Shanghai was a sleepy fishing village (of SongJiang) 160 years ago. It first gained prominence under the colonial rule as a trading depot between the East and the West. Nick named "Paris of the East" at the peak of its former glory in the 1930s, Shanghai was subsequently punished for being a capitalist icon during the first 40 years of the communist rule. Since the 1990s, however, Shanghai had regained its prominence as a leading engine of the Chinese economy. As a city under metamorphosis, it is startling to observe the contrast between the new and the old, the rich and the poor. Shanghai now boasts the busiest container port, the longest subway system, and the fastest (and the only) commercial Meglev train in the world. Yet it retained many small pockets of (well manicured) ancient villages and even more pockets of squalid living quarters for five million undocumented workers. It is easy to get lost in this city that never sleeps and feeling destitute amid all the splendors. As a new hit song puts it, "Shanghai welcomes you if you've got money to spend."