When we went to Shizilin garden to admire the stones, we bought some peaches just outside the garden. The woman vendor gave us back our change, and was nice enough to count it in front of us for correct change. Guess what? She counted nine 10-RMB bills, but gave us only seven back. We did not realize this trick until we were buying the entrance tickets for Shizilin. Promptly we went after the peach vendor and she gave us the rest of the money back without making a scene. Apparently the ticket lady at Shizilin said it was a common trick used by those fruit vendors outside Shizilin. There are two other incidents (one involving bicycle parking fee) which we will spare you the details.
Special stones at Shizilin
While Hangzhou was a pleasant surprise for us, Suzhou was an unpleasant surprise. Some of the canals were so dirty that the color was black. It was not nice to walk on the main streets due to the traffic. The small alleys offered temporary refuge, but cars and motorbikes still zoomed through them, i.e. honking behind you to pass.
To be fair, Suzhou does have its beautiful side, e.g. parks and museums. That is why many tourists still come here. For us, it was time to pack up and visit the water towns before heading to Shanghai.
us riding bicycles in Suzhou ... it was HOT
silk worms and cocoons from the Silk Museum
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