Address: 5A Dongping Lu, Xuhui, Shanghai Phone: 021/6415-7496

on Thursday, October 11, 2007 - 03:28 PM AST - 1217 Reads

Home Away From Home in Shanghai

By J. Gordon-Ewing

It was Sunday night. I asked the patient concierge at my hotel if he could direct me to a place where I could find other English-speaking people. I soon learned of an English speaking community known as "Expats," an acronym for expatriate. He arranged for a cab to drop me off in the club district near Hengshan Lu and Dong Ping Lu. I wandered around until I looked up and saw the light... a lighted Guinness sign on the side of a western-styled structure. I heard laughter and inviting folk music coming from within.

When I walked through the doors at the Blarney Stone I felt instantly at home. Owners Paul Curran and Dave Kelly have managed to bring a little piece of the west into China. The atmosphere is friendly and inviting any night of the week, but if you are fortunate enough to be there on a Sunday night, you will hear several talented musicians playing for your entertainment. Paul Curran is a gifted tenor with a strong clear voice and you will enjoy hearing him lead the others in song. Whenever I get homesick for my home away from home, I pop in the CD of music from the Blarney Stone and it takes me back to my friends in Shanghai.

I met so many lovely people there from the Great Britain, Canada, Ireland, Scotland and even my home state of Colorado. If you want to associate with friendly people, listen to inviting music and eat really good, recognizable food, look for the Blarney Stone in Shanghai. Tell them the blonde from Colorado sent you!

Thanks for making me feel at home.