Sign up for the Travel Dispatch newsletter. Essential news on the changing travel landscape, expert tips and inspiration for your future trips. Get it sent to your inbox.

       On a recent visit to Shanghai, I looked up through the canopy of trees in the former French Concession district, and realized the sky was not the customary gray but a bright blue.

       At a busy intersection near Wukang Mansion, a century-old landmark reminiscent of New York City’s Flatiron Building, the scene was oddly quiet, as barely audible electric cars and bikes whizzed by.

       And along a particularly hip stretch of Huaihai Road that would usually attract as many foreigners as locals, domestic tourists strolled along sidewalks empty of trash.

       Advertisement

       SKIP ADVERTISEMENT

       After a lifetime of loving Shanghai in spite of its pollution, noise and mess, I felt like I had taken off my rose-colored glasses only to discover that the city had turned pink.

       Image

       The former French Concession in Shanghai is shaded by plane trees.

       Image

       The Wukang Building is Shanghai’s version of New York’s Flatiron and is a popular backdrop for photos.

       Subscribe to The Times to read as many articles as you like.