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From Magic City Morning Star R.P. BenDedek
Although I have been teaching for 5 years now, these last twelve months I have been employed by the SuZhou Polytechnic Institute of Agriculture in Suzhou City, Jiangsu Province. I have been a contributing columnist at Magic City Morning Star News for a few years now, and today, the purpose of this article is simply to introduce some sights of SuZhou that I have not previously shown. You needn't bother to thank for me this, I'm only doing it because yesterday was the last day of term, and it is so cold here, that I have no intention of going outside. So what is one to do with one's time? Easy answer: 'Do an article for Magic City'. The principle purpose of these photographs is to introduce Jin Ji Lake, but there are some others of the Xiyuan Temple beside the college, as well as a couple taken from within the school. I hope you enjoy the photographs. This year, New Years Day in the western calendar, coincided with a Chinese festival, and the students were given a two day holiday. We all had Monday January First and Tuesday Second free from classes, but to recoup some lost classes, we all had to go to school on Saturday. Ultimately it meant that we had a 3 day weekend. My fellow Foreign English teacher Albert, his former student Jerry, and I, decided to go to Tiger Hill to take some photos. I had previously taken photographs from outside, but had never been inside. None of us knew the cost of entrance to the park, but the usual 40 rmb charge had been increased to 60 rmb because it was a public holiday. While that did not bother me - I purchased a special card last year that gets me into many places, the boys were not inclined to pay the 60 rmb fee. Instead, following Jerry, we caught a bus to Jin Ji Lake. Jin Ji Lake SuZhou
Well that was a fun trip. Firstly it was a cold day, secondly we caught the wrong bus and ended up on the wrong side of Jin Ji lake, and thirdly, there was a good stiff breeze to remind us of how frail is the mortal coil. Some time into the bus journey to Jin Ji, Jerry enquired of the driver as to where we should get off. The driver pointed out the error in taking that particular bus to Jin Ji, and advised us to get off immediately and follow the road to the left.
Now for those of you who might be considering coming to SuZhou, let me tell you that there is indeed a golf club there, because it was right beside the bus stop. Unfortunately, since I have no actual idea of where we were, I can't actually tell you where the club is. But for all those foreigners who have previously asked me - Yes there is a golf club.
We followed the bus drivers suggestion and found ourselves walking through a very beautiful but desolate area which took us forthwith to Jin Ji lake, but we arrived at a point reasonably removed from public use. After taking a few photos we set off to return to the bus stop, and instead, (eventually) found ourselves on a main road serviced by buses that none of us knew anything about. The trip to the bus stop however was quite interesting, for it took us through a new development area of housing and shops - all far to pricey for any of us hungry guys to even consider stopping for food, but at least the scenery was great.
Eventually we came to a more public section of Jin Ji lake where hundreds of tourists were walking around, playing games in the park and generally removing themselves from their own perhaps 'less than modern' home environments.
When we finally did exit the park at Jin Ji, there were only two buses servicing that road, and as Murphy's law would have it, we not only caught the wrong bus but went in the wrong direction. Eventually, I spied at a bus stop, the sign advertising the Number 6 bus, and that bus I did know. So we scooted off, found out which direction to travel, and finally arrived up at Ren Min Road.
Although we could have continued on to the school, we were all so hungry that we figured we had a better chance of finding a nice meal up town than by the school. After having something to eat and buying a few videos we all headed home to the comfort of our warm apartments. Suzhou Polytechnic Institute of Agriculture
When I arrived a year ago, the school was undergoing a complete make over. New Buildings, new grounds, and new facilities. Between Christmas and New Year we foreign teachers were treated to a special dinner, thanked for all our help during the recent government inspections, and given the low-down on all the coming changes. Apparently the English department will be enlarged, and the foreign language department will be extended to include German. That should be fun. Last year we were privileged to have here, Chiara Braccagni from Udine in Northern Italy, who spent one semester teaching introductory Italian to 7 boys, who now study in Italy. And despite everyone's dire predictions (including my own), the boys have had to buckle down and learn the language on the fly. They are doing quite well. Not wanting to overdo my welcome with all those who have read about my experiences in SuZhou so far, I do not intend go on and on. If this is your first visit to Magic City Morning Star News or to my column, then you can read my articles about SuZhou, some of which are listed at the end. For now, I will just leave you with some photos of the Agricultural College SuZhou, and a few of the Xi Yuan Temple next door.
Xi Yuan Temple Xi Yuan Temple has it's entrance on the canal on FengQiao Road. FengQiao Road is at the back of the Agricultural College, which itself faces Xi Yuan Road. Xi Yuan road however, is at the back of Xi Yuan Temple. Go Figure!
I hope you have enjoyed this little outing! R.P.Bendedek Email: rpbendedek@hotmail.com Photographic Articles on Suzhou at Magic City
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