The Spring Festival officially ended...finally. It lasts fifteen days after the Lunar New Year's. And
every single, solitary day from early morning until late, late night 
the sound of fireworks could be heard. The final day is celebrated by the lighting of lanterns, hence the Lantern Festival. I'd read about the many festivals taking place in all the cities. Suzhou had one in Guxumen Plaza, which is in the Old Town.
every single, solitary day from early morning until late, late night 
the sound of fireworks could be heard. The final day is celebrated by the lighting of lanterns, hence the Lantern Festival. I'd read about the many festivals taking place in all the cities. Suzhou had one in Guxumen Plaza, which is in the Old Town. I talked Larry into going. Once again, we really didn't know what to expect, but prepared for anything. There were thousands of people walking in the park along the canal. Larry said that these kinds of festivals are for the non-rich.Lanterns hung from the 
trees and were strung out along the paths. Displays set up for photo opportunities abounded; some were cool, others were just creepy.
Take a closer look at Snow White and her dwarves. We came upon hundreds of folks standing around reading riddles and stories written on strips of paper hanging from flags. Unfornately, we didn't have a clue as to what they said, but it was still impressive. Since we had stopped walking, the locals began to take notice of us. Quite a crowd 
formed around the girls as they'd started entertaining a little boy. All they were doing was rolling a little toy car back and forth to each other, but it was as if they'd invented the wheel the way everyone was pointing, staring, smiling, taking pictures and wanting to talk to the girls.
trees and were strung out along the paths. Displays set up for photo opportunities abounded; some were cool, others were just creepy.
Take a closer look at Snow White and her dwarves. We came upon hundreds of folks standing around reading riddles and stories written on strips of paper hanging from flags. Unfornately, we didn't have a clue as to what they said, but it was still impressive. Since we had stopped walking, the locals began to take notice of us. Quite a crowd 
formed around the girls as they'd started entertaining a little boy. All they were doing was rolling a little toy car back and forth to each other, but it was as if they'd invented the wheel the way everyone was pointing, staring, smiling, taking pictures and wanting to talk to the girls. I've come 
to the conclusion that SIP (Suzhou Industrial Park) where we live, is developed, marketed and priced with the expats in mind. Old Town is where the real fun is had; one can see, buy and eat...well just about anything. We met up with Terry and his family, which was helpful. Wendy translated for us a couple of times and we tried a couple of new food items. 
We also saw a couple of food items that in my opinion are not food items, but rather garden pests. When I was gawking at a cute little girl I noticed she was munching on a snack. Upon closer examination, I discovered her snack-on-a-stick had legs, lots of legs. We found the vendor who was frying up the tasty 
treats and stood dumbfounded in front of the table, which was filled with beetles, cockroaches, centipedes, lizards, tarantulas, sea horses, scorpians and a couple of other unidentifiable critters. All were speared conveniently waiting to be fried up while you wait. I don't think my gagging noises were heard by too 
many people and for one brief millisecond I actually thought about 
trying one...NOT.
to the conclusion that SIP (Suzhou Industrial Park) where we live, is developed, marketed and priced with the expats in mind. Old Town is where the real fun is had; one can see, buy and eat...well just about anything. We met up with Terry and his family, which was helpful. Wendy translated for us a couple of times and we tried a couple of new food items. 
We also saw a couple of food items that in my opinion are not food items, but rather garden pests. When I was gawking at a cute little girl I noticed she was munching on a snack. Upon closer examination, I discovered her snack-on-a-stick had legs, lots of legs. We found the vendor who was frying up the tasty 
treats and stood dumbfounded in front of the table, which was filled with beetles, cockroaches, centipedes, lizards, tarantulas, sea horses, scorpians and a couple of other unidentifiable critters. All were speared conveniently waiting to be fried up while you wait. I don't think my gagging noises were heard by too 
many people and for one brief millisecond I actually thought about 
trying one...NOT. After a few games and cotton candy, we opted for some TGIF food. I wanted to stay until it got dark so to see the lit lanterns, but it was blisteringly cold and we'd had our fill of new experiences.
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