2010-06-29 China - Nanjing, Suzhou and Shanghai

Today we left the Viking Century Sun in Nanjing and boarded our bus for the trip to Shanghai. Our first stop was the famous Garden of the Master of Nets in Suzhou. It is a lovely garden, quite different from the gardens of Europe, but with its own charm and beauty. Kiyomi was especially impressed by the design that involved all five senses (touch, sight, sound, smell, taste). Even the walkways were interesting. It reminded us of the Huntington Garden near Pasadena, CA that we recently visited. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to this beautiful garden.

The restaurant where we had a Chinese Banquet lunch was above a silk embroidery shop. The colors and artistry of the art was amazing. Vibrant colors, detailed designs and interesting subject matter characterized the works. Many were classic Chinese scenes and landscapes; many were animals (real and imagined); some were copies of other paintings. They ranged in size from perhaps 4" by 6" up to folding screens that were 5' by 7'. Some were the same on both sides, but a mirror image. Prices were pretty high; even the small ones were hundreds or thousands of dollars US.

After lunch, we had a tour of a silk spinning factory. Here we saw the process of getting silk thread from the silkworms, and the process to unwind the silk from the cocoons to produce thread. It was fascinating to see the people working, mostly manually (the automatic machines were not operating, apparently skillful workers do a better job). Kiyomi bought a silk shawl, light blue in color that is beautiful. Many of our fellow travelers also bought silk items, including lovely silk quilts ready to go. They made shipping very easy, too.

Eventually we arrived at the Ritz-Carleton Shanghai, a 5-star hotel. We were on the 41st floor, with a nice view, especially after dark. The buffet dinner was extensive and enjoyable; Kiyomi concentrated on salad and Japanese food, I had steak and many of the delicious dessert selections. Back in our room we were glad to have a hot bath. Although the bathrooms on the Century Sun were spacious enough, there was no tub.