SO I spent a total of 8 days in the lush city of Shanghai performing at the Majestic Theatre. This was the first week in a while where we had a solid schedule of shows, so seeing the city was a little difficult, but lucky for us, it's not a "sightseeing" kind of place, it's more about the culture and living in the day to day lifestyle. I must say, not running around trying to jump from temple to temple and tomb to tomb was quite refreshing. There was an H&M which brought me to my happy place and also there was a decent bar scene/going out kind of life. The major attraction of the city is what is known as the "Bund." It's the river walk that butts up against the amazing skyline that Shanghai is famous for. The picture of the needle (which is a TV station referred to as a "cult") is what really draws people and causes me to think i should be seeing the castle from the magic kingdon pop up at anytime. It is tomorrowland. It's suuuuper tacky and pink in the daytime but glows to an even tackier purple sparkly thing at night. I loved it.
The highlight of the week (besides doing 8 consecutive shows) was when we all trekked out to a jazz club. With our show, we have a Ukranian orchestra who were some of the most amazing musicians I had ever met, and on Sundays (the night we went) you were able to share and express your individual talents on stage at this particular jazz club, and they did just that. Our musical director free styled on the piano, our drummer did the same on the set, and the Ukranians busted out the trupet, trombone and some serious dance moves. It was brilliant. One of my favorite parts about my last tour in the US was when we would find live music (highlight of which was in Memphis and Nashville) and this just made me the happiest person in China. There's something about live music that jsut makes your blood pump faster. Also, the real band slated to play that night finished off the evening with the blues, so the night couldn't have ended on a better note. ..no pun intended.
Truly, Shanghai was a breath of fresh air from the rest of the mainland. If you sat in the right cafe, at the right time of day, on the correct street and closed your eyes (bare with me) you could forget you were in China altogether. Not that i was desperate to leave, but for even one moment, it was nice to be someplace else.
cheers
The highlight of the week (besides doing 8 consecutive shows) was when we all trekked out to a jazz club. With our show, we have a Ukranian orchestra who were some of the most amazing musicians I had ever met, and on Sundays (the night we went) you were able to share and express your individual talents on stage at this particular jazz club, and they did just that. Our musical director free styled on the piano, our drummer did the same on the set, and the Ukranians busted out the trupet, trombone and some serious dance moves. It was brilliant. One of my favorite parts about my last tour in the US was when we would find live music (highlight of which was in Memphis and Nashville) and this just made me the happiest person in China. There's something about live music that jsut makes your blood pump faster. Also, the real band slated to play that night finished off the evening with the blues, so the night couldn't have ended on a better note. ..no pun intended.
Truly, Shanghai was a breath of fresh air from the rest of the mainland. If you sat in the right cafe, at the right time of day, on the correct street and closed your eyes (bare with me) you could forget you were in China altogether. Not that i was desperate to leave, but for even one moment, it was nice to be someplace else.
cheers
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