March 14, day trip to Suzhou, Jiangsu

Way-finding instincts failed miserably the minute we left train station in Suzhou. They must have choked on smog in Shanghai (it was so thick we literally though it was fog!) or been diluted by the speed of a 'bullet train' this morning, i'm not sure...but we arrived all disoriented. After walking for an hour in the wrong direction, a man at a newspaper stand came to our rescue and gave us directions - in Chinese and with expressive gesturing. He was so extremely nice and willing to help, that he made sure we understood. And we did! Skipping steps, we went in search of a pagoda landmark and made it to the famous Humble Administrator's Garden (Zhuozheng Yuan) around noon.

Hall of Distant Fragrance

Dating from the 11th-19th century, meticulously designed gardens in Suzhou reflect the metaphysical emphasis on natural beauty in Chinese culture. (It sounds a bit ironic considering some of their surroundings today, but nevertheless.)
Currently, there are about 200 gardens in Suzhou that showcase different themes and designs. We focused on just one, Zhuozheng Yuan.

Mandarin Duck Hall

Seeking to recreate nature in miniature, the Classical Gardens are considered masterpieces of Chinese landscape design. Typically, they balance various elements to create harmony and tranquility, such as fishponds, rock features, small arched bridges, covered walkways, open air pavilions and outdoor decks to promote lingering and contemplation. 

Little Flying Rainbow Bridge

Moon Gate

Plenty of cozy interstitial spaces. Walkways are covered, but small courtyards open up to the sky.

textures in Penjing Nursery

The gardens take on different guises as the seasons change. They are also designed so that your view constantly unfolds as you follow the network of pathways.   

Orange Pavilion.

Artificial mountains were an important element in garden design, ideal for contemplation.

Suzhou, with its borders lying just along the historical Yangtze River, was established in 514 B.C. The entire area is considered a water city and the long stretch of Suzhou’s waterway connects to China’s Grand Canal, the most extensive ancient canal in the world. Beat after exploring the garden, we didn't really get to experience the canals, a bit of a shame. We caught only glimpses and hopped on a train back to Shanghai. What a train thou!

CRH2 @ 285mph. That was nice!

March 13, Shanghai: Yu Yuan Gardens and Pudong

The day starts slightly out of tune because of jet-lag, but it's nothing that can't be cured with a bowl of instant ramen. We have our fill and afterwards head for the front desk where one of the guys, for a small fee (and totally worth it), saves us some serious logistical headache and helps us arrange for next day train tickets to Suzhou and ongoing travel to Mt. Huangshan. Shanghai has a huge international community and tourists are anything but rarity, but buying tickets for trains or buses borders on impossible even here, unless you have someone write down details (including train type, sleeping berth, etc) in traditional Chinese characters. Pinyin is often as useless as English. We're in for a trip, especially in more rural areas, that's for sure.

impressive bamboo scaffolding for a highrise

Since we're dealing with a 14 hour time difference, it would be wise to take it easy for the first couple of days, acclimate and take urban exploration one step at a time. But that would be unlike us. After scouting the neighborhood, we head out to Yu Yuan Gardens in the Old City and spend half a day wandering the grounds of over 30 halls and pavilions.

 

 Yu Gardens Bazaar, Old City

Yu Gardens Bazaar, nestled by the lake in the center of the complex, is lined with small shops, souvenir stalls, tempting dumplings and snacks at every corner - all bathed in a pretty powerful and very characteristic sour scent of fried 'stinky tofu'. Ahhh, we're in China indeed!  

 

 

 

 all these delicious distractions!

following snack time...lunch time!

spicy noodle soup, dumplings, jasmine tea.

Built during the Ming dynasty, scenic Yu Yuan Gardens are a relatively peaceful area of mazes and zigzag stone bridges, ponds and water features, restored temples and tea houses dating back 400 years. I say relatively, because we're in the world's most populous country, with population of over 1.3 billion, and rapidly growing, despite the one-child policy. Some shoving and pushing is bound to happen. It's also expected that moments of peace and quiet will be a luxury that we might possibly not come across. Well, at least amazing noodles abound to put things in perspective.

 courtyard by the entrance

 
simplicity, gentle curves, and warmth of of these chairs calls for a comparison with Thonet

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
characteristic 'flying eaves'

 

 

Lost in the moment and totally oblivious to crawling-germ-and-spit-infested pavement.  

