>> The monorail from Shanghai airport to the city looked worth the ride &
>> is probably a lot quicker than by car. The city itself is supposed to
>> be well worth a visit but I didn't manage it - I was stuck in the
>> outer suburbs for a week with a problem to fix.
>>
>>
> Yeah, about (atleast) 300km/h faster.
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanghai_Maglev_Train

For all of 5 mins, yes.  The Maglev is certainly worth riding, but it
spends half the time accelerating to 400km/h before almost immediately
slowing to stop!  The terminal is in the middle of nowhere (ok, Pudong),
but if you're not staying near there it can be a problem since there
aren't a lot of taxis at the Maglev station.  There is a metro (subway)
station at the Maglev terminus, and it's easy for even a non-Chinese
speaker like me to buy a ticket from the English-friendly machines, but
forget it if it's rush hour and you have luggage - the Metro is packed! 
Mind you, it beats the crazy taxi ride from the airport - I generally sit
there white-knuckled as the driver weaves in and out of traffic at twice
the speed limit...

As for what to see in Shanghai, it's not much of a tourist town, so
there's not a lot, really.  Going to the Bund at night, to see Pudong lit
up across the river, is a must-do.  Women seem to enjoy the shopping, but
it seems to be all fashion, so boring!  And there's always $1 DVDs to be
had, plus "Rolex" salesmen, "Art students", "English students" etc. trying
to extract money from you in various ways, especially along Nanjing Road. 
If you like museums, the Shanghai museum is well worth a look.  The Yu
garden is nice, as is the area around there with market stalls and such. 
But Shanghai is clearly a place for doing business in, not seeing
sights...


 - David



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