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My Vacations |
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China October 2002 |
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Beijing - Xi'An - HuangShan en route Nanjing & Tunxi � QianDaoHu � HangZhou - Shanghai - SuZhou |
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Tiger Hill Pagoda, SuZhou |
reconstructed Good Omen Light Pagoda and the park, SuZhou |
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| HanShan Temple, SuZhou |
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SUZHOU::After 2 whole days of mere shopping in Shanghai, our tortured legs needed some rest and we needed a break from the Shanghainese vendors who like to scold their customers (they still have a long mile to learn about customer services). SuZhou has stronger Chinese poetic feel compared to the more developed HangZhou. Tiger Hill was our first stop � Sword Lake and Tiger Hill Pagoda. Next, we visited the serene HanShan Temple. The wishing bell in the Temple are normally hit 3 times by each visitor for prosperity, peace & longevity - hitting 4 times means "nothing" (4 "da jie kong"). Garden of Master of the Net was beautiful. �Modified� dragons were on the roofs of some walls as only emperors were entitled to use the dragon symbol. Our final stops were the Pagoda of Good Omen Light and the neighbouring park with a pond full of "li" fish. |
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| Feeding "li" fish |
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SHANGHAI, Day 4::Went to People�s Square and spent the morning rushing through the collections of treasures in National Museum � pottery, art drawings, Chinese calligraphy, jade carvings, cultural costumes, etc. Afterwards, we went to YuYuan Bazaar again to search for TaiJi Swords for mum, stone-carving for my brother�s name, and small souvenirs. Tried out some tasty Shanghainese Dim Sum. After lunch, we went across the River to XuJiaHui again � this time in daylight, and we had a close-up view of the Pearl TV Tower (then tallest in the world). Shanghai, my favourite city in China � hope I have the chance in future to stay & work here short term. |
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| tour mates (taken at The Bund, background was Pudong, Shanghai) |
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