Shanghai building boom pits architects of East vs. West
Old district gets high-rise design
By Jehangir S. Pocha, Globe Correspondent | September 10, 2006
SHANGHAI -- It was in this city's historic Xintiandi district of gently
frayed shikumen, or alley houses, that Mao Zedong and his comrades
founded China's Communist Party in 1921.
Today, the gray walls that once echoed with talk of revolution now
reverberate with Euro-pop.
New spin on Shanghai. Travel, M1.
Most of the area's narrow rows of traditional shop-houses and dimly lit
tea houses have been torn down to make room for luxurious glass-fronted
malls. The few traditional structures that remain have been revamped to
house avant-garde fashion boutiques, designer bistros, and chic martini
bars.
cont'd....
http://www.boston.com/news/world/asia/articles/2006/09/10/shanghai_building_boom_pits_architects_of_east_vs_west/
========================
New spin on Shanghai
A culture evolves behind the blazing emblem of economic strength
By Tom Haines, Globe Staff | September 10, 2006
SHANGHAI -- Stand on the concrete promenade of the Bund , a once-chaotic
river wharf at the very center of this city, and spin: The horizon
towers for 360 degrees. Neon streaks in blue, red, orange, and green.
Silver apartment buildings merge at the edge of sight. Turn after turn,
the fantasy of the Oriental Pearl Tower and the certainty of the
88-story Jinmao Tower punctuate new Pudong , a district sprung from
swamp and farmland.
If the goal were simply reinventing the physical face of a place, then
the game in Shanghai has been won: In the blur of a dozen years, ....
cont'd....
http://www.boston.com/travel/getaways/asia/articles/2006/09/10/new_spin_on_shanghai/