Shanghai

    07. - 08.04.2015

     

     

    Shanghai Tuesday April, 7th 2015

     

    Another grey day unfortunately but we had a very good time in Xi’an anyway. After breakfast we all checked out and left by bus to Xi’an Airport – Off to Shanghai! The group was really excited to be travelling to a bigger, more modern city.

     

    The Longemont, View from 43nd floor

    The Longemont, View from 43nd floor

    A very smooth flight again… Bets were made at the airport already what kind of Chinese food would be served again on the flight and well, we do not know but it was not that bad. There was a travel agent at the gate to welcome us in Shanghai. A bus was organized to take us to the Longemont Hotel which is very centrally located, close to a metro station with an absolute stunning view of Shanghai (floor 43 ;-)).

     

    The rooms are just incredibly furnished and very modern. After so much rain in Xi’an we eventually caught some patches of sun finally.

    The Longemont, View from 43nd floor

    Living M&.M

     

    In the evening we had some free time and although it was raining again, all groups took the opportunity to do some sightseeing or some shopping at the “original brand markets” ;-) We also went to the Nanjing Road and stopped first at an impressive M&M store with “living” M&M’s.

     

     

    Pineappel with rice and seafood

     

     

    For dinner our group preferred a Thai restaurant in a big food hall. We tried different things like pineapple filled with rice and seafood, the traditional Thai Curry and much more.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The Bund was THE place to go at night. The view of the Shanghai skyline from this platform was amazing.

     

    Pudong, View from The Bund

    Jasmin quiding

     

    Special thanks to Jasmin who guided us so well and safely through the city. Back through the Nanjing Road (famous shopping road) to People Square and from there back to the hotel by metro – what an adventure.

     

     

    Shanghai Wednesday April, 8th 2015

     

    In the morning of our first day in Shanghai the weather looked much better than the day before – so after waking up we enjoyed a wonderful view over this impressive city. The sun was shining a little bit and it was warmer than the last days.

     

    We started the day with a great breakfast in the Longmont Hotel. It was a huge buffet with everything you want. Than we took the bus to go to Evonik. Everyone was excited to see the company, because it’s also a big and important employer in Darmstadt. Our guide at Evonik was called Oliver. He did his MBA at h_da and was in China a few years ago with Prof. Schellhase and works in Shanghai now.

     

    Group Picture

     

    He took us to a meeting room and a Chinese colleague presented some interesting slides about the company and its strategy.

     

    Evonik Industries, Presentation

    Evonik Industries, Presentation

     

    After this they walked with us through the showroom which was next to the meeting room. Most of us weren’t aware of their product portfolio, it was impressive. Some of them you can see on the pictures. It was very surprising to see how many products are made with Evonik ingredients.

    Evonik Industries, Showroom

     

    Then we were split into two groups to take a look at the Plexiglas production. It was an interesting visit with many impressions.

     

    Laboratory, Testing Plexiglas

    Transrapid - Station

     

    Later the bus took us to the Transrapid station, where we had the chance to ride on the “Malev” or could spent our lunch break in the mall nearby. We took this chance and drove to the airport and back – it only took about 20 minutes and it was funny to see how the train speeds up to 300 km/h , but the ride itself was very smooth due to the magnetic system.

     

    Transrapid "Speeddating at 301 km/h"

     

     

     

    Mr. and Mrs. Schellhase, Malev

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    German Centre Shanghai, Presentation

    After our break we drove to the German Center. We were a little bit too early, but this was our luck! We heard a powerful and stunning (spontaneous!) speech from Christian Sommer, CEO of the German Center. He showed us in a simple but very catching way how China developed itself into such a fascinating country and also how it will develop its economy in the next years. The visit to the German center was one of our highlights during our stay in Shanghai.

     

     

    German Centre, Hall

    G-erman Centre

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    German Centre, Customers

     

    German Centre, Customers

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Snakehead with sauerkraut

    In the evening we went once more to the Nanjing Road to look for something to eat - in a little street we found a tiny Chinese restaurant (picture). The dinner was very delicious and indeed very cheap for the big plates we got – however, nobody was brave enough to try the special -  snake with Sauerkraut!!!!