Astor House Hotel - Shanghai
Shanghai has a romance unrivaled throughout China. With the European architecture, the river cutting through the city (with its brand new promenade), the modern skyline, the trendy restaurants, it pretty much has something for everyone. I'm very much looking forward to spending quite a few days there (May 23-June 3), especially since I'll be on per diem.I'm going to be staying at the old Astor House Hotel. Charlie Chaplin, Bertrand Russell, Einstein, William Taft (among many others) all stayed there. It was the first place in China to have electricity and telephones. It also housed the first Shanghai Stock Exchange after the founding of the People's Republic of China.
From the Wikipedia article:
[The Astor House Hotel] has been described as once "one of the famous hotels of the world", "the pride of Shanghai", "a landmark of modern Shanghai", and perhaps hyperbolically as "once the most luxurious hotel in the world", was the first Western hotel established in China. Established in 1846 as Richards' Hotel and Restaurant (礼查饭店) on The Bund in Shanghai, it has been in its present location at 15 Huangpu Lu, Shanghai, near the confluence of the Huangpu River and the Suzhou Creek in the Hongkou District, near the northern end of the Waibaidu (Garden) Bridge, since 1858.
It's right at the north end of The Bund (the area where all the foreign concessions were back in the day) and across the river from the Pearl Tower and the rest of Shanghai's famous skyline. I'll take lots of pictures. Lots and lots and lots of pictures, don't you worry.
The Astor House might not be the Westin (where my boss is staying), but I think the history makes it much more interesting. And it comes with free breakfast! Ha.
Click for a larger image of all the buildings along The Bund.
And here's the view across the river. That part of the city is called Pudong.Get excited! I am!!!
brought to you by Rachelle
0 cents from the peanut gallery
