We're Back! Back in the Shanghai Groove

Back in Shanghai! but the family tourist adventure was coming to a close...

Last couple days with the family back in Shanghai. It was hard to see everyone leave one by one... but I think we made the most of it. Here is just some silliness of me missing the family!!!

can you spot my dad? 

potentially one of my favorite photos from the trip. (taken by Kimberly).

 Kimberly's last day in Shanghai at the Bund!

Christmas card? hehe.

we totally see you on the boat Kevin!

Some father-daughter goodies from the trip

Daddy's last day

Mom was here a couple extra days, so we did some extra exploring.

First up, Moganshan 50. This is the art district area of Shanghai. Comprised of countless galleries. I'd say most of the galleries are contemporary work as well as some that are surprisingly controversial considering the censorship abound in China. No pics allowed inside the galleries, but here are some surroundings. If you love art like mom & I, you should definitely make the trip.

It was the Dragon Boat holiday while the family was here. The typical food served then is called zongzi. So mom & I went to a zongzi cooking class at my Mandarin school!

About the Dragon Boat Festival: This holiday is in remembrance of a famous Chinese poet, Qu Yuan. He was slandered and exiled by the king. During this time, he wrote the poems which professed his love for his country and also which earned him fame. After his final poem, he committed suicide by jumping in the river rather than see his country be taken over by a new Empire. Upon hearing of his death, the people were devastated. The fishermen searched for him all over the river and the other people threw rice and eggs into the water to deter the fish from eating his body. Hence the "Dragon Boat" and traditions today.

the adorable drawings to explain our Zongzi which can be filled with sweet or salty and depends on the region. (recipe)
Translation: "Hi Everyone. I am Zongzi. Very happy to meet you."

 the adorable Catherine showing us the stuffing

stuffing our Zongzi

to not much success... mine kept dripping. hehe

 our finished zongzi!

guess which 2 are mine! Hint: they look like a child's work

also, mom got to experience what it's like to try to get Matt to pose for a blog photo. She'd been asking me to post a pic of one of the suits & some of the shirts he got made. Here is what she witnessed when I asked him to take a photo. This is me trying to stop him from running away...

And finally, mom's first Hot Pot! Delicious!!!

but also her last night in Shanghai. Cheers to Shanghai!

So lucky to have an amazing family & that they traveled such a long way to see me & experience China! Hope you all loved it too! Miss you already.

Venice of the East!..? Suzhou + Tongli

Ack! I'm so behind on posting! Many of you already know that these things occurred in the past, but if you could all just look past that, I'd really appreciate it. :)

We're off to Suzhou, the Venice of the East (and silk mecca) and Tongli, a charming water town. Both are only about an hours drive outside of Shanghai. 

Suzhou's resemblance to Venice was a tad lost on me. There are canals, and boats, and homes but otherwise, it looks like China... Hehe. Regardless, we had a great time checking out the Silk Factory in Suzhou and then our gondola ride in Tongli.

I found the silk factory to be surprisingly fascinating! Here's what I learned about silk...

Legend has it, that the Empress was drinking her tea in the worm caves, when one cocooned worm dropped from the ceiling and landed in her tea. The cocoon begins to unravel, revealing a long, thin, soft thread. And so silk was born.

Here's the silk "extraction" process (obviously not using technical terms):

1. Worm lays eggs. (well, you know the whole chicken & the egg problem, so we're starting here for argument's sake)
2. Baby ant-size worms hatch from the eggs. 
3. Eat mulberry leaves for 3 days... Eat & Poop & Grow. Eat & Poop & Grow. Eat & Poop & Grow. 
4. Rest 1 day. 
5. Shed skin. 
6. [Repeat steps 3-5, 3 more times.]
7. Now it's a big worm! Create silk cocoon & get snuggly inside the Pupa. Each silk cocoon is made up of 1 filament, that stretches approx. 1 mile long. 
8. Here's where the fate is determined by humans (Options 1 & 2): 
1. Humans bake the cocoon to stop the metamorphosis process and then it heads to machines to unravel the pupa for the silk. Each silk thread in fabrics you buy is made up of 8 silk filaments (8 pupas).
2. Metamorph and hatch into a fly. 
1. Then female finds a male to mate with, after which the male dies. The female lays ~500 eggs. 
2. Female finds a 2nd male mate. Male dies. Female lays ~500 more eggs, and then dies.
3. Each female lays 1,000 eggs during her life. But since this whole process takes ~30days. That multiplication happens quickly.

And there you have it! Silk! Here's a diagram. Although I think my explanation is pretty awesome. ha! 

Silk worms

He's so cute! and quite soft, or silky you might say... 

sorting the good pupas from the bad (small basket: bad, large basket on the ground: good)

ensuring there's always 8 filaments to a thread. many of the machines looks pretty out of date, but that only adds to the allure (or in true Chinese fashion this is all for show. :) )

 can you see the 8 threads?

old school printing press for the silk pattern. still fascinating.

stretching out the silk to form a comforter. My mom & dad bought one for me for a XMas present and it's AMAZING. Perfect for summer!

Next stop in Suzhou was the "Master of Fishing Nets Garden".  I was planning on telling the story of how the garden got its name, but I completely blanked. Any one remember?

More details on the Garden, direct from our tour company, China Spree. As mentioned before, the Chinese gardens are not as we typically refer to them in the West, with lush green pastures for relaxing and picnicking. Instead, the China gardens are comprised of buildings for hosting guests, symbolic trees and stone formations, plus the requisite fish pond. While not a typical "garden", the architecture and intricate details were stunning.

One of many carved screens

intricate stone carvings over entryway

intricate inlaid stone for the courtyards

i'm a sucker for a great moon gate

library nook

fish pond

requisite family photo at the requisite garden fish pond

loved this boy taking photos

 

this is Kevin!

each window was different. each beautiful.

Next up, Tongli! Tongli is a typical water town in China. Many of the Chinese water towns have not been preserved, but Tongli comes close. It used to be considered a hidden "untouched" gem in China, until a book was written about its wonder and its people. The book attracted more people, obviously. Now, while it still holds on to some charm, it has also adapted to kitschy tourist demands as well. 

capturing the charm of Tongli (which obviously includes kid photos)

 

 on to the touristy of Tongli

street eats

 

gondola cruise

creepy fishing birds on gondola cruise

Tongli market

 this claw game had toys & cigarettes! fun for all ages!

closing up shop