Shanghai, China (photo)

The Bund promenade, Shanghai, China. China Shanghai Tourist Shanghai Skyline viewed over the Huangpu river from the Bund. Bin Jiang Avenue, The Bund, Shanghai, China. The highlights of the Bund are undoubtedly the colonial-era buildings lining the west side of Zhongshan Dong Yi Lu, standouts of which include the former British Consulate, Customs House, former Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank, former Shanghai Club (now the Waldorf Astoria Hotel), and the Peace Hotel. For more details on these buildings, many of which have been skillfully restored, and a more complete walking guide to this gallery of European architecture. Besides its landmark colonial architecture, however, the Bund has a few other small attractions. On its north end, the rehabilitated Suzhou Creek enters the Huangpu River beneath the 18m-wide (59-ft.) iron Waibaidu Bridge, built in 1906 to replace the original wooden toll bridge constructed in 1856 by an English businessman. The bridge was most recently restored in 2009. On the river shore stands a granite obelisk, Monument to the People's Heroes, erected in 1993, and dedicated to Chinese patriots (as defined by the Communist Party) beginning in the 1840s. The Bund History Museum (9am-4:15pm; free admission), which contains a few artifacts and some interesting photographs of the Bund, stands at its base; however, at press time, the museum was closed for renovation. Just south of the monument used to be the park Huangpu Gongyuan, originally the British Public Gardens built in 1868. In the early days, only Chinese servants accompanying their foreign masters were allowed to enter the park. Dogs were also prohibited, leading in later years to the apocryphal NO CHINESE OR DOGS ALLOWED sign being attributed to the park. The park was eventually opened to Chinese in 1926, but today, has simply become part of the Bund promenade with the recent renovations. South of here, across from the Peace Hotel, is the entrance to the pedestrian Bund Sightseeing Tunnel (Wait