The Bund got its name from a desolate beach outside the old Shanghai City. If you have never been to the Bund, then you have never been to Shanghai. The Bund symbolizes Shanghai and Bund is an epitome of Shanghai's history.
Tracing back, from the Opium War broke out in 1840 to the 1930's, many foreign businesses snatched the prime area in Shanghai, to establish concessions, banks, headquarters, consul houses and so on. Hence,Shanghai, a small seaside town one hundred years ago, became the largest city in Asia. It also earned the reputation of "The Oriental Wall Street". Even today, visitors can still feel the prosperity of the old Shanghai, when looking at those old buildings.

The east side of the Bund is right next to the Huangpu River. To the west of the Bund, there are group of 52 buildings standing in various styles, Gothic, Baroque, Rome, Renaissance, Classic and the combination of Eastern and Western style. Although these buildings were completed at different time and were in different styles, the main elements of these buildings were fairly unified and the overall outline is well coordinated.

Walking on the Zhongshan East Road, you will experience a kind of vigorous, forceful and solemn momentum. Some say actually that the Bund is like "an exhibition of buildings".
If the building zone on the Bund were a gallery, the rest of the Bund would be a showroom. When the sun rises in the east, the Bund is a place where people do exercises. In daytime, this building complex, blended with the beautiful scenery of the Huangpu River and the Pudong area, this scenic spot is tourists' favorate. When evening comes, city lights coats the Bund with brilliant colors, which makes the Bund particularly beautiful. Old buildings by the river echo with the new scenic spots the Oriental Pearl TV Tower and the Jinmao mansion, that this spectacular scenery often amazes many tourists.


The Dongfeng Restaurant was a famous meeting place for British. This building was a typical old British style classic structure, it has in total six levels. There were two watch towers on top, interior was magnificently decorated. There was a spacious bar on the ground floor, a 110.7-feet-long bar counter, longest of its kind in Asia at that time, which made this bar extremely popular. You can imagine the scene that the richest businessmen gathered here for social engagement.

The No. 12 of the Bund is also No. 12 of the Zhongshan Road East. The former famous Huifeng Bank was located here. Constructed in 1923, this square-shaped five-storage building, come with a round roof, in the style of ancient Greek, and a hemisphere-shaped top. The steel-framed building were exquisitely decorated. The building were equipped with the specially decorated reception halls. The British builder took great pride in this marvelous building. They rated this structure as "from east of the Suez Canal to Baling Strait in the west, this is the most exquisite building".


Adjacent to the Huifeng Bank building is the Customs Building of Shanghai. It was built in 1927. The classic building in the style of the 19th century is rare in the world. The huge clock on the building could had been seen from all sides. The melodious sound of the clock could been heard from several miles away. Its time synchronizes with Beijing Time perfectly.
The two buildings at the end of Nanjing Road East belong to the well-known Peace Hotel, built in 1906, and initially named Huizhong Hotel. In the style of European Renaissance, it is the oldest hotel in Shanghai. The building looks solemn, elegant, and unique from distance. It really is an architectural masterpiece.

The Shaxun Mansion was built in 1928. This steeled-framed "A" shape building is in typical Chicago Architectural style. The famous 19-meter-high pyramid on the top of the building are made from oblique tile, which was made of purple copper. The owner of Shaxun Mansion used it to show off his wealth. Various ornaments and furniture from nine different countries were used to decorate the mansion. It became a post where adventurers from all over the world gathered. It was also travelers' first choice to spend their night. Those who had stayed here said that its atmosphere and liveliness were unforgettable.