I have written on more than several occasions about the disappearance of the lanes of old Shanghai, the wiping out of communities of people who live in them and forced resettlement to Songjiang or other satelite town.
The saddest of these places are Maoming Lu in Jing’an area and in the old town of Laoximen. The latter, I have enjoyed cycling through and chatting to the locals there many times.
I have spent many a happy afternoon in the lanes of the old town but now they are all but empty. Yesterday I found only a handful of stalwarts. Those elderly men and women are understandably reluctant to leave but are aware they have no choice.
I have noticed that in these lanes, cats still prowl. The remaining residents and the guards feed them so they look reasonably healthy.
However it’s still very sad to see all the houses bricked up and the lanes quiet where once they were a hive of activity, a living and breathing community to Shanghai residents, living side by side for many years.