Conference in the Paris of the East

Nowadays, when people think and talk about China, a lot of that talk is about Shanghai. And rightfully so, Shanghai is a very international city and the business center of China's fast growing economy. When Jenn and I landed in China, we did so in Shanghai. But the airport is outside of the city center and did not actually get to see Shanghai's Glory. Wanting to go back and make up for that missed opportunity, the District Conference was just what the doctor ordered. We had a church meeting scheduled for all branches around Shanghai and it was to be held in the big city itself. 

The meeting itself was nice. Church members (non-Chinese passport holders) from all around China had gathered together and we had a great conference with only a few technological microphone difficulties. Among the members of the congregation were members of the well known Piano Guys, including the Cellist. After the meeting, most Flagship students, naturally including us, decided to spend the Sunday afternoon exploring the city center of Shanghai, specifically an area called "The Bund". The pictures will show you exactly what the bund is. In essence, it is a long boardwalk along the river that divides Shanghai into two parts, the Pudong and Puxi sides. This set-up allows visitors to enjoy a breathtakingly beautiful sight on the business center of Shanghai and enjoy seeing buildings like "the bottle opener" and the pearl tower. I remember being in awe seeing Taipei 101 in Taiwan, but Shanghai is in a totally different league. The "bottle opener" is just about as big as Taipei 101, but in Shanghai's skyline, the building seems just like any other. 

The weather was perfect, a cool sea breeze made for the perfect walking temperature. All kinds of people were treasuring this moment. Jenn and I talked to a scientist from France and we saw a couple taking wedding pictures. About that couple I have to note, that they might in fact be models. They both were very attractive people and when taking pictures, they posed in ways that seemed rather studied and unusual for normal wedding pictures. Also, when no pictures were taken, the couple did not act like you would expect an engaged couple to act; they didn't seem particularly interested in each other.

Not much longer after that we caught our train back home to Nanjing. We like our quaint Nanjing city, a small village of 8 million compared to Shanghai, but Shanghai was truly impressive!