Roaming around Wuxi...

...was quite enjoyable today. Started out in the morning with my mom walking around various parts of Wuxi. I don't know which district we were in but I saw much of modern Wuxi and old Wuxi. I'm not the best photographer in the world but I tried to get some nice photos for you all to see. I also got to use a lot of my Chinese though I don't think I did too well.

This is a lucky knot.

 Wuxi is quite different from Shanghai. There seems to be less activity than in Shanghai but I think that could just be our area and the weather. Our hotel looks over many things and while being on the 20th floor you can see far and wide the various "attractions" around. From the old town area with a temple, the soccer and track fields, the modern down town and the smaller suburban area that still has towers of apartments.

A small park area.

 While walking around our area of Wuxi I saw a lot less green areas and parks than in Shanghai but it is also a lot less crowded in Wuxi and there is less traffic (though still a lot). In Wuxi you feel like you have more "space" than in Shanghai where there are towers so close together, small side walks and the busy streets. Here the side walks are bigger and there are less people and buildings are more spaced out. Though the signs of many construction projects show that this will change in the future.

Closer look at the sign. Dated October 2016

 My parents and I both enjoyed walking around the older looking areas of Wuxi. The "old towns" if you would of Wuxi are filled with small shops of all kinds from beads, to food, to clothes and more. The old style of buildings combined with the brick walkways make for a very peaceful atmosphere. These old areas in Chinese cities always seem to be right next to the rivers where you can see people relaxing or fishing along its bank.

A nice river view from the peak of a bridge.

 We bought a few things, nothing big, just a wooden frog for my dad, food for me and coffee for my mom. For lunch/breakfast we stopped in what I read as a "Western Restaurant" (西美食...) but turned out to be more of a turkish cuisine. I don't know if there was an old sign left up or what but I was confused. After a nice meal of mapo tofu, spicy potatoes, spicy chicken, BBQ beef, and great Hong Cha. We left satisfied and went back to the hotel.

3 Kings, many clay figures in Wuxi.

 Overall, I liked Wuxi and thought about if we had lived here instead of Shanghai. Life would certainly be different and I feel I might've picked up on the language even quicker in Wuxi as there were no other foreigners. It was strange as we actually were looked at quite a bit by people which was a tad unexpected after being in China so long.

A nice area right outside the hotel.

Even though I haven't been working out like I said I would it has been fun spending time with family and away from other small stresses. It won't be long again until I'm back hitting the weights for good and pushing myself in MMA class. Though these trips are nice and I know won't last forever come March. Two days in Nanjing should be a blast but I don't think I'll be able to post during those days because I'm not taking my computer. Expect another break in posts... all my many readers.

Now that the night has come to an end at 23:22 its time for me to head to bed and another day of jumbling through the Chinese language.

What small things do you guys do every day that you enjoy?

-Jonah

"Trying new things isn't always that bad ya know?"

No music, just the sound of my snoring parents.