Today is International Labor Day and a national holiday in China. Caterpillar Suzhou was closed on Friday and Monday but the kids only had Friday off. Kathleen and I made plans to go to the Suzhou Museum, an activity that we thought the kids would be happy to skip.
It turns out that the museum is closed every Monday so we had to go to Plan B. It was a beautiful day in Suzhou, so we opted to take a walk down the ancient street of Ping Jiang Lu. We saw many interesting residences, buisiness, and art galleries. There is even a Youth Hostel on Ping Jiang Lu. We enjoyed a drink at one of the many outdoor cafes alongside the canal.
Kathleen had to leave early to attend the inaugural meeting of the new Girl Scout troop in SIP. I continued on with the sightseeing to visit the "Twin Pagodas" and then took a walk through Suzhou University.
The University was quite interesting to see. It certainly had the initial feel of a traditional U.S. university campus, but with some notable differences. There were turn of the century buildings as well as 60s era architecture. They have quadrangles, outdoor recreation areas, and some scenic garden areas. Everything, however, is a bit rough around the edges. The lawns are weed-choked, the paint is peeling, and some windows are broken. None of the basketball hoops have nets and, like everywhere in China, there is lots of laundry hanging out - especially on a sunny day like today.
I posted a few more pictures at snapfish.
It turns out that the museum is closed every Monday so we had to go to Plan B. It was a beautiful day in Suzhou, so we opted to take a walk down the ancient street of Ping Jiang Lu. We saw many interesting residences, buisiness, and art galleries. There is even a Youth Hostel on Ping Jiang Lu. We enjoyed a drink at one of the many outdoor cafes alongside the canal.
Kathleen had to leave early to attend the inaugural meeting of the new Girl Scout troop in SIP. I continued on with the sightseeing to visit the "Twin Pagodas" and then took a walk through Suzhou University.
The University was quite interesting to see. It certainly had the initial feel of a traditional U.S. university campus, but with some notable differences. There were turn of the century buildings as well as 60s era architecture. They have quadrangles, outdoor recreation areas, and some scenic garden areas. Everything, however, is a bit rough around the edges. The lawns are weed-choked, the paint is peeling, and some windows are broken. None of the basketball hoops have nets and, like everywhere in China, there is lots of laundry hanging out - especially on a sunny day like today.
I posted a few more pictures at snapfish.
No comments:
Post a Comment