On the surface, my day today was simple.
But for me, it was on the list of the top 10 best days of my life.
I took a long walk around the city with no agenda and did went wherever looked interesting. And I saw some awfully wonderful things!
I love grocery stores (I work at an awesome one) and seeing this reminded me how much I miss cooking…
Karaoke is a lot more popular in Asia than in the States. This is a karaoke booth: 
I’d feel super awkward using it but I think it’s so fantastic that people love it! Haha.
I tend to be a fast walker, but all throughout the trip I’ve walked much slower than usual to soak in stuff. Today was an extra slow day for me. 🙂
I stumbled upon some old books and trinkets for sale in the middle of a neighborhood.
My insides jumped for joy and I looked at all the books for nearly an hour. For me, these kinds of moments are the best part about exploring a city. 🙂
Everyone takes photos of the phone booths in London. Who knew the first one I’d see would be in Shanghai?
I spent a couple hours at Fuxing Park – the only French-designed park in China still actively preserved to keep its French flavors.
It was beautiful – for so many reasons.
There were literally people dancing in the park to lovely music. I felt like I was in a movie…
The whole park was filled with people from the very youngest to the very oldest, all of whom were enjoying the moment in their own way. It was so simple and pure and, to be totally candid, I was trying not to tear up (okay, I did once or twice). With all the pain and frustration and confusion in this world, it was the biggest breath of fresh air I have had in a long time.
It’s cheesy, but it’s true: seeing people happy and kind restores your joy and gives you hope.
(This little boy came up to me right after I took the pictures and giggled a lot when I showed them to him.)
I’m sure there’s a lot of history and value in this park on its own – something I forgot to read about altogether. But it’s truly the people that make places what they are.
I am extremely content with my first experience of Shanghai, regardless of how short of time we had. I was captivated and encouraged by the human race, and there is nothing more I could ask for.
People of Shanghai, I’m sure I’ll see you someday soon. 🙂
barefoot mangoes 