When I studied abroad in Shanghai in the Fall of 2007, there were 4 subway lines. Now, there are 12. That’s really impressive when you compare it to the construction of the 2nd Ave subway in New York.
(Courtesy of www.exploreshanghai.com, which has possibly the best Shanghai metro map, guide, iPhone/iPod app)
The subway system in Shanghai is, although easily overcrowded at times, incredibly efficient and reliable. Huge TV screens at each platform count down to the arrival of the next train, while little TV’s within the subway cars repeatedly broadcast Chinese news. One thing that you’d have to mentally prepare yourself for, though, is the motto of “先上後下“ xian shang hou xia (first on, then off). Especially during rush hours, passengers tend to push themselves onto the train before letting other passengers off. This is the time when you need to barrel yourself out. A good technique is to position yourself behind a tall, wide-shouldered friend who’s willing to use their shoulders and elbows to create a flow through the stampede!
There’s a new Line 10 subway stop close to my work that opened up pretty recently, so one Monday afternoon after my shift, I thought that I’d check it out on the way to my friend’s house. I don’t have the strongest sense of direction, so my little excursion turned into an epic subway adventure.
Sadly, it took me 20 minutes just to find this brand new entrance to the Line 10 Yili Road Station.
This subway directly reaches Xintiandi!
The “new car smell” pervades. At Hongqiao road, I switched over to the Line 4 Metro. This runs mostly above ground, in a circle around Shanghai.
The walk from Line 10 to Line 4 took about 5 minutes (or was it my short legs?). After one stop on the Line 4, I hopped on over to the (relatively new) Line 9. Now, this walk was both confusing and long. You have to swipe out of the station and follow the signs to another nearby entrance for Line 9. I’d say it’s a good 10 minute workout.
Very few people like to use the stairs, despite the long wait for the escalators.
Running onto the especially narrow subway cars of Line 6. The transfer between Line 9 and Line 6 is an easy walk up one flight of stairs.
After 3 transfers and 1 hour and 15 minutes of travelling cross-city, I was completely, utterly exhausted. That’s when I found out that I could’ve easily taken two other routes, both with just one transfer and minimal walking.
But let’s not talk about that.
I will just content myself with my reward at Johanna’s house of homemade dumplings, eggplant, kung pao chicken and sauteed green beans. YUM!! It made the whole trip completely worth it.
