It is important to learn from history, to examine the past in a bid to better the future. The same can be said for cities and their urban history. Our cities tell a story of many lifetimes and generations, lasting far longer than you and me, and with it leave important lessons for us to learn from. A recent trip to China once again highlighted the importance of history in my eyes and I will attempt to convey it to you through a comparison between two, ever growing, ever evolving world cities: Shanghai and Beijing. These cities present different narratives, one being a lot longer and richer than the other, and can be experienced through the urban form.
We’ll start with Shanghai, the highest populated city proper. Its history is somewhat different to that of Beijing, with the Shanghai we know only having popped up over the last century. The story of Shanghai isn’t romantic, originally born out of the Opium War the city went on to offer glamour and indulgences like no other Chinese cities before becoming plagued by communism and the repression it brought. Today, Shanghai couldn’t feel more western. It’s crawling with monotonous skyscrapers, towering over you at every opportunity.
Like most cities, high-rise buildings are a fairly new addition. Often forced by high land prices, and in Shanghai there is no escaping them. High-rise buildings are incredible, they tell a story of the 21st century and can be considered such an achievement in architecture, construction and human ambition. The buildings in Pu Dong are perfect examples of this. However, many are drab, repeated and even empty. Their omnipresence all over the city makes it hard to see anything else and perhaps tells a story we don’t want to know.
Hidden amongst the towers, there are some great places. One of my personal highlights in Shanghai was Tianzifang, a place which survived wide scale demolition but only just. Tianzifang is a maze of nearly two hundred small shops and local businesses and an intimate pedestrian environment, which is difficult to find in the city. In 2006, it was readied for demolition to make way for redevelopment, in keeping with Shanghai’s obvious development over conservation policies. However, a local group of artists opposed this and submitted proposals to maintain the historic architecture and character of the area. Tianzifang still exists today and is now a popular destination for tourists and residents alike. It made me wonder how many other places weren’t as lucky to have active, strong community members and were therefore lost forever. This place shows a different side to Shanghai, the winding paths and low hanging cables take you away from the urban metropolis.
Beijing, the Chinese capital, is a city steeped in history. Born over 3,000 years ago, the city tells a story of the nation’s past from the first emperor, through many dynasties to the Olympic Games in 2008. Like Shanghai it’s also home to over 20 million people and the many problems that brings, namely pollution and heavy traffic (never get a taxi in Beijing). However, the history of the city enabled me to see past the mass urbanisation and explore what I’d consider proper Chinese culture, as opposed to the mechanical feeling I got from Shanghai where capital gain seems to allude any sense of pride for the city. You’d expect a city as old as Beijing to have many historic assets, and it delivers: Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Summer Palace and Temple of Heaven just to name a few. All brilliantly preserved as they deserve to be. However, my highlight of Beijing wasn’t one of the six UNESCO world heritage sites that find home in the city.
My highlight was exploring the hutong, defined as a narrow lane or alleyway in a traditional residential area of a Chinese city. We stumbled into it by accident and spent hours exploring alleyway after alleyway, shop after shop, bar after bar. On one evening the particular hutong we found was full of people and the atmosphere was electric. The intimate surroundings created a buzz I hadn’t yet felt in China. The crowds were nothing new, but the setting allowed my mind to imagine old Beijing and the many people that had lived in these streets long before our time.
Over the last few years at university my love for cities has grown exponentially. Visiting Shanghai was an exciting prospect given its size and stature within urban hierarchies. I had an amazing few weeks there. I experienced rush hour (by accident) and spent what felt like hours in taxis, but also marvelled at the remarkable feat of architecture and engineering on every corner and the sheer size of the place. However, Beijing for me felt so much more complete. Since returning home, I’ve pondered on my experience in China and can now conclude that history is the difference, and more importantly preservation of history within cities. Newer cities as generic as Shanghai can only offer so much, you can’t make up history but you can preserve what you have.
The historic landmarks in Beijing are fantastic, they will hopefully always exist and be maintained to the standard they deserve, but it’s the overall feel of the city that makes it a better city, and the historic character is something that can fall victim to economic gain. If cities are considered epicentres of human achievement, shown through the phallic symbols that are high-rise buildings, then Shanghai has to be one of the greatest. However, we should question progress and growth if it means losing the essence of how we got there in the first place. Cities never really die, Beijing is a fine example of this, the stories live on forever and are told through what generations leave behind. We are currently writing the chapter of the 21st century and at the minute, I think we must question whether or not we are proud of what we’ve written.
