Prologue
I’LL TAKE YOU WITH ME.
June 25, 2020 – I flew through Hainan airlines from Beijing (Terminal 2) Airport and landed at 19:30 in Hongqiao Airport. It was one of the easiest and smoothest flight I have ever encountered. Well thanks but no thanks to Covid-19. There was no queue in the airport, everything was sanitized and people are maintaining social distance except in the plane itself. Surprisingly, the plane is full. They are full of young people going on holiday! Luckily, I do not need to quarantine when I get to Shanghai due to the 2nd wave of the virus Beijing is experiencing. I think the government is pretty confident about how they are containing the virus. But that’s another chapter on how China is effectively doing their part in suppressing the virus.
For the first week, I lived in the Korean district near the airport and I basically ate Korean food most of the time. The supermarkets are Korean and signages are even translated to Korean. And yes, there are a lot of Koreans themselves. However, it was a big revelation for me that half of the people aren’t wearing masks. Coming from Beijing, it feels a bit weird for me not to cover my face with this piece of synthetic cloth with strings tied tight in my ears bending it forward like a real primate. But as days went by, I felt more secure not wearing it and walk casually on the street. Hey, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel and it is mask-free!
The next day, I went to the central part of the city and visit bakeries and restaurants. I love doing this. I want to educate myself on the bread, food, and brews of China. I usually start by taking photos of how the façade of the store looks like. Is it visible? Is it accessible? Is it inviting? Are there people inside? – Questions I always ask myself. I took a cycling tour of my own in the Jing’an area. This is one of my favorite places in Shanghai. It is a combination of business, commercial, and residential buildings. There are a lot of trees and biking lanes on the street. I find the place very friendly. Another thing that differs this place to other city is, they follow the street signs and they give way to pedestrians. That is OMG! I do not need to explain why because every city should anyway, but not where I live. *COUGH COUGH*
For the first few parts, I will tell you where I went, what I ate and who I met.
Mesa Madre 