Suzhou: The Venice of the Orient

Suzhou is a "small" city near Shanghai famous for its silk and beautiful gardens. After visiting the city in 1276, Marco Polo called it "The Venice of the Orient" because of its intricate network of canals and bridges.

We took a high speed train from Shanghai and arrived in Suzhou in only a 30 minutes. When we exited the terminal, we were met with seven to ten ladies who surrounded and bombarded us trying to sell maps of the city. I knew they would be overpriced and the ladies were not going down in price enough for me, so when I told them the price I would be willing to pay for it, they told me that that's the price for the map in Chinese but I need the English map. The shocked and confused look they had when I said I would take the Chinese map was epic. They definitely did not see that coming. The were sure that I would come back to them asking for the map in English. Little did they know, however, that knew a very very basic Chinese. Not only that, but the street signs were only written in Chinese (or at least most of them). In addition, the Chinese map included the bus routes and stops which was extremely helpful.

Our Chinese map that I bargained for, 
with bus routes and even public bathrooms!

Since it was later in the day, we decided to skip paying for the gardens and instead get an authentic feel of the city. So armed with our newly acquired Chinese map, we headed to the bus stop to continue our afternoon adventure.

After a few minutes on the bus, we got off and walked down a main street lined with shops on either side.

 
Some locals were wondering what us foreigners were doing in this part of town.

After a few blocks, we turned into an alleyway along one of the canals and spent the next maybe half hour taking pictures and enjoying our scenic stroll. 

I really enjoyed exploring the narrow roads along the ancient canals. There were few people around and it was quiet and relaxing.

After a while, we crossed the Grand Canal and entered a beautiful park filled with weeping willow trees (one of my favorite).


A group of men were focused on a game of mahjong and another elderly couple were playing badminton together. It was the perfect atmosphere to sit and relax, especially once the sun started to set. By then we were ready to head back, but not before stopping to take some final pictures for the day.

Read about Taiwan, our first stop here!
Read about Hong Kong, our second stop here!

Victoria Peak

We traveled to Victoria Peak via the Peak Tram taking us to the highest peak on Hong Kong Island. The ride up is so steep that the buildings along the way appear to be built on a slant. I was hoping to get a window seat so I could take some pictures. But not only did I not get a seat, the ride was so full of people that I could hardly see outside!

The tram took us to a building containing some stores and a post office where you can mail a postcard back home. Right across the post office is Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum which is the first place we went to. It's not as big as the one in NY, but we still enjoyed.

A wax figure of Madame Tussaud herself!

After we finished at the wax museum we walked to Victoria Peak Garden. The road was steep at times but the scenery was beautiful which turned it into a really nice quiet and relaxing stroll. We passed at least three different couples taking wedding pictures at different parts of the park. It was a shame we had to leave so soon.

Instead of taking the tram back down we opted for a much more scenic and cheaper option, the bus. This time I was able to get a seat! The bus is a local mini bus that took us probably around 20 minutes. We must have been very lucky because it says online that it takes around 40 minutes and sometimes even an hour!

The last thing we did that day was take the famous Midway Escalators. Since Hong Kong is built on a steep mountain, there are stairs cutting through to the different street levels. The escalators make it easier for people to go up (and during the afternoon rush hour it goes down). It was perfect for us because we were staying not far from the top.

Long stairway in between high risers

Staircase next to the escalator just in case
you need to go in the opposite direction

One of the entrances to the escalators

Mid-Levels Escalators

While we were relaxing in a gazebo, a couple came to take their wedding photos.

Check out the rest of the pictures:

To the right of the river is Kowloon; To the left is Hong Kong Island

	From the end of the tram line looking down where it disappears into the steep mountainside.
Riding the Mid-Levels Escalator	View from our hotel window (the green space is part of the Hong Kong Zoological & Botanical Gardens)
View from our hotel window (the green space is part of the Hong Kong Zoological & Botanical Gardens)	View from our hotel window

Read about our first day in Hong Kong here!

Read about Taiwan, our first stop here!

Macau

After spending the afternoon in Hong Kong we made our way to the ferry terminal for the hour long ride to Macau.

looking toward Kowloon from the ferry terminal

waiting for our ferry after passing through customs

inside our ferry

the outside of our ferry

leaving Hong Kong

barely visible is Macau

Welcome to Macau!

Once we entered Macau and went through customs, we waited for a shuttle bus to take us to the Venetian Hotel, only a five minute drive away.

Once inside, we went straight to the Grand Canal shopping center. It may look like it is daytime, but in fact it is already night. This is because the shopping center is completely indoors! There also was an area where the lights made it look like it was twilight.

© Shayna Abramson

After walking through the shopping center, we took the shuttle bus back to the ferry terminal and then transferred to another shuttle bus. This one took us to the Wynn Hotel located at another area in Macau.

© Shayna Abramson

© Shayna Abramson
The Macau Tower and one of the bridges from Taipa Island to Macau Peninsula

© Shayna Abramson

The shows inside the Wynn hotel were closed for renovations, but the water show right outside was still going just as spectacular as always! Check out the video coming soon...

From there we walked 10-15 minutes down the road to get to Largo do Senado, or Senado Square.

 
Macau was ruled by the Portuguese for over 400 years and was given back to the Chinese in 1999. Macau has its own monetary system and the official languages are both Chinese and Portuguese.

In the area around Senado Square you will see the Portuguese influence on the buildings, streets, and even the street signs. There are also numerous government buildings located in the area.

St. Dominic's Church

 I personally found it interestinf that making one turn took us away from the Portuguese influence for a moment and dropped us into a typical Chinese feel.

Ruins of St. Paul's...& Forever 21

Ruins of St. Paul's

It was starting to get late and we still had to get back to Hong Kong, so we headed back to the Wynn Hotel to pick up our shuttle bus back to the ferry. Before we left though, we stayed for one more water show! Video coming soon...

I really enjoyed the vibe in Macau. There is a mix of glamour and history and it was a fun and relaxing visit. We didn't even have to spend any money! There are so many hotels around the entire Macau that you can just hop on their shuttle buses to get around. It would be nice to return for another short visit and perhaps then I will be able to bungee jump from the Macau Tower or visit its rotating restaurant.