I was picked up from my hotel at 9.00 a.m. for a road trip to Suzhou which is a little over 60 miles west of Shanghai. The English originally called it 'Suchow', never being very good at mimicking local pronunciation. It's said something like 'Sue-joe'. We made the initial slow progress through the crowded city roads before picking up the Jiasong Highway where speed increased. As you might expect, the corridor between Shanghai and Suzhou is heavily industrialised with a many large factories and tall apartment blocks.
On the Expressway from Shanghai to Suzhou.
We eventually left the highway and made our way towards Suzhou through a fairly nondescript area. The famous Tiger Hill Pagoda was pointed out on our left but we did not make a visit. The driver dropped Michelle and I near some shops and we walked down a side road until we came to a waterway.
One or two 'trip boats' were moored so this was clearly the Grand Canal. We boarded one waiting boat and, with a crew of two, Michelle and I we set off. We started in a fairly modern environment with six-storey apartment blocks on either side but then the canal narrowed and the houses became older and smaller, built right up to the water's edge and generally having entrances straight onto the canal. We had a fairly intimate view of life next to the Grand Canal!
Houses are built right up to the Grand Canal and most have entrances onto the waterway.
We passed under railway bridges - two single-line steel girder bridges which I assumed was the 'original' railway and next a modern concrete railway bridge which I was pretty sure served a High Speed Line. We occasionally passed other tourist boats, passed under pedestrian bridges of the distinctive Chinese pattern with a round arch approached by steep steps on either side or passed restaurants gaily decorated with paper lanterns presumably for the tourists. The canal broadened and we were at a major junction. A large crane mounted on a flat boat appeared to be dredging at the junction. Our boat turned round and we retraced our route back to our boarding point. I confirmed my thoughts about the High Speed railway line - a train passed just as we were about to pass under the bridge but I wasn't able to get a picture. All too soon, we berthed and rejoined our car.
Nearby, we visited a very grand silk embroidery showroom. The workmanship was very impressive but I didn't find the artistic results very satisfactory. The prices were fairly astronomic and I'm sure that the ladies we saw actually embroidering receive only a small share of these prices. They didn't allow photography.
We next drove to the city centre. Michelle had changed the proposed restaurant, partly to improve the chances of there being fish on the menu for me, partly to avoid a lot of driving around the city. We ate at the Holiday Inn which was very satisfactory. After my usual soup, Michelle ordered fish - and what a fish! Even between us, we couldn't finish it but it was very tasty.
Fish at the Holiday Inn.
We met the car and drove through the town to the famous Net Master Garden. This is a private house and garden laid out in accordance with Chinese principles and I was very taken with the place.
The lake in the Net Master Garden.
Then, it was back to the car for the return journey to Shanghai. The girl in the Toll Booth at the entrance to the highway told the driver that there were delays on the Jiasong Highway due to an accident. After passing the toll, we were able to elect for an alternative highway back to Shanghai - a little longer, I think, but at least we'd be moving, so that's what we did.
Shanghai has Outer, Middle and Inner Ring Roads. We dropped Michelle at the intersection with the Middle Ring Road, fairly near her home and we said our 'goodbyes' as she was not intending to go to the airport with me the following morning when I returned to England. The driver then carried on into the city and dropped me at my hotel.
So, how was I to spend my last evening in Shanghai? Take the Metro to visit the two main railway stations, of course. I walked to the nearest metro station, People's Square, and used the ticket machine to buy a ticket to the northern station. When I arrived, I took a few pictures of the modern station but didn't explore - I was starting to tire. Nonetheless, I decided to carry out my plan to look at the other main station. Going back into the Metro, I couldn't find any automatic ticket machines, only a busy staffed ticket office. Armed with my map, I showed the girl my destination. Total puzzlement. First she seemed to suggest I needed Line 6, then she had a conversation with her colleague, then she took my map in through the ticket window and studied it seriously for a while. Then she issued a ticket for 4 Yuan without comment.
Well, the 4 Yuan ticket worked fine and the journey gave me plenty of time for discreet 'people watching'. The southern railway station was very modern and huge. There appeared to be two stations side-by-side - the 'conventional' one and one for the High Speed Services. And there were lots of people. By this time, I was definitely starting to 'fade', so I made my way back to the Metro for the trip back to People's Square Station. I managed to exit the Metro by the correct entrance (number 14 - People's Square is a very big Metro station) so I only had a few minutes walk to my hotel. I detoured to buy a bottle of Coca-Cola and some sweets at a convenience store before returning to the hotel, completing my packing and finally 'crashing-out'.
It had been a fascinating and varied day.
My Pictures
Suzhou.
Cruise on the Grand Canal, Suzhou.
Net Master Garden.
Shanghai Metro.
Railways around Shanghai.
