Macau, which is known as the Las Vegas of China is a special administrative region, much like its neighbor Hong Kong, located in southern China. It boasts one of the highest population densities in the world, and is a playground for many people wanting to escape the mainland of China to gamble. What is interesting about this place is that 2/3 of the area is reclaimed from the sea.

This area is a former Portuguese colony since the mid 1500’s as it was leased out by the emperor at the time. As you walk the streets you can notice the Euro-Portuguese architecture in the buildings as many of them still keep their original design, although a lot of the areas are slowly becoming gentrified with newer buildings and luxurious casinos and Hotels.

Walking the streets and immense alleyways of this city, you will see local people going about their daily lives of shop owners or tourists trying to get a glimpse of the popular tourist attractions

As there are a few beautiful cemeteries in this area, I was able to make it to just one. The gravestones and cemetery area is that combined with Catholic gravestones (some from the 1800’s) and new Chinese family plots which are located on the walls that are indicative of the eastern philosophies of Buddhism and Daoism.

Of course any traveling in China is not complete without rain or in my case a huge monsoon type of storm that lasted almost two hours in which I was stuck under an overpass watching people scurry around.

This place is beautiful at night. Many of the tourist attractions are lit up as well as the different food markets and winding alleyways around the city. The Cantonese culture of restaurant neon lights lighting up the way is spectacular to see as the reflection of them bounces off of the ground and lights up the whole area.

Macau, even though technically a part of China and technically not a part of China has their own unique culture as well as food and architecture. Even though I got around to a lot of places, there is so much more I would love to explore and is definitely a place I will return to in the future…..

The West Bund is an up and coming area of Shanghai opposite the city from the East Bund which is where the iconic Pearl Tower is. Years ago it served as an army airport as well as a fuel station for those planes. Today all the hangers are being renovated for art galleries. The old oil tanks are home to art shows and simply go by the name “The Tank.” Walking along the Bund area next to the water you can notice people bringing their kids out to play, jogging, or watching time go by. Many Birds are coming back to this area with the luscious Cherry Blossoms in Bloom only two weeks a year. The Long Museum hosts different traveling exhibits and is a must see…

Of course this place is popular for people trying to become “China’s Next Top Model”, and is a growing popular place for Instagrammers and people trying to have the next big WECHAT moment with their pictures. Most of the people were either posing with professional photographers or spending most of the afternoon taking selfies of themselves….

If you are looking for a good escape up away from a bustling city, then just 4-5 hours out of Shanghai in LinAn of the Zhejiang province is a perfect escape for a 2-3 day weekend. Surrounded by beautiful mountains and rivers, this place is a hidden gem for anyone living in China and will give you a much needed break from the city.

A nice stop along the way to this little known place is the beautiful fields of flowers. Weirdly named in English “rapeseed flower” but better known as Canola flowers used to make oil, you can find these just about anywhere in China among great flat fields, but to see them terraced, along the mountains is a whole new experience.

A few minutes down the road you will run into Tai Hu Yuan scenic area which is the source of the TaiLake in China. With small waterfalls, streams, and rolling hills, this place is a hikers paradise. There is a glass bridge you can hike across (which are becoming popular in China), as well as a temple near the top you can hike to. Unfortunately, this place is becoming over touristed with many shops and a show in which they take the local Rhesus Macaque monkeys and put them in a circus performance which should be shut down!!!

Across from our beautiful hotel was an old abandoned what could be farmhouse and hotel. The photographer in me loved this place as I love all abandoned places for the eerie post apocalyptic feel to it. It seems just over night that people got up and left this place and the earth does what it does best, and that is retake the land….

Finally, on the way back to Shanghai, in parts unknown in the mountains, we stopped by the Chang Yuan Temple, which is one of the most serene temples I have been to in China. Unfortunately the Pagoda was closed to the public but there are still many good places to walk around there as well as some great scenery and birds. I even saw a Kingfisher which I have yet to witness in China. The whole temple was breathtaking and not over populated with people…

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Before we get to the 1933 Slaughterhouse, the walk from the metro is amazing!!!! You go through a lovely little neighborhood that is remnants of what Shanghai used to be in times past……these neighborhoods unfortunately are disappearing at a rapid rate with the gentrification and modernization of Shanghai:

<p> </p> <p>The 1933 Slaughterhouse was built in pre-Communist China and has a mysterious look to it, as it is in the Gotham-Deco design of concrete with glass and steel.  Certain sources say this is quite possibly the last kind of this structure in the entire world.  It has been used for different things since then and just recently has been opened up to the public.</p> <p>Back in the day it was used to herd cattle to their death and slaughter them, but now it is used for Ferrari owners to meet as well as different shops and businesses.  With the walls being 50 cm thick, and hollow, this helped control the air temperature in a humid Shanghai.</p> <p>The staircases are of a spiderweb design that are intertwining and the air bridges controlled the flow of the animals being sent to their death.  It has decorative elements including a central atrium which let an amount of light in which makes for great photography.  If you don’t believe me, then look at the pictures below.  But beware if you go, watch out for the people trying to get their perfect self gratifying selfie shot that stand in the same position for a long time…</p> <p> </p>

Yu Gardens was built in the 1500’s by the Ming Dynasty. Located in the central part of Shanghai, it is one of the major tourist attractions in the city, with people lined up early to get a glimpse of this beautiful place.

Being about 5 acres big, you will need a couple of hours to go through here to enjoy the beauty it has to offer. It has different halls you can go in (some accessible, others not so) and has many different ponds with Koi in the pond as well as turtles. The architectures is amazing as there is small portals that you can get great photographs in of people moving around to see the splendor.

This is a great place to go (although sometimes very busy) as it is located in the middle of the tourist market of Shanghai. I would totally recommend on a visit to Shanghai for people to take an afternoon out (when its sunny) to enjoy this place. I believe the photos will speak for themselves….

You will notice from the pictures the beautiful architecture and how it changes from one area to another….

As the sun was finally out in Shanghai, I took this opportunity to get some great shadow shots of people in various positions around the Gardens, especially a portal where the sun was peaking out at the right time…