Thames Town

Last Sunday Joel and I decided to do some exploring of the greater Shanghai area.  We took the number nine subway to the end of the line, walked for about 15 minutes and ended up in Thames Town.  Thames town is one of many towns built by the Chinese to represent another country, I guess they also have German Town and American Town but if they are anything like Thames Town I am sure they are a disappointment.  Thames Town was very sad, it could have been great but like a lot of good ideas it just didn't work out.  It was supposed to look and feel like a small english town, with great shops and pubs.  Joel was really looking forward to fish and chips.  Unfortunately it looks like no one ever moved in here.  Every store front was either abandoned or no one had ever been there.  It has turned into a place where newly wed couples go to have wedding portraits made.  It definitely was a great picture destination, cobblestone streets and a fake cathedral make a great backdrop to any photo shoot.  It would also be a great place to film a horror movie (any takers...Colin?).  The redeeming thing about our trip however was the beautiful park and lake that was not chalk full of city dwellers trying to spend time in nature.  It was quiet and clean and had very few people.  Joel and I decided it would be well worth the trip back to take a few friends and a picnic and spend the day relaxing in the sun.  It wasn't as polluted as the city and had lots of blue sky and greenery to make one forget we were only an hour away from Shanghai.