Binjiang Park (RMB20 entrance fee) sits at the confluence of the Huangpu and Yangtze Rivers, on the Pudong side of things. This past weekend, I rode out to check out this distant spot of green on the map. What I found was a pretty decent place to spend a day outdoors where you can 1. barbecue, 2. stroll the breakwater and watch the amazing huge boats which ply the shipping lanes, 3. Rent a two seater bike, 4. play frisbee on the ample lawns, and 5. play hide and go seek.

First the barbecue. There's a spacious area with plenty of barbecue pits. For RMB160 you get use of one plus affiliated picnic table for two hours. They provide the grill and the fire. You provide the meat and whatever else you want to grill. There's a shop at the site which sells wooden skewers, tongs and drinks (beer and limited soft drinks). Proce aside, this is a really cool place to gather with some friends and try out Austin Hu's barbecue sauce recipe.

1. Breakwater. It's not the most attractive lip of concrete, but then again you're looking at one of the world's most active shipping lanes. Watch everything from huge cargo ships to massive cruise liners to enormous oil tankers to tiny fishing boats jostle. We're just amazed that ships don't ram each other here all the time. Walk to the Yangtze end of the breakwater to see the mighty cranes which load all these container vessels packed together like prehistoric animals.
   

1. Bike & Lawns. These are more buggy-like in their set-up which, for our money, is better than the linear version. Lawns are ample, well maintained and you can stomp all over them. Throw down a blanket and bring your bocci ball set.
   

1. Garden of Eden. The park is big, there aren't many people and there are plenty of leafy places to hide. This is our recommendation for that coveted outdoor make-out session.
   

Now the bad stuff. There are a bunch of speakers along the breakwater which blare out crappy muzak. A jazz version of Santa Claus Is Coming to Town sticks in the mind. Also, getting there is like going through a level of Dante's Inferno (see photo). I rode my bike and I think it took a few years off my life. That whole area of Pudong is an industrial wasteland, the smell of coal products lingers in the air.

To get there, take Line 6 to the end then cab it from there. Bus 51 also runs from the Wusong port to the entrance of the park.