Summer is almost upon us. Bars are opening their terraces, the trees are coming into leaf, and there’s a definite humidity creeping into the air. Late spring in Shanghai is one of the best seasons, with clement weather and warm evenings. Luckily there’s plenty happening over the next couple of weeks so you can make the most of it. Here’s a round-up of what’s been going on in the city and what’s forecast to take place soon.

1) The Arts…

World Music Shanghai Festival

If you’re tired of the usual punk rock offerings that characterize Shanghai’s live music scene, you’ll probably like the sound of the World Shanghai Music Festival that’s happening from May 21st until May 25th at venues around town. The highlight will be two days of performances in Zhongshan Park on the 21st and 22nd, with music from the Gotan Project, Hanggai, Gong Linna, Amadou & Mariam, and many more international acts. Things kick off at 2pm on both days, and tickets are 280 RMB per day. Visit www.worldmusicshanghai.com for more info.

Laura Fygi & The JZ All-Star Big Band

Dutch jazz artiste Laura Fygi is coming to JZ Club to start her tour of China. She’ll be singing for two nights on May 26th and 27th with the JZ All-Star Big Band conducted by Nicholas Bouloukos. Tickets 300 RMB.

2) The Need for Speed…

Speedy

The Shanghai to Beijing high-speed train was put on a trial run on May 11th, starting a month long test from Hongqiao Railway Station’s new facility. Nine empty trains set off at 8:45am, and reached the capital in 4 hours 48 minutes with a single stop. This bodes well for future jaunts up to Beijing. It definitely beats the current 10 to 12 hours. Even in soft-sleeper that can get tedious. Read more info here.

3) New Openings…

Gluttony

Just when you thought there was no room on the Bund for another chic new development, Bund 22 comes and proves you wrong. The building of the former Butterfield & Swire shipping headquarters was used as a pencil factory when the Communists came to power, but now Capitalism is the name of the game. Luxury brands will be moving in, along with a slew of F&B venues. For starters, there’s going to be a cocktail lounge called Zeal, and a German-style pub called Brix. Both venues are set to open towards the end of May, and there are rumours that El Willy might be leasing some space there too.

Mo’ Laks

Need more laksa? Satisfy your need for Malaysian soup noodles at the newly opened Mo’ Laksa at 208 Xinle Lu. The charmingly named Tivoli by Palmiro Petrini has recently opened at 889 Nanjing Xi Lu for top-end Italian cuisine. The bar formerly known as Cuvee at 528 Kangding Lu has reopened as a cozy Aussie beer den named Shed, where the beer is cheap and the Guinness is plentiful. Another switch over has happened over at the Shanghai Centre, with CVRVE (pronounced ‘curve’, in case you weren’t sure…) replacing the Long Bar. Across town, the crazy Serbian manager of Exit has closed the doors of his second project Belvedere, and turned his attentions to the Rabbit Hole, his new bar at 408 Shaanxi Bei Lu. Another new addition to the bar scene is Inferno at 480 Yongjia Lu, where rock and roll is the order of the evening.

Technology
On April 28th, Apple launched the white iPhone 4 in China, almost a year after it went on sale in other countries. As usual, massive queues gathered outside the Apple shop (do people have nothing better to do?), but that was nothing compared to the scenes of carnage up in Beijing when the iPad 2 was launched. Thankfully there were no fights here in Shanghai. Want to get your hands on one? The iPad 2 with Wi-fi is selling for 3,688 RMB (16GB), 4,488 RMB (32GB) and 5,288 RMB (64GB). You’ll have to wait a bit longer for the 3G model though.

4) Departures…

Wifi seekers in northern Jing’an will have to settle for Wagas after Boxha on Changhua Lu closed its doors. For hardcore Boxha lovers, there’s still the original branch on Fuxing Xi Lu below Tara57. Shanghai also called time on Indian restaurant Chor Bazaar in Hongqiao.

On a sad note, Julien Stelmach, manager of the hugely successful Rhumerie Bounty franchise, passed away earlier in May. He will be very much missed.

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Keywords: World Music Festival Shanghai High Speed Rail Beijing Shanghai white iPhone 4 China Shanghai watchdog May