Tania in China

Sun, Oct 23: Limping Shopper, Hidden Garden

Again I plan to get up early, take another great shower and get going, but again I am too lazy. I decide a half hour more sleep is worth more than another shower, so I barely roll out of bed at 9 to go down to breakfast. As I am getting ready for breakfast, I turn on the TV, and find that the first game of the World Series is being broadcast live! The score is tied at 1-1 - not bad. Somehow during the 5 minutes I have taken to get dressed the Cardinals have scored 3 runs so it is now 4-1. I had better go get some breakfast!

I sit reading my paper and eating pastry while the staff refills my coffee cup - I could really get used to this! No almond croissant today, but a really nice chocolate one. I find out the hotel has a real French chef since he comes out to check the level of food on the buffet while I am filling my plate. That is why the pastries have all been so good!

I plan to just run into my room, grab my stuff and go, but I am so tired and my feet still hurt, I decide to check out ESPN again. The score is still 4-1, so we could still possibly catch up. Within 5 minutes the Cardinals have scored another 3 runs, and the chances look slim for the Tigers. I have to stop watching - I seem to be bad luck! It takes me a while, but I finally get going.

I have decided to visit the Yuyuan Garden - a traditional Chinese garden completed in 1577. According to the travel book it is surrounded by a baazar selling traditional Chinese wares. Boy, they are not kidding! The taxi drops me off at a corner, surrounded by shops and no garden in sight. There was a small green area behind where he dropped me off, and I head there to see if that is it. It is not. It seems as if all the activity is heading south, so I do, too. I am absolutely overwhelmed by the number of shops - row after row, street after street selling every kind of Chinese ware. Porcelain, jewelery, carved jade and other stones, paintings, calligraphy, silk robes and outfits, statues, dolls, traditional weapons, tea, tea sets, embroidery, wood carvings, old Mao pictures, little red books, and the list goes on. There is also every level of shop from "hole-in-the-wall" to "chandeliers and live piano music." I do want to do the majority of my Christmas shopping here, but I want to go to the garden first, shopping second. I wander past countless shops down countless winding lanes, and seem to hit the southern boarder of the area. So, let's try east. About 10 minutes further the crowds seem to be moving with purpose, so I follow, thinking this must be the way.

Soon I find not the garden, but the Old City's Gods Temple, a Taoist temple built back in 1450. Remembering that the temple and the garden go hand in hand in the guide book, I pay my 5 RMB and head inside. The whole complex is packed with worshippers and tour groups.
In the main courtyard worshippers burn offerings and offer prayers.
Inside the various temple shrines, offerings of fruit and scrolls with Chinese characters are given. There are multiple chambers and multiple courtyards, but no entrance to the garden. There is even a restaurant with priests running back and forth taking care of customers, looking more like busboys than priests. I elbow my way back to the front, and exit to continue my quest for the garden. I finally find a map posted of the area, and find the garden runs along the west side of the baazar, not touching any major street. No wonder I have had problems! I finally twist and turn my way through the alleys, and find the entrance. You are not going to find the entrance to this garden unless you really, really want to. It is so tucked away and subtle, it would be really easy just to walk by. By now it is 12:30, and I wanted to leave the hotel by 2pm for the train station, so I am not going to get much time in the gardens. I should have gotten myself up earlier! I buy my ticket and enter the garden.

The garden area is really pretty, and much larger than I thought, and covered in tourists. Everything in the garden was designed to present "pretty pictures" from every location.
There are multiple buildings and ponds and rock formations, all forming different tableauxs. I wander, read various descriptions, duck into the Gold and Silver of China exhibit, and try to cram a visit into a half hour. There is not just one path around the garden - there are multiple forks that lead you into different sections.
I don't even see the tea house on a pond that is described in the tour book - this place is bigger than I thought. I find an exit after a half hour, and run off for some quick shopping. I pick a 3 story mall of little shops, and on the second floor find a good gift for my Mom. I would describe it, but my Mom reads these posts, and it is her Christmas present! But I will tell you I was worried about how I would pack it to bring it home, but it turns out it all comes apart and fits into a very nice box about 21" square and about 2" thick. I am still worried whether it will fit in my larger suitcase, but if it does that means I don't have to try to ship anything home. I run around to find another shop to buy one more present for Mom, then off to find a taxi. Sorry to the rest of my family - I am going to have to find your presents when I visit Beijing since I ran out of time. Finding a taxi is a task in itself since there are no cars in the middle of the bazaar, so I have to find the border to find a cab. I do finally flag down a cab who seems to understand where my hotel is, and off we go. It turns out he was not so sure and takes me to the Sofitel, but now that I am an old-hand I am able to guide him to my hotel. Up to the room to grab my prepacked bags, and off to the train station.

I have to bellhop get me a cab, he chats with the driver and I assume he is telling the guy where I want to go, but it turns out no. About 50 feet down the road the driver signals that I need to tell him where I want to go. I say "train", and he make a "choo-choo-choo" noise, and I nod. I am a bit worried since I know that Shanghai has two train stations, but I dig out my ticket and show it to him, and he gets me where I need to be just fine.

As I exit the taxi a couple of guys try to grab my bags to help me into the station for a tip, but this is not my heavy luggage so I grab it back and head for the waiting area. I find the board telling the status of the various trains and when they will be boarding, and this time there is English, too. I find a little coffee shop area, buy a latte and custard tart, and settle in on a couch to wait to board. It is interesting that they don't have a steam machine to make the frothed milk - a guy does it by hand in a bowl with a whisk. It is now only about 2:40, and my train is not until 3:47, so I guess I could have spent another half hour at the garden and still had plenty of time. Next time I will know. After a while a college-age girl sits across from me, and we end up holding a very nice conversation. She is a film student at one of the universities in Nanjing, and talked about how much she loves American movies and television, and how she wants to travel abroad.

Finally it is time to board my train, and my prayers go unanswered as I am once again going to be sitting backwards all the way to Nanjing. This time all the seats are configured in groupings of 4 - 2 facing forward and 2 facing back, with a small table in the middle. I have decided I like the 'all facing the same way' configuration better since you have more legroom, being able to stretch out under the seat in front of you. This time there is no scrolling sign in the car, so I am going to have to pay attention to make sure I get off at the right station. This train only makes 3 stops on the way to Nanjing, so it is only 3 hours instead of 3 1/2. The crowd on this train is much quieter - most people seem to be sleeping. It is now dark when I finally exit the train at the correct station, and as I exit I forget that I have to show my ticket to get out. Again luckily I have kept it and am able to dig it out. After wandering around a bit I finally find the line for the taxis, and in about 15 minutes I am in a cab heading back to the Sheraton. Traffic is much lighter on a Sunday evening than on a Friday afternoon, so we head back through the center of town.

I am disappointed to find out that my Platinum status still does not get me an upgrade in Nanjing, and find my room quite a letdown after the weekend. This room is also smaller than my last since they didn't have any king bed rooms available - just rooms with two twins. My one bright moment is when I found out that Mom's present will fit in my suitcase, so I don't have to deal with shipping anything home. I think about grabbing something to eat, but I am so tired I just settle in, unpack all my stuff, and fall asleep early.

posted by Tania @ 3:14 PM