I love his dedication. 

I'm also kinda revolted just looking at it...

 

 

...and here I already forgot Sebastian just wiped the ground with his body

 

 
privacy and breeze combined

 

Walls topped with an undulating dragon divide the garden into several areas, which makes it feel like a maze and seem larger than it actually is.

 

Before nightfall we walk the landmark dotted Bund and take metro across Huangpu River to highrise dominated Pudong district. Granted the status of Special Economic Zone in the early 90's, it has since become the city's newest and most rapidly developing area. It is one of the largest construction sites in the world, supposedly equipped with a third of the world's largest cranes. The extensive transformation from the dilapidated  slum and brothel ridden quarter it used to be, has been remarkable. So is the permanent blanket of smog visible from the 90th floor of Shanghai World Financial Center. A powerful and disturbing impression.

 

Big names are plastered all over Pudong, here's Louis Vuitton.
What shoes? What bags?? Look at these facets and fritted glass!!

 

 Engulfed by smog. 

View from the top - Shanghai World Financial Center

Our hostel is conveniently located on South Yunnan Road 'Food Street' and for dinner we devour specialties from just that southwest province. 

Yunnan specialties: cured and dried beef infused with spicy oil, pea soup, and assortment of greens, bamboo, and algae. Fresh and packed with flavor.

Amazing meal all around but shredded beef was a definite standout.

March 12, Chicago to Shanghai

Restless once again, we pick up where our Asian experience was cut short in 2011 - China baby!!
A 15 hour flight leaves us beat when we arrive late afternoon in Shanghai, but because of the time difference we're ready to explore at 2 am, after four hours of sleep!

Now for the first impressions...
After shiver inducing customs we hop on the airport shuttle which drops us off on Yan'an Road somewhere in Huangpu District. It takes us good 30 minutes to pinpoint our location, turning the map to align with our handy compass (proven life saver!) while fishing for a phrasebook. Armed with nothing but "Nihao" and stranded on a crazy busy intersection we soak it in. Shanghai feels huge already, crowded, laced with overpasses and 8 lane traffic. The air tastes of ash.

It's getting dark by now and we're crossing a river of people, but hardly anyone gives us a second look, so it's surprising when we hear "What are you looking for?" in perfect English. Our heads turn on cue and I'm ready to hug this beautiful stranger. She points us in the direction of People's Square, maybe 20 minute walk from where we are. Such a simple gesture but it overwhelms us with gratitude and causes adrenaline to drop, which just makes it harder to fight through exhaustion. We still need to find our hostel, this needle in the haystack
We researched some places online and located a general area with basic accommodations before we left but made no reservations, so we're really happy that our first choice has rooms available. Sigh of relief.

Home for the next few day - Phoenix Hostel (Shanghai bargain @ $35/private room with bath!) - comes attached to this amazing homey restaurant where we have our first feast of this trip. We can't contain full blown excitement as we're slurping this hearty bowl of noodle soup. There's no way I can recall the name of it, but it oozes heaven: flavorful broth, wide rice noodles, wild mushrooms, greens, and chili oil. 

ohhhhhh soooo goooood     

May 6, back home

It's been two weeks since we came home from our travels, scent of uncapped freedom and bliss, grassy meadows, dirt road, and masala tea spices stuffed deep into our backpacks. We've been postponing this blog entry partly because of the readjustment chaos, but mostly because summing up five month journey renders the end of it definite. Brutally real. 


And the reality... bites right now. Getting back has been a mixture of logistical and emotional mayhem. We've been living out of boxes, looking for jobs, and easing post-travel blues with a compress from our family and friends. Reading past blog entries, organizing thousands of pictures, and  daydreaming about places we'd love to visit next has been healing as well - enough so to help us keep it together. We knew what we signed up for when we decided to go and we never expected life to instantly snap back to what it was upon our return. Fair enough then. We would make the same decision in a heartbeat.   


People have asked us what would be the first place we'd like to re-visit given the opportunity.  Honestly, any of them would be reason enough to pack a backpack, but India stands out at the front of the pack. It's fascinating. Challenging. Poetic. Magnetic. It grabs all of your senses. Frankly, it seems quite impossible to experience just once. 


For now, we hold tight a handful of unforgettable moments, sights and people...latest memories beating to M&S drum...