We love this hotel, the Pan Pacific Suzhou, it has great architecture, gorgeous gardens and modern facilities. The breakfast was a highlight, as usual and I spent some time meandering around the peaceful garden. It smelled so nice and the flowering cherry trees and ponds were just a great way to get the day started.
Suzhou, historically known as the Jewel of the East, is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site and has cobbled streets, canals, bridges, pagodas and gardens. It is also known for its prized silk fabrics and silk embroidery, this made it very important during the Ming and Qing dynasties.
We walked along the canals peering down the alleys and into homes as people went about their day. Our favorite part was wandering down the little narrow streets lined with produce and meat stands, fresh breads, live chickens, dim sum stalls and flat bread folded with greens and some kind of spread-it all looked amazing. Since this area isn’t where all the tourists go, the boys were very popular. Vendors would come out to try to talk with them, give them something to eat, the boys would play with the live fish in the tubs of water and get sad when they saw the chickens. There were huge chunks of pork on tables being butchered for people to buy and mopeds trying to get through the tiny streets crowded with goods and people. We stopped in a local temple and walked around, lit some incense and sat quietly. We walked along the canals edge and the boys explored the banks looking for fish, turtles and frogs.
We had lunch at a rest stop and it was very interesting. Looking through all of the products and food stalls was an experience in itself (pics in another post). We had some yummy dumplings and everyone was happy.
Next stop was to see the Ling Shan Buddha, a huge 88 meter tall Buddha up on a hill overlooking something like an amusement park. It was very strange, not the Buddha itself, that was pretty cool, it was the amusement park. Kind of like a Disney World but instead of Mickey Mouse it was Buddha…. We climbed the steps up to the top, right at the foot of the Buddha, took the obligatory pictures and there was a very pretty view.
Our hotel tonight here in Wuxi, the Georgetown Hotel was gorgeous! It’s brand new and super plush, boys were happy.
