Brash and bold, China's second biggest city has always been about money. It sprang up to sudden fame as a concession port in the 19th century and by the 1930s it became world's third largest financial centre. Its re-birth in 1990 as a Special Economic Zone, brought it back to the ranks of major international cities.
The two banks of the river are testament to Shanghai's two highest historical peaks. The Bund side, the heart of colonial Shanghai, is rich in nostalgic European splendour of grand Art Deco buildings. Across the river, Pudong is an ethereal city of the future, looking more like computer graphics.
As is the case with material success oriented cities, like New York, Hong Kong, Casablanca or Moscow, the atmosphere in Shanghai is electrifying. And as ever, in a truly miraculous way, on the rich soil of greed, ambition and vanity grow fine flowers of creativity, innovation and independent thinking.
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