Each city is composed of many roads and buildings, and some of these buildings and roads will become the city's symbols or business cards. When you come to this city to visit, you will definitely go to the most prosperous commercial street there. Even if they are just a false name or are just for tourists to visit, if a city does not have a famous commercial street, it will definitely make the city's tourism industry lose its color.
Shanghai previously had three famous commercial streets, namely Nanjing Road, Huaihai Road and Sichuan Road. At that time, there was also a saying that Nanjing Road was for tourists, Huaihai Road was for tasteful petty bourgeois people, and Sichuan Road was for people who like economical and affordable goods. With the continuous renewal of cities and the rapid development of e-commerce, the business formats of old commercial streets are also constantly adjusting. Sichuan Road Commercial Street has gradually retreated to the second line, while Huaihai Road has moved to the high end, and only Nanjing Road has attracted tourists from all over the world as always. Although the positioning has not changed, this Shanghai No. 1 Commercial Street, which is both familiar and unfamiliar to Shanghai people, is also quietly changing.
Nanjing Road is the earliest commercial street established since the opening of Shanghai, and it originated in the Garden Alley in 1851. After two extensions, it intersects with Tibet Road, with a total length of about 1.6 kilometers. At that time, foreigners called this road "The Road", and Shanghai people called it "Da (Ma) Road" based on the Shanghai dialect of this word, and there were Erma Road and Sanma Road numbersed by citizens. It was not until 1865 that this road was officially named Nanjing Road. Later in 1945, after the concession was taken back, the National Government then divided Nanjing Road into the eastern and western sections, with a total length of 5.5 kilometers.
Before Nanjing Road was divided into sections, the Nanjing Road Commercial Street mentioned at that time refers to the current Nanjing East Road section. This commercial street, known as the "first commercial street in China", has many time-honored brands and top department stores. After liberation, a film "Sentinel under the Neon Light" and its prototype, the Chinese People's Liberation Army's troops stationed in Shanghai, which had the title of "The Eighth Company on Nanjing Road", also made Nanjing East Road a famous commercial street in Shanghai famous all over the country. In order to better welcome visitors from all over the world, in September 1999, Shanghai Nanjing East Road Pedestrian Street was officially completed. Nanjing East Road Pedestrian Street starts from Henan Middle Road and west to Tibet Middle Road, with a total length of 1,033 meters. It integrates functions such as shopping malls, time-honored brands, catering stores, brand stores, and leisure squares, attracting many tourists at home and abroad to visit.
But when Nanjing East Road Pedestrian Street was built, people found that not all Nanjing East Road has become pedestrian streets. Only one section from Henan Middle Road to Tibet Middle Road has been transformed into a pedestrian street, while Henan Middle Road to Bund section has not been renovated. In this way, tourists cannot walk all the way from the west of the pedestrian street to the Bund, and the failure of these two major attractions to hold hands has become the biggest regret. Time changed in September 2019. On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the completion of Nanjing East Road Pedestrian Street, this famous commercial street in Shanghai and even the whole country ushered in its second renovation. The original Nanjing East Road Pedestrian Street was expanded eastward, and the previous section from Henan Middle Road to Bund was also converted into a pedestrian street to make up for the regrets over the past 20 years, allowing the two well-known attractions, Nanjing Road and the Bund, to officially join hands.
After a year of reconstruction work, the east extension section of Nanjing East Road Pedestrian Street was officially completed and opened on September 12, 2020. The old buildings on both sides of the street have been renovated and the pavement has been repaved, making them look spacious and tidy. There are also lonely lamps installed in the middle of the road, which look simple and grand. At the intersection of Nanjing East Road and Jiangxi Middle Road, there is also China's first lonely lamp. The 1882 carved on the ground of this lamp and a copper-plate book next to it tell tourists the history of Shanghai's power development. Another highlight is the famous Peace Hotel. It was extremely difficult to take a front photo of him once. Not only do you have to try your best to choose a good angle, but you also need to have great patience and luck to avoid the flow of people and traffic. Nowadays, there are no more vehicles passing by at the entrance of the Peace Hotel, and there are no more groups of tourists passing by the gate. The shooting angle is free to choose, so it is so refreshing.
For Shanghai people, almost no one would know about this famous commercial street that resounds throughout the country, but there are really many Shanghai people who have never been there. After all, there are many places suitable for local citizens to visit in Shanghai. But after this renovation, Nanjing East Road has truly become a complete pedestrian street. In addition, the continuous introduction of various high-end brands and shopping malls in the past two years, this pedestrian street is more attractive than before. If you have never been to Nanjingdong Road before, then after this renovation is completed, you can really walk around with your family and friends. Maybe it is not as attractive as an internet celebrity store, but it will definitely not disappoint you.
