Around the World in 365 Days – Part II – China – continued

Nov. 3^rd -6^th, 2019

Day 17 – November 3^rd: Beijing to Suzhou: A very early departure – 5AM to the airport in Beijing to fly to Shanghai. The liquid/ gel restriction is the same as the US, and you had to remove electronics from bags, and absolutely no batteries in checked bags. And you had to remove jewelry from carry -on (not to check, but could not be in the main carry on bag) and the umbrellas had to be removed and placed in a bin as well. It was very disconcerting, but we got through OK. The flight itself was pleasant – and they fed us a noodle dish with chicken. When we arrived in the airport we met “Jenny” (whose real name is Jie). She said we could go eat lunch in the airport and we would meet back in 40 minutes. We weren’t hungry, so she said to meet back in 10 minutes to get coffee. We got coffee, came back, and 40 minutes later we were rounded up to go out to the bus for the 90-minute drive to Suzhou. Once we arrived in Suzhou we went to a beautiful garden in town – Lanli Garden- with winding rooms that seemed to be a maze.

After this, some of the group went on a 30-minute River boat ride; John and I (and some other couples) went off to wander the water front. We found “wedding alley” – shop after shop selling both traditional and western dresses.

We wandered through a small park with great views of Tiger Hill – a monastery and holy site. We looked at going up, but were told we only had 45 minutes to explore (turns out we had about an hour and 15 since the boat tour folks had to be divided into two groups).

One of the couples on the tour is originally from Hong Kong and helped read a few items while waiting on the bus. For the first time our hotel was in town, and less than a block from the river. The hotel is very nice, and based on the gardens and house we had visited during the afternoon. A maze of gardens and rooms is great and interesting in a house, not such a great model for a hotel. After finding a good place to eat, I chose the “spicy fish” we walked around the neighborhood and found people dancing and line dancing on the riverfront.

About the time I thought I had some of the moves down the song was over, so I did not join them. We ambled along the river for a half mile or so then headed back for a good night’s sleep.

Day 18, November 4^th: Suzhou to Wuxi: A later start at 9AM, but back in the bus (with half of our luggage – we had to split up our bags since all the luggage was almost impossible to get into the luggage compartment for such a large group, so one bag needed to go back to Shanghai where we would get it  in a few days). It turned out to be “shopping day” – well, a lot of Chinese goods selling day. The first spot was a Chinese silk embroidery Institute. The works were stunning, all hand embroidered. The least expensive one I saw was about $180 US, but many were in the tens of thousands. Considering the number of hours required – especially for the two-sided ones, the cost makes sense, but I don’t think the Sonata needs a wall hanging. Next stop was the silk factory. This one had the best salesman of the group – though he went on too long. I did buy some silk undies and socks, and almost everyone in the group bought something. Then on to Wuxi – we went to Thai Lake (which means very big lake) and stretched our legs. They have Giant rubber duckie boats, but also boardwalks and relaxing places for a stroll.

Then on to Nanching street in old Town – we wished we’d had a lot more time there, the food shops and atmosphere was young and vibrant,

but back into the bus to our hotel. This one was one of my favorites thus far, it was clean, bright and in the middle of the new city with lots of modern shops and restaurants. John and I ate at a “Barbeque” restaurant – it’s a buffet, where they place a grill in the middle of the table and you pick the stuff to go on it.

We were not doing a very good job, so one of the chefs came and cooked for us. The food was delicious – I even ate starfish (I think we ate the roe out from along the legs). The chef would absolutely not accept a tip – and for just under $30 John and I got a great meal. And the buffet included beer – as much as you wanted. A pleasant after dinner walk around the hotel and then in for the night.

Day 19, Nov. 5^th; Wuxi- Hangzhou: A stop in at the Pearl Factory – again, the salespeople do go on too long. The group is taken into a room where we sit and they demonstrate the wonderful products. Think timeshare sales. One of the demonstrations is to open up a three to five-year-old oyster (which is huge) and count the pearls – ours had 29. Apparently, they seed a female oyster with bits of male oysters to stimulate the pearl growth. Once finally released from the sales pitch I went in search of what I wanted- a pair of dangly earrings that would match my fresh water peacock-pearl necklace, I found them and was done. The double score on the day was outside – a fruit seller had mangosteens! John introduced one of our fellow “families” to the wonderfully unique and sweet taste. He also learned a new way to open them. Then it was in the bus for a three-hour bus ride with an hour stop for lunch. We stopped at West Lake for many to do a boat ride and the rest of us walked around the lake. The grounds offer views of Hangzhou, but also of classic styled bridges, water lilies, and tea houses.

And a KFC – which John had been hankering for. Another hour in the bus to the far outskirts of Hangzhou. It was our most beautiful hotel, with wonderful service, but nothing around it. I’d bought a ramen bowl kit at the lunch stop for 5 yuan (about 80 cents) and since the meat packs were separated out, I had noodles and a can of Tsingtao stout for dinner. We took advantage of the indoor pool (had to buy a bathing cap)- they had something I had never seen before – a spinner to dry your bathing suit.

Day 20, Nov. 6^th: Hangzhou to Shanghai: The grounds of the hotel did have nice jogging trails, so John and I took advantage of it. Then – you guessed it – back in the bus for a trip to the Longjing Green Tea village.

On the outside, it looks pretty small, but there were no less than 15 buses and you only briefly saw the other groups. We learned the first cutting in spring is called the “Emperor’s tea”, the second is “Ghost tea” the next is “mother-in-law tea” and the last is “grandmother tea” – very bitter. We learned you want to use your tea leaves for 5 cups, and the second cup is the best. Our salesperson did a basic chemistry 101 demonstration showing how green tea “detoxifies” your system. Green tea is full of polyphenols and flavonoids, it is good for you, it will not make you younger and will not cure your diabetes (though, if you substitute drinking green tea with little or no sugar for soda – your blood sugars will get a whole lot better, and since it is a mild anti-inflammatory it may slightly reduce pain in your joints). Then another 3-hour bus ride with a break at a highway center that also included a McDonald’s and a Starbucks. About half the group ended up at McDonald’s – not necessarily because we wanted the food, but because they had menu items written in English. When we got to Shanghai, we went to the waterfront and got some nice pictures –

but nothing as spectacular as the boat cruise.

If anyone else is taking these tours – take the night boat cruise. Finally, we got to the hotel at 8:30. I went to the restaurant and John got some snacks and went to the room. He hadn’t been feeling well for part of the day and needed to hydrate. I had a what was advertised as a “bowl of mushrooms” – which also had bits of pork. I fished them out, the mushrooms were good, but I may have had a couple of small bits of the pork, and that may have been the cause of my problems the next day.

Next up – city of Shanghai and the Yangtze River cruise!