Expo 2010 is down to its final week. Attendance exceeded 70 million this week, breaking the record set by 64 million in Osaka, Japan, in 1970. The one-day record is 1.03 million – lots of people and long waiting lines. We spent a few days visiting Expo, but didn’t want to wait in line, so we walked around the fairgrounds along the Huangpu River, lined with beautiful gardens. The one pavilion we like best (you can watch it from outside) is Taiwan. The spherical LED screen shines beautifully at night. You can even light an electronic wish lantern (if you can get inside) that appears to float up into the sky on the screen. The Fantastic design showcases Taiwan’s high-tech expertise beautifully. My sister-in-law Teresa is THE expert on the Shanghai Expo; she’s visited there over 25 times. One time she even got up at 4 am and waited in line at 5 am to get into China Pavilion. She is a huge fan of the Shanghai Expo. We bought dinner tickets to the Spanish pavilion. By paying 300 RMB (about $45 a person) for dinner and a show (neither is worth the ticket price), you can sidestep the long line and enter the exhibition directly. We took the ferry over to the West side of Expo and visited Urban Practical Living Cases. Hamburg and Shanghai both showcase high-tech, environmentally friendly communities. I especially liked the outdoor rain-collecting wall that drains into the water lily-filled pond and indoor vertical planters (straight up 4 floors). In the Hamburg building, we took a picture of ourselves, which the computer displayed for about 30 seconds. Then someone took our picture standing next to the display. So we had a double image in one picture. I think it is cute. The China pavilion is one of the most popular ones to visit and usually has a waiting line. We got in with some help from a friend who gave us VIP passes. We were impressed with the whole exhibition. An ancient Chinese architect designed the building, with traditional Chinese red. The main part of the building was this 300-plus-meter-long electronic version of the famous Chinese scroll painting “A Day of People’s Life along the River during the Qingming (memorial) festival”. The original painting was painted in the 1500s and includes over 600 figures doing routine daily activities like shopping in the market, eating in restaurants, soldiers parading in the streets, and merchants bringing in produce on camels. The original is a Chinese national treasure on display at the Palace Museum. The new electronic version adds animation to the painting, making it even more fascinating to watch daily life from long ago. This is definitely the crown jewel of the whole China exhibition. Another part I particularly enjoyed was the 98 paintings by children ages 6 to 14. Some of the young artists are obviously very talented. Ray and I were lucky to see quite a bit of the Expo exhibition with minimal waiting in line.
Between Expo visits, we traveled to several nearby cities, including Wuzhen, an ancient water village sort of like Venice. The village is surrounded by small canals lined with willow trees. You can hire wooden boats for a nice float along the river. We saw a group of 18 ships that were filled with newlyweds on their way to a group wedding ceremony and a huge banquet. All part of the romantic scene created by Wuzeng’s marketing department. We also visited my ancestors’ home, Suzhou – the famous “paradise on earth” garden city, about a 30-minute train ride from Shanghai. We stayed at the beautifully remodeled Ping Jiang Lodge, which was a remodeled ancient home (originally built in the 1600s). It has high ceilings and beautifully carved wooden furnishings, and even the telephone is an old-style dial. It has the traditional Su-style courtyard garden, making it a welcoming and calming place. Pingjiang Lodge is located in the center of Suzhou’s old town. Along the stone-paved path that meanders along the river with a moon-shaped bridge, you are led to the world-heritage “Humbling Administration Garden” and the brand-new Suzhou Museum, designed by the world-renowned architect Pei, who also designed the Louver glass pyramid and the Kennedy Presidential Museum.
Suzhou was Mr. Pei’s childhood home, so even at the advanced age of 90, he worked hard to bring his talent to life in a modern museum that stays true to the spirit of ancient Suzhou. The items on display were mostly exquisite ivory and wooden carvings, and delicate porcelain. We were very lucky because the museum was hosting a special exhibition of the famous Su-style embroidery. Talented Suzhou girls stitched the lifelike dogs, cats, flowers, and landscapes one stitch at a time, dedicating months and even years to create a masterpiece of art unmatched in the world. One famous piece featuring the “two-sided embroidery technique” shows a black-and-white panda bear on one side and a beautiful yellow cat on the other. Even after staring at it for 20 minutes, I still couldn’t comprehend how it was done and how it was possible to put two different paintings on two sides of the same piece of silk. From the DVD screen, I learned that each painting contains hundreds of colored silk threads, split into 64 strands from a single silk thread. The ladies who did the embroidery needed immaculate, smooth hands, steady hands, and keen eyes. A small painting takes 3-4 months, and a big piece takes years to complete. You should not miss this unique art form if you ever visit Suzhou. You will be totally enchanted by its magic, just like I was.
We enjoyed butterfly fried fish with sweet-and-sour sauce and artistically sculpted vegetables at the historic Pine and Crane restaurant downtown. Freshwater fish is a staple in Southern China. Freshly caught and carefully prepared, the local white fish brought out its delicate flavor. We are halfway through our stay in the Shanghai region and enjoying it. Stay tuned for our trips to Yuyao and Hangzhou. One Chinese proverb I have always strived to live by is to “enjoy one’s life by reading 10 thousand books and traveling 10 thousand miles.” I hope you enjoy the first segment of our “10 thousand mile SE Asia tour”. The photos taken here are in the Google Photo Link below