People’s Square - Explore Shanghai - page 86

The bold exterior of the Urban Planning Centre
Ryan Pyle/Apa Publications
SHANGHAI MUSEUM
From the Urban Planning Centre, find the underground passageway that will take you to the
south side of People's Avenue; this passage was actually one of numerous bomb shelters
built in the 1960s in the aftermath of the Sino-Soviet split, when the country lived in fear of a
Soviet invasion. From here you can follow the signs to the Shanghai Museum 5 [map]
(Shanghai Bowuguan; 201 People's Avenue; www.shanghaimuseum.net ; daily 9am-5pm
[last entry 4pm]; free, charge for Acoustiguide rental plus deposit). Cross the landscaped
plaza and pass the soaring musical fountain - full of kids trying to cool off in summer - to
reach the distinctive round, granite building.
This is probably the best museum in the country. Shaped like a ding (a traditional cooking
vessel), it focuses on the arts and crafts of China in its 11 permanent galleries, arranged