We thought we had seen the best of the fireworks on the Eve of the New Year. Well...... tonight was just as spectacular as the first night. I woke up at about 11:15pm to a bunch of firecrackers and flashing lights. I thought it would stop in a few minutes and I could go back to sleep......no chance of that. The rumble just got louder and louder until I gave up and got up. From our window I could see fireworks all other the city and as far in the distance (way past the third bridge) as we can see. It is a very clear night so the visibility is amazing. By this time no one was sleeping so Tim and Abi joined me in the living room. The fireworks continued to increase in numbers and volume right up to midnight. Unbelievable is the only word that I can come up with to describe the night sky.

The fireworks have died down now but continue to be very noisy. They really like firecrackers in Shanghai. I am going back to bed now and I hope to get a little bit of sleep. We are off on another adventure tomorrow (or should I say today) and we are leaving at 8:00am. We are going to Hangzhou (pronounced Hong Joe) which is a small city about 2.5 hours from Shanghai. It is best known for the lake that is just outside the city and is supposed to be very beautiful. It will be nice to get out of the city. More on that tomorrow........ Good night