Day Eight: the City of Shanghai

Waking up on our eighth day in China was hard, I needed more rest. But I was in China for two and half more days to go go go it was.
 
Up first was the Shanghai Institute for International Studies where we had an interesting conversation with several Chinese and international researchers. As a budding academic, it was nice to see how an institute outside of D.C. operates.
 
The Bund and Sixth Tone
Following that was a walk around at the Bund, Shanghai’s famous skyline. I can’t say I was overly impressed. It felt like I was at New York with about 20 million more people and 85% more smog.

But it was fun to get to walk and talk with my friend Japaira and take some photos before a light lunch at another hotel buffet. 
 
Another ISU Alum?!!
After lunch we visited a governmentally funded, media start up called Sixth Tone. There I met another ISU alum!
 
Coming to China and meeting one ISU alum would have been insane, but meeting two ISU alum and an AU alum was crazy!! Even in China I found myself saying, ‘small world!’
 
During the meeting, this one particular woman had really stood out both by her work and her personality. Then, one of her coworkers mentioned that she had studied in the US. It was like all of the hair on my arms stood up and I leaned forward, already knowing how she would answer the question ‘where did you study?’ When she answered ISU, I literally threw my hands in the air and shouted ‘me too!’ We hugged afterward and caught up about some of our favorite professors.
 
Sixth Tone was a very interesting organization and it was great to hear all about the work a fellow Greenlee alum is up to in the field of visual arts. One of the most interesting aspects about Sixth Tone was when I asked how they were funding their start up? The answer was a bit of a circle, but basically they’re governmentally funded, which they’ll admit to but not as blatantly as China Daily. Still, it’s something to keep in mind when looking at any source of media – who is funding the message? 
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Refugee Museum
Our final stop of the day was at the Shanghai Jewish Refugee Museum, dedicated to the Jewish refugees from WWII who fled to China.

I really appreciated three days of back-to-back exploration into different religious in China. It gave me a glimpse into parts of China that I was unfamiliar with and didn’t expect prior to the trip. 
 
It was an amazing experience for me because I appreciate learning about other religions in a respectful context.  
 
Yuan Market
After dinner at the hotel, most of us headed to the famous Yuan Market to do a final round of souvenir shopping. We took the subway there and back and stopped at a bar on the way home before turning in for the evening. It was fun to take the public transportation for a change. Having a personal driver is great, but it's nice to see how the people who live in Shanghai make their way around town. 

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