Bund Bimble
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Our Bimble Along The
Bund
  The Bund or Waitan – meaning Outer Beach,
is a waterfront area in central Shanghai. The area centres on a section of
Zhongshan Road within the former Shanghai International Settlement, which
runs along the western bank of the Huangpu River. The area along the river faces
the modern skyscrapers of Lujiazu. The Bund usually refers to the buildings and
wharves on this section of the road, as well as some adjacent areas. It is one
of the most famous tourist destinations in Shanghai. Building heights are
restricted in the area.
The Shanghai Bund has dozens of historical buildings, lining the Huangpu River, that once housed numerous banks and trading houses from the UK, France, the US, Italy, Russia, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, and Belgium, as well as the Consulates of the UK and Russia, a newspaper, the Shanghai Club and the Masonic Club. The Bund lies north of the old, walled city of Shanghai. It was initially a British settlement; later the British and American settlements were combined in the International Settlement. Beautiful commercial buildings in the Beaux Arts style sprung up in the years around the turn of the 20th century as the Bund developed into a major financial centre of East Asia. Directly to the south, and just northeast of the old walled city, the former French Bund (the quai de France), part of the Shanghai French Concession was of comparable size to the Bund but functioned more as a working harbourside. By the 1940’s, the Bund housed the headquarters of many, if not most, of the major financial institutions operating in China, including the "big four" national banks in the Republic of China era. However, with the Communist victory in the Chinese Civil War, many of the financial institutions were moved out gradually in the 1950’s, and the hotels and clubs closed or converted to other uses. The statues of colonial figures and foreigners that had been along the riverside were also removed. I loved standing and watching chums, working girls and even the tourist boats and ferries trundling up and down the river. A surprise find for us in both in Beijing and Shanghai was the flowers, plants and trees being so well cared for. We very much enjoyed our bimble in the hot sun and before taking on a department store, Bear took on the Bund Bull (placed on the boardwalk in 2009 and modelled on the one in Wall Street, New York – also fondled by Bear), Would he – yes he did. The Chinese who are the antithesis of implacable fell about laughing, they really did laugh hard, one man actually got wet eyes. It must be time for an ice cream. Here is some of what we saw.
ALL IN ALL RATHER LOVELY A VERY PRETTY HARBOURSIDE PART OF THE CITY |
