A month has gone by since my Spring Festival travels but vivid memories of people, adventures and experiences are alive in my heart and mind. And now, in the place that I call home, I also have many tangible memories from all the fantastic shopping we accomplished in those two and a half weeks.
Shanghai, Suzhou, Hong Kong, Koh Samed and Bangkok are the destinations Karen, Sarah and I mapped out. I felt like a kid on Christmas morning when we met up at the Shanghai train station. It was great fun showing them around and watching their expressions as they marveled at the stark contrast of old and new in this gigantic city. After a full day of having clothes tailor made and shopping at the three-story Pearl Market, we brought happy hour to Courtney’s place and went for dinner at my favorite Indian restaurant in her neighborhood. Since I’ve been in China, Courtney’s been a gem of a host showing me the ropes around Shanghai, and now Karen and Sarah have reaped the benefits of her hospitality, too.
Then it was on to my ‘hometown’ where I was happy as could be to show off No. 10 Middle School, the gardens, local temples and pagodas, Yang Yang’s dumpling restaurant, and all the fine shopping right here in Suzhou. Before our three days in Suzhou were over, Karen and Sarah decided they better lighten their load and they got to experience first hand the delights of a post office in China. Maybe it was because the guy in charge of shipping knows me a little by now, but he scarcely rummaged through ALL the goodies they sent home.
Hong Kong, our next destination, is a fantastic city to visit. I liken the entire city to a giant amusement park. The ride starts right at the airport where if you buy an Octopus card public transportation throughout the city is yours. The subway, bus system, and ferries all make getting around really easy. Aside from a most incredible sushi dinner, one of my fondest memories in Hong Kong is when we got off the Star Ferry tour and walked across the street to the bus terminal to catch a ride to Stanley Market. We climbed aboard the double-decker bus and set off to see the south side of Hong Kong Island. Five minutes into the ride we looked at each other and knew we were headed in the wrong direction. Hopeful that the bus would soon make a turn and start heading south, we contentedly sat and took in a tour of Kowloon from our comfortable front seats on the upper level of the bus. Getting lost on a local bus is a great way to catch a glimpse of people’s everyday lives. On the bus with us were three Pakistani kids, ages 15, 11 and 5.
They were returning home from school wearing beautiful traditional dress. They’ve been living in Hong Kong for six years and this ride is their routine. They first made their presence known to us by shouting obscenities from the back of the bus to someone who was apparently looking at them funny. When the eleven-year old boy came next to me and said, ‘excuse me,’ and hopped into the seat next to me, I commented on his good manners and we fast become friends. After asking us some questions about where we were trying to go and studying our map, he kindly pointed out to us that this bus will not be turning around and, our best bet is to ride it all the way to the end of the line with them and then catch another going in the opposite direction to take us to Stanley. Turns out the ride itself was a great destination and getting to know these kids along the way made it even more interesting. By the time we made it to the south end of the island the market was closed for the day. We were just happy the great restaurants weren’t closed and we had a terrific seafood meal at the Fishmarket, or Boathouse restaurant, can’t quite remember the name but the seafood alfredo dish was wonderful. Five days in Hong Kong is barely enough time to see and do all the city has to offer, but we were off to Thailand next so who could complain.
Thailand’s an experience that’s hard to put into words. For me, visiting another country in Asia and gaining a bit of a broader perspective was fascinating. Colorful is a good word to describe a sense of the little I saw of this country’s people, cities, food and shopping. Back to square one in terms of not knowing the language, customs and way around it was a challenge. It was great to have Sarah’s friend, Josh, pick us up at the airport and show us to a suburb of Bangkok where the
International school is located. After a few days at the beach Karen and I spent two days making our way around Bangkok and visiting grand places like the Grand Palace and Wat Pho – Temple of the Reclining Buddha. In the ten days I was in Thailand I barely skimmed the surface of all there is to see and experience here, maybe I’ll get to return one day. Our two and a half weeks together flew by. Before I knew it I was saying good-bye to Karen and Sarah as they left the hotel in Bangkok at 3:00 in the morning to catch their flight back to Denver. It was sad to see my great company leave, but I had another adventure of my own to look forward to. Four days of beach time in Koh Samui isn’t a bad way to end a vacation. I enjoyed the respite of solitude, sun and water as I geared up to return to Suzhou for the second half of what’s been a great year so far.
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