I was inspired by Sue Anne Tay’s wonderful blog Shanghai Street Stories, to go out with my big camera around the old lanes near where I live in the Former French Concession. I headed down South Shaan Xi Lu towards Zhaojiabang Lu and soon there were lanes all around me (and foreign photographers too). Fortunately… Read More »
My neighbours are building a new bathroom at the front of their building. I am sure sure who the front of the building belongs to because there are many families living in the building. I suppose they must have had permission before they started the work (who knows). Anyway the bathroom is looking pretty nice… Read More »
Like lots of children, I was dragged around lots of museums by my parents. History museums were my least favourite – lots of pictures of events which meant nothing to me – World War I, World War II, ration books, photos of The Beatles, countless things I had no interest in. Imagine then… Read More »
I love old industrial buildings. Maybe it’s connected to my interest in the industrial revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the UK I live in the heart of the Industrial Revolution near Ironbridge. Now of course things have moved on and we no longer need these huge cavernous brick buildings consuming… Read More »
We’re on a count down to the National Day holiday – the Golden Week as it’s called here. This is a week when it is best advised not to go anywhere further than your front door. Certainly you should avoid going outside and to venture anywhere near YuYuan Gardens, Nanjing Road or the Bund unless… Read More »
I decided to invite some of my colleagues round to my flat for a few drinks and some finger food. The Chinese girls told me they didn’t drink alcohol so I bought some very nice and expensive juices for them. However, on arrival they said they would like to try a… Read More »
On Monday there was a hurricane warning in Shanghai and I saw two men walking the streets of the former French concession ringing and hand bell and advising people to go indoors and close the windows. The hurricane didn’t materialise – only a bit of a wind – nothing serious. The next day I was… Read More »
In Lithuania soon after the fall of the Soviet Union, queues for food and essential supplies were still common place and it was not unusual for people to join a queue without knowing what was at the end of it. I am reminded of this as I walk home along Nanchang Lu each day. There… Read More »
My mother and father used to talk about how everyone remembered where they were when JFK was assassinated. Even though they are not American, it was a moment which shocked the world. My two moments were learning of the death of Princess Diana (waking up on a Sunday morning and switching the radio on) and… Read More »
I was surprised, on my first Friday Afternoon Detention (FAD) duty to find so many of my students there. What on earth had they been doing? I looked down the list of misdemeanors to find most people had either not done their homework, spoken noisily in self study or missed a lesson. And what was… Read More »