All shapes and sizes

LOCALS and foreign visitors alike enjoy a stroll along the Bund, the famous embankment along the Huangpu river in Shanghai. With performers, pedlars, couples and families all milling around, the waterfront has a carnival-like atmosphere. Behind it, a string of historic buildings—from the old Peace Hotel to a granite dome that used to house the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank—recall the Bund's glory days as the Wall Street of China.

But today the real attraction is on the opposite bank of the Huangpu, where the Pudong financial district is sprouting new skyscrapers at a remarkable pace, most of them the work of well-known architects from around the world. The 88-storey Jin Mao tower, currently the tallest in China, houses a spectacular Grand Hyatt hotel as well as the offices of international firms ranging from Société Générale to Aon. Next year it will be overtaken by the Shanghai World Financial Centre. Nearby the Oriental Pearl Tower sports futuristic pink bulbs that form a favourite backdrop for holiday snaps. As the skyscrapers rise in Pudong, the luxury-goods shops in the upmarket quarters of the city do steady business, and old buildings along the Bund are getting new leases on life as smart restaurants and bars.

Economist, UK