Suzhou and Zhouzhang

Joe and I spent our final day in China on an organized tour that took us to Suzhou (pronounced Su-joe) and Zhouzhang (pronounced… I can’t remember, but not how it looks). I booked the tour through Viator, a great travel resource even if you don’t book their tours. While Joe and I increasingly prefer to explore things on our own when we travel, checking Viator helps give us ideas about what to do.

I woke up the morning of the tour feeling pretty sick. While I tried to muster up the strength to get through the day, Joe ventured out into Shanghai for breakfast items to tide us over until lunch. He came back with our favorite- fried dough topped with sugar from KFC.

In Korea, being sick is not an excuse for anything. People come to work sick, ride the subway sick, often coughing away without covering their mouth. I can’t help but shoot daggers at them in my head, sometimes even gathering the courage to glare at them as they cough in my face. Unfortunately, on this trip I was that person who probably should have stayed in bed. I have no doubt that everyone in the van, other than Joe, was probably annoyed that I was present, but they were all very polite while they discreetly attempted to distance themselves from me. For me, the car ride was complete and utter torture. Not a second passed by that I wasn’t actively trying to repress a cough or blow my nose as quietly as possible. I am sure you know the feeling. A few members of the tour inquired as to whether or not I had a cold or allergies. I repeatedly assured them that it was probably allergies even though it felt more like a cold. One man in the back speculated that his allergies weren’t bothering him at all. He was on to my attempt at deception. (Note: When we returned to Korea I went to the doctor and was told I had allergy induced asthma, so I am hopeful that I didn’t get anyone sick)

Our first stop was the Garden of the Master of Nets. We had visited the Yuanyuan Garden the day before, so this garden was a bit of a letdown. Our guide “Helen” boasted that this was the smallest garden in Suzhou, therefore infrequently visited by tourists. Upon entering the garden she led us straight to the souvenir shop prior to viewing any of the grounds. After ordering an overpriced coffee and cup of tea we proceeded to sit around for 30 minutes until the guide was ready to take us through the garden. I am guessing this was an attempt to get us to buy souvenirs from the shop considering the actual tour of the garden took only 10-15 minutes. Helen walked briskly (actually fairly leisurely compared to her pace later on in the day) around the garden, seemingly disinterested in actually guiding and explaining the different areas of the garden. Much of the information we were able to gather about the garden came from the poorly translated signs and plaques that designated any area deemed of interest.

Joe and his expensive coffee that he didn't even remember. 

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I think Yuanyuan was prettier. 

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 I wish I could tell you more about this. Darn you Helen. 

Bonzai tree. Joe thinks it was 100+ years old. 

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Young people like to come to the garden to paint.

Visiting the silk production factory was the highlight of the trip, mainly because it didn’t require Helen’s so-called tour guide expertise. Our visit began with a presentation that detailed the process involved in acquiring silk from silk worms. Two scarves were passed around and we were asked to vote on which one was made from real silk. Everyone, except for me, guessed it was the first scarf displayed. I chose not to raise my hand and guess the second scarf because I was embarrassed that I was the only one to vary from the group’s consensus. It turned out that I would have been right. Of course, when I told Joe this story he rolled his eyes and said, “Oh sure, sure you thought it was the second scarf.” Whatever Joe, I was right and you were wrong. Once the presentation concluded we got to tour the factory, gaining a glimpse at how silk is obtained from silk worms. There are two types of silk worms- singles or doubles, and how the thread is obtained depends on what type of worm it is. The process is mostly mechanized, but it still requires some skilled human effort. Our group tried to stretch the silk thread into a layer of silk and found that it was much harder than it looked. The skilled ladies of the factory had to “rescue” us as we heaved in vain, managing to gracefully salvage the mess we had made. I am almost positive that the reason Joe loved the silk worm factory was because of the buffet lunch that was served at the end of the tour. I count my blessings daily that he is so easy to please. I can get him to do almost anything if food is involved.

The way to tell whether or not it is real silk is to burn it. If the smoke is black and it curls up like it is plastic, it isn't silk. Granted, not the most useful information considering you can't really walk around burning things before you buy them. 

Silk worm pupas.

Sorting the singles from the doubles. 

 Great picture idea Joe.

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The factory workers saving the day. 

The final part of our tour was a visit to the water village of Zhouzhang. By this point what had started as drizzle was now large and frequent rain drops necessitating the use of an umbrella. The majority of the time we were in Zhouzhang I felt like I was having an out-of-body experience. Our guide Helen, who had been rendered useless at the silk factory, was now back in full force. She darted from place to place, often visible only by the fabric daisy she carried in an effort to distinguish herself from the crowds. We entered buildings only to exit them in confusion, asking one another quietly what we had just seen. At several points I actually had to jog to keep up with Helen, and there was one scary moment where Joe and I actually lost her because we paused to read a sign in one of the unknown buildings we toured. I think the entire group was relieved when we hopped on board a Chinese style gondola to complete our tour of the village, especially considering there was no room for Helen on the boat. Unfortunately the boat ride was filled with long periods of awkward silence and frequent mutterings about Helen and her lack of skills as a tour guide, topped off with rain, rain, and more rain.

Chinese style gondolas.

 The locals.

Joe felt like we should document this experience with a few couple shots. It seems like every time I look horrible he wants to take pictures. 
 

The Zhouzhang Theatre- I guess we did learn something from Helen.

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Anyone who knows me knows that I am not a foodie, but I wanted this pork so bad. It smelled so good. I was vetoed by Joe. Shocking I know. Even more shocking is that I was vetoed because he thought it would make a mess.

Just before the next torture session... I mean... van ride.

While this was far from the best tour we have ever been on, it was still an interesting and memorable day. We have learned that things often don’t go according to our plans when we travel, but it is still exciting when we get to experience new places and cultures.

There is still one part of our China trip that hasn’t been written about, but I feel that the story of the Bund Sightseeing Tunnel can only be told by Joe…. No pressure, honey.