Nana Pat comes to China

Mudu

Nana Pat has finally arrived in China - yippee.  After getting lost in Shanghai airport for 2 hours she made it to Suzhou and we did our best to show her around.  We took Nana to Mudu a water village at the edge of Suzhou.  This was during a public holiday so it was completly packed out but still a fun adventure for the day.

We also introduced Nana to meat on a stick BBQ dinner which was also enjoyed by our friends the Turners and Runkels.

Giant Budha

Our next adventure was to Wuxi where the Giant Budha awaited.  There are 5 big Budha's which increase in size throughout the park finnishing with the Giant Budha up what felt like a million steps. I orgainised a 20 seater bus for this trip so we were lucky enough to be joined by many of our friends. There was a spectacular palace inside in addition to a water and sound show where a budha appeared out of a closed flower.  This was once again on a chinese holiday so we were joined by many many people.  We managed to not loose anyone which was an accomplishment in its own.

Beijing

Mackenzie and I took Nana Pat to Beijing.  We saw the Great Wall (Mutianyu) for the second time.  Nana thought it was incredible and given she isn't keen on heights did really well on the Trek.

We visited the Temple of Hevan the same day which was also quite impressive.  The following day we made it to The Forbidden City and Tianamen Square which was vast.  We managed to make it to the Hall of Clocks inside the FC which was pretty impressive.  We had a pedicab ride around some old Hutongs before getting off for a quick lunch then onto the Olympic Village complete with the Cube and the Birds Nest.  Then it was good bye Beijing hello sleeper train back to Suzhou which was surprisingly comfortable.

Temple of Hevan

Forbidden City

Olympic Village

Suzhou Gardens

Pan Man Gate

We spent a morning wondering through the beautiful Pan Man Gate.  We took advantage of a photo opportunity on a fake horse only to discover that you needed to pay for the opportunity so we quickly scuttled off.

Master of The Nets

This is a simple Garden not too big in size but provides a beautiful and tranquil environment.  Not to mention its close to one of our favourite chinese restaurants (cantoneses style chinese).

Humble Administrators Garden

Bevan and the kids together with Nana went and visited the large and sprawling Humble Administrators Garden.  Unfortunately it was a wet day but this could have been a good thing as the place gets really crowded.  The kids enjoyed climbing over the rocks and showing Nana the ropes. Mum was at Yellow Mountain (Huangshou) for the weekend. It had a really cool traditional design with a modern twist and was enjoyed by all.

Tiger Hill & Shangtang Jie

We visted the man made hill of Tiger Hill which is a popular tourist spot here in Suzhou.  It has a nice quaint Bonsai garden and a small climb to Suzhou's version of the Leaning Tower of Pisa.  We made our way here by an adventurous bus trip with the local chinese being very interested in where we were going and ensuring that we were on the right track.  Mum presented a popular photo opportunity for a few tourists so goodness knows where her photo will end up.  We took a pleasant cruise down Shangtang Jie canal to the main street which was peaceful and pleasant.  Mum was loving taking it all in seeing how people do their washing in the dirty canal and goodness knows what else.

Shanghai

During Nana Pats stay we went to Shanghai twice.  Once to Madam Tussaunds Wax museum and the copy markets and the second for a bus tour around.  We visited Pudong area which is the financial district and has a lot of high rise buildings including the Pearl Tower.  We also went to the old town which was pretty busy and fun.