Mon, 4/9.  Took high speed train to Suzhou.  I clocked it at 173MPH.  Suzhou is a small city of only 4 million.  Took in another canal boat ride of limited interest.  Fortunately it was a beautiful day, which helped an otherwise boring cruise become worth it.  The oarsman sang.

Visited a rather pedestrian temple.  It had a long history, including an extended period when it was underutilized.  Ho-hum.  Jacky said everyone can practice the religion of their choice, but they can’t do it together.  Individual observance.

After another standard lunch we had a [quick] tour of a silk factory which ended in [slow] walk through the obligatory store.  I finally learned how silk originates.  Didn’t want to buy anything.

Lastly we walked through a traditional garden which made the entire day for me.  There were very few flowers, but the rocks, trees and buildings were laid out very nicely.  I could certainly imagine a day just sitting and contemplating great poetry.  Of course, the absence of numerous tourists, some with extremely loud guides, would help.  One guide handed out receivers and spoke into a mic.  Loudly.  We had a short demonstration of music.  I’m sorry to say that traditional Chinese song leaves me cringing.

I walked alone back to the hotel from the train station, trusting my offline map.  Walked through some of the less toured areas.  Everything was still clean[ish].  Passed several scooter repair shops.  Scooters are everywhere, many electric.  All are quiet.  Hardly anyone wears a helmet.  I think investing in a Chinese helmet manufacturer would be a wise idea.  Someday the government will require them.  1.4 billion potential helmet sales.

Tomorrow we fly to Beijing.  I just read that it’s got the 2nd busiest airport in the world.  Shanghai’s is only the 9th.

Finding the beginning of the silk thread should be a challenge, but they found an easy technique.

So far all singing has been several octaves above acceptable. Fortunately, the performance was very short.