The canals of Suzhou in the evening.
The excitement of Christmastide is over and I was reminded that I had not completed my China saga. I’m hoping to tie it up in this post so I can move on to our Philadelphia Cheesesteak Challenge and tell you about our beautiful Longwood Gardens Christmas adventure.
We completed our Yangtze River cruise at the port of Chongquing. After our visit to the Red Pagoda we returned to the ship and that evening we attended the Captain’s Farewell Dinner. The next day we disembarked and headed off to the airport to fly to Shanghai. It was an uneventful domestic flight and from Shanghai we loaded back aboard our new version of Bus #2 to transfer to the town of Suzhou. We met our final local guide, Sunny, who would convey to us the love she obviously had for her hometown.
The approach to Chongqing.
Arriving at the Wyndham Garden Suzhou
The climate of Suzhou was a welcome relief and I was a little unprepared for the humid, subtropical 70 degree temperatures as none of my wardrobe contained anything with short sleeves. It is dubbed the “Venice of China” due to it’s canal system which includes picturesque stone bridges and elegant architectural features. It is also a major economic center being home to many high-tech firms in the Industrial Park Region. Undoubtedly, my favorite area was Old Town Suzhou with it’s 400 year old buildings and splendid outdoor marketplace. World famous architect I.M. Pei (The National Gallery’s East Building, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, etc) is a native son and when he returned to Suzhou in the 70’s the Chinese government asked him what they should do to revitalize Suzhou. He told them to preserve everything just the way it was and to their credit it was done.
400 year old homes along the Grand Canal
Stone bridge leading to the marketplace.
Wishing Wall-write your intentions and hang them on the sidewalk wall.
We were given a run down of the market area in Old Suzhou by our guide, Sunny and then we were let loose to wander. It was Sunday afternoon and the marketplace was jammed. Sunny told us that most locals visit the market daily to buy their dinner ingredients and today would be a lot of folks just out enjoying their day off. Against the now familiar bleak skies the market was a riot of color, sounds & olfactory sensations. It was glorious!
Don with some silk frocks.
Woman making spun sugar lollipops in shapes like butterflies.
Getting the stink-eye from the flat bread vendor.
We venture deeper into the market where shit gets real and the crowds thicken.
The crowd thickens while the streets narrow.
1000 year old eggs
(No, they’re not really 1000 years old. Look it up.)
Woman butchering pig.
In the dense food section the smells and the crowds got the better of me and I had to tell a disappointed Don that I could go no further. I have some claustrophobia issues and had reached my limit so we opted to take another street.
A Chinese bar – just what the doctor ordered for my claustrophobia!
Suzhou is also the center of the Chinese wedding industry because of their silk production. We passed many bridal shops while driving to the market and Don & I stumbled upon a Chinese wedding party doing their photo shoot.
The groom and his groomsmen.
The bride (in red) & her attendants.
The time drew near for us to leave the market and return to the bus. While heading out some Chinese locals stop us and ask to take photos with us. This was not an unusual occurrence while we were in China. Don attracted quite a bit of attention with his bald head (you don’t see a lot of bald guys in China except the hipsters in Beijing and Shanghai) and my grey spikes seemed popular as well. In fact, one of our tour members could have made a fortune if he charged for all the photos they took of him. Gene looks like he could be on Duck Dynasty and is from Louisiana so he may very well be a Robertson. The Chinese thought he was a member of ZZ Top.
Gene
zz top
(rodneybursiephotography.com)
We had some evening downtime (an unusual occurrence) which enabled us to walk the streets of Suzhou after dark. We window shopped and some bought little treats like chocolate, ice cream and coffee in the local shops. I always looked forward to ‘free time’ and the chance to mingle with the local residents.
Steve, Don & John
on the town!
Another treat ensued for us the next day when we toured the Lingering Garden. It is unusual because it is enclosed by buildings and totally not visible from the street. The official who had it commissioned back in 1593 did not want the emperor to see it because for him to have so fine a garden must mean that he was stealing from the emperor! This was once the garden of a private family and now is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is often a focal point for art students. There is a shop in it that sells prints and paintings done by Chinese art professors and the proceeds go to support the gardens. The central garden encircles a pond and grotto while another area is devoted to Bonsai trees.
Central area of the Lingering Garden
Koi pond
Entering the bonsai garden.
The bonsai garden.
Nora, who looked so pretty sitting outside the art shop.
The intermittent sprinkles of rain did not detract from the beauty nor dampen our experience.
covered walkway
pretty in pink
We say goodbye to the garden and trade the peace and serenity for the brutal reality of the road to Shanghai. Once again, my good intentions fall short and I realize I would do an injustice by trying to fit Shanghai into this post. As a tease, I will leave you with this image from the Shanghai Acrobatic Show and a promise that the Shanghai post will indeed be the end of our China tour.
They put like 9 motorcycles speeding around in this thing like lunatics (or typical Chinese drivers)!
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