Shanghai Science and Technology Museum

Shanghai Science and Technology Museum Station on metro Line 2 offers a wide selection of recreational facilities to residents, commuters and tourists. Photos: Zhu Jialei/GT

A sculpture outside the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum

Located at the southeastern end of Century Avenue in Pudong New Area, Shanghai Science and Technology Museum Station on metro Line 2 is close to the nearby Huamu community, offering a wide selection of recreational facilities to residents, commuters and tourists.

For newcomers in town, the labyrinthine station can be a real maze. The station goes through a two-deck ring-shaped structure that features an aboveground square and an underground market.

Named Century Square, the 250,000-square-meter open space was built in 1995 and is now a popular playground for local skaters, featuring sculptures, bridges and fountains.

Shanghai Science and Technology Museum Station lives up to its reputation as one of the most kid-friendly areas in town. In addition to housing the city's largest science museum, the sprawling green oasis of Century Park is a short walk away, and it sits a block away from the Shanghai Oriental Art Center.

Here are some of the sites worth a visit during the upcoming holidays.

Scientific attractions

Covering a space of 98,000 square meters, Shanghai Science and Technology Museum offers 11 themed exhibition halls, including the Cradle of Designers, the Secrets of Earth's Crust and Children's Rainbow Land.

The newly opened IMAX cinema inside the museum that screens scientific documentaries and movies every day is the most popular section among kids and their parents. The movies currently showing are a 3D version of Rescue, a 45-minute documentary about the grueling and highly technical work of saving lives in the face of a natural disaster, and Wired to Win: Surviving the Tour de France, an inspirational story that explores the ability of the human brain to overcome adversity and accomplish the near-impossible in life.

An ongoing exhibition that highlights the programs in the museum is Leonardo da Vinci's Mechanical Inventions and Robots Exhibition: Dreaming with the Master, showcasing more than 120 exhibits. On display are replicas of 11 master pieces and four manuscripts by da Vinci, and over 80 mechanical and robot models.

Address: 2000 Century Avenue

Opening hours: 9 am to 5:15 pm (closed on Mondays except for national holidays)

Tickets: 60 yuan per adult and 30 yuan per student

Call 6862-2000 for details

Outdoor joys

Century Park is the largest public green space in downtown Shanghai covering more than 1.4 million square meters, featuring grassy lawns, small woods and man-made lakes. It is a perfect outdoor spot to breathe fresh air, go picnicking or just get close to nature. To celebrate the week-long National Holiday, a three-day fireworks festival will be held. The annual Shanghai International Music Fireworks Festival will take place at Century Park on the nights of September 30, October 3 and October 6. The tickets start from 70 yuan ($11.44) and can be booked by calling 6213-2377.

Address: 1001 Jinxiu Road

Opening hours: 7 am to 6 pm

Tickets: 10 yuan per person

Call 3876-0588 for details

Budget shopping

Designed to replace the now defunct Xiangyang Market, the underground A.P. Plaza is famous among Shanghai's expats. The plaza, which is separated into two parts on either side of the station, offers traditional Chinese products of silk, pearls and embroideries.

Expats won't be surprised when shop owners try to attract business by speaking broken English, Japanese and Korean. Though the local government has tried to crack down on the selling of fake products inside the market, shanzhai (the Chinese term for fake) handbags, scarves and T-shirts are still the dominant products available.

Be prepared to leave the market with a black plastic bag full of cheap "luxury" goods because the shop owners are skillful persuaders. However, do not be ripped off by them. Start bargaining from 10 percent of the asking price and settle at around 20 to 30 percent.

Address: 2002 Century Avenue

Opening hours: 10 am to 10 pm

Stage performances

Sitting in the administrative and cultural center of Pudong New Area, Shanghai Oriental Art Center is one of the city's most prestigious landmarks for art and music. Designed by French architect Paul Andreu, this 40,000-square-meter venue is shaped as a blooming orchid with five petals, which serve as the entrance hall, the concert hall, the performace hall, the opera hall and the exhibition hall.

During the National Day holiday, the Russian State Ballet will stage Tchaikovsky's classic Swan Lake for two nights on September 30 and October 1. Chinese-Japanese singer Chen Yajuan, who is regarded as a second Teresa Teng in Japan, will come to Shanghai on October 2, singing old songs by Teng to local fans. She will perform hits like "The Moon Represents My Heart," "Goodbye, My Love" and "Small Town Stories."

Address: 425 Dingxiang Road

Call 3842-4800 for details