Thanks for your reply again bud.

I don't like Shanghai or other eastern cuisine either. The dishes in Fujian and Zhejiang are just atrocious. Give me Thai cuisine over that anytime.

Agreed. Perhaps I came across a bit harsh there. I could actually probably name a couple of eastern China dishes I liked. I did like some of the bbq snacks from there.

Some Guangdong dishes are ok, Sichuan/Mongolia very good.

Agreed. Love the Guangdong Roast Goose, or siu mei, glistening fat, crispy skin, the meat just melts in your mouth! Yeap, Sichuan and Mongolia food is very good.

Shanghai really has nothing going for it, it is not a true global city in Asia-Pacific like Sydney or Hong Kong.

That I agree with. There was a letter in the SCMP today saying HK should become more like Brisbane in being an entertainment city, a point for debate perhaps?

Forget about the gleaming skyscrapers of Pudong, the rest of Shanghai is soulless and boring , still people spitting everywhere, barking like dogs when they speak, and pissing in the street. Also very polluted.

Yeap, I stayed in a small hotel some distance from Pudong airport once. Still the same old shit as the rest of China, nothing but a hooker shop, ciggies shop, corner shop, lanzhou lamian restaurant and filthy street, and air pollution. I was left scratching my head.....so much for the most amazing city in China, the same when I stayed somewhere near Hongqiao. It will take them light years to catch up to HK. Even some people are criticizing Shenzhen in Hong Kong, and that is a newer city, and it is still filthy and lawless.