Suzhuo

Suzhou is a city on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and on the shores of Lake Taihu in the province of Jiangsu, China. The city is renowned for its beautiful stone bridges, pagodas, and meticulously designed gardens which have contributed to its status as a great tourist destination. 

We stayed in an old part of town on an historic street called Pingjiang which sits adjacent to a water canal.

Our hotel was an old Ming Dynasty Mansion converted to a hotel. This is the entrance. 

Here's a view of one of the many water canals.  This one was right next to our hotel.

A stroll along the water canal.

A meeting of the umbrellas...

As always in China, street food is abundant...here Rae gets a treat!

Shanghai

We took a trip south to Shanghai, Suzhou, and Hangzhou in the late fall.  After flying into Pudong, we rode the Maglev (high speed magnetic levitation train) from the airport into the city.  We clocked out at 400 km/h or about 250 mph though the train can go much faster.  All in all, 20 minutes into Shanghai city where we could get on the subway to take us to within walking distance of our hotel.

Later that evening, we walked along Nanjing road.  Nanjing Road was the first commercial road in Shanghai. In the early 20th century, there were only four department stores along this stretch. Today, it has become the number one place for shopping in the city.

Here are some pictures of the area.

At the end of Nanjing Lu, you come to the river and the area known as the Bund (officially known as Zhongshan Lu).  Unfortunately, at the time most of Shanghai is under construction in preperation for the 2010 World Expo and no area more so than along the Bund.  On the other side of the river lies the financial district with all it's modern skyscrapers.

This is the Oriental Pearl TV Tower.

Some random pictures as we walked around the city to Yuyuan Garden.

 Buttons...

Outside of Yuyuan Garden.

Shanghai food market at night.

The Shanghai World Finanical Center (SWFC) and Jinmao Tower: 

The SWFC is in the background and the Jinmao Tower is in the foreground.

At the time the Shanghai World Financial Center was completed, it reached 492 meters (1,614.2 ft) and was the second-tallest building in the world; as well as the tallest structure in China, Currently it is the third-tallest building in the world.

Of course Rae forced us to climb to the top (actually a high speed elevator).  This is the view of Shanghai from the top.

Waiting for the train to Suzhou...who's that girl?

Halloween at the Brooklyn Bar

China... Halloween... what to do...? 

Spend the evening at a Halloween party at the Brooklyn Bar.  

Rae & Brian 

Brian & Friends

Olwyn (Wilma), Chris (Fred), Rae & Sarah

Wayne (owner of the Brooklyn)

Craig & Sarah

Cleopatra & Wilma

Steamed Goodness

Jiǎozi (dumplings) and Bāozi  (steamed, stuffed buns) are tasty delights that you can find all over China but especially in Dōngběi (northeast) China.  While bāozi are always steamed, jiǎozi can be steamed, boiled, or fried.

Here are a variety of steamed delights.

Jiǎozi and Bāozi are ubiquitous in China.  You can find them everywhere but they are especially good when you buy them from small vendors on the street as seen below:

Here are some other images of dumplings being prepared and sold around Dalian.

Terracotta Warriors

The Terracotta Warriors are located about an hour from Xi'An in Shaanxi Province.  This is a huge archilogical site and extrodiarily fascinating.  The musuem consists of several large buildings that cover the excavation sites.  Apparently, they date back to around 210 BC when the first emperor of China had them constructed to protect him in the afterlife. This is a truly interesting site and the musuem is done very well.