Shanghai allows the opportunity to encounter four cities in one. Traveling around Shanghai, you can chronicle and compare its origins and role in the old Chinese Empire; its time as a bastion of booming, early twentieth century capitalism; its days as a model of Chinese socialism; and its current standing as the pinnacle of all that China has achieved in the past thirty years.
　　Everywhere, it is a city under construction. Not just physically. The culture, too, is undergoing dramatic change. From standing in line, to improving sanitation, to adhering to ISO and other international guidelines, the work and habits of Shanghai's residents are rarely left unaltered by a month's passing.
　　This modern period of market-oriented urbanization is Shanghai's second rise. The first took place after the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842 opened the sleepy fishing village to foreign trade.

French Concession, located around the shopping district at middle Huaihai Road.
　　During the 1920's, Shanghai became an international city, with one of the largest populations in the world. It earned the title of "Paris of the East." Foreigners controlled the city, and they struggled to hold their position against nationalists, communists, Chinese merchants and warlords.
　　That first phase of modernization ended in 1949, when the Communist Party took power. Businesses fled to Hong Kong, and Shanghai's role came to symbolize the malleability of even the most capitalistic system as it was refashioned as a socialist mega-producer. The urban population was drastically reduced. The number of skilled workers, such as engineers and scientists, was depleted. An attempt was made to eradicate Shanghai's reactionary past, both the traditional Chinese and foreign elements.
　　Thus, much of its brilliance was lost. Today, though, there has been a conscious restoration of Shanghai's history: the colonial-era buildings along the Bund, the waterfront, Longhua Temple in the southwest Xuhui District, the centrally located Jingan Temple, the French Concession and several other sites.

　　Shanghai is divided by the Huangpu River. The west side is referred to as Puxi, the main part of Shanghai. The east part is Pudong.
　　Pudong is a huge investment zone. The local government has adopted numerous incentives to attract foreign companies, such as tax breaks and allowing foreign banks to set up branches in Shanghai and do business in yuan.
　　Initially, the financial district of Pudong was restricted to tiny Dongchang Road. But in the past ten years, business has expanded to the point that it now occupies about twenty times the space of that little road.

　　Going back to Dongchang Road and past it several subway stops, is Zhang Jiang Technology Park. Just as Lujiazui was set up to be a model international center of finance and business, Zhang Jiang Technology Park was set up in 1992 as an international center for emerging technology and the acquisition of existing, advanced technologies. It has taken in over 280 international and domestic businesses. In total, $4.4 billion has been invested in the park. In 2000, it had over $50 billion in industrial earnings. A massive addition of work and leisure facilities is planned to turn the park into a center of technological innovation, research and development.
　　Another new development zone is Song Jiang University Town, located in the Song Jiang district. So far, 200 million yuan has been invested. Fudan University, Shanghai Foreign Trade University, Shanghai Foreign Language University and many others have established campuses. About 40,000 students are attending classes. The idea is to set up a comprehensive and immersed learning environment modeled, in part, after such renowned institutions as Harvard and Oxford.
　　Shanghai is the most developed city in China. Although its modernization started later than the southern provinces of Guangdong and Fujian, Shanghai has shot ahead of the domestic competition.
　　Heavy manufacturing in Zhejiang and Jiangsu, as well as massive exports and imports nationwide, support a large and fast-growing logistics industry in Shanghai. Shanghai ports were among the busiest in the world in 2005.
　　Visitors to Shanghai will find that there is never enough time to travel to all of the city's many historic sites. And they likely will find that their luggage space and allotted shopping budget are both too small. But, of course, one can try.
　　The Shi Liu Pu is an entire mall focusing on silk. Buy your own roll of silk and make your clothes at home, or, more realistically, buy it and wait while a qi pao (traditional Chinese dress) or scarf is tailor-made for you.
　　Way on the other side of town is the Hongqiao Pearl City. Here you can find unbelievable prices on Chinese freshwater pearls as well as other varieties from Asia and the world.

