Summary
- Suzhou is a traditional city, much like Kyoto, and unlike Shanghai, it allows us to enjoy a slower pace of life while walking around.
- The white walls with black roofs and stains resemble traditional paintings, and occasionally, impressive street art can be seen.
- The canal is registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and features many museums and gardens.
- Suzhou is also famous for its food and drinks, which are frequently found outside of China.
- It also boasts lakes and is home to unique skyscrapers, hotels, and museums.
Highlights
Lake Area
- The southern part of the lake is home to hotels and museums, many of which are free. However, it is relatively small and sometimes difficult to enter if one does not speak Chinese.
- The west side of the lake features a massive skyscraper, but it is not as crowded as my friend said.
Humble Administrator's Garden
- It is registered as a UNESCO site and is essentially a large park with stunning buildings and gardens.
Suzhou Canal City (苏州平江历史文化街区)
- It is a tranquil city, much like Kyoto, and every location is photogenic.
- It is actually a shipping district, where we can buy all sorts of goods or simply walk to the nearby museum. The museum I mentioned is located in this area.
Garden (耦园)
- It is less crowded than the Administrator's Garden, yet still photogenic. There were many cosplayers present. The red hall is unique and consists of a series of buildings and gardens.
Foods
- This original Suzhou drink was good, but 酸梅湯 was much better.
- This flower is popular in the area, and some stores use it as a topping on ice cream.
Other Interesting Places
- There was an electric market that was partly a playground for kids. Surprisingly, I had not seen a home appliance store before. In Japan, it is common to have a large electronics store, but perhaps in China, there are many smaller electronics shops in malls.
- The station was quite large, but unlike in Japan, stores are typically not directly connected to the shops around it. This setup may be somewhat difficult because it only benefits specific companies, and the CCP may not want to change it.
- It was my first time seeing high-speed trains connected to each other, but I hope each train has a unique design.
PVG Airport
- It was the day to fly to Bangkok, and I used PVG airport. Surprisingly, there was a museum and an audio library, and I felt a massive focus on education by the government.
- The organic design of the airport was also stunning, but like many places, it just tends to create a massive and boring environment if one stays too long.
Conclusion
- Suzhou was very walkable and is actually quite similar to Japanese cities. I felt it was the most livable city in China that I have experienced so far.
- The food in Suzhou is quite healthy and delicious as well. It is not overly spicy or salty, making it suitable for Japanese palates.
- The traditional architecture and artistic style are relatively simple yet intriguing, and perhaps this simplicity aligns with modern UI design principles. The use of gradients may represent the unique texture of ink.
- The gardens here may not be the most gorgeous, but like Japanese gardens, they are truly relaxing. Perhaps Japanese gardening and art that uses ink originated from this region of China.
- I think the placement of the library and museum in the airport is a really good idea. Japan does have libraries, but sometimes they are not accessible from transportation hubs. It's absolutely effective if we can read books while waiting for a flight.
