Blog Break | Off to Shanghai~ 飞去上海了!

In case you haven't realised, we're in Shanghai, China now! I had a whirlwind weekend trip with some friends here last year if you remember, and I'm now back here again with the boy and Lil Pumpkin. It's both their first time here in Shanghai, although the boy has been to China before (✪ω✪)

I'm really excited to be back and explore more places {see 25 Must-See & Must-Eat Things in Shanghai} in a more leisurely manner and spend Mid-Autumn Festival here. It's not often that we get to celebrate a traditional Chinese festival in mainland China and eat authentic Chinese mooncakes.  I think there's going to be fireworks at the Shanghai Bund this Sunday to celebrate!

Of course, I want to go back to get more Feiyue & Shulong shoes {for Lil Pumpkin's new school year too} and I'm kinda bummed that Dongtai Lu Antiques Market has already closed down (ＴェＴ) #sadness

I didn't really share much about Hu Xin Ting Teahouse {湖心亭, literally pavilion in the middle of the lake} previously but it was one of the highlights of my last visit and I really wanted to re-visit it, and the surrounding Yuyuan {豫园} and Old Shanghai bazaar, with my family.

Thought I'd just do a short intro of it in this post. Hu Xin Ting is known as the first teahouse in China with a history of 145 years. It is also the oldest existing teahouse in Shanghai and where the oldest chamber of commerce of Shanghai was once situated.

To get to the building in the middle of the lake you have to walk on the Nine Bends Bridge {九曲桥} which is a zig-zag bridge that's thought to prevent ghosts from reaching the teahouse as apparently ghosts can't walk in a straight line :P

That day when I went with Jerome, we arrived just as it opened in the morning but there was already a group of regular uncles enjoying their morning tea and chatting happily in a corner. It is usually really crowded so best to go early.

Going in, you really felt that you took a step back in time to old China.

We went straight up to the second floor and managed to get a window table with a good view of the lake and the famous Nanxiang Lou {南翔馒头店}, where we ate xiaolongbaos with Janice after our visit to Yuyuan. 

The whole building of Hu Xin Ting is made of wood with no iron nails and it has never been rebuilt in more than two hundred years!! The dark red walls, dark red window frames, wooden floor and columns are so beautifully carved and maintained.

There's a wide variety of Chinese tea to choose from and apparently the water used to make tea is purified and mineralized, which makes it tastes sweeter and different from tea provided in other common tea-houses. The tea may be more expensive than other tea-houses {e.g. RMB60 / S$13 for pot of flower tea}, but I don't think it's overpriced given the history and ambience of the place.

It's truly a very special feeling to sit there quietly sipping your hot fragrant tea, while appreciating the scenery and watching the world go by. I want to do that again with the boy and Lil Pumpkin ♥

I'll be taking this time to go on a blog break to recharge and rejuvenate. In my last few posts you probably sensed that I've been feeling rather tired {of a lot of things} and haven't been sleeping well either. I need to get out of this rut and hope to clear my mind, get my sleep pattern back to normal and also spend quality, fun-filled time with the family.

The usual Wordless Wednesday which will still be up next week though for link-ups, and the ongoing giveaway for 2 x Ebizo Ichikawa XI's Japan Theatre tickets {worth S$145 each} will end this Sun 27 Sep 2015. Last 3 days! Pop by for a chance to win them if you want to watch an authentic Kabuki show at Marina Bay Sands next month.

I'll probably still post some on-the-go updates of our trip and other random musings as I feel like it on social media haha so feel free to connect with me on Instagram / Facebook / Twitter if you haven't yet. Take care, stay healthy and catch up again when I return xox

Hu Xin Ting {湖心亭}
No.257 Yuyuan Road, Huangpu District, Shanghai {outside the main entrance of Yuyuan}
豫园路257号荷花池九曲桥中
Tel: +86 21-63736950 / 21-63558270
Opening hours: 7.30am - 9pm
Free admission

Read all Shanghai travel posts here, including  

LINE Friends Café & Store Shanghai
Mid-Autumn Festival 2015 & Mooncakes in Shanghai

Indoor Playground at East Nanjing Road
China's Oldest Teahouse - Hu Xin Ting {湖心亭}

Feiyue, Huili & Warrior Shoe Shopping at Culture Matters

Bargain-Hunting at Dongtai Lu Antique Market

25 Must-do, Must-see & Must-eat Things in Shanghai

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