Getting to know Suzhou (苏州) is one of my top priorities for 2013. Between work and weekends in Shanghai and Hangzhou, I haven’t had too much time to explore the city I now live in. Thus, in the spirit of exploration, I stuck my headphones in and headed to one of the famous streets of Suzhou: Pingjiang Lu.
It was a cold Sunday afternoon, with snow lightly covering many of the store roofs and small icicles hanging down. Despite the cold, the sun reflected the snow and seemed to warm the whole place. I walked along the canal for a good hour just listening to my music and observing the hustle and bustle of the street.
Street vendors lined the side of the canal selling flowers, fruit, and all sorts of food, books, and postcards to Chinese tourists and random passers-by. The smell of delicious street food reached me as I passed a particularly cramped part of the street. The street-cart owners stared at me, clearly hoping for some business. Unfortunately for them, however, the smell of the “stinky tofu” was enough to keep away.
I randomly chose to walk into small shops that looked interesting. I found quaint stationery shops with postcards of just about everything but Suzhou. About halfway into my walk I decided to turn down one of the canals where houses are and walked by myself for awhile. It was quiet and I got to observe the everyday activities of the people who lived there. I shared smiles with locals going about their daily lives who were just as happy with this beautiful Sunday as I was. It was a perfect afternoon spent wandering and exploring. I look forward to many more of these days – hopefully with warmer weather!
2013年，了解苏州是我的首要任务之一。