Shanghai Old Street
Known as Fangbang Road, Shanghai Old Street has a total length of 825 meters, and is adjacent to the Yuyuan Garden Bazaar Area and runs in an east-west direction from Zhonghua Road to Henan Road South, with both ends marked by decorated archways.
When you step in Shanghai Old Street, you will feel you just going back to the old Shanghai 100 years ago. This Yuyuan Garden business street has its special style. It includes Shanghai-style shopping, entertainment and Chinese culture. This old street includes the old days' native bank, silverware shop, Chinese pub, teahouse, theater and store. This special geography location and the Chinese culture along this street make it full of cultural meaning.
The street can be divided into the eastern and western sections. The eastern section keeps the characteristics of residences in the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican day. The houses on both sides of the street are fitted with checkered windows, shop-fronts of wooden boards, balustrades and swing doors, roofs with upturned eaves and protruding corners, laced drain-pipes and horse-shape wall tops. The western section is filled with Ming and Qing style architectures, with black tiles and white-washed walls, red columns and upturned eaves, showcasing styles of old Shanghai. The western section has a number of antique & curio shops as well as restaurants and teahouses, and the eastern section has a variety of shops including florists, shoe and clothing retailers, noodle restaurants and specialty dealers selling Chinese tea and snacks such as live Fragrance Beans.
There in the street you will find hundred-year old stores, Tonghanchun, Laotongsheng, Wuliangcai, Wanyouquan, Qiu Tianbao, Old Shanghai Tea House, Deshun Western Food Restaurant, Chunfeng Deyi Restaurant, Chunfeng Deyi Restaurant, Xishi Soya Beancurd Store, Dingniangzi Cloth Store, Rongshun Restaurant and Baoyintang. There are also newly opened Danfeng Tea House, Clinic of renowned traditional Chinese medical doctors and others of traditional characteristics.
This old street showed us that the old Shanghai's development from Qing Dynasty up to 1949. The main businesse in this street is the traditional industries. They show folk-custom culture distinction, and construct the old Shanghai style culture. Shanghai Old Street is an ideal place to explore the Old Shanghai, and look back to the old days. When having a shanghai tour, you may not miss the special Shanghai Old Street, which will make your China tour more delight.
