The largest city I've lived in before Shanghai was made up of under 200,000 people. Living in a city this big certainly gets to me sometimes. So it was nice to take a break and head over to the neighboring "town" (4million) of Suzhou. It did sound appealing on the banks of the Yangtze River and dubbed the "Venice of China".
 |
|
I hopped on the bullet train one Saturday which got me there in a breezy 30 minutes. Unfortunately, I left my cell phone at home so when it came to meeting up with my friends, I was in a pickle. I found the hostel and they miraculously knew where my comrades had gone and told me what bus to get on to find the Lions Grove Gardens. I never should have got on a strange bus in a strange town. Who knows if I got on the right bus or the right direction, but I certainly never had any hope of finding the right stop to get off at. So, when the time felt ripe, I got off the bus. As usual, I asked someone for help but did not understand their reply and so I continued on foot in what felt like a good direction. After a bit, I realized my friends were probably worrying about me as they waited at the Gardens and asked a rickshaw driver. He laughed, pulled out a map and demonstrated to me exactly how far off I was from getting to my destination. Of course, he wanted to take me and we haggled over a price before I hopped in behind him. I got a nice view of the city while he pedaled and weaved through traffic. At the destination (finally) he hopped off and mimed his pumping heart at me from the exertion of the long journey. I mimed how strong he was and paid my fare.
 |
| my chauffeur |
After that, things went smoother. I met up with my friends from Shanghai and we did some Garden touring.
 |
| Tiger Hill pagota |
 |
| one of my favorite aspects of traveling: comparing street dog sizes |
Unfortunately, Suzhou has fallen in with the likes of many towns in China where industry and development now overshadow and replace much of the cultural aspects that made the town unique. Though there were some interesting sights, we were never far from new construction zones. Nevertheless, it was a good break from the familiar construction zones of SH.
 |
| history illuminated |