　　For electronics, there are two grand malls exclusively devoted to every kind of electronic products and parts — cell phones, laptops, memory sticks, portable drives, PDAs and flat screen TVs — the Cyber Digital Mall on South Huangpi Road and the Pacific Digital Mall on Zhangyang Road.
　　All of this, when combined with the many scenic historical sites in Shanghai, ensure a traveling experience that will completely absorb any traveler.
　　In its bumpy history of obscurity, colonialism, socialism and, now, market economy, Shanghai has racked up loads of great attractions.
　　There are gorgeous and serene temples, such as the Longhua Temple in the southwest, the Jade Buddha Temple in the northwest, and the Jing'an Temple located near the center. Most centrally located is the Cheng Huang Temple. While the temple itself is an impressive example of the preservation of Chinese history, even more attractive is Yu Garden. This 400-year-old garden was built as the personal estate of Pan Yunduan, a Ming dynasty official. The entire area is a busy shopping district, featuring antique style vases, masks and books. Stores also specialize in gorgeous hand-crafted traditional tea sets and traditional costumes.
　　Another important stop is the Oriental Pearl Tower. This uniquely structured broadcasting tower is open for tours and has a restaurant that gives diners a superb view of the Shanghai skyline.
　　After a day of relentless shopping and sightseeing, a nice place to chill out is Xin Tian Di, a brick-lined couple of blocks with all styles of fine dining and a semi-enclosed comfortable feel.
　　If racing around town on the subway or in a taxi becomes overwhelming, there are a number of old canal towns just outside the city. One of these is Zhu Jia Jiao, where residents live much as they have for centuries, washing their laundry in the canal and selling handcrafted novelties. Their specialty, aside from abundant seafood, is Jia Rou, a tightly bound bundle of pork wrapped in leaves and boiled in a mix of spices. Zhu Jia Jiao's many tea houses sell high quality Long Jin green tea, which is served with snacks like dried tofu or peanuts. Sitting on an old wooden balcony, sipping tea and gazing out over the water will give you the opportunity to experience an old and utterly foreign world.
　　More and more Americans are residing in Shanghai, and there is a substantial and active expat community. You will find people from all backgrounds, from students to engineers to veterinarians to entrepreneurs. There are regular expat brunches and gatherings every week. The American Chamber of Commerce holds monthly mixers, where upwards of 200 people gather to network and share the experience of living abroad.
　　A favorite hangout of Americans is Malone's, a restaurant located in the Jing'an District. It is run by Americans and allows one to get a bit of that hometown feel when it is time to take a break from immersion in the local culture.
　　The American living in Shanghai is typified by someone who constantly complains about living in a chaotic and inefficient city — but at the same time never thinks of leaving — all while demonstrating tolerance and showing off local culture. Those who speak good Mandarin, or the more difficult Shanghainese, love showing off to other expats.
　　American employees are sought by domestic enterprises because of the high regard for American management, English and general business acumen.
　　As far as nightlife, there are several streets devoted to expat bars and restaraunts. The Shanghai bar and eatery scene is ever creative and rarefied, both in interior design, marketing, and the food and drinks offered.
　　The main leisure time activities for Americans here are eating out, going to bars and enjoying the city's many parks.
　　Century Park is the biggest. There is a huge lake surrounded by lawns for picnicking, paths for bike riding and a nearby canal where paddle boats can be rented.
　　There are also tons of concerts, rock shows and plays. The Grand Theatre, located at People's Square, regularly features big name operas and musicals, such as "Cats," "Phantom of the Opera" and "The Lion King."
　　Both foreign and local residents flocked to the 2006 Shanghai International Film Festival, held annually and attended by celebrities such as Morgan Freeman and Brendan Fraser.
　　Even more popular was the 2006 Formula One race. All over the city, fans dressed in jerseys and waving little flags came out to attend the event or watch it at the nearest pub.