Mullets and sea salt coffee

First up in Shanghai, trains. The super fast maglev train runs only between Pudong airport and Longyang Station.  It goes quite fast (see below) and covered the 40 or so kms in about eight minutes.  Commentators think the train's a bit silly - all dressed up and nowhere to go - but it certainly makes the first part of the trip much cooler and quicker (as we would later discover).

The transfer to the number 2 metro line was easy, but the shock of leaving the air conditioned maglev and hitting the Shanghai heatwave was harsh.  Happily (not) we arrived at Longyang station right on rush hour.  We were able to push onto a carriage with our bags and then played sauna sardines for the next 30 minutes or so, as we crawled towards our destination: Zhongshan Park - many miles away (thank you Seekers).

I realise this is far too much information for my reading audience (forgive me, both of you) but I didn't know it was possible to sweat from so many places.  Yuck,

I did see a guy on the train with a mullet - he really rocked that look - and it made me reflect on my own haircut the day before, when I'd suggested the very same style to Clark.  He had been firm and I have no mullet, but the guy on the train made me glad that the style still has its place - if only in Shanghai.

People were remarkably courteous with each other.  We never again encountered such a busy train (of course, only on arrival, with luggage).  There weren't any excuse-mes, and not much chat - we mainly all just suffered in silence - but people were very patient and tolerant of each other (in a "I have to push my out now" kind of way).

We did our usual trick of walking straight past the hotel and doing a few extra circuits and bumps before coming into land, but we made it.  Great room, lovely staff and, glory of glories, an outdoor pool.  The only fly in that ointment was a quaint insistence that everyone wear a bathing cap.  Of course there were some available for purchase.  No, readers, this part of the journey will not be illustrated.  Except for this:

We found a great breakfast cafe round the corner where I proved to be useless in a queue - people just sidle under my elbows or something - and G discovered the glories of sea salt coffee.  To be honest it's probably more like something you'd find at starbucks (and there are plenty of those) than actual coffee, but G speaks very highly of it.  I had a brown sugar macchiato (whatever that is) and it was ok.  

Other first day activities included a nearby temple - Jingan - just a couple of metro stops along the road - and a beautiful dumpling lunch as recommended by Ruth and Bill (thanks!).  The temple was at once contemplative and practical. Not to mention a survivor. It was repurposed as a plastics factory during the cultural revolution but as you see is still there amongst the sky scrapers today.