Make the decision yourself or others will make it for you." I asked for one portion first and decided that we would ask for more if we liked it. This portion was already quite sufficient for us, coupled with the dumplings and vermicelli.
The duck was enjoyable as well, but all of us loved the vermicelli best. The best meal we had in Shanghai, after so many days! Cheap too - just RMB 35 (S$7)!
It was drizzling.We popped over to the opposite shop, Yan Yun Lou 燕云楼 to borrow their loo. Apparently, the people who work here do not need the toilets. Whoever we approached said that there was no loo around.
Being too shy to just ask for the toilet, we felt compelled to eat something from the restaurant. Okay, we chose the Peking Duck.
The condiments and accompaniments of Peking Duck
Half of Peking Duck 烤北京填鸭 RMB 44 (S$9)
My father was all praises for it, although I thought it was ordinary.
In China, most places slice the meat off together with the skin, a practice different from Singapore's. I can't decide which method I prefer. I love the fatty and crispy skin when eaten alone, but I dislike the "how do you want the meat cooked?" part because I honestly don't fancy eating the meat separately without the tasty skin.
The restaurant
We walked to Middle Tibet Road 西藏中路 to shop for local products as it was not too much of a challenge. It was walkable from Yunnan Road to Middle Tibet Road.
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We chanced upon one of the digital camera companies doing promotion at Raffles City Shopping Centre. They offered to take two polaroid pictures for whoever wished to free of charge. Coco lined up for it and she got a prize ...We walked to Middle Tibet Road 西藏中路 to shop for local products as it was not too much of a challenge. It was walkable from Yunnan Road to Middle Tibet Road.
Two photo frames for her polaroid pictures!
We shopped a little at Raffles City. I bought a dress from 'Only' boutique and a pair of earrings from a push-cart.
After that, we hung around Nanjing Road to shop - window shop mainly. We felt that the clothes in Shanghai were not more fashionable than Singapore's.
It was raining like crazy by the time we decided we were quite done with the shopping, which in fact was not much at all. We decided to go back to Yunnan Road to eat at one of the restaurants that was filled with patrons the previous day. The unfortunate thing about it was: we could not get a cab. What further made us think it possible to walk was because the locals told us it was a 'short walk'. Coco timed the walk - 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Xiao Shao Xing Restaurant 小绍兴
It specialises in steamed chicken. It has 3 storeys. The first obviously caters to the locals. The menu is simple and does not have pricey items. One item that is similar to the 3rd storey's menu, which is the tourist level, is their Shao Xing Chicken. We were also glad to find that the chicken was priced equally, after the meal.
We were directed to the third level. More posh and fewer patrons.
Shao Xing Chicken (500g) 绍兴鸡 (RMB 39)
Having tasted many good chickens in Singapore, I didn't think the chicken was impressive as a specialty. It was okay, one of the better food in Shanghai I guess.
Cod fish 鳕鱼 (RMB 78)
This was good. Fresh and tasty. We had another serving of it despite it being the most expensive dish among the dinner.
Shrimps, cabbage and fish slices in rice wine 糟溜三白 (RMB 62)
Another of their signature dish. Not impressive either. Fortunately, or unfortunately, we could not taste the rice wine.
The meal cost us RMB 281 (S$56) in total, with 4 bowls of white rice and a few drinks.
The meal cost us RMB 281 (S$56) in total, with 4 bowls of white rice and a few drinks.
After the dinner, we went back to the hotel to get our luggage and took a cab to Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station to take a D train (动车）to Beijing. We reached the Station in about 30 minutes (RMB 69)! But fortunately we reached there early. The gate was opened at about 9pm.
When I bought the tickets in Shanghai, I knew that I had to buy D train tickets with 3 digits after the letter 'D' - an indication that it was a highspeed train and I had to let the cashier know my starting point and destination: Shanghai Hongqiao (上海虹桥）to Beijing South （北京南） as there were different train stations in Shanghai and Beijing. One difference or omission by a sheer character and you will get to a different destination.
D train 和谐号
We took the 9.25pm train. It was scheduled to reach Beijing South Station at 7.15am the following morning.
Soft sleeper 软卧. The locals call it '铺' (pu), meaning 'bed'.
Lower berth: RMB 730 per pax
Upper berth: RMB 655 per pax
Child below 1.5m gets RMB 60 off the upper berth. You will need to top up another RMB 60 if you want a lower berth for the child.
Luggage goes under the bed. The capacity of the luggage compartment is not unlimited, so it is not wise to bring too huge a luggage if you are going on the train.
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Ear phones, clothes hanger, magazines, reading light, TV and remote control - all in one berth!
This ledge solves the mystery of 'how to get onto the upper berth?'
The corridor
Sensory washing area
Two toilet cubicles for all to share
Hot water
Announcements would be made for the first few stops, after which an announcement would be made again to inform passengers that the next announcement would be the morning call for Beijing South Station. Passengers who were alighting at stations before Beijing South would have to set their own alarm.
Coco was so excited about the train that she exclaimed,"This is the coolest train ever!"
This train was also one of the reasons I opted for Free and Easy. Tour agencies would have done domestic flights instead. According to them, China's domestic flights are never on time, so it would mean a day wasted on flying.
The overnight train totally intrigued me. I am not too sure if it was really a 'very Chinese thing to do' - as said by some forummer, since most passengers I met on the train were not exactly locals, and the train tickets would be very pricey for them I would say. The locals usually buy Hard Sleeper (6-bedder, no door - no thanks!) or Seat tickets (ten hours of sitting on the train - no thanks either!) as they are cheaper by a big margin. I thought this ride would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I mean, how many times are you going to Shanghai and Beijing within a trip? Although I would very much prefer to take the 5-hour highspeed Shanghai-Beijing train which would be up and running by 30 June 2011, I had to settle for this as the next best thing on the list since we would not be able to coincide our trip with that new-experience train.
Addresses:
Xiao Jin Ling
No. 55 Yunnan South Road
Hours: 8.30am to 9pm
小金陵
55 号，云南南路
Yan Yun Lou
No. 98, Yunnan South Road
燕云楼
98 号，云南南路
Xiao Shao Xing
No. 69 - 75, Yunnan South Road
小绍兴
69-75号, 云南南路
2 comments:
Hi! day 1 to 6, seems absolutely cool!! I plan to visit Shanghai and Beijing this year...
Brian
New York City
Hi Brian,
Thanks for dropping by!
Days 7 and 8 were enjoyable for us too! They are in the July archive if you have not read them.
Enjoy your trip!
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