Shanghai, Nanjing Road and Pudong
The "Treaty Ports" was the name given to the port cities in China, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea that were opened to foreign trade by the "unequal treaties" with the Western powers.
An unequal treaty is any of a series of treaties signed with Western powers (England, Germany, French and Russia) during the 19th and early 20th centuries by China after suffering military defeat by the foreign powers or when there was a threat of military action by those powers. The British established the first treaty ports in Shanghai, Canton, Ningpo, Fuchow, and Amoy at the conclusion of the First Opium War by the Treaty of Nanking in 1842.
Nanjing Road (南京路), in Shanghai was first the British Concession, then the International Settlement. Importing large quantities of foreign goods, it became the earliest shopping street of the city.
Nanjing Road, starts at the Bund (外滩 the waterfront area in central Shanghai.) in the east and ends in the west at the junction of Jing'an Temple (静安寺) and Yan'an West Street (延安路).
In 2000, as a part of the development plan held by the local government, Nanjing Road was renovated to be a pedestrian street.
It was in the past traditionally the hub of European-style restaurants and cafes, although in recent years the demographics of visitors to Nanjing Road have shifted from affluent local residents to visitors from around the country.
Even if Nanjing Road, the Bund and Pudong are still probably the most visited Shanghai's areas by western people, is now mainly the destination of Chinese people coming from other cities or countryside. It is the 'Selfie' place for antonomasia, you'll find hordes of Chinese costantly photographing himself.
Pudong (浦東新区) is a district of Shanghai, located east of the Huangpu River (黄浦江) across from the historic city center of Shanghai in Puxi.
Pudong—literally "The East Bank of the Huangpu River"—originally referred only to the less-developed land across from Shanghai's Old City and foreign concessions.
In 1993, the Chinese government set up a Special Economic Zone in Chuansha, creating the Pudong New Area.
In 2010, Pudong was host to the main venues of the Shanghai Expo and this gave the final impulse for the area transformation from a poor suburb to one of the most futuristic place in the globe.
The most part of all the large popular neighbourhoods are now completely vanished and Pudong became a vast land populated by high-rise dwellings and anonymous, huge roads.
The Nanjing Road and Pudong current "Chinese" opulence, represent the revenge on the treaty ports and the pride of the Asian Tiger, ready to compete and win against their ancient colonizers.
