Virtuoso Life - September/October 2008 - (Page 58) DESIGN TOUR At the Speed of Shanghai New hotels, ancient gardens, and classic attractions sparkle in China’s largest city. BY MICHAEL WEBB t he maglev train WhiSKS you from the international airport to the Pudong District of Shanghai at more than 250 mph. there you can stay in the world’s two highest hotels: the grand hyatt in the pagodalike Jin mao tower or the new Park hyatt in the World Financial Center. across the huangpu river, you can explore the tree-lined streets, narrow lanes, and crumbling houses of old Shanghai. By Chinese standards, this is a new metropolis, which expanded from a minor river port in the 1840s when foreigners were allowed to establish self-governing trading concessions. Over the next 100 years Shanghai was dubbed the “Paris of the east” for its glamour and debauchery, and now, after a long decline, it is again exploding with life. visitors can relive the 1930s in the art deco Paramount Ballroom or sample the best contemporary Chinese art in Pearl lam’s Contrasts gallery. You can shop on Impressive heights: The Grand Hyatt Shanghai occupies floors 53 through 87 of the Jin Mao Tower. 58 V I RT U O S O L I F E
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