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Surveying Shanghai from the Sky

Next experience you must try is view shanghai panorama from Oriental Pearl Tower or Jin Mao Tower.

The Oriental Pearl Tower
(Chinese: 东方明珠塔; pinyin: Dōngfāng Míngzhūtǎ, Official Name: 东方明珠电视塔) is a TV tower in Shanghai, China. The Oriental Pearl Tower is located at the tip of Lujiazui in the Pudong district, by the side of Huangpu River, opposite The Bund of Shanghai.



It was designed by Jia Huan Cheng of the Shanghai Modern Architectural Design Co. Ltd. Construction began in 1991 and the tower was completed in 1995. At 468 m (1,535 feet) high, it is the tallest completed tower in Asia, and the third tallest tower in the world after the CN Tower and the Ostankino Tower. The Oriental Pearl Tower belongs to the World Federation of Great Towers.

Chinese symbolism in the design
The design of the building is based on a verse of the Tang Dynasty poem Pipa Song by Bai Juyi about the wonderful sprinkling sound of a pipa instrument, like pearls, big and small falling on a jade plate (大珠小珠落玉盘/大珠小珠落玉盤/dà zhū xiǎo zhū luò yù pán).

Seen from afar, the Yangpu Bridge (杨浦大桥 Yángpǔ dàqiáo) and the Nanpu bridge (南浦大桥 Nánpǔ dàqiáo) seem like two Chinese dragons frolicking with the pearls of the Oriental Pearl tower.


The Jin Mao Tower
(simplified Chinese: 金茂大厦; traditional Chinese: 金茂大廈; pinyin: Jīn Mào Dàshà; literally "Golden Prosperity Building") is an 88-story landmark supertall skyscraper in the Lujiazui area of the Pudong district of Shanghai, People's Republic of China. It contains offices and the Shanghai Grand Hyatt hotel. Until 2007 it was the tallest building in the PRC, the fifth tallest in the world by roof height and the seventh tallest by pinnacle height. Along with the Oriental Pearl Tower, it is a centerpiece of the Pudong skyline. It was surpassed on September 14, 2007 by the Shanghai World Financial Center.

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