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(Zhonggong Yidahuizhi Jinianguan; Xintiandi North Block, 76 Xingye Rd; 76 9am-5pm; South Huangpi Rd, Xintiandi) On 23 July 1921 the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was founded in this French Concession building (then 106 rue Wantz), and in one fell swoop converted this unassuming shikumen block into one of Chinese communism’s holiest shrines.

The dizzying Marxist spin of the museum commentary is a salutary reminder that Shanghai remains part of the world’s largest communist nation. The certainties of that era – whether you sympathise with Maliezhuyi (Marxist-Leninism) or not – exude a nostalgic appeal in today’s Shanghai, where ideology of any shade is fervently shunned. Beyond the communist narcissism, there’s little to see, although historians will enjoy ruminating on the site’s historic momentousness.

On the ground floor you can be present in the room where the whole party began, actually the house of the delegate Li Hanjun. Up the marble stairs in the ‘Exhibition of Historical Relics Showing the Founding of the Communist Party of China’ is a highly patriotic hymn to early Chinese communist history with exhibits such as the Chinese translation of Mary E Marcy’s The ABC of Das Kapital by Marx.

A passport is required for entry; last admission is at 4pm.

Neighbourhood Walk: French Concession Stroll

Start Xintiandi metro station

End Cathay Theatre

Distance 2.5km

Duration 75 minutes

Begin walking west on Middle Fuxing Rd (formerly rue Lafayette), first passing the red-brick Italianate All Saint’s Church (1925) and then the Park Apartments (1926) and smaller private villas fronted by palm trees, which date to the same era. On the northern side of Middle Fuxing Rd at No 512 is the Former Residence of Liu Haisu (1896–1994), a 20th-century artist who revolutionised traditional Chinese art by introducing Western painting styles. Opposite, at the corner with South Chongqing Rd, is the Dubail Apartment Building (1931), the one-time home of US journalist and communist sympathiser Agnes Smedley (1892–1950). Smedley reported extensively on the Chinese civil war in the ’30s; her return to the US the following decade was marred by accusations of her being a Soviet spy.

Turn into Sinan Mansions, a complex of luxurious 1920s private villas that were built south of French Park (now Fuxing Park) and recently renovated as an upscale lifestyle destination; today it houses numerous cafes and restaurants, as well as ultra-exclusive short-term residences to the south. Exit on Sinan Rd (route Massenet) and turn south to see Zhou Enlai’s Former Residence, which served primarily as the Communist Party’s Shanghai office. Retrace your footsteps and return north up leafy Sinan Rd and its lovely stretch of old villas to reach Sun Yatsen’s Former Residence, where the father of modern China lived from 1918 to 1924. On Gaolan Rd (route Cohen) is the Russian Orthodox St Nicholas Church, built in 1934 in dedication to the murdered tsar of Russia.

Continue on to Nanchang Road (rue Vallon), a shopping strip where you’ll find boutiques selling jewellery, shoes, antiques and clothing. Turn onto Maoming Road (route Cardinal Mercier), another shopping hotspot that specialises in qipao (figure-hugging dresses) and other Chinese-style clothes. Across busy Huaihai Rd is the landmark art-deco Cathay Theatre (1932).

Sun Yatsen’s Former Residence Historic Building

Дата добавления: 2015-11-14