Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
of Lujiazui - note that there's a huge fake market here too (see p.138). You'd be
advised not to come here hungry, as there are few places to eat; the cheap
canteen in the Science and Technology Museum subway stop is one option.
Century Park
From the Science and Te c hnology Museum stop, it's a pleasant ten-minute
stroll along a pedestrian walkway to the northern entrance to
Century Park
(daily 7am-6pm; ¥10). The granite path has lampposts shaped like birds in
flight and offers great views of the Pudong skyline. Skaters and kite flyers
congregate here, as both activities are banned in the city centre. The park,
designed by a British firm, is spacious, the air is clean (well, cleaner) and it's
possible to feel that you have escaped the city, at least on weekdays when it's
not too crowded. You can hire a tandem bike (¥20 per hour) - sadly you're not
allowed to ride your own bicycle - and pedalos are available to rent on the big
central lake (¥25 per hour).
The Science and Technology Museum and
the Oriental Arts Centre
The
Science and Te c hnology Museum
(daily 9am-5pm; ¥60, students ¥45)
is an absolutely enormous gleaming new building; rather too big perhaps, as the
cavernous halls make some of the twelve exhibitions look threadbare. There isn't
much English explanation or quite enough interactivity but the section on
space exploration is good - a big topic in China right now, with the nation fully
intending to get to the moon as soon as possible - with real spacesuits, models
of spacecraft and the like. In the section on robots you can take on a robotic
arm at archery and play a computer at go. The
cinemas
provide the most
interest: the space theatre (showings every 40min; ¥40) shows astronomical
films; the two IMAX domes in the basement (hourly 10.30am-4.30pm;
¥30/¥40) show cartoons; while the IWERKS dome on the first floor (every
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Strollers in Century Park
