The Imposing Customs House 江海关 Along the Bund 外滩
Among the colonial style buildings along the Bund, the Customs House is probably the one that stands out the most. Imposing might be the proper word to describe it. After all, it is the government, surely, the description is not that all inappropriate. The Customs House as the name implies houses the customs office of Shanghai. If you look at history, this was one of two customs houses that were built in the area but this was the one the stood the test of time. The other was burned down during the revolution. From the British, it was eventually handled by the Chinese and the mixture of architectural styles of the building shows this history.
Closer Look at the Clock Face
The original building looked more “Chinese”, until the British customs head at that time decided to at a little more gothic design in the form of the clock tower on top. This clock tower is one of the defining features of the building and the clock face can be seen from far away. The clock tolls every hour and can be clearly heard from my hostel which was just around the corner. At the top of the tower flies that Chinese national flag as it does in practically every building along the Bund.
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