Photos of my class are up. Click the photo link!

After Beijing, my family and I spent a couple of relaxing days in Suzhou. My mom brought one of her suits to a tailor and had a gorgeous copy made for her in a winter material. We also indulged in some massage therapy. Clare and I had a 1-hour Japanese shitzu body massage which was heavenly! However, I think our favorite experience was visiting the famous Master of the Nets Garden. The garden is considered to be a perfect example of small, classical Chinese garden landscaping and it feels like a tiny jewel tucked away in the bustling town center. After walking down a winding alley you enter the Master of the Nets' house and can view the pavilion halls and furniture before exploring the garden.


Chinese gardens are very interesting because they are so different from our Western idea of a garden. The landscape incorporates aspects of architecture, philosophy, art and literature. Unlike European gardens which seek to control the landscape with geometry and show man's place as ruler over nature, Chinese gardens reflect Taoist thought where man is just one small part of the world. Chinese gardens recreate the world by emphasizing an asymmetrical layout of pavilions, water features, hills and rocks. Mountains and rivers are very important in Chinese culture and are symbolized by the ponds and misshapen rocks that form the center of the garden's design. The symbolism continues with choosing which plants to have in the garden and the names of the gardens and pavilions. I look forward to revisiting the Master of the Nets garden once I have more knowledge about Chinese culture so I can more fully understand its harmonic beauty!

Frommer's description: "Jinshanling is one of the all-time Great Wall hikes. It's not as steep as Simatai and is more heavily restored, but with fewer visitors. The hike from here east to the Miyun Reservoir is roughly 10km and takes 3 to 4 hours. The middle part of the hike, as the people fall away and the Wall begins to crumble, can be truly sublime."

What Frommer's should have said: "While the Jinshanling Great Wall is beautiful be warned that the hike should only be attempted by skilled hikers experienced with rough terrain. Most of the Wall has not been restored and challenges the hiker to find, sometimes on all fours, a way up or down the curving, rubble filled path. Remember to always have a full water bottle for everyone in your party. Water will be sold in the first few towers but as the wall becomes more challenging, vendors disappear. Not for the faint of heart or those who have little athletic experience."

Well as you can tell, climbing the Great Wall was a challenge that while we survived left us wondering why we didn't choose the more touristy part to hike... especially since it was 90 degrees or hotter. The scenery was gorgeous and very magnificent from the few glimpses I caught while clinging to the Wall trying not to fall over. The history buff in me wanted to know more about the history of the Wall and its construction rather than have a near death experience climbing it. Okay maybe I exaggerate a little but it was pretty grueling and left all of us dehydrated and weak at the end. It also took us 5 hours not 3 to 4 :(

But mom is right, it is something I will never forget!

i miss ice cubes :(

What do Barbie and Chinese girls have in common? Both seem to favor painfully high sandals, skimpy outfits with cutesy logos on them and have a fondness for sheer leggings. I would definitely say that the "interesting" outfits girls here like to wear would be one of the most surprising things about my China experience so far. It was my friend Sean who came up with the Barbie idea. We were out dancing on Tuesday and there were mostly Chinese people at the club. There was one girl wearing a hiphop style, jean, haltertop and booty shorts combo next to a girl wearing a semi-formal style black and white dress with a bolero jacket next to a girl wearing a tshirt and jumper. No leggings in sight but trust me, they love them.


Sorry for the poor photo quality but its just some picture I found online that wouldn't let me make a good copy. Anyway its supposed to be a picture of the cheese selection at Auchan. Yes, I said CHEESE.... in CHINA! (this is for you Liz!). On Wednesday I went to Auchan which is a French supermarket chain and basically serves as Chinese Walmart. I bought some delicious, buttery, Laughing Cow cheese and am happy to say that in general there was a nice selection of brie, mozzarella, cheddar, etc. to choose from. They even had Land O' Lakes. The size of cheese may be smaller than what you can get at home but its not really that expensive, everything averaged to about 5 U.S. dollars. So Liz you can come to China and have your grilled cheese too!

Other random things that I've seen/experienced recently:

1) A Chinese beggar child spit on my foot. I'm not sure why he thought spitting on my foot would make me more inclined to give him money but whatever.
2) I saw a gray man. Literally his skin was gray. Not a grayish white but a fairly, dark gray. I'm not sure what that was about but it was kinda disturbing.
3) Today I saw a baby kitten wandering around a grocery store and the next door fruit market. It was soooo tiny and clearly still needed its mommy. I hope she's still around. :(

Today I made my first China photo album, the link is on the right. I have pictures from SSIS, the school that gave me my first job offer and some pretty photos I took today when I walked along a remote canal. Check them out!

My first weeks in China have been successfully completed and I've managed to accomplish the following:
1) Have 3 job offers.
2) Sweat constantly due to the extreme humidity :(
3) Stay out until at least 3 a.m. on the weekends.
4) Splash around in a Chinese water park.
5) Eat frog, pig brain and "street meat". (I was served chicken feet too but I couldn't manage to try that.)

My flight to China was pleasant and went by pretty fast. It was nice to have a layover in Zurich and stretch my legs a bit but in general Swiss Air was a comfortable way to travel. I arrived on time in Shanghai and was picked up by a driver who delivered me in one piece to my hotel. We nearly hit two pedestrians but I quickly learned that reckless driving is completely the norm. People, bikes, cars and buses basically ignore normal traffic rules and do whatever they want, normally without looking to see if anything is going to run into them.

My hotel is pretty nice although I had to move rooms due to mosquitoes. The staff is very nice and accommodating. The worst part is the bed which is incredibly hard but luckily I can fall asleep on pretty much anything. The hotel is located on Shi Quan street which is one of the main streets in downtown Suzhou. It's famous for its shopping, restaurants and bars... what's not to love?! It's wonderful to only have a couple of blocks to experience fun nightlife, plus its completely safe!

Suzhou can be broken down into three sections. SND, Suzhou New District, downtown and SIP, Suzhou Industrial Park. SND is the newer part of the town and lots of Japanese live there. However, its rapidly growing and there are already many Western restaurants such as T.G.I. Fridays which I ate at on Saturday. The downtown area is in the middle and is historic. The buildings are only allowed to be 6 stories high max. and it is dirtier and very crowded. SIP is the western area of the city. Westerners live here and it seems like almost all the large companies are located in this area. The streets are very wide and there are tons of apartments. It also has a 2 yr old lake which is a popular location for the Mister Softee truck. Right now they are building a giant ferris wheel (think the London Eye) and a roller coaster by the lake. It should be completed in October!

Basically life here is like living in any city. True, I don't know the language but people are very nice and helpful. When in doubt I just smile and try to make hand gestures until the point gets across!