Shanghai - one of the largest urban population centers in the world with about 20 million people. Another huge Chinese city both on size and feel. No matter where you are in the city you feel dwarfed by the buildings and the amount of people. It's a busy city with cool neighborhoods and a hip big city feel, exactly how you feel in New York. This really is the center of growth for China.

The French Concession is one of the nicer areas of Shanghai. Lots of shaded streets with tons of shopping and cool restaurants. Lot's of hip places and hip people. Again, as in Beijing, the prices are mixed. You can find super cheap stores and more expensive trendy designer stores and, of course, the Prada's and Gucci's of the world.

I still am stunned by how Western these cities are. The finance and the money that left for Hong Kong when the communists took over appears to be back. GDP has been growing with double digits since the early 1990s. The cars are modern, the people dress Western, there is money here and it appears to be a healthy modern market focused economy. I'm sure the centrally planned economy is being tested and will continue to be tested and stressed as time moves on. I've read there are lots of conflict between Shanghai local government and Beijing central government. I will definitely be very interested in seeing how the Chinese government will cope with this growth. This trip has given me a newfound respect and interest in the people and economy of China. [ pics ]