School Above the Sea: Shanghai Municipal Council Polytechnic Public School
The Shanghai Municipal Council (SMC) Polytechnic, or Gezhi Academy, was founded in 1874, and remarkably, this pioneering institution, with its links to missionaries, reformers, scientists, and revolutionaries, is still going strong. Today, it’s the Shanghai Gezhi High School. In 2005, I was privileged to meet two ...
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The Forgotten Bride in the Shanghai Lane
We found her in a lane called Chusan Liegh (Zhoushan Li 舟山弄), in the old Jewish ghetto. Who was she, this elegant bride wearing heart-shaped earrings and a fairytale wedding gown? Why was she left here? Who would leave a wedding portrait behind? The lane, on Zhoushan Lu in Hongkou, stands in the shadow of ...
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Cai Zhen: Painter of Old Shanghai
Inspired by her own heritage, Cai Zhen paints the heritage buildings of old Shanghai, bathing them in sunlight and vibrant color. [caption id="attachment_2288" align="alignleft" width="224"] Cai Zhen, self portrait[/caption] We first encountered Madame Cai at an art exhibition featuring the watercolor paintings of architect ...
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Roar, China! Langston Hughes in Shanghai
February is Black History month, and Shanghai has a fascinating, hidden history of Black American poets, activists, and musicians. Our Shanghai Black History walk (Sunday Feb 23) is sold out, but you can sign up for the wait list here. Langston Hughes, the poet laureate of the Harlem Renaissance, spent three months ...
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Sikhs in Shanghai
From the word "Bund" to Bombay millionaires and Parsi merchants, Indians were a presence in Old Shanghai since the beginning. Our "Indians in Old Shanghai" walk this Saturday will cover the traces and places of this diverse, vibrant Indian community, but here, guest blogger Meena Vathyam shares the story of the most visible ...
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British Royals & Shanghai
Shanghai, March 2015 - With Prince William visiting Shanghai this week, we thought it was an opportune moment to look back at royal visits to Shanghai in history. It didn't start off auspiciously ...Embed from Getty ...
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The Interview: “Shanghai Homes: Palimpsests of Private Lives” with Jie Li
Jie Li, author of Shanghai Homes: Palimpsests of Private Life, (our June 2020 Book Club selection) has a unique insight into the lives within Shanghai's lane neighborhoods: this is where her parents and grandparents lived, and where she spent her childhood. And she's an anthropologist. In December 2014, she spoke ...
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