The old Paris of the Orient is today more like the New York of the China Coast. Truly, it retains plenty of reminders of its century as an open, international city, where merchants, missionaries, scholars, adventurers and other opportunists came to try their luck. The grand old banks, hotels and shipping offices still dominate one bank of the Huangpu River, but directly opposite is Pudong, the new Shanghai, where Asia's new 'Wall Street' is developing.

GETTING THERE

There is service to Shanghai, either nonstop or via Beijing, from 22 foreign destinations, by the locally-based China Eastern and various international carriers. In addition the city is linked to all major cities in China. There are good train services to Shanghai direct from Hong and Beijing, plus 'tourist express' trains from Nanjing, Wuxi, Suzhou, Hangzhou and Ningbo.

GETTING AROUND

For efficient transport around town, taxis are the best choice, and can easily be hailed in the street, outside hotels, department stores and tourist attractions. For getting around the shopping districts, old city or other areas of interest, walking is the only practical way, although distances can be longer than they appear on the map. The Metro is great. The stations and trains are air-conditioned, clean and cheerful. At present it is fine if you're traveling between the main railway station, the Garden Hotel, the most fashionable blocks of Huaihai Road, the stadium, Hua Ting Hotel, the Catholic Cathedral, the Pudong CBD, the Century Park and Zhangjiang Science Park. Most buses are hot and uncomfortable crowded but new services by airconditioned vehicles with good suspension are being introduced. Downtown streets are highly congested with vehicular and pedestrian traffic.

The Bund of the Huangpu River

WHAT TO SEE

• The Bund
  No visit to Shanghai is complete without a stroll along the historic waterfront to experience the smells, sights and sounds of Shanghai's most famous address. Banks, trading houses, residences, hotels and clubs all had a view of the bustling Huangpu River traffic as they shared in the city's rising and falling fortunes. In the early 1990s the Bund was greatly enhanced with the addition of a raised pedestrian walkway beside the river, complete with cafes and benches. It's busy at all times, with morning 'taiqi' exercises, family outings, photo taking and the general enjoyment of a fabulous architectural parade, not to mention the scenes on the busy river and the dramatic new skyline of the new Pudong financial district on the opposite bank, which is dominated by the Oriental Pearl TV Tower.
• Yu Garden & Old City
  Once a slum filled with beggars and prostitutes, this cleverly restored labyrinth of specialty shops, tea and snack shop centered around a Ming-dynasty Suzhou-style scholar's garden is a fine spot for photo-taking and people-watching. You can take Chinese tea in the ornate teahouse with its wildly upswept eaves, eat local snacks and shop for unique souvenirs while getting a feel of Old Shanghai.
• Jade Buddha Temple
  Built in 1911, this yellow-brick walled complex is the seat of the Shanghai Buddhist association and one of the area's most active temples. Its prized treasures are two bejeweled jade Buddhas. Open daily.
• Shanghai Museum
  Shanghai's museum collection, one of the greatest in China, was installed in a custom-made new home in late 1995. It stands in People's Square and consists of three floors of galleries, containing ancient sculptures, bronzes, porcelain, paintings, jade, Ming and Ching furniture, coins, seals and minority nationalities' art. The displays, lighting, bi-lingual labeling and audio guide make it the best equipped in the country. There is also some great shops for books, reproductions and souvenirs.
• St. Ignatius Cathedral
  Built by the Jesuits in 1906 Shanghai's Catholic Cathedral is a fine neogothic monument to faith. Located in Xujiahui on the old estate of Paul Hsu, the Ming Dynasty scholar who supported the missionary Matteo Ricci. It is open for Catholic mass daily, and on high days in packed to overflowing.

WHERE AND WHAT TO BUY

Shanghai is once more becoming a shopper's paradise. Clothing, silk, carpets, handicrafts, antiques and curios are widely available in specialty stores, hotel shopping arcades, the Friendship Store (40 Beijing Dong Lu) and the shops in the Shanghai Museum. The city can now boast many huge department stores, some of them joint ventures with Hong Kong, Taiwanese and Japanese companies. These are spread around Huaihai Lu, Nanjing Lu, and new shopping areas in the Xujiahui district and in Pudong. Most sell mid- to up- market goods, with an emphasis on imported goods, including fashions with the world's leading labels.

Nanjing Lu (Nanjing Road) offers such classics as the No.1 Medicine Store, the Duoyunxuan Painting and Calligraphy Shop, the Theater Costumes Shop, No.1 Department Store, Xinhua Bookstore, the Wan Sin Kee Fan Shop and porcelain stores.

Huaihai Lu (Huaihai Road) is China's version of Fifth Avenue or Bond Street. This is where the classy Joint-venture department stores are found, packed with name brand boutiques and imported jewelry, cosmetics and gift ware.

The Old City around Yu Garden is a bazaar of recently renovated shop-houses where they sell everything from walking sticks, playing cards and chopsticks to umbrellas and lanterns.

Antiques and curios are found in Shanghai Arts & Curios (218-266 Guangdong Lu), Shaanxi Old Wares Store (557 Yan'an Zhong Lu), Chuangxi Old Wares Store (1297 Huaihai Lu), as well as the antique market on Dongtai Lu and Sunday bazaar on Fuyon Lu.

WHAT TO EAT

As cosmopolitan as the city itself, Shanghai's cuisine combines cooking traditions from around the Yangtze delta region, with an added dash of foreign influence. Taking advantage of neighboring rivers, lakes, ocean and fertile farmland, Shanghai chefs are known for Beggar's Chicken, Shanghai hairy Crab( Oct-Dec), Lion's Head Meatballs and Duck with Yam. Other favorites of both Chinese and Westerns are Shanghainese cakes and pastries served in tea and coffee houses.