China - Fall 08 - Day One - Atlanta to Shanghai

About a month ago, I took off to China again for another two week jaunt for work. This time, Missy stayed behind while me and two other co-workers - Libby and Samantha - flew off to "the Orient". Luckily for us, DELTA AIRLINES recently started a direct route to Shanghai, and we happily took advantage of the 13 hour-long flight...when we flew to China back in spring, Missy and I had two change-overs (one in Washington D.C., and then another one in Beijing) and the trek lasted for over 24 hours. At one of the Delta gates in Atlanta was this disturbing corncob/airplane hybrid (above)...not something you want to be confronted with early in the morning, or any other time of day for that matter. I think they were trying to make a statement about bio-fuels and air travel. There was even a giant carrot made to look like rocketship:



Before taking off, we watched the new Delta safety video which I later learned is a big hit on YouTube, thanks to the star of the safety vid, a redheaded stewardess dubbed "Deltalina". According to an interview I found on YouTube, the marketing team at Delta decided to inject a bit of humor into the usually pedantic safety videos that are usually forced on travelers before take-offs. The resulting video was a surprising hit:



The funniest thing about the video though (at least for me) is the male steward with the glinting smile. How rad is that dude?



Once in Shanghai, we re-acquainted ourselves with the shiny Pudong International Airport, dutifully presenting our passports and work visas at customs before being allowed to leave the terminal:



We hired a mini van taxi to take us to the SHERATON FOUR-POINTS HOTEL, in Daning. The hotel was part of this live/work/study/play complex called the LIFE HUB at DANING. The Life Hub is basically a couple of city blocks chock-full of hip apartments, shops, and restaurants catering to a younger and more cosmopolitan demographic. The hotel was really nice and the hotel rooms were a welcome sight for our weary minds and bodies:











We didn't rest long before we all decided to brave the rain, grab a cab, and head further into Shanghai in search of dinner:



When our dinner plans didn't pan out (we needed reservations to get into the restaurant we had our mind on), we decided to have dinner up in the ORIENTAL PEARL TV TOWER. Nearby, we saw the upper reaches of the SHANGHAI WORLD FINANCIAL CENTER building (on the right) - currently, the second-tallest building in the world - blanketed in low rain clouds and fog:



At the base of the Oriental Pearl, we marveled at the guidelines for entering the tower. Confident that we would not be mistaken for ragamuffins, drunken people, or psychotics, we bought our entrance fee:









The main observation floor was a frenzy of tourists - mostly, Chinese families - informational exhibitions, and rows of souvenir stands:











We made our way to the outer observation deck and walked the circumference of the tower, admiring the windy view of the HUANGPU RIVER and THE BUND, glittering on the opposite shore:















The elevator back down to the base of the tower led us to a lower level full of gift shops and other tourist exhibitions:















Back outside, we took pictures of the neon-lit Oriental Pearl Tower which looked especially impressive in the fog:



We all fell asleep during the cab ride back to the hotel...looking forward to a well-deserved night of sleep with no plans for the following day (save for "sleeping-in"), I delighted in the simple bold design of the "do not disturb" door hanger: