We were allowed to start late today. So late, in fact, that we got our own lunches. The bus (the same one we are using as our shuttle) left at 13:00, and we went to the scenic district of Ligongdi. We wandered about, looking at the shops and restaurants. The area is designed in an older Chinese style. There are several arch bridges, and a couple of lookout points, that give great views across Jinji Lake of the commercial and entertainment districts of SIP. These views would have been better had we had low-intensity smog that day, but that day we had what I would describe as medium-intensity smog, and so the view was not as clear as it could have been. At the entrance to this area there is a series of shops, restaurants, and cafes. At one of the first cafes, we came across a set for a TV drama which was in use. Some of us, I’m sure, managed to get in a few of the takes. Also near the entrance, there was is a place where you can get on a little road train to take a tour of Ligongdi, which I didn’t end up doing. My group also found a large pavilion out at the end of a wharf which has a panoramic view of SIP.
After Ligongdi, we headed to the SIP Showroom, where we got to go through an exhibit detailing the history, planning, development, construction, and future plans for the area. There were also several small (1:650 scale) models of the various parts of SIP, and we enjoyed finding places such as the faculty apartments, the student apartments, Moon Bay, Moon Harbor, Times Square, Ligongdi, the Pants Building, and, of course, UDCI, which was actually labelled on a 1:1000 scale model of Dushu Lake Higher Education Town. We ended in a large room where we watched a short video about the history, planning, construction, and future of SIP. In the center of the room was a huge, continuous, 1:650 scale model of the whole shebang. It occupied an area of probably 100 meters square. And, much to my delight, was equipped with thousands of tiny lights in the structures and along the roadways.
The first picture shows UDCI labeled on one of the models, and the second shows our apartments on the same model. The third picture shows a 1:650 version of the UDCI building. The next shows Biobay, where UDCI is located. Then I took a picture of the building at Moon Bay where we eat lunch, and finished with a picture of the area surrounding UDCI and our apartments.
The first picture shows UDCI labeled on one of the models, and the second shows our apartments on the same model. The third picture shows a 1:650 version of the UDCI building. The next shows Biobay, where UDCI is located. Then I took a picture of the building at Moon Bay where we eat lunch, and finished with a picture of the area surrounding UDCI and our apartments.
After the Showroom, we headed to Pingjiang Road, a historic district in Downtown Suzhou (aka Old Suzhou, as in inside the former city walls). This is an old, narrow street, which is lined with shops on one side and paralleled by a canal on the other. Sometimes there is space for shops to be squeezed between the road and the canal, and sometimes the shops are cantilevered over the canal, or are just straight up occupying one side of a bridge. There are several bridges over the canal, giving access to more local shops, and parking, but this is more of a residential area and has a higher concentration of locals.
Here, as with everywhere else in China, mopeds are prevalent and give no cares. They move along with their lights on or off, honking or not, and generally causing pedestrians to scoot out of their way to avoid being run over. I’ll dedicate a later blog to a description of Chinese traffic, complete with videos to give a taste of it. The only things I bought were dinner, a set of good Chinese chopsticks (I later bought some cheap everyday ones from City Mart), and what was described to me as “Chinese candy” but would definitely have better been described as “homemade Chinese granola bars” either way, they were good, so I bought a box.
We met back at the top of the road around 19:00 and headed home.
Here, as with everywhere else in China, mopeds are prevalent and give no cares. They move along with their lights on or off, honking or not, and generally causing pedestrians to scoot out of their way to avoid being run over. I’ll dedicate a later blog to a description of Chinese traffic, complete with videos to give a taste of it. The only things I bought were dinner, a set of good Chinese chopsticks (I later bought some cheap everyday ones from City Mart), and what was described to me as “Chinese candy” but would definitely have better been described as “homemade Chinese granola bars” either way, they were good, so I bought a box.
We met back at the top of the road around 19:00 and headed home.