Lalique glasses, started by the French glass designer René Lalique, was very popular in the 20th century. The fashion spread from Europe to the world, and to Shanghai's Cathay Hotel (now the Fairmont Peace Hotel). The owner Victor Sassoon ordered lalique art pieces for his luxury hotel on the bund and opened a lalique shop inside the hotel. Today on the 9th floor of the Peace Hotel, you can still find the original lalique glasses from 1920s.

Today is May the 5th in lunar calendar, the Dragon Boat Festival in China (Duan wu jie). Tradition has it to eat Zongzi and race the dragon boats. Zongzi is sticky rice wrapped in leaves. The stuffing inside the sticky rice varies among pork, ham, yolk, red beans, red dates, chestnuts, etc. Dragon boat racings are held in many cities of China this year. Both are said to memorize the great poet Qu Yuan. He drowned himself in the Miluo River. To avoid his body eaten by fish, local people dropped Zongzi into the river to feed fish and ride the dragon boats to scare fish away from the poet.

Many people go to parks in Shanghai for exercise. One popular exercise among seniors is Che Ling (spin the bell). Other names refer to the same game can be Kong Zhu (hollow bamboo, as the tool was initially made from bamboo material) or Chinese Yo-yo (though often played with two hands instead of one hand). The simplest way is to balance the bell (yo-yo) on the string. The skilled players are able to play a lot of tricks, throwing, twisting, jumping, or even handling multi bells.

Shanghai Museum is holding an interesting exhibition of Chinese Bamboo carving art. Bamboo is appreciated by many scholars and poets in Chinese history. The plant grows up to the sky without bending, which is like the upright spirit a gentleman needs to have. The hollow-heart represents the modesty and open-heartedness of people.

The exhibition shows various kinds of bamboo carving works, fan bones, brush holder, ornaments, etc. There is also a short documentary explaining Chinese carving skills and how to find a fit bamboo piece for the carving. The exhibition is located in the peoples square and will last for another month till July 1st